Boasting in the Cross: Embracing New Creation

Devotional

Day 1: Boasting in the Cross Alone

The cross of Christ is the sole ground for our boasting, as it signifies our death to the world and the world's death to us. This death is not an end but a beginning, as it leads to a new creation where our identity is rooted in Christ, not in external achievements or markers. The cross represents a profound transformation, where the world's power to define or destroy us is nullified. Instead of relying on external markers or personal achievements, our identity and worth are rooted in the new creation brought about by faith in Christ. This new identity liberates us from the need to prove ourselves through worldly accomplishments, allowing us to rest in the finished work of Christ. [02:58]

Galatians 2:20 (ESV): "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

Reflection: What worldly achievements or markers do you find yourself boasting in? How can you shift your focus to boast in the cross of Christ today?

Day 2: Living as a New Creation

The new creation is a life of faith in Christ, characterized by love in action. This faith is not merely intellectual assent but a transformative trust that reshapes our lives and relationships, fulfilling the law through love. As new creations, we are called to live out our faith actively, allowing it to manifest in acts of love and service to others. This transformation is not just personal but communal, as it calls us to engage with others in a way that reflects the love of Christ. Our faith becomes evident through our actions, demonstrating the reality of the new creation in our lives. [10:45]

2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV): "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."

Reflection: In what ways can you actively demonstrate your faith through love today? Consider a specific action you can take to serve someone in your community.

Day 3: Freedom from the World's Power

The world's power to define or destroy us is nullified by the cross. When we die to the world, we are freed from its constraints and empowered to live a life of faith and love, impervious to its attempts to control or condemn us. This freedom allows us to live authentically as followers of Christ, unburdened by the need to conform to worldly standards or expectations. The cross liberates us from the fear of judgment and the pressure to perform, enabling us to embrace our true identity in Christ and live boldly for Him. [09:05]

Colossians 3:3-4 (ESV): "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."

Reflection: What pressures or expectations from the world are you currently facing? How can you embrace the freedom found in the cross to live authentically in Christ?

Day 4: True Obedience through Love

True obedience is not about external conformity to the law but about living by faith, which expresses itself through love. This love fulfills the law, as it is the essence of God's commandments and the mark of the new creation. Our obedience to God is demonstrated not through rigid adherence to rules but through a life characterized by love and compassion for others. This love is the fulfillment of the law, as it reflects the heart of God and His desire for us to live in harmony with Him and one another. [13:51]

Romans 13:10 (ESV): "Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

Reflection: How can you shift your focus from rule-following to love-driven obedience? Identify a specific relationship where you can practice this kind of love today.

Day 5: The Communal Transformation of the Cross

The transformation brought by the cross is both personal and communal. It calls us to live out our faith in love towards others, creating a community that reflects the new creation in Christ, where love is the fulfilling of the law. As members of the body of Christ, we are called to support and encourage one another, building a community that embodies the love and grace of God. This communal aspect of our faith is essential, as it allows us to grow together and reflect the transformative power of the cross to the world around us. [15:45]

Ephesians 4:15-16 (ESV): "Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love."

Reflection: How can you contribute to building a community that reflects the new creation in Christ? Consider a specific way you can encourage or support someone in your church this week.

Sermon Summary

In Galatians 6:14-15, Paul contrasts the boasting of false teachers in their fleshly achievements with his own boast in the cross of Christ. The false teachers were focused on outward signs like circumcision to avoid persecution and to make a good showing in the flesh. However, Paul emphasizes that true boasting should be in the cross of Christ, which transforms our lives and redefines our identity. The cross signifies a profound shift: the world is crucified to us, and we to the world. This means that the world's power to define or destroy us is nullified. Instead of relying on external markers or personal achievements, our identity and worth are rooted in the new creation brought about by faith in Christ.

Paul's message is that neither circumcision nor uncircumcision holds any value; what truly matters is becoming a new creation. This new creation is characterized by a life of faith in Christ, which manifests as love in action. This faith is not passive but active, fulfilling the law through love. The transformation brought by the cross is not just a personal experience but a communal one, as it calls us to live out our faith in love towards others. This is the essence of the new creation: a life lived in the power of the Spirit, free from the constraints of the law, and fully alive in Christ.

Key Takeaways

1. The cross of Christ is the sole ground for our boasting, as it signifies our death to the world and the world's death to us. This death is not an end but a beginning, as it leads to a new creation where our identity is rooted in Christ, not in external achievements or markers. [02:58]
2. The new creation is a life of faith in Christ, characterized by love in action. This faith is not merely intellectual assent but a transformative trust that reshapes our lives and relationships, fulfilling the law through love. [10:45]
3. The world's power to define or destroy us is nullified by the cross. When we die to the world, we are freed from its constraints and empowered to live a life of faith and love, impervious to its attempts to control or condemn us. [09:05]
4. True obedience is not about external conformity to the law but about living by faith, which expresses itself through love. This love fulfills the law, as it is the essence of God's commandments and the mark of the new creation. [13:51]
5. The transformation brought by the cross is both personal and communal. It calls us to live out our faith in love towards others, creating a community that reflects the new creation in Christ, where love is the fulfilling of the law. [15:45]
** [15:45]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:29] - Introduction to Galatians 6:12-15
[01:21] - False Teachers and Boasting in the Flesh
[01:43] - Paul's Boast in the Cross
[02:07] - Persecution and the Cross
[02:38] - The Cross and Its Effects
[03:24] - Questioning the Text
[04:19] - The Cross and Death to the World
[05:15] - New Creation vs. Obliteration
[06:23] - Union with Christ in Death
[07:09] - Living by Faith
[08:18] - The World Crucified to Us
[09:23] - New Creation and Life in Christ
[11:39] - Faith Working Through Love
[13:35] - Love as Fulfillment of the Law
[14:53] - Summary and Conclusion

