Humbly Turn.
Notes
Transcript
Opening:
Good-morning again Connection Church! It is so wonderful to be together. It is a righteous thing to come together on the Lord’s Day. We gather together to worship God. Often we mistake singing for worship. Singing is only a small part of worship. We are to live our lives as worship. Often we can also mistake and emotional response as worship. This is also wrong. Worship is not something we enter into, it is something we do. The basic premise of worship is that it is an act of service. It is devoted service to the King. We worship God through all that we do. However, there are special times we set aside to completely dedicate to worship. This is what the Lord’s Day is. It is a Christian Sabath. We come together today not for us, but to worship our God and Savior. We do this through fellowship, through singing, through giving, through learning of truths, and now through the reading and preaching of God’s Word.
Introduction of the Text:
Therefore, I would ask you to turn with me to Matthew 18:1-9. Remember, Matthew was written by the Apostle Matthew. He was a former tax collector who was called to follow Jesus and later on was commission by Christ as an apostle. Matthew is writing this account to a Jewish audience in the first century. The purpose of this account is to show that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is the promised savior, God in the flesh, the King of kings, the Lord of lords. Matthew has again and again labored this point. In the recent passages, we have seen Jesus reveal His deity very clearly and also point the disciples to His coming death and resurrection. However, in this passage we will see the arrogance and self centered nature of the disciples. With this in mind, I would ask that you stand with me for the reading of God’s Word.
Reading of the Text:
Matthew 18:1-9 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
7 “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! 8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
The Word of God, let’s pray.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for who you are. You are Lord of all, and we so often forget this. Often we are guilty of thinking lower of you than we ought and higher of ourselves. Humble us Lord. Make us like little children before you. Remind us that we have nothing to boast in. Remind us that we are hopeless without you. We need you. Without you, we would not exist. Every breath is a gift from you.
Lord, I pray that we would take sin seriously. We seek almost constantly to justify our sins. We want it to be okay for us to sin. I don’t believe we ever take our own sinfulness as seriously as we ought to. Forgive us of this, Lord. Help us to put our sin to death. Help to take this seriously.
Lord, finally I ask for every heart here today. May those who are not saved come to know you. May they be saved today. May those who do know you grow close to you. And please help me to avoid all pride or arrogance. Help me to accurately preach your Word. We ask this in Jesus name, amen.
Transition:
As we open this text, we see the disciples ask “who is the greatest in the kingdom?”
The Disciples Ask “Who is the Greatest in the Kingdom?”
The Disciples Ask “Who is the Greatest in the Kingdom?”
Explanation:
Mark’s gospel account gives us more detail on the background of this question. This was not simply a question the disciples asked, it was the cause of much strife and fighting among them. They were arguing amongst themselves who was the greatest. Jesus asks them what they were fighting about. They then come to Jesus and ask their question. “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
They thought it to be one of them. They were greatly influenced by their belief that the kingdom would tangibly come in their day. They expected Jesus to overthrow Rome and bring heaven on earth while they were still there. Because of this, they were seeking political advantage in following Jesus. They wanted to know who would be second in command when Jesus took over the world.
Argumentation:
This points to the arrogance of the disciples. They were not concerned with Christ or His will. They wanted to advance themselves. John MacArthur pointed out in his commentary that the disciples had just heard Jesus speak several times about His coming death and resurrection. They were so self focused that they were not concerned for what Jesus was about suffer, but were instead only concerned with advancing themselves. This type of incident is recorded several times in the gospels. While we know the Apostles did eventually come to a clear understanding of the gospel, it is clear that at this point they lack understanding in a great way. Self focused, self centered, and selfish best describe the disciples in this passage.
Transition:
However, Jesus answers their question. He uses this as an opportunity to teach a valuable lesson. Jesus calls a child to himself.
Jesus Calls a Child to Himself.
Jesus Calls a Child to Himself.
Explanation:
This completely turned the question on its head. This would have been the last thing the disciples expected. The word “child” likely refers to a very young child. By context it is likely a toddler since the child is called to Jesus. We are not sure who’s child this is, but it is likely this account is taking place at Peter’s house or still in that region.
Jesus calls the child to Himself as the example of who the greatest. This is not the common thought for greatness. Very few, if anyone, ever looks at a toddler and thinks, “that is the definition of greatness.” But this is the example Jesus uses. The disciples ask their selfish question, expecting Him to answer with one of their names. At worst, they probably thought that Peter’s name would be given. But then the unexpected happens. Jesus puts His arms out and calls the little child over to Him.
