The Losses of Legalism
Galatians 5:2-6
June 22, 2014
Perhaps if you’ve ever found yourself contemplating a big decision about something in life, you’ve thrown out the options to a friend
And they answered, “What have you got to lose?”
In reality that isn’t a bad way of evaluating your decisions.
Every decision comes with a cost and a payoff.
You are wise to actually ask yourself what do I have to gain,
And what do I have to lose.
That is precisely decision Paul is putting before the Galatians tonight.
So far the Judaizers have come in and filled the heads of the Galatians
With all that they have to gain from circumcision.
They have promoted circumcision to be the cure all
For sin, salvation, blessing, and inheritance.
Of course what they have offered has not been true.
No different than a snake oil salesman, they stood in their wagons offering the wonder tonic guaranteed to cure everything from athletes foot to water on the knee, but they are selling false hopes.
Their product cannot deliver on the promises they are selling.
• Circumcision will not save you
• Circumcision will not sanctify you
• Circumcision will not make you a participant in the blessing
• Circumcision will not secure your inheritance
• Circumcision will not draw you closer to God
• Circumcision will not make you more pleasing to God
So in reality all that they hoped to gain from circumcision
Was really a false hope.
But tonight Paul is going to put the shoe on the other foot
And show them what they have to lose if they accept circumcision.
You can choose one or the other, but there are consequences,
SO LET’S LOOK AT THE LOSSES OF LEGALISM.
Let’s look at what it will cost you if you determine
To be saved by the works of the Law, namely circumcision.
Paul will outline four things you will lose if you do that.
#1 CHRIST
Galatians 5:2
That alone is very pointed and penetrating statement.
“Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you.”
Now first it would do us good to remember
What the purpose of circumcision was.
We talked about it a couple of months ago in our study of Genesis,
I hope you remember.
Romans 4:9-12 “Is this blessing then on the circumcised, or on the uncircumcised also? For we say, “FAITH WAS CREDITED TO ABRAHAM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.” How then was it credited? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised; and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised.”
Very simply stated Paul called circumcision both a “sign” and “a seal”
WHY CIRCUMCISION?
You are familiar with what Paul taught us in Romans 5
About how through Adam we all died.
• Mankind was created perfect and placed in perfection.
• Everything was good in the garden.
• However Adam chose to transgress the command of God and the curse came upon this world.
• Sin came and death came through sin.
• And this was a problem that could not be undone.
• Since that fall, every child is not born perfect, and placed in the garden until they blow it.
Now, every child is actually conceived in iniquity (David said in Psalms 51)
And actually born with the sin nature of Adam.
In a very basic sense, the sin nature is passed down through procreation.
Circumcision then was a picture of putting a stop to the spread of sin.
By removing the foreskin of the reproductive organ,
It was symbolic of putting a stop to sin.
It was merely as SIGN or a SYMBOL
Of what should have taken place in the heart.
Jeremiah 4:4 “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD And remove the foreskins of your heart, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will go forth like fire And burn with none to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds.”
In some ways circumcision was no different
Than other symbolic gestures of repentance.
Joel 2:12-13 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil.”
Joel didn’t speak of circumcision but of people rending their garments.
That is all well and good, but only if your heart is also affected as well.
So it is with circumcision.
It was the sign of symbol of what God was doing in your life.
It was also “a seal”
It was a seal in the sense that it confirmed Abraham’s faith.
True faith obeys and true faith endures.
If Abraham claims to trust God, but refuses to obey God,
We have all the reason in the world to wonder if his faith is truly genuine.
But when Abraham obeyed God in circumcision,
We saw evidence that his faith was genuine.
His obedience sealed his faith.
Now that was the purpose of circumcision.
It was a sign and it was a seal.
But if you will remember,
The Judaizers had turned it into much more than that.
THEY TURNED IT INTO A MEANS FOR SALVATION
Acts 15:1 “Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”
So the Judaizers came in saying circumcision is more than a sign,
It is more than a seal, it is a means of being saved.
This is when works take a dangerous turn.
Even today people can talk of things like baptism, or church attendance, or participation in communion, or giving, or hospitality, or involvement in missions.
All of those things are a “seal” of faith.
Some of those things are a “sign” of faith.
But none of those things are a means of salvation.
This what the Judaizers had taught,
And because of that the Galatians were jumping on board.
But Paul says, hold on a second.
You are focusing on what you think you gain from circumcision, let’s look at what you will lose.
And I’m telling you that “if you receive circumcision Christ will be of no benefit to you.”
Whatever benefit you receive from Christ,
You will no longer receive that benefit if you choose circumcision.
Now that sounds serious.
“WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CHRIST?”
Well I certainly won’t give you an exhaustive list,
But try some of these benefits on:
FORGIVENESS
Ephesians 1:7 “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace”
RIGHTEOUSNESS
Romans 3:21-22 “But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction;”
SALVATION
Romans 5:9 “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.”