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
- Galatians 6:14-15
- Galatians 2:20
- Galatians 5:6

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Observation Questions:

What does Paul mean when he says he boasts only in the cross of Christ? How does this contrast with the boasting of the false teachers? [01:43]
According to Galatians 6:14, what are the two effects of the cross on Paul's relationship with the world? [02:58]
In Galatians 5:6, what does Paul say is the only thing that counts in Christ Jesus? How does this relate to the concept of a new creation? [11:39]
How does Paul describe his life after being crucified with Christ in Galatians 2:20? What role does faith play in this new life? [06:53]

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Interpretation Questions:

How does Paul's understanding of the cross redefine what it means to be a new creation? What implications does this have for a believer's identity? [05:56]
In what ways does the cross nullify the world's power to define or destroy us, according to the sermon? How might this understanding affect a believer's daily life? [09:05]
How does Paul’s emphasis on faith working through love challenge the notion of external religious markers as a measure of spiritual worth? [11:39]
What does it mean for love to fulfill the law, and how does this relate to the concept of living by faith? [13:51]

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Application Questions:

Reflect on your own life: Are there any "fleshly achievements" or external markers you find yourself boasting in? How can you shift your focus to boasting in the cross of Christ instead? [01:43]
Consider a situation where you feel defined or constrained by the world's standards. How can the truth that the world is crucified to you change your perspective and actions in that situation? [02:58]
Identify a relationship or community where you can actively demonstrate "faith working through love." What specific actions can you take this week to live out this principle? [11:39]
Think about a time when you relied on external conformity to feel righteous or accepted. How can you embrace the freedom of living by faith and love instead? [13:51]
How can you cultivate a deeper understanding of your identity as a new creation in Christ? What practices or habits might help reinforce this identity in your daily life? [05:56]
Reflect on a recent challenge or trial. How does the knowledge that the world's power to destroy you is nullified by the cross provide comfort or strength in facing it? [09:05]
In what ways can you encourage others in your community to live out their faith through love, creating a communal experience of the new creation? [15:45]

Sermon Clips

Father I pray that as we focus here on Galatians you would transform our old boasting in ourselves and in our achievements into the new boast in Christ and His Cross and show us the richness of that here the depths of it the ground of it the fruit of it in lives of love and perform it upright don't just show it to us perform it in us I pray by your spirit through your word now in Jesus name Amen. [00:41:15]

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ so up here they were trying not to be persecuted for the cross of Christ and persecution for the cross of Christ rises when you say that the performance of the flesh here namely the requirement of circumcision does not count for anything in your standing with God which strips people of their boast in themselves. [01:38:03]

When you strip away from people everything they've been counting on or boasting in to get right with God you make people angry and the result is persecution and so people don't tend to boast in the cross they tend to boast make a good showing the flesh and and a boast in the flesh and Paul says I'm not going to do that I'm gonna focus right here on the cross and my boast is going to be in the cross alone. [02:20:36]

By which the world has been crucified to me that's one effect and I have been crucified to the world for neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but a new creature straight from our lick looking at this text is question asking and then a trail of clues to answer questions this is what I do all the time in reading the Bible I post questions and then I track down trails of clues that would shed light on what the text is asking. [03:07:22]

How is it that the cross of Christ produces Paul's death the world has been crucified to me and I have been crucified to the world well so he's only referred to the cross of Christ and now he's talking about his death that's my first question huh how do you get from the the cross of Christ where Christ died to the world dying being crucified to me and I being crucified to the world. [04:06:07]

I have been crucified with Christ it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me and the life I now live okay he is living in the flesh I live by faith so faith here is probably the key how this union of Christ dying and my dying become one by faith in Christ when he dies I die his death is counted as my death. [06:43:03]

If you have died you have died to the world that means I presume that you have become dead or impervious or insensitive or free from the power of the world to just to destroy you I died to the world and if the world has lost its power to destroy you because you have to it then another way to say that would be the world itself has died to me it can't destroy me anymore. [08:21:29]

I died and yet Christ is alive this is new Christ is alive in me and if he's alive in me then I somehow have life the life I now live yes I do live even though I died I live but I'm living in the flesh that is in my bodily existence and I live by faith I wasn't doing that before that the old me that died was not living by faith it was living by flesh by self-reliance. [09:51:08]

The new creation here is me alive by faith I know there's more to it than that I know the whole world is going to be a new creation but here in this context i dying to the world the world dying to me neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but what counts is a new creation and that new creation is a life of faith. [10:50:08]

Neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but only faith working through love now did you hear how closely parallel that is back here neither circumcision this is 6:15 neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but a new creature in 5/6 neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but only faith instead of a new creation he says faith working through love. [11:47:21]

Paul doesn't want to boast in himself or in the flesh or in law-keeping or in circumcision he wants to boast in the cross of the Lord Jesus because the cross of the Lord Jesus even though it brings persecution strips him of all grounds for self boasting and puts the boasting entirely on Jesus and in Jesus by faith he dies to the world that can destroy him and the world dies in its power to destroy him. [14:46:46]

In this faith in Christ he works by love and in working by love he fulfills the law and does and thus does the new commandments which are neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counting for anything but only the keeping of the commandments of God. [15:41:87]

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Boasting in the Cross: Embracing New Creation

Devotional

Day 1: Boasting in the Cross Alone

Day 2: Living as a New Creation

Day 3: Freedom from the World's Power

Day 4: True Obedience through Love

Day 5: The Communal Transformation of the Cross

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

Boasting in the Cross: Embracing New Creation

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