Argumentation:
One of the sad facts about preaching in our day and age is how much time the faithful pastor must dedicate to communicating what he does not mean. It seems that more time is spent in sermons correcting false conceptions or teachings. We must break down what we do not mean before we can even begin to teach what we do mean. Perhaps this text is a great example of this. In his sermon and commentary on this passage, the late doctor R.C. Sproul recounts how this was the first passage he ever preached, and it was the worst sermon he ever delivered. He explains that it was the worst sermon he ever gave because of how badly he butchered the text. He preached this passage as a young minister claiming that this passage taught that we were to be children in our faith. We are to be simple in our faith, just trusting in Jesus. There is no need to seek to grow in knowledge or wisdom. We are to be children in the faith.
Perhaps this seems fine to you, but it is at odds with the true meaning of the text. Often this passage is taught as having to do with “child-like faith.” Depending on the definition, that could be true or false. However, to explain what it does not mean, it does not mean that we have a simple faith. It does not mean that we do not seek to grow and learn more and more about God. In 1 Corinthians 14:20 Paul commands “20 Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature” We are not to be children in our faith but in evil. Small in evil, not malicious. But we are to be well learned in our faith. Mature and well taught. Or again in Ephesians 4: 14 Paul says “14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.”
Transition:
That is what this text does not mean. We have seen what Christ did not intend in calling the child, but did He intend? In one word, humility.
Humility.
Humility.
Explanation:
Look again at what Jesus says in verse 3 and 4. “3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” The intent of Christ was not to teach that Christians are to be immature in their faith, but that the greatest virtue in the kingdom is humility. This is the central point Jesus is making in this example.
He starts by saying “Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” This is speaking of salvation. In fact, this passage is rendered in a more clear way in the NASB. “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” That word “turn” is repentant language. It is the typical opening to the gospel presentation of both John the Baptist and Jesus. “Repent.” Turn away from your sin and turn to Christ. This is what repent means. It means to turn. It is a turning around. This is why it is also translated as “be converted.” Unless one repents and becomes like a child, they cannot enter the kingdom of God.
Argumentation:
This is what Jesus is here communicating. Humility unto salvation. And He explains that the most humble is the greatest in the kingdom. But what does it mean to be humble as the child? Surely we have all been around enough children to know that children are sinless. They are filled with rage and anger. They are selfish and destructive. Anyone who has spent more than thirty seconds with a toddler knows this. In this sense a child is prideful. But there is also a sense in which a child must recognize their own weakness. A young child is forced into a place of humility. They recognize their limitations. They cannot reach the counter, so to grab their toy they need help from their parents.
They cannot bathe themselves, feed themselves, care for themselves, or any of accomplish even the most basic functions themselves. In this sense, the young child looks to their parents as a deity. They rest on their parents to meet all their needs. They cannot be prideful for they cannot do anything themselves. They are fully dependent. We must be humble in this way. This is the picture of salvation.
Often we have a wrongful view of salvation. We view salvation as a cooperative occurrence. Yes, Jesus did His part, but we must also do ours. We must partner with Jesus and God to be saved. “I did my part!” we seem to scream. But this is not the picture we see of salvation in Scripture. I want to teach you two theological words today. Monergism and Synergism. Say that with me. Monergism. Monergism is from two words. Mono, meaning one and ergon, meaning to work. This means that only one is at work in salvation. In orthodox Christianity, this means that we believe God did all the work in salvation. Synergism is also from two words. Syn or Sun meaning together, and ergon meaning work. This is part of the Pelagian heresy that states that we contributed something to our own salvation.
Basically, synergism means that God did 99.9999999% of the work and all we must do is .0000001% of the work. However, this is not what the Bible presents. The Bible presents us as incapable of doing anything. We are presented as infants, unborn, even dead. We are presented as helpless. God is the one who comes in and does 100% of the work. In John 3, He births us again. In Ephesians we are presented as dead in need of being brought to life. Here we are presented as toddlers who must rely fully on God for everything.
This is the Biblical view. We are unable, incapable of aiding in our own salvation. We must simply rest on God. This is humbling. This is humility. There is no room for pride. I did nothing. God saved me. All I did was nothing. This is the spirit of my favorite Jonathan Edwards quote, “You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary.” There is no room for pride. There is no such thing as an arrogant monergist. How can I boast? God did it all!
This is what Paul says in Romans 3:23-28. “23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”
Transition:
Christ compares the humility of the Christian to that of a child who depends upon their parents for everything. Then He transitions into His second point in this passage. Christ goes into great detail about the seriousness of sin.