What is more, Peter said:
Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
PEACE
Ephesians 2:13-14 “But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall,”
Colossians 1:19-20 “For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”
Romans 5:1 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,”
INHERITANCE
Ephesians 1:10-11 “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,”
HOPE
John 14:3 “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”
FREEDOM
Romans 6:6 “knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;”
Romans 7:24-25 “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”
INTERCESSION
Hebrews 7:25 “Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
HELP
Hebrews 2:18 “For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.”
PRESENCE
Matthew 28:20 “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
And I’m sure there are many more, but that is just to name a few.
Those are some of the obvious benefits of having Christ.
But if you receive circumcision, kiss all of those benefits good-bye.
If you determine to do it yourself, Christ will not do it for you.
If you are going to try and earn your salvation by works of the Law,
Then you lose all the benefits of Christ.
Things like forgiveness, peace, hope, help, freedom, and salvation
Are all things you are going to have to try and find somewhere else.
Those things are benefits of having Him.
So, what do you have to lose if you choose legalism?
Well, first you lose Christ.
#2 FREEDOM
Galatians 5:3
Now here is something that I seriously doubt
The Judaizers had spelled out in full to the Galatians.
• This would be that fine print on the bottom of page 127 of the contract.
• This is what the announcer is saying super fast at the end of the commercial.
This is something no doubt the Galatians had failed to grasp.
“And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law.”
See, the Judaizers were crafty.
All they came in saying was you have to be circumcised.
They just made it sound like you only had to do this one little thing
And then you’re good.
It only takes a couple of minutes and then you are pleasing to God.
But that isn’t how it works at all.
See, you either choose Christ or your choose the Law,
And you can’t choose only part of either.
If it’s Christ then it’s all of Christ.
And if it’s the Law, then it’s all of the Law.
James 2:10 “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.”
That’s the funny thing about the Law.
It doesn’t matter which law you break, or how many times you break it.
If you break one small command 1 little time, then you are still a law breaker.
Someone counted and it has been said that
There are 613 commands in the Law of God.
You don’t just get to pick 1.
If you determine to be under the Law, then you are under all 613,
And if you break any one of them, you are guilty of all of them.
Now, can I show you an easier way?
Matthew 5:17-20 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
• Jesus did not abolish the Law
• Jesus did not nullify the Law
• Jesus did not take the effect of the Law away
Certainly not, the Law had purpose, Paul himself said the Law is good
Jesus came and fulfilled the Law, so that in Him we also fulfill it.
And now in Christ we have freedom.
• We are not bound day in and day out by the commandments.
• We are righteous in Him and declared free from our labors.
• We rest in Him.
But, if you want to be under the Law,
Then kiss that freedom, kiss that rest good-bye.
It’s another way of saying, “read the fine print”
If you choose works…
If you choose circumcision…
You lose Christ and you lose Freedom
#3 GRACE
Galatians 5:4
Now we have to do a little clean up here
Before we talk about how it relates to the Galatians.
This verse has been one of the texts used for years
For those who hold that salvation is not secure.
They site here that the Galatians nearly fell from grace, and equate that to mean
That the Galatians were in danger of losing their salvation.
That is not at all what Paul is talking about.
In fact, when in doubt, read the verse.
WHAT WERE THE GALATIANS IN THIS VERSE SEEKING?
“you who are seeking to be justified”
Would we say a person in need of justification is a saved person or a lost person?
Saved people are already justified.
They are in the process of being sanctified, and they look to be glorified,
But justification has already happened.
The people Paul is dealing with in verse 4 are not saved people.
They are people who want to be saved
And they think circumcision is the way to do it.
And through their choosing circumcision, not only have they lost Christ “severed from Christ” as we saw earlier.
But notice what else they lose:
“you have fallen from grace”
That is to say, if you want to earn your salvation through works of the Law, then you have no need or desire for grace in your life.
Just throw grace out the window.
WELL, WHAT IS GRACE ANY WAY?
Ephesians 2:1-10 “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
Grace takes sinners who love sin and who are doomed to suffer the consequences of sin, and pulls them out of that sin, forgives that sin, and sets them on a new course.
It is unfathomable.
• Apart from grace sinners don’t even know they are sinners
• Apart from grace sinners certainly don’t want anything but sin
• Apart from grace sinners cannot be forgiven
• Apart from grace sinners have no shot at anything but destruction
And yet God gave amazing grace to sinners who do not deserve it.
When we were sinful, He chose to save us anyway.
Titus 3:3-7 “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
In short, grace is really the only reason any of us were saved.
Grace is really the only way anyone else can be saved.
We are saved “by grace”
So if you have “fallen from grace” then it is not a stretch to say that
YOU CAN KISS SALVATION GOOD-BYE
• Who is honestly going to stand before God apart from grace and think they have a legitimate shot at being justified in His sight?
• Who will honestly set their resume before Him as one who deserves eternal life?
Of course no one can.
For “there is none righteous, not even one”
Grace is the only way anyone ever gets saved.
It’s like that song Peggy has sung:
“Were it not for grace, I can tell you where I’d be. Wondering down some pointless road to nowhere, with my salvation up to me. I know how that would go, the battles I would face. Forever running, but losing the race, were it not for grace.”
To be “fallen from grace” is to lose the hope
That there is any chance of reconciliation with God.
And that is one of the losses of legalism.
