Week 2 of our "Set Free" Galatians series. Today we won't even mention Galatians—we're setting up framework by looking at PAUL'S STORY.
Satan uses our past as a weapon against us in two ways:

Believers plagued by their past - Every time they sin, they remember who they've been. It holds them from recovering, from coming to God for forgiveness and guidance.

Keeps people from coming to Christ - Their past convinces them they're too far gone.

PAUL'S PAST:
Acts 8:1-2 - "Saul APPROVED the stoning of Stephen." Stephen was the first martyr of the church—a good, honorable, godly man. Paul was there and APPROVED his killing.

Acts 8:3 - "Saul started making trouble for the church. He went from house to house, arresting men and women and putting them in jail."

Acts 22:4-5 - Paul recounts: "I persecuted followers of the Lord's Way. I had them arrested and put in jail. I even voted for them to be killed."

Paul was going to Damascus with authority to arrest believers. But on that road, Jesus met him.

THE DAMASCUS ROAD:
"Saul, Saul, why do you PERSECUTE ME?"
Paul: "Who are you, Lord?"
"I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting."

When Paul persecutes the church, he's persecuting JESUS. When you harm God's people, you harm Christ.

And Paul CHANGES. Completely. Post-conversion Paul writes most of our New Testament.

1 TIMOTHY 1:15-16:
"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—and I am the WORST of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of His great patience."

PAUL'S SIN ISN'T UNIQUE:
Paul says he's the WORST sinner. But is he? Is Paul's sin worse than Jeffrey Dahmer's? Than Hitler's? Than yours? Than mine?

Paul is looking at his sin and recognizing: ALL sin is equally heinous in God's eyes. Murder, lying, gossip, it's ALL the same.

And if God can forgive PAUL, the chief of sinners, He can forgive ANYONE.

THE POINT:
You've been set free from your past. But Jesus never promises a free RIDE.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 - God comforts us so we can comfort others with the same comfort we received.

Your past, all the garbage, all the pain, all the sin, GOD USES IT. He uses it to set someone ELSE free.

Paul's past made him uniquely qualified to preach grace. Your past makes you uniquely qualified to reach people NO ONE ELSE can reach.

BOTTOM LINE:
Can you be set free from your past? YES. Paul is proof.
But God doesn't waste your past. He USES it. Use your freedom to set someone else free.

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0:00 - Introduction: Set Free Series Framework
1:00 - Not Mentioning Galatians Today
2:00 - Satan Uses Our Past Against Us
3:00 - Who Was Paul/Saul?
4:00 - Acts 8:1-2 - Saul Approved Stephen's Stoning
5:00 - Acts 8:3 - House to House Arrests
6:00 - Acts 22:4-5 - Paul Recounts His Past
7:00 - The Damascus Road Conversion
8:00 - "Saul, Saul, Why Do You Persecute ME?"
9:00 - Persecuting the Church = Persecuting Jesus
10:00 - Paul Changes Completely
11:00 - 1 Timothy 1:15-16 - Worst of Sinners
12:00 - Is Paul's Sin Worse Than Others?
13:00 - All Sin Equally Heinous to God
14:00 - If God Can Forgive Paul, He Can Forgive Anyone
15:00 - Jesus Never Promises a Free Ride
16:00 - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 - Comfort Others
17:00 - God Uses Your Past
18:00 - Use Your Freedom to Set Others Free
19:00 - Closing Challenge

Today we start a new sermon series on the book of Galatians.
The subtitle: SET FREE.
Galatians is probably one of Paul's earliest letters, written to a group of churches in a region called Galatia.

THE PROBLEM:
Galatians 1:6-7 - "I am SHOCKED that you are turning away so soon from God who called you through the loving mercy of Christ. You're following a DIFFERENT WAY that pretends to be the good news, but it's not the good news at all. You're being fooled by those who deliberately TWIST the truth concerning Christ."

Paul starts right off: "You guys are following a different gospel."

WHAT WAS THE "OTHER GOSPEL"?
Acts 15 tells us. Some men from Judea taught: "Unless you're CIRCUMCISED as required by the law of Moses, you CANNOT BE SAVED."
When you become a Christian, you first have to become JEWISH.
It's hard for some to break with tradition they learned all their life. They grew up being Jews. They followed the law. They couldn't conceive of NOT following the law.

