KEY THEOLOGICAL TERMS FROM ADVENT 2024 GAL 4:4-5 SERMONS
Galatians 4:4 “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”
Each week of my Advent sermon series on Gal 4:4-5 at Cross of Christ Fellowship, I’m introducing and reminding the congregation of several key theological terms, ideas, or historical figures related to the text.
Week 1: “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son
Incarnation: God became man. (God the Son becoming a human)
Arius: A false teacher in the Early Church who denied the full and true deity of Jesus. (Today we find the same or similar views of Jesus in the heretical cults of Mormonism [‘Latter Day Saints’] and Jehovah Witnesses—both groups teach Jesus is a created being, rather than the eternal God the Son)
Athanasius: A key leader in the Early Church who helped the church follow the Bible’s teaching on the true deity of Jesus. (Athanasian Creed is based on his teachings)
Week 2: “born of woman, born under the law,”
Doceticism: Heresy that denies the true humanity of Jesus by teaching that Jesus only seemed to be a human, but was not actually a human
Hypostatic Union: Jesus is one person with two natures (a divine nature and a human nature)
Active Obedience of Christ: Jesus fulfilling the law of God in our place by living a sinless life
Passive Obedience of Christ: Jesus dying as a substitute for us on the cross, suffering the penalty for our sins
Week 3: to redeem those who were under the law,
Redemption: Jesus purchasing our pardon from sin—through his death on the cross—obtaining our freedom (Romans 8:1; Col 2:13-14)
Antinomianism: Literally this means ‘anti-law-ism;’ antinomianism is a theological error which declares that the Law of God has no place in the life of a Christian, since we are saved by grace. This can lead to ‘license,’ or sinfully excusing sinful behavior under the guise of ‘saved by grace’” (addressed and condemned in Romans 6).
3rd Use of the Law: God’s moral is not only useful in bringing about conviction of sin (1st use) and restraining evil in society (2nd use), it also use as a guiding principle and help for Christians as they seek to pursue holiness (3rd use).
Week 4: “so that we might receive adoption as sons.”
Adoption: To be brought into God’s family and have God the Father as your father and Jesus as your brother. Because of the Fall, this is not the natural state of humanity—contrary to popular opinion, we are not ‘all children of God’ [actually, we are children of ‘wrath’ according Eph 2:1-3]. Adoption occurs at our conversion: we are brought into the family of God.
