I want to remind you today that God's intention for humanity, in fact God's eternal purpose, was to create a people for his own glory that would reflect his character and their interpersonal relationships with one another and into creation. And while that purpose was delayed in Adam because of the fall, it wasn't frustrated because God had every intention of providing a means of redemption. And that promise of redemption for humanity was given to Abraham, that through his seed, that God would redeem humanity. In Genesis 12, Genesis 18, and again in Genesis 22, God promised Abraham, in your seed, all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. and your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed." So God has promised to redeem his purpose, to redeem humanity and his purpose for humanity through the seed. Now let's fast forward to Galatians chapter 3. What I want you to grasp here is that God's purpose for humanity has been fully met in the person of Jesus Christ. Galatians 3.16 reads this way, Now, the promises, which I just read to you in Genesis 12, 18, and 22, were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, and to your seeds, as referring to many, but rather to one, and to your seed, that is, Christ. And then Paul goes on to say in verse 17, and what I am saying is this, the law which came 430 years later does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God so as to abolish the promise. The law was given through Moses to Israel as a covenant to Israel, to the nation of Israel through whom came the Messiah, through whom came the seed. Very important. But the inheritance is not by law, he says in verse 18. For if the inheritance is by law, it is no longer by promise. But God has granted it to Abraham through promise. God promised to redeem humanity. Verse 19, why the law then? It was added because of trespasses, having been ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made. Jesus Christ is the seed of Abraham to whom the promise was made. that through him, humanity and thus God's purpose, God's intention for humanity would be redeemed and restored. In the person of Jesus Christ, God's glorious intention for humanity, God's glorious purpose for humanity has been realized. Now, drop down to verse 26, verse 24 actually. Now, this is not a chronological, a personal chronology here. This is a redemptive chronology. In other words, faith has come. We are no longer under law. We are no longer under the tutor because we have the seed who has come, Christ. A lot of people still think, a lot of people still interpret this verse to say that you have to come through the law to get to Christ, and that's not at all what Paul is saying. Quite on the contrary, he is saying, verse 25, but now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus." We are not sons of God through law. We are sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And not just sons of God in some sentimental fashion, but in a genuine sharing and partaking in the divine nature through Christ Jesus. Verse 27, for all of you who were baptized in Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is no male or female and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, mark this down now, then you are Abraham's seed, heirs according to the promise. Everything that God promised to Abraham has been fulfilled in Jesus, and we are in Jesus, therefore it has been fulfilled in us, even though it has not yet been fully realized. I hope you listen to this brief little exhortation several times so you can come to understand the glory of the position that you are in in Christ Jesus. God has fulfilled his purpose for humanity in Jesus Christ. And one day, because we are in him, it will be fully realized We will have redeemed bodies, glorified bodies that are like His. We will be in a new heaven and a new earth. There is so much glory yet to come. But that doesn't take away at all from the fact that we are now children of God in Christ Jesus. That God's glorious redemptive purposes have been met in Christ and are being met in us because we are in Christ. John says it this way in his first epistle beginning in chapter 3. See or look or behold how great a love the Father has given to us that we would be called children of God. Now once again, he is not referring there to children of God in some sentimental universal fashion. He is speaking very specifically of those who are in Christ, who participate with Christ, who are being conformed into his image, who share Christ's nature. We have a new nature in Christ. We are a new creation in Christ. We are a new humanity in Christ. We are the children of God, and we are, he says. For this reason, the world does not know us because it did not know him. That was verse one, chapter three of 1 John. Listen, if the world knows you, and you know the world, and you get along fine with the world, that's a problem. because that's not what happened with Jesus. And anybody who is in Christ ought to walk as he walked, talk as he talked, act as he acted, be as he was in the world. And frankly, the world hated him and will hate us too. But we continue to do the will of the Father. We continue to speak the truth in love. We continue to be Christ into the world. Not because of how they will respond, nor do we try to manipulate how they will respond. But the world does not know us because it did not know Him. Verse 2, Beloved, now we are children of God and it has not yet been manifested what we will be. We know that when he is manifested, we will be like him because we will see him just as he is. The day is coming, my friends, if you are in Christ, when you will see Jesus in his glorified state. And when you see him in that time, it'll be because you are there with him and you too are sharing fully in his glory, in his glorification. Verse three. Now here's where Christian recovery comes in. And everyone who has this hope fixed on him purifies himself just as he is pure. The Christian life, beloved, is not about romance, finance, self-realization, or attaining the American dream. It's not even about ministry success. It's not about building a big church. It is about becoming like Jesus. That is where our hope lies. Our hope is in the fact that God has fulfilled his promise to Abraham in Jesus Christ. And because we are in him, that promise has been fulfilled in us as well, because we are in Christ, the seed of Abraham. Our hope, therefore, is in the fullness of our redemption yet to be fully realized, though it is at work within us now. We are in a now and not yet state. This is our motivation. Our motivation is that our hope is not fixed on the things of this world. As important as family is, it's not family. As important as our careers may be, it is not our career. As important as trying to make a difference in society could be, that's not our hope. Our hope is fixed on Jesus and becoming like him. And when you grasp this, when you are fully able to grasp this reality, that God is at work in you right now conforming you into the image of his son in thought, word, deed, and character. You will realize that and that hope will well up inside of you and you will be motivated to purify yourself from anything that's not him. See, this just makes the simplicity and purity of devotion so easy to grasp because you're simply focused on Jesus and anything that's not Him pales in comparison to Him. When you understand that, all your longings, all your longings for marriage and for family, for meaningful work, whatever other legitimate longings that we can have as human beings, all find their place and they all are secondary to the hope that we have, the passion that we develop for becoming like Jesus. Because that is God's paramount purpose in your life. It is the purpose for which he causes all things to work together for good. Perhaps you're not in Christ. Perhaps you're listening to the sound of my voice, and you have yet to come to Christ, to place your faith in Him. Let me encourage you to do that today, to be done with the old Adamic way of living, the way of rebellion, the way of chaos, pain, and misery, because trust me, my friend, it's not going to get any better. You're staring death in the face, and you're staring eternal death as well. Come to Christ today. Cry out to God for mercy. Ask Him to draw you to His Son and grant you the gift of faith so that you can see the beauty of Jesus. Place your faith in Him. Come to a full repentance from sin and embrace your salvation and the promise of a full redemption that is yours today and gives you the hope that one day One day you too will experience the full realization of a redeemed humanity. Amen.