The Predatory Nature of Tension

Title: Gospel Community
Speaker: Nate Holdridge
Text: Galatians 6:1-5

Galatians Theme: Galatians describes a life that is free. It is a life in flight. If we cling to the true gospel, if we accept it for what it is, we can fly. But Paul wrote Galatians because the Galatian believers—and all future believers—were in danger. If we adulterate the gospel, if we add to it in any way, we will not fly. Like a bird chained in a birdcage, we will (at best) hinder ourselves from flying into God's ideal for our lives or (at worst) hinder ourselves and others from true salvation.

Overview:And all this burden-bearing and gentle restoration is only possible in a gospel church. Without the cross, we are fossilized into an environment and culture of legalistic human effort. This leads to an unwillingness to help others, along with an allergy to vulnerable transparency. Soon, the very community that should have loved and saved and healed and lifted burdens like Jesus did becomes a burden in itself. So we must keep our focus on Jesus and his wonderful cross so that we can be a blessing on others' journeys and be blessed on our own.

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