Class Outline:

Sunday February 20,2023

Long ago in England, a wise and just king ruled the land.  His name was King Uther. Times were good and the people lived well.  King Uther wanted a magician at court. And so he chose the famous Merlin the Magician.  Merlin could see into the future. And he knew those good days were not going to last.

King Uther and the Queen Guinevere had a child, a baby son.  At a castle party for the royal birth, Merlin the Magician took the King aside.  He said, “Sire, there is something you must know. Soon a great darkness will fall over this land.  Your child is in great danger. Let me take the baby far away. I will be sure he stays safe.”

“Merlin!” said the King in surprise. “You are a great magician.  And you are my friend. But there is no way we would let anyone take our child away!”

Sadly, soon after the child’s birth the Queen died.  Not long after, King Uther was killed in battle. That very night, Merlin swept into the castle and took the child.  The next morning, the royal nurse went into the nursery. Alas, an empty crib! In fear, the nurse, the nobles and servants looked everywhere.  But the baby was gone!

For years, there was no king to sit on the throne.  No king to set the laws. Men of high rank fought each other to be king.  Darkness fell over the land. Robbers and bands of wild men ruled the streets of London.  Evil men broke into houses and took what they wanted. Travelers on the roads were jumped and robbed.  The people of England lived in fear.

Yet far away, there was a quiet place.  A good knight, Sir Ector, lived in peace with his two sons.  His first son was named Kay. His younger son Arthur had been adopted as a baby.  Years before, a stranger had come to Sir Ector with a baby. He asked if Sir Ector would raise the child.  The old knight took the baby in his arms, glad for a second child. He named the baby Arthur, and raised the child as his own.

By the time Arthur was 16 his brother became a knight and Arthur was his squire, caring for his brother’s tunic, helmet, spears, and lances. One morning, in the middle of the town square of London, there was a large block of white marble and resting upon it was a large stone with the golden hilt of a sword and a few inches of blade sticking out from it, shining in the sun. The rest of the sword was buried deep in the stone. What’s more, these words could be seen on the top of the blade: “Whoever pulls out this sword from this stone is the true king of England!”

As soon as the crowd knew about the message, men jumped up to that white marble block. One after another, they gave the sword a yank. Each tried and tried, but the sword stuck fast. It would not move.

One said in gloom, “There is no man alive who could pull out that sword!”

“We’ll see about that!” said a voice in the crowd.  The Duke of Cornwall, dressed in silks and ribbons, stepped up to the white marble block.  “Hear ye, hear ye!” he said. “I call for a tournament to be held, one month from today. Knights from anywhere and everywhere in England are invited to come.  There will be contests and prizes. And a grand feast for all!” The Duke said to his wife, the Duchess, “If I know men, this tournament will draw the strongest, finest knights in all of England!”

Arthur’s brother Kay joined the contest, and when he asked his squire Arthur for his sword, Arthur couldn’t find it. He looked everywhere, but it was either lost or he forgot it at home. Arthur went to the square, and looking upon the sword in the rock he said to himself, “Let’s see if I can’t get that sword unstuck.” He pulled and it moved. “It’s looser than I thought,” he said. He pulled again and fell backward, sword in hand.

When the crowd discovered that only Arthur could pull out the sword [he put it back in and still no one could pull it out] and someone said, “He must be our king,” others in the crowd protested. Naturally they would. He was a skinny teenager. One tall and broad knight said, “Do you think this skinny boy should rule over all of us?”

God says of all believers that they are His very own sons and daughters, indwelt by God, possessing perfect righteousness, justified before all law, and possessing eternal life. If you are a believer, this is true about you. You don’t look it. Arthur didn’t look like a king just yet. It has not yet appeared what we will be. But you are what you are, and that by the grace of God. Become convinced of this astounding truth and you will live like the King, and by King I do mean the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of kings.

 

****

If you’re not under a law, how do you live? Ironically, this is the desire of the anarchist. All those riots a couple of summers ago were supposedly in the pursuit of a society without laws. How would you live? Some would say, “Any way I please!”

 

Paul: “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? … the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.” (1CO 3:16-17)

 

It turns out that the believer in Christ in this age is in this position - not being under the Law. “So I can do what I like?” asks the Corinthian.

 

The Holy Spirit indwells every believer. He is in us for a number of reasons.

 

The key word there is holy. It is for this reason we were reborn.

 

EPH 1:4

He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.

 

Holy means to be separate from the secular, the old ways, the world’s ways and dedicated or completely devoted to God. It is the same root word as sanctification, which the Bible speaks about as what a believer is as well as what he is to behave like. Paul is exhorting us as holy people by the blood of Christ and also encouraging us in the knowledge that this means we are obligated to be holy.

 

We find the same formula in the Torah:

 

DEU 7:6

For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you.

 

LEV 11:44

be holy, for I am holy.

 

The believer is in debt to live life as holy as heaven.

 

ROM 8:12-17

So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh —  13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

 

“We are obligated (debtors) … to live by the Spirit.”

Why obligated?

We are children of God and heirs with Christ.

 

Does Arthur really have the choice to go back to being his older brother’s squire after he discovers he is the true king by birth?

 

This is why we love these stories. And you can bet that there is someone hoping to take the throne, some evil, selfish man who had already been moving the chess pieces around to gain absolute power and then this kid shows up who is the rightful heir. And we can’t wait to see the outcome where we are sure the evil man will be put in his place.

 

In this drama, for whatever the reason is that you came to faith in Christ as the Savior of the world, you were elected before the foundation of the world to be God’s son or daughter, the brother or sister of Christ, and in that incredible new position, you are called to be holy and blameless, which is a family trait. You are obligated. You don’t have the choice of going back to the slavery of sin and death.

 

This is all the greatest gift you could have ever imagined. But you are not going to do what God has obligated you to do if you are not convinced of your new title and position.

 

The king has to grow up - mature. He also has to become convinced that it is his right place.

 

 

ROM 8:14-15

For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!"

 

Are all believers led by the Spirit of God? Your answer might depend on your denomination, but should fidelity to a denomination determine the truth? Should preunderstanding, wherever it comes from in our past, determine the truth. The context of the Bible will tell us the truth. God’s not hiding it.

 

ROM 8:4

so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

 

I think this verse is the key that unlocks the whole chapter. It will be the subject of our next lesson.

 

Through the death of Christ, the believer has fulfilled the requirement of the Law - justified. He now lives by the Spirit and not under the Law.

 

Living by the Spirit is your birthright.

ROM 8:1-4

8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.    8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.    8:3 For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh,    8:4 so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

If the Spirit testifies to our spirit that we are the children of God then why isn’t every Christian convinced?

 

We each need time in truly pursuing the life of Christ in a committed fashion.

1TI 6:11-12

pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of faith…

 

It definitely takes time, but your time must be filled with the pursuit of these things. If you fill your life with the pursuit then the Holy Spirit will fill you to realize them. If you fill your time with secular, worldly things, then you will reap only what they can give. Jesus would say, “You have your reward in full.”

 

 

I don’t mean “devour” God’s word like you do that cheeseburger when you’re ravishingly hungry. I mean take your time, meditate on it, think on it, really learn it.

 

 

The gospel is not something of the past. When you believed in it for your salvation, you only truly knew a small portion of it. The gospel, Greek - good news, is a life-long pursuit. It is the epic story of the Bible. It opens in Genesis and closes in Revelation.

 

GEN 3:15

He shall bruise you on the head,

And you shall bruise him on the heel."

 

REV 22:20

"Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.