The Gathering Windsor Podcast

In Pastor Phil's final sermon at The Gathering, he explains both the reality and necessity of the Holy Spirit's power in the Christian life. In order to grow in godliness we must learn to walk by the Spirit.

 Now, as we head into chapters 5 and 6, things get very practical. We’re still learning grace and truth—but now we’ll see how that shows up in our actual lives. Paul starts talking about what it looks like to walk in the Spirit, how we deal with temptation, how we love one another, and what real freedom in Christ looks like. 

God alone can take credit for our worthiness before Him--because every time He makes someone part of His family, He performs a miracle, like conceiving a child in the womb of a barren woman. Every time He makes someone a part of His family, they have reason to rejoice as free heirs to an extraordinary gift. Because God alone saves, we can rejoice in Him alone. 

As we move into chapter 4 and beyond, we’ll see that this freedom doesn’t lead to sin—it leads to righteousness. Not a righteousness we boast about, but one that flows from the Holy Spirit who now lives in us. “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25).

We live in a world of extremes. More often than not, we feel pressured into placing our identity in one end of an extreme or the other. The Apostle Paul puts the Law against the Promise to prove to the Galatians, and to us, that our identity should be found in neither. Our identity is to be found in Grace, knowing we are sinners in need of saving who have a Savior in Jesus.

Distortions to the gospel were drawing the Galatians away from the truth of God's grace.  Paul wrote to remind believers that we never move on from the gospel.  We are saved by grace through faith and, we live each day by grace through faith.

The Apostle Paul, with holy urgency, writes to the Galatians as a father pleading with his children (Galatians 4:19). He is bold, even direct at times, because eternity is on the line. He reminds them—and us—that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else.

Christ had paid it all—completely, permanently. But instead of resting in His finished work, the Galatians - the church in Galatia (modern-day Turkey) - were being led to believe they needed to add something to their salvation. 

Making disciples is not some distant unachievable goal. It’s about being before doing, being Gospel focused, incorporating Jesus into the conversations and relationships we already have. We’re not waiting for the perfect moment – it starts now, in the middle of our busy lives.

It is a historical fact that Jesus was crucified.  But did he really rise again?  Everything hinges on if that is true or false.  Pastor Phil lists 4 reasons to believe the resurrection of Jesus really happened.

 Jesus knew the cost. He knew the agony of the scourging, the shame of the mocking, the suffocating pain of the nails. He knew the wrath of God would be poured out upon Him, that He would cry out in the darkness, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:46). And yet—He still came. Jesus stepped into our place, taking the judgment, we deserved, so that we could walk free.

They had tried discrediting Jesus before the crowds. They had even tried accusing Him of breaking the law. They made up a reason. They fabricated charges. They staged a trial. 

Failure is an unavoidable part of life.  Peter experienced incredible failure when he denied Jesus three times.  Pastor Phil explains that because our King is gracious and merciful, our failures don't have to define us.

Two days before his crucifixion, Jesus promised he would return to sit in judgment over the nations. He will judge righteously, familiar with suffering and sovereign over the world. Because the King is coming in judgment, we must serve Him now.

The return of Christ is one of the most essential doctrines in the Bible. The story of Jesus is incomplete without it. He came, He died, He rose, He ascended, and He will return. The grand narrative of history and redemption finds its culmination in Christ’s return, and here in Matthew 24-25, Jesus provides us with clear and compelling insights on this event.

Who is Jesus? Is He a nice man? This passage shows that Jesus is more than a rabbi we should listen to; He is the Messiah we must trust in.

There are three 5 second gaps in the audio due to a technical error.