Sure, their message of circumcision may sound all wonderful
And may look very pious, BUT READ THE FINE PRINT.
• You lose Christ
• You lose Freedom
• You lose Grace
And when you put all of those together, we find one more thing you lose:
#4 GLORY
Galatians 5:5-6
Now here Paul is obviously CONTRASTING those who have chosen to be saved by grace with those who have chosen to be saved by works.
And Paul (being a man of grace) confidently asserts his position:
“For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.”
That is a great statement summarizing the Christian life.
First of all, what is our hope?
“the hope of righteousness”
A true believer isn’t hoping to be made righteous,
He has hope because he knows he will be made righteous.
• We know there is a day coming when the sin nature will be completely done away with, and we will be perfectly conformed into the image of Christ.
• We know there is a day coming when our salvation will be perfectly complete, and we will be like Christ.
• We are declared righteous now, we will be righteous some day.
And since we have that hope, what are we doing?
“we are waiting”
If you’ve read your Bible through, you know that the word “wait”
Is a very important word to God.
Isaiah 40:31 “Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.”
Psalms 37:7-9 “Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing. For evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.”
And there you can see as well that the word “wait”
Is very near to the words “trust” or “hope”
And in saying that, we realize that in those instances were we are told to “wait” or “trust” or “hope”, that the burden is all on the back of God.
If you are told to “wait” you are obviously not
Being commanded to do anything on your own.
And that is a very important distinction.
• Paul did not say “we are working, hoping to obtain righteousness”
• Paul said, “we are waiting for the hope of righteousness”
Those are two very different statements.
• A true believer knows that God will make him righteous, and so he is simply waiting for God to complete it.
• A false believers has no faith that God will make him righteous, so he is working tirelessly to earn it.
Now, why has a true believer reached a point of hope, whereby he can simply wait on righteousness to come?
Because a true believer has “faith”
Paul said, “by faith, [we] are waiting”
In short, we can wait for righteousness,
Because we trust that God will in fact give it to us.
And this is no small issue.
If we don’t obtain righteousness, we will not spend eternity in heaven.
God only accepts righteousness, without it you will not dwell with him.
And so, of all the things we should not be careless with,
Righteousness is certainly at the top of the list.
I mean, you could leave a lot of things up to chance,
But your desire for righteousness should not be one of them.
But for a believer we have placed that hope
In the greatest hands we know.
We don’t worry about whether or not we will obtain it
Because we believe God will do it.
We wait “by faith”
But even that brings an important thought.
Faith in faith is of no consequence.
What exactly are trusting?
How do we believe this righteousness will actually come?
Paul said, “For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting”
• Our faith is not sentimental…
• Our faith is not in faith…
• Our faith is not some myth…
Our faith is rested upon the power of God’s “Spirit”
To accomplish all that He has begun in us.
We know we aren’t doing this on our own.
We know that God is doing it in us.
Philippians 2:12-13 “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”
We are not worrying, we are not in anxiety
That somehow we might come short of righteousness.
We know that God is doing it through His Spirit, we trust in that,
And therefore we have hope.
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.”
In other words, once you’ve come to Christ and you have God’s Spirit
There is no longer a preoccupation with religious works.
You know that so far as your future glory is concerned,
Your works don’t mean a thing.
Rather it is your faith in Christ, rooted in your love for Christ
That makes all the difference.
That is a true believer.
• They love Christ
• They trust Christ
And they have hope
Because they know that Christ will finish what He started
And will definitely make them righteous and take them to glory.
BUT…
• Someone who has rejected the benefits of Christ…
• Someone who has embraced the works of the Law…
• Someone who has disregarded the gift of grace…
They have no such hope or assurance.
Where as Paul said that “we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.”
Paul would have to say about them, that “they through the flesh, by works, are working in hope that they can obtain righteousness.”
And you and I both know how that will go.
Romans 3:20 “because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.”
So if through their works they can’t be justified…
If through their works they can’t be righteous…
Then we know that
• Despite how hard they work,
• Despite how hard they try,
• Despite what religious ordinances they submit to.
THEY WILL NEVER OBTAIN
THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OR GLORY THEY SEEK
There will be no glory for them.
Romans 9:30-33 “What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, “BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
So be sure and take inventory of that.
If you want to embrace legalism, and you want to embrace circumcision, and you want to become Jewish, and you want to get under the law.
What will you gain?
• Acceptance from the Jewish crowd
• A Pious reputation from those on the outside
• A momentary assurance based on your great efforts
• The ability to hold your head high in religious circles
But what will you lose?
• You will lose Christ and all His benefits
• You will lose Freedom to worship as you please
• You will lose Grace and the favor of God
• You will lose any chance at future glory
So, it’s your choice.
You can pick which every you want,
Just be sure and read the fine print before you sign on the dotted line.
You may think there is something to gain from coming under the Law,
But don’t forget what there is to lose.
It is my observation that Christ is the better deal by far.
So no longer would I try to earn anything,
I much prefer to simply wait
While Christ accomplishes in Me all that He promised He would do.
And instead of focusing on all the works I might do as a checklist,
I will just focus on loving Christ and trusting Him.
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.”
