Delivered Through Christ’s Gift of Himself

Minister:
Date: AM
Text: Galatians 1:3-5
Psalters: 320, 390, 363, 282
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper
  1. The gift.
    1. The Lord Jesus Christ “gave Himself,” i.e., gave Himself up unto death: gave up His spirit.
      1. The Christ, Who is free from all sin, gave Himself; He was the perfect sacrifice.
      2. That Jesus gave Himself emphasizes that it was a voluntary.
    2. He gave Himself “for our sins.” i.e., in the place of, as a substitute.
      1. “Sins” is that which is committed against the Most High Majesty, earning from Him death, i.e., eternal wrath.
      2. These sins are an infinite number of willful violations of God’s Most High Majesty.
    3. Christ’s giving of Himself was “according to the will of God and our Father.”
  2. What is God’s purpose for willing Christ’s giving of Himself? “That He might deliver us from (out of) this present evil world.”
    1. That from which delivers His people is “the age, the present one, being evil.”
      1. “Age” denotes the world from the viewpoint of its historical development.
      2. That it is “present” means that it is now, current, and also near us, swirling around us which takes us up in its tide.
      3. It is “evil” in the sense of vicious and active.
    2. Jesus gave Himself unto death in order to “deliver” (snatch out, take out, rescue) us from this age.
      1. The word “out” is emphasized by being expressed twice.
      2. Jesus purchased us unto Himself so that we belong to Him now, and we do not belong to this age.
  3. The result is that blessings can be given to us.
    1. The content of the blessings (of which we are to be experientially aware): grace and peace.
    2. The further result is that all glory is given to God and to Jesus.