The basic truth of the Old Testament doesn't change: Man sinned. Man broke relationship with God. God had mercy and received mankind back through GOD'S GRACE and through MAN'S FAITH.

So they went a step farther: "If you want to follow Jesus, you must become a good Jew just like us."
I'm sure in their minds, they were trying to be good Christians.
BUT PAUL SAW DEEPER.

For Paul, the basic question was: Is Christianity a SECT of Judaism? (Like being a Pharisee or Sadducee?) Or is this something TOTALLY NEW?
All of Jesus' first disciples were good Jewish men. So it's natural to think as the church grows, everybody should become a good Jewish man.
But Paul's answer: NO. This is something TOTALLY NEW. COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.

HOW SERIOUS IS THIS?
Galatians 1:8-10 - "Let God's curse fall on ANYONE—including us or even an angel from heaven—who preaches a DIFFERENT kind of good news. I say again: If anyone preaches any other good news, let that person be CURSED."

This isn't Paul saying "I'd really prefer you didn't do that." This is Paul saying: "If you follow a different gospel, you are CURSED."
TWO GOSPELS COMPARED:
PAUL'S GOSPEL:

Comes by God's GRACE
Requires FAITH in Christ
Results in obedience to the LAW OF CHRIST (love God, love others)

THE OTHER GOSPEL (Judaizers):
Also comes by grace of God
Requires OBEDIENCE TO THE LAW (Moses' law)
Results in following Old Testament requirements

Paul's gospel is about FOLLOWING CHRIST. The other gospel says you must SUBMIT TO THE LAW.

THE QUESTION:
Why would they EVER go back to submit to the law after experiencing freedom in Christ?

This series will explore what it means to be SET FREE in Christ.

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Final sermon in our forgiveness series. This isn't directly about forgiveness, it's about RESTORATION. But when you restore someone, forgiveness is almost always involved.

GALATIANS 6:1-5 gives us 5 things to do:

1. RESTORE GENTLY

Usually when we forgive, we're forgiving an offense against US. That brings up anger. But Paul says: forgive GENTLY.

Leave your anger at the door. Yes, you're angry. That's okay. But when you talk about forgiveness, that's NOT the time to express your anger.

Start with FACTS. "You did this." State what happened. THEN talk about feelings: "When you did this, this is how I felt."

Paul did this with Corinth (2 Corinthians). He stated facts, then explained how their actions made him feel.

2. WATCH YOURSELF

We don't forgive because we're so much better than the person we're forgiving. Frequently we're just as bad or even worse.

Examine your OWN actions. Even when we forgive, it's very important to set BOUNDARIES.

3. CARRY THE BURDEN WITH THEM

If they ask for forgiveness and you forgive, help them carry the burden of CONSEQUENCES.

Their action brings certain consequences. Help them understand those consequences. Walk through Matthew 18 process if needed: go to them, take witnesses, take to the church.

4. SET BOUNDARIES

Forgiveness ≠ reconciliation. You can forgive and still set boundaries.

If they say "I'm sorry, let's go back to the way things were," you can say NO. That's okay. Saying no is a RESPONSIBLE way to respond.

You might limit personal contact. They broke your trust. You no longer trust they won't do it again.

Examples:

• "We can get together once in a while, but weekly isn't right yet"
• Setting social media boundaries
• Limiting time/contact

5. LET THEM CARRY THEIR OWN LOAD

Galatians 6:2 - "Bear one another's burdens" Galatians 6:5 - "Each man shall bear his own burden"

Contradiction? NO. Two different Greek words.

Verse 2: "Share each other's BURDEN" (heavy crushing weight) Verse 5: "Each responsible for own CONDUCT" (personal pack/responsibility)

We help carry the CRUSHING burden. But they still carry responsibility for their OWN conduct.

Jesus said: "My yoke is easy, my burden is light." We can help carry the crushing weight. But they must carry their own responsibility.

BOTTOM LINE:

Forgive gently. Watch yourself. Carry the burden WITH them. Set boundaries. Let them carry their own load.