The Seriousness of Sin.
The Seriousness of Sin.
Explanation:
Look with me again at verse 5-9. 5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
7 “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! 8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.”
This is a serious passage. Christ is going into great detail to belabor the seriousness of sin. He says multiple things about this. He says it is better to be drown in the depths of the sea than to cause a Christian to sin. He pronounces woe on the world for causing temptations. He says that physical mutilations are better than sinning. Clearly Christ is trying to hammer home how dangerous and serious sin is.
Argumentation:
This is a lesson we need. People are soft on sin. We tend to be overly hard on other people’s sins but we are notorious for being soft on our own sins. We love to hate other people’s sins but love our own. However, if we were just to look at the broad scope and sin, and we water it down. We don’t like condemning sin. We don’t like seeing it as serious. We want to pad it and make it light. We especially want to go soft on popular sins. Things that God condemns but the world enjoys, we tend to ignore. We shift uncomfortably when someone mentions something popular as being a sin. Someone condemns a popular sin and we fire back with saying “yeah, but what about this other sin!” You see it all the time. Don’t believe me, just try mentioning homosexuality as a sin in a popular circle. See what happens.
Transition:
We are soft on sin. But Jesus does not share our sentiment here. He hates sin. He leaves us no room for soft footed-ness. He starts His discourse off by saying that it is better to be drown than to cause a Christian to sin.
Better to be Drown Than to Cause a Christian to Sin.
Better to be Drown Than to Cause a Christian to Sin.
Explanation:
Perhaps there is an objection right away. Jesus doesn’t say Christian, He says “little one.” Remember, Jesus’ example of the child is meant to signify a Christian. But why is there such a serious tone to how a Christian is treated? Jesus compares how people treat Christians to how they treat Christ Himself. This is an incredible comparison. It is so strong that those who receive a Christian are compared to having received Christ Himself. This is the sober-ness that Jesus treats this with. We are His representatives.
This is why Jesus is so serious when He says that it is better that someone ties a millstone around their necks and are thrown into the depth of sea than to cause a Christian to sin. This is a dark comparison. This is not sunshine and roses talk. Jesus has a mean streak in protecting His sheep. Think about this comparison for a moment.
A millstone was a massive stone used for crushing grain. It was so large that often it could only be turned by a donkey. Imagine this being tied to someones neck and then having them thrown into the heart of the ocean. They would sink rapidly and be crushed by the frigged pressure of the waters. They would be crushed as they sank. And this is BETTER than causing a Christian to sin. Truly Jesus, next words are true. “Woe to the world for temptations to sin!”
Argumentation:
This is why I say there is no room for going soft on sin. We see a trend in the church to try to soften the punch of sin. The Bible makes no room for this. All sin is seen as completely wicked and evil. Perhaps the view of sin is best captured by Dr. Sproul in his famous statement that “Sin is cosmic treason.” Sin is treason against God. It is treason of the highest order. Ladies and gentlemen, the church has lost this view. We have lost the biblical view of sin. This passage is a scathing rebuke against the current view of sin in the church. This passage flies in the face of the statement of several leaders in our own denomination. They famously have said that “God whispers about some sins.” Beloved, this is heresy. God whispers about no sin.
Sin is treason against God. Even one sin is enough to damn you to hell for treason against an almighty God. This is not popular but it is true. Sin is serious. It is to be seen as serious. It destroys lives. It corrupts the heart. It is deadly. There is a reason sin has been compared to a poisonous viper. No one would look at a highly deadly snake and let it bite them or anyone near them. But this is how we treat sin.
This of how horribly we handle sin. We watch the ones we love fiddle around with sin like playing with a cobra, and then claim it to be loving. “It would be unloving to tell them that if that playing with that cobra will kill them. This is the idiocy of our current church culture. If I love someone, I will tell them that they are in danger! Jesus says that even causing someone else to sin is of eternal danger. How dare we withhold the truth from anyone.
Transition:
If we were to stop here, we may be tempted to think that all of the sin and temptation means God is out of control. However, Jesus does not give us this option. Jesus says something that on the surface is confusing. Jesus points our the necessity of temptation.
The Necessity of Temptation.
The Necessity of Temptation.
Explanation:
This is vastly confusing to us, isn’t it? How on earth could it be possible for temptation to be necessary. However, Jesus says it is necessary for temptation to come. Perhaps this is confusing because we don’t see the true purpose of all things. Scripture teaches that all things happen for the glory of God. God is glorified through all that happens. In short, God has set the game so that all things glorify Him. Nothing happens outside of His predetermined will. Because of this, all things word toward His glory.
