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The Amish Voice 5
you are slandered because you do not laugh at the dirty
jokes you overhear?
you turn the other cheek, only to be struck on the
other?
The next time that you are tempted to ask the
Why
question of
God, ask Him
How
instead. “Lord,
How
can I best glorify
You in this circumstance?”
“Blessed are you when men revile you, and persecute
you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on
account of Me. Rejoice, and be glad, for your reward
in heaven in great, for so they persecuted the
prophets who were before you” (Mt.5:11-12, NASB).
ILLUSTRATION:
If you need good directions to get somewhere, the last person
you want to ask is someone who is just as lost as you. Like
you, he needs a point of reference: how to get there from here.
The geographical heart of London is Charing Cross. All
distances are measured from it. This spot is referred to simply
as “the cross.” A lost child was one day picked up by a
London “bobby.” The child was unable to tell where he lived.
Finally, in response to the repeated questions of the bobby,
and amid his sobs and tears, the little fellow said, “If you will
take me to the cross I think I can find my way from there.”
The cross is the point where men become reconciled to God.
If we [are to] find our way to God and home we must first
come to the cross.
The only road sign that will do you any good is the one which
points you to the cross. There, the lost can be found.
4. CLOSING: A BENEDICTION OF GRACE (v.18).
Paul ends the letter to the Galatians abruptly. He will have no
more attacks upon his ministry nor upon the gospel of Christ.
The churches and their people need to repent and get rid of the
false teachers. Until then:
“Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with your spirit. Amen” (v.18).
ILLUSTRATION:
The choice is clear: either we choose a life that is bound to the
law and its legalism, or we choose to bind our fate to the grace
of God.
Lillie Baltrip is a good bus driver. In fact, according to the
Fort Worth Star-Telegram of June 17, 1988, the Houston
school district nominated her for a safe-driving award. Her
colleagues even trusted her to drive a busload of them to an
awards ceremony for safe drivers. Unfortunately, on the
way to the ceremony, Lillie turned a corner too sharply and
flipped the bus over, sending herself and sixteen others to
the hospital for minor emergency treatment.
Did Lillie, accident free for the whole year, get her award
anyway? No. Award committees rarely operate on the
principle of grace. How fortunate we are that even when we
don’t maintain a spotless life-record, our final reward
depends on God’s grace, and not on our performance!
PERSONAL JOURNAL NOTES
(Reflection & Response)
1. The most important thing that I learned from this lesson was:
2. The area that I need to work on the most is:
3. I can apply this lesson to my life by:
4. Closing Statement of Commitment:
QUESTIONS:
1. What is the secret to the power of the cross?
2. What kind of life is lived by a Christian who avoids the
cross?
3. How do you cultivate a habit of living through the cross?
QUESTIONS:
1. How would you describe grace?
2. Are you convinced of God’s unconditional love for you—
even when you make a mistake? How can you be sure?
3. Grace is God’s gift to you. What can you give Him in
return?
SUMMARY:
Is the cross your point of reference? In order to get a better
focus of the cross, you need to remember these major points:
1. An important section—Paul himself writes.
2. False ministers make a good impression outwardly—in
the flesh—seeking popularity.
3. True ministers boast in the cross of Christ.
4. Closing: a benediction of grace.
This marks our last study in the book of Galatians. We hope
you have enjoyed the studies as much as we have. Even more,
we sincerely pray that God used the studies to raise you up and
place you on higher ground for God’s eternal glory and power.
If you missed even one during the past three years, let us know
and we will mail you a copy. Otherwise, seriously consider
investing your money in the entire POSB commentary set on
page 6. I honestly do not know where you could get such a
wealth of information for the price.
—God bless you! Joe Keim