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HOW can we forgive?

THE HARD TRUTH: WE CAN'T. NOT ON OUR OWN.

Many of us say "I'll forgive anything...but I won't forgive THAT." We draw lines in the sand. We say "this far, but no further." Often it's something that impacts us or someone we love deeply.

Here's the truth: That line isn't real. Not in Jesus' book.

I don't think we CAN forgive in our human nature. Jesus calls us to such a high standard that it goes beyond our ability. It has to be THROUGH GOD working in you that you can even do it.

MATTHEW 18: PETER'S QUESTION
Peter asked: "How many times shall I forgive? Up to seven times?" (Seven = number of completion. Peter thought he was being generous.)
Jesus answered: "Not seven times, but SEVENTY TIMES SEVEN." (Or 77, depending on translation.)

Jesus isn't giving a literal number. He's saying: FOREVER FORGIVENESS. It's not quantifiable. It's infinite. It's complete.

WHY WE CAN'T DO IT:
Romans 3:10-12 - "None is righteous, no not one. No one understands. No one seeks God. All have turned aside. They've become worthless. No one does good, not even one."

This isn't just Paul. He's summarizing FOUR other Bible passages. This is an over-and-over theme: You're not good. I'm not good. The best person you know isn't good. We're incapable of good.

Yet we're asked to TOTALLY remove the transgressions people lay on us. Set it as far away as possible. Forgive quickly, in the moment. No number of times someone can wrong you where you finally say "Now we're done."

FORGIVENESS ≠ RECONCILIATION

Reconciliation = restoration of relationship. Everything made right. Moving forward as friends, hand in hand.

Forgiveness = in HERE (your heart). I'm not gonna hold that anymore. I'm not counting it against you.

Forgiveness doesn't mean I put myself in a position where you can do it again. BUT, sometimes it MIGHT mean that. Maybe that's between you and God.

THE HILARIOUS PART:
You can't do it yourself (everything you do is evil in your flesh). YET through God you CAN. AND YET...you HAVE to.

God loves doing that. "You can't do it. Only God can. But you totally have to though."

MATTHEW 18:23-35: PARABLE OF THE UNFORGIVING SERVANT
A king forgave a servant's MASSIVE debt (10,000 bags of gold—unpayable). That same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him a tiny amount. Refused to show mercy. Had him thrown in jail.

The king called him back: "You wicked servant! I canceled your ENTIRE debt because you begged me. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had on you?"

The king handed him over to jailers to be tortured until he paid back everything.

The point: God forgave you an UNPAYABLE debt. How can you not forgive others?

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Jesus commands us to forgive, not seven times, but seventy times seven. But why is forgiveness so HARD?

TWO GREEK WORDS FOR FORGIVENESS:

Aphiēmi (147 times in NT, 42 times from Jesus) - Means "to LEAVE something." Leave behind our emotional tie to the offense.

Charizomai (24 times, all in Paul) - Means "to show MERCY." Give mercy to others like God gave us mercy.

Forgiveness = Leave the emotional tie + Show mercy.

WHY IS FORGIVENESS HARD?
Not because of what forgiveness IS. It's the UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS we pile onto it.

MYTH #1: "Forgive and Forget"
The Bible NEVER says this. We're wired to REMEMBER.
Experiment: Remember 35. Now forget it. What's the number? We can't forget.

BUT we CAN stop BRINGING UP the offense. We can leave that behind.
Emotional abuse is hard because we RELIVE it. In the wee hours of the morning, we relive that episode. We're abused hundreds of times because we relive it constantly.

GOOD NEWS: You don't have to. You can forgive and leave that emotional tie behind.

MYTH #2: Forgiveness Means Denying It Happened
NO. The offense happened. The offense hurt.

PETER'S STORY:
1 Corinthians 15: Jesus appeared to Peter PRIVATELY before the 12.
Peter said "I'll never betray you!" Hours later, denied Jesus THREE TIMES. Wept bitterly—heart-wracking sobs.

Jesus sought Peter out. "Did you deny me three times? Yes. That happened. But I forgive you."

Jesus didn't DENY it. He ACKNOWLEDGED it, then FORGAVE.