Transition:
But how on earth can temptation serve to glorify God? I am so glad you asked. Temptation glorifies God in three ways. First, God is glorified in the resistance of temptation.
1. God is Glorified in the Resistance of Temptation.
1. God is Glorified in the Resistance of Temptation.
When the Christian is tempted, he may either resist temptation or give in. When the Christian resists temptation to sin, then he is glorifying God. The Christian resists temptation to sin because he knows it is sinful. He knows it will grieve the heart of God. He knows it is spitting in the face of God. Ultimately, we see the work of the Holy Spirit’s sanctification in the life of the Christian when they resist sin.
Transition:
But what of when the Christian gives in to temptation? Second, God is glorified in the forgiveness of sin.
2. God is Glorified in the Forgiveness of Sin.
2. God is Glorified in the Forgiveness of Sin.
When the Christian sins, their sin is forgiven and washed away by the blood of Christ. Jesus died and paid for all the sins of Christians. Anyone who trusts in Jesus has their past, present, and future sins forgiven. God is glorified in this because it shows His great mercy. When God forgives sins, it shows that He is merciful. He is under no obligation to save anyone. All sinners deserve hell. But God gives some mercy. This glorifies Him.
Transition:
But how else is God glorified through temptation? Third, God is glorified in the punishment of sin.
3. God is Glorified in the Punishment of Sin.
3. God is Glorified in the Punishment of Sin.
This is one we do not like. We like the spiritual growth of the first way. We love the mercy of the second way. But we bristle at the justice of God. Our hearts shrivel at this and we ask, “how could God be glorified through punishing sinners?” God is just. He is perfect justice. This is a glorious trait. It is wonderful and beautiful. So why don’t we like it? We don’t like it because we are guilty. This is where humility comes in. When we are humble before God, we begin to see the beauty of even the judgement of condemned sinners.
Transition:
Jesus then transitions from His statement on the necessity of temptation to finish the section by again belaboring the seriousness of sin. He started by showing how serious it is to cause someone else to sin, but now He is showing the seriousness of personal sin. He says that it is better to suffer physical harm than to sin.
Better to Suffer Physical Harm than to Sin.
Better to Suffer Physical Harm than to Sin.
Explanation:
Here is the part I think we find it most difficult to understand. It is better to lose your hand or eye than to sin. This is already an example Jesus has used. In the sermon on the mount Jesus says this “29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” Matthew 5:29-30. This is almost exactly what He says in this passage. And yet, this idea seems so foreign to us.
It is so bizarre for us to think of sin being this serious. I dare say that no one in here actually thinks they would be better off digging their eye out of their head than to look lustfully at someone. But this is what Jesus says. It is better for someone to endure physical mutilation than to sin. This is salvation. We are to view our own sin as this serious.
Argumentation:
And yet, we do not. We easily dismiss this passage by simply saying, “well we aren’t supposed to actually mutilate our bodies.” We say this and then simply move on, ignoring the much more difficult truth. The truth is that cutting your hand off won’t keep you from sin. Blinding yourself won’t keep you from sin. A blind man with no hands will still sin. Perhaps we think that if we are blind we will not sin. Charles Spurgeon gives a great illustration of this.
He says, “In every position that a man occupies, he will find temptation. I have heard of a hermit who hoped to get rid of all sin by living in a cave. He took with him his little brown loaf and his jug of water but he had hardly entered the cave before he upset his jug and spilled the water. It was a long way to the well, and he got so angry with himself for what he had done that he soon discovered that the devil could get into a cave as quickly as he could. So he thought he might as well go back and face the trials of ordinary society.”
The point of this passage is not that if we remove body parts we will be free from sin. The point of this is the seriousness of sin. We are to view sin as so serious that we will go to extreme lengths to avoid it. However, most of us entertain sin as a pleasant guest. We flirt with sin. We entertain it in our homes and our hearts. We love our sin. But we are to hate it. We are to kill sin. We are to see it as serious. It is better to lose your eye than to entertain sin with your eye. We are to be serious about sin that we are willing to go to extremes to be rid of it.