Forgiveness isn't pretending it didn't happen. It's leaving the emotional tie behind and showing mercy.

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0:00 - Introduction: Four Pastors, One Church
2:00 - Finishing "All That I've Commanded" Series
3:00 - Luke 17: Forgive Seven Times a Day
4:00 - Two Greek Words for "Forgive"
5:00 - Aphiēmi: To LEAVE Something
6:00 - Charizomai: To Show MERCY
7:00 - What We Leave Behind: Emotional Tie to Offense
8:00 - Why Is Forgiveness So Hard?
9:00 - Myth #1: "Forgive and Forget"
10:00 - The 35 Experiment: We're Wired to Remember
11:00 - Emotional Abuse: Reliving the Offense
12:00 - Peter's Private Meeting with Jesus
13:00 - Peter's Promise: "I'll Never Betray You"
14:00 - Peter Wept Bitterly
15:00 - What Did Jesus and Peter Talk About?
16:00 - Jesus Acknowledged It, Then Forgave
17:00 - Forgiveness Doesn't Mean Denying It Happened

#ForgivenessIsHard #ForgiveAndForget #CanYouForgive #LeaveItBehind #ShowMercy #NewHopeChurch #PastorRandy #SundaySermon #ForgivenessSermon #EmotionalTie #PeterDeniedJesus #JesusForgave #BiblicalForgiveness #HowToForgive #WhyForgiveHard

He is risen! This is the biggest holiday we celebrate, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe in a God who is intrinsically active in His creation. He made the earth, looked at it, and said "It's GOOD." He made man and woman in His image as His ambassadors, to enjoy life, work, food, relationship. One rule: Don't eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Then Satan slithered in with three lies (the same ones he uses today):
(1) God isn't trustworthy,
(2) There's hidden knowledge you need,
(3) It will make you like God.

Eve ate. Adam ate. Their eyes opened. They saw their nakedness, their shame, their sin. Their relationship with God was SEVERED. This sin was sewn into our DNA, every child after would suffer the same.

God cursed Satan, Adam, and Eve. But He promised: "One day her son will crush your head. You'll strike his heel, but he'll crush your head."

SIN DESTROYED EVERYTHING:
God reset with Noah and the flood. But Noah was a sinner too. Tower of Babel, humanity tried to make a great name for themselves. God scattered them according to the sons of God (that's where pagan nations and their gods came from).

Heaven marred by sin. Earth marred by sin. Sin ruins everything it touches.
God chose Abraham (who couldn't even have kids!) and said, "Through YOUR bloodline, I'm going to save the world. The seed of the woman will come through you."

The whole Old Testament is waiting for that Messianic figure, the Savior who will save us from sin and death. We thought it might be David. Nope. Every guy we thought might be THE guy fell apart.

THEN CAME JESUS:
Born of a virgin. Holy Spirit. God Himself (triune God). Lived the perfect life we can't live. And we KILLED Him for it.

Why? Because He preached things like "Love your enemy" and "If you follow me, you'll die to yourself." People wanted a warlord to save them from Rome. So they killed Him.

But Jesus PREDICTED it. He said it would be like Jonah, in the belly of the great sea beast for three days, then brought out. He predicted His own death and resurrection.

He died. Three days later, He rose from the dead. THAT'S what we celebrate today.

He conquered sin and death. He paid the toll we owed (our lives). He lived the perfect life we were expected to live. All the work is COMPLETED.

BUT WHY? WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT?
Isaiah 59:2 - "Your iniquities have separated you from your God. Your sins have hidden His face from you so that He will not hear you."
God is GOOD. He wants His creation to be GOOD.

It would be one thing for Jesus to just save us from death. But that's not all He does. As Westerners, we often stop there: "Yeah, I'm saved by Jesus." But that's not the POINT.

The point of saving you is to RESTORE YOUR RELATIONSHIP with the God of the universe.

Sin separated us from God. Jesus' death and resurrection didn't just save us from hell, it RECONCILED us to God. It brought us BACK into relationship with Him.

That's the gospel. That's why Easter matters. He is risen indeed.
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Companion Podcasts:
Daily Devotional: "Let's Find Out Together"
Apologetics: "Salty Saints"

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Jesus' final command: "Go and make disciples." But discipleship starts at HOME. Parents are priests over their households, responsible for their children's spiritual development.

THE WEIGHT ON OVERSEERS:
Hebrews 13:17 - Overseers must give an account for your spiritual wellbeing. 1 Peter 5:1-4 - Shepherd God's flock, not for gain but willingly. Acts 20:28-31 - The church was bought with God's blood (like watching a Ferrari). Savage wolves will come. James 3:1 - Teachers judged more strictly.

BUT YOU'RE A PRIEST TOO:
1 Peter 2:9 - ALL believers are a royal priesthood. Parents are priests over their households. You'll stand before God and give an account for how well you led your children to Christ.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY:
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 - Impress commands on your children at ALL times (sitting, walking, lying down, rising). Tie on hands (actions), bind on foreheads (thoughts), write on doorframes (house emanates Christ).
Ephesians 6:4 - Bring them up in training and instruction of the Lord.
Genesis 18:18-19 - Abraham chosen to DIRECT his children and household. God entrusts bloodlines to faithful people passing down teachings.
Proverbs 22:6 - Direct children onto right path; when older, they won't leave it.

Luke 6:40 - Student becomes like their teacher. YOU'RE the teacher.

THE PROBLEM:
Parents drop kids at Sunday school—that's the ONLY time they hear about Jesus. When kids ask Bible questions, parents say "Go ask your pastor." YOU are their pastor. Church gets them for 1 hour/week. The world gets them 24/7.

If you're not discipling your kids, the WORLD IS. It's not asking permission. It's raising them in ITS image.
Many talk about "Jesus" on social media, but it's not the biblical Jesus. Kids are left to their own devices, forming conclusions from Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, school, friends.

THE SOLUTION:
Start with YOUR household first, then radiate outward: You → Family → Friends → Workplace → Strangers. Don't jump from A to Z.
Joshua 24:14-15 - "Choose this day whom you will serve... As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

What gods are in YOUR household? TV? Fox News? MSNBC? Podcasts? Nintendo Switch? What do your kids see you doing?
Go ALL IN on Jesus. Start reading the Bible with your kids TODAY. Lay a foundation. When they hit rock bottom later, they'll have something to stand on.

Church won't raise your kids into Christians. YOU will. And if you don't have the grounding yourself, you can't give what you don't possess.

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Jesus commands: "Don't assume." He says it several ways: Don't assume you know what I'm going to say. Don't be surprised by what I say. Don't think like everybody else and assume that's right.

THREE TIMES JESUS SAID "DON'T ASSUME":

1. John 3 - Nicodemus: "Don't be surprised when I say you must be born ANŌTHEN" (from above OR again). Nicodemus heard "again." Jesus meant "from above."
2. Matthew 10: "Don't assume I came to bring peace. I came to bring a sword." Follow Him anyway—even if it brings division.
3. Matthew 5: "Don't misunderstand—I didn't come to abolish the Law. I came to accomplish its purpose."

THREE THINGS WE ASSUME:

1. WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS DONE IS RIGHT Mark 7: Pharisees got mad disciples didn't wash hands before eating. But the OT NEVER commanded this. Pharisees took a priest tradition and applied it to everyone, dividing people into "holy ones" and "sinners." Jesus called them HYPOCRITES. Yesterday's solutions become today's problems.

2. WE KNOW OTHERS' MOTIVATIONS Joshua 22: Two tribes built an altar. Israel prepared for WAR—assuming rebellion. But they TALKED first. Turns out it was a memorial, not for sacrifice. Israel assumed WRONG. Mind reading is NOT a spiritual gift.

3. INTELLIGENT PEOPLE AGREE WITH US Romans 12:2 - We're prone to GROUP THINK. We listen to people who agree until we're convinced everyone agrees. Paul says: Be TRANSFORMED. Let God change the way you think.

HOW TO AVOID ASSUMPTIONS:

1. Recognize mind reading is NOT a spiritual gift
2. Celebrate differences of opinion (Romans 14)
3. Believe the best of others until proven wrong (Romans 12:10)

BOTTOM LINE: Don't assume. TALK. COMMUNICATE.

Conversations may be awkward. Do them anyway.

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