If we are soft on sin in general, we are doubly soft on sin in our own hearts. We must learn to defy our own sin nature. We are not to be soft on sin. We are to hate it. We are to hate all sin, but most of all we are to hate the sin in our own hearts. If all sin is cosmic treason, then it is all to be condemned and hated. But the sin we commit is to hated most of all. Our sin is not a light matter. It is personal treason against the King we claim to love. This should break our hearts. Our sin should grieve us. We should long to be free of it. Does your sin grieve you? If you are not grieved by sin, it is likely that you are not saved. You cannot love Christ and love what hates Him. You cannot love Christ and hate Him at the same time.
We are to be serious about our own sin. We are to be humble. Yes, we are to be serious about all sin. We are to condemn all sin as sin. However, the tendency is to condemn other sin and entertain our own sin. We think our sin is just our own. This is what Achan thought in Joshua 7. He sinned and disobeyed God. Because of his sin, many Israelite died. Achan did not take his own sin seriously.
Transition:
Perhaps this is the center of this message. Are you a Child of God? If you are, then do you mortify sin?
Application:
Are you a child of God?
Are You a Child of God?
Are You a Child of God?
This is the starting step. Have you humbled yourself. Have you become like a child. Have you recognized you dependence on God and begged for salvation. Have you turned from your sin and turned to Christ. This is the chief question. If the answer is no, then you must do this today. Are you grieved by your sin? If you are, have you confessed it to God? Have you asked His forgiveness? Have you turned away from it and turned to Christ?
I am not asking if you want a better life. I am not asking if you want to be happy or blessed. I am asking if you are genuinely tired of your sin. Are you tired of sin. Does it weigh you down. Do you wish you be free of it? Are you like Christian in Pilgrim’s Progress. In John Bunyan’s classic work, he describes a character named Christian. Christian is weighed down by a burden on his back that no one can see. It pulls at him. It holds him down. His knees can barely hold it. This is the conviction of sin. Christian is broken by His sin. He weeps from his sin. He wants to be free. He lives in the city of destruction with the full weight of his sin on his back.
Is this you? Are you here weighed down by your sin? Are you broken inside? Do you feel the guilt of all you have done? Do you feel the guilt of your crimes against God? Beloved, if this is you, let me be your Evangelist. In the book, Christian encounters a man named Evangelist who reveals the truth to him from the Good Book. Evangelist tell’s Christian how to be rid of this burden of sin. He points him down the straight rode. He sends Christian on the way to the cross. Evangelist was there to send Christian running to the cross. This is what I am doing right now. If you are weighed down by the guilt of your sin, then run to the cross. Run to what Jesus did for you. If you run to the cross and confess your sin, you will be free. If you place your faith in Christ, the burden of your sins will snap free from your back.
Christ will take your sins and He will give you His righteousness. You will be washed clean. You will be saved. Your sins will all be forgiven. You will no longer be guilty. This can be yours today. You can be free today. Turn to Jesus. Cry out to Him and ask Him to forgive you. Ask Him to save you. Be humble like a child. You cannot do this for yourself! You must be humble like the child and ask Him to do it for you. “Save me Jesus,” is all it takes. Call out to Him and you will be saved.
Transition:
But what of those who are saved? Do you mortify sin?
Do You Mortify Sin?
Do You Mortify Sin?
What does that mean? To mortify is to put to death. Do you murder sin? This is the question put to all of you Christians here. Are you bothered by your sin? Does the fact that you commit high treason against Jesus who you claim to love even scratch your conscience? This question comes from one of the greatest books I have ever read. The Mortification of Sin” by John Owen. The book stems from Romans 8:13 which says “13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
This is the Christian life. Hatred of sin within you. There is a passionate hatred within the true Christian. Hatred against the sin that corrupts our very hearts. This is why John Owen says “Do you mortify? do you make it your daily work? You must always be at it while you live; do not take a day off from this work; always be killing sin or it will be killing you.”
The fight against sin is a serious one. We are not to take it lightly. We are to see it as serious as Jesus does. Be killing sin. Sin will kill you. It is destructive and deadly. Sin is a crime against the God we love. We must see our own sin as serious. Own is right, be killing sin or it will be killing you. But how do you do this? The first step is to see it is as serious. Christian, pray! Beg God to show you the sin in your heart. The man whose knees are not worn from prayer will never kill the sin in his heart. Pray. Second, seek help. Seek godly aid. Isolation is the perfect soil for sin to grow in.
If you need to kill sin but do not know how, I would love to go through the book the mortification of sin. Perhaps we could do it as a Sunday School class. If this interests you, talk to me after. The first step is prayer. Beloved, do not take sin lightly. Be humble and murder sin. Let’s pray.
Prayer:
Closing hymn:
Closing benediction:
Romans 8:12-15 12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”