Jesus Vs Sinners – Part 1

Matthew 9:9-17 (9-13)

 

Thus far we have seen Jesus take on a host of problems.

• Everything from full blown leprosy

• To Paralysis (twice)

• To a Fever

• To a Tsunami

• He even defeated an entire army of demons

 

Thus far nothing has been much of an obstacle for Jesus.

He has systematically reversed the effects of sin over and over and over.

 

But this morning Jesus is up against His biggest challenge.

This is not Jesus vs. Sin

This is Jesus vs. Sinners

 

And while Jesus defeats sin every time He encounters it,

It is well documented that sinners gave Jesus all sorts of trouble.

 

I’m reminded of the visit back to His hometown.

Mark 6:1-6 “Jesus went out from there and came into His hometown; and His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He wondered at their unbelief.”

 

And of course we are familiar with Jesus weeping over Jerusalem.

Matthew 23:37-39 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. “Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! “For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'”

 

And how many more instances like this do we see in the Scriptures.

• The scribe who loved comfort?

• The disciple who wanted his inheritance?

• The entire mob of John 6 who only wanted bread to eat?

• The rich young ruler who loved his money?

• Or even Judas who knew Him personally and still refused to believe?

 

It is clear that Jesus had no problem dealing with sin,

But it was sinners who gave Him trouble.

 

That is of course not to say that Jesus could not have flexed His muscle

And forced any and all of them to instantly bow to His will.

He could have. (Ask the soldiers who tried to arrest Him)

 

The problem was that when given the opportunity

Men repeatedly did not want the freedom that Jesus offered.

 

And this is really the problem of humanity.

 

One could almost say that sin is not man’s biggest problem.

(For we are well aware by now that Jesus can deal with sin)

Man’s biggest problem is love of sin.

 

The problem with most people that we find

Is not that they don’t know what to do with their sin.

 

The church has had that answer for 2,000 years.

 

The person we have had no answer for is

The person who recognizes sin yet wants to keep it anyway.

There is nothing you can do for that person.

 

This morning we see Jesus in action as He deals with sinful men.

 

And what we get here are three different scenarios.

Three different confrontations.

 

In this text Jesus deals with three types of people.

THE PROVEN SINNERS (9-10)

Matthew and his tax collector friends. Those everyone recognizes as

sinners.

 

THE PAPER SAINTS (11-13)

The Pharisees. These are those who look good on paper, but in reality

aren’t as good as they suppose. God is not nearly as pleased with these

people as they are with themselves.

 

THE PROGRAMMED STUDENTS (14-17)

John’s disciples. These are those who are confused. They see religion as

an acceptable substitute for a relationship with God. They are legalistic and

are having difficulty trusting Christ.

 

Let’s look at how Jesus deals with them.

(we won’t make it all the way through, but we will finish it later)

 

#1 THE PROVEN SINNERS

Matthew 9:9-10

 

We have in this group Matthew who according to verse 9

Was “sitting in a tax collector’s booth”

 

And that really says all that you need to know

About Matthew’s choice in life.

 

Becoming a tax collector in Matthew’s day

Was sort of like buying into a franchise today.

 

You simply saw the investment as an opportunity to make money,

And so you bought into the business.

 

And while the business was extremely lucrative, it was also despised.

 

For a Roman tax collector was not like today’s IRS agent.

Matthew was taking money from Jews and giving it to Rome.

 

And that would have been bad enough, but Matthew

(as did all tax collectors) was going even further.

 

A tax collector made income by taking more than was required,

And even to tax things that did not require it.

 

For Example: Rome may have required a tax on every fishing boat of $5.

• So a tax collector would charge him a tax of $7

• Then the tax collector would charge him a tax on the fish he caught.

• Then the tax collector would charge him an income tax on the fish he sold.

• Then the tax collector would charge him a tax to dock his boat.

 

And really the tax collector could tax him any other way he wanted.

 

You might be wondering how he got away with it.

He did so because he was an employ of the Roman government

And therefore had the Roman army to enforce his rulings.

 

THE TAX COLLECTOR WAS WORSE THAN A ROMAN.

He sold out his own countrymen and took money dishonestly

Just to pad his own pockets.

 

It was greed, extortion, terrorism, deceit, bullying, and oppression

All rolled into one job.

And we know that is what Matthew was.

 

Of course in verse 10 we are confronted with even more of them.

“behold many tax collectors and sinners came”

 

So now we have many tax collectors and beyond that

We have also added “sinners”

 

In the church we sort of use the word “sinners” to speak of everyone. Romans 3:23 has taught us that we are all sinners.

But in Jesus day the term “sinners” was a term

Reserved only for the most vile of society.

 

This was the prostitutes, the drunkards, the immoral, the scum of Israel.

 

It is because they are so vile that we are amazed at what happens here.

• Jesus has just forgiven the paralytic

• The crowd was amazed that He could forgive sin

• Obviously the tax collector knew what was going on

• And obviously Matthew was intrigued

 

And as Jesus walked by the Scripture says, “He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax collector’s booth;”

 

I love it when the Scripture says that Jesus “saw” someone.

 

You’ll see it again at the end of the chapter.

Matthew 9:36 “Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.”

 

And what is clear on this day is that when Jesus “saw…Matthew” He obviously saw that Matthew wanted what He had to offer.

 

Matthew had heard about Jesus ability to forgive sin,

And he wanted that forgiveness.

 

Jesus saw that in this man, and that is why the sermon is so short.

• There was no conviction of sin (Matthew was already convicted)

• There was no threat of judgment (Matthew was already afraid)

• There was no thesis on Jesus ability (Matthew was already convinced)

 

Jesus just said, “Follow Me!”

 

And please note this was Jesus invitation.

It wasn’t to simply believe…

It wasn’t to be willing to go to heaven…

It wasn’t even to have life abundant…

 

Jesus simple invitation was “Follow Me!”

 

Because we are familiar with the conversation with the scribe in chapter 8

This was a following that promised a man to be homeless

Possibly even to leave his family and never collect his inheritance.

 

Jesus was asking Matthew to leave his life.

(And by the way if Matthew left that booth, he would never be allowed to return)

 

It was repentance, it was faith, it was commitment all rolled up into one.

We call it saving faith.

And Matthew “got up and followed Him”

 

And then Matthew threw a party for Him in his house.

(10) “Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples.”

 

(Both Mark and Luke reveal that this was Matthew’s house were the party was.)

 

So not only does Matthew leave his job as a tax collector

But he instantly gathers everyone else he knows

That would like forgiveness and introduces them to Jesus as well.

And the sheer fact that they all come indicates that they are interested.

 

And so to many people’s surprise

Jesus didn’t have any difficulty at all with the Proven Sinners.

 

Those people who were aware of their guilt flocked to Jesus.

Those people who were aware of their sin ran to Jesus.

 

And the only invitation they received was “Follow Me!”

 

So friend if you are at a point

Where you have made more mistakes than you care to admit.

 

If you are in such a way where everyone is aware of your sin,

And all you want is forgiveness.

 

Let me give you the good news.

Jesus can forgive you. Jesus will forgive you.

 

And His invitation is “Follow Me!”

 

Let go of your old lifestyle of sin.

Leave your tax booth

And commit your life to Christ.

 

It is that simple and the proven sinners were doing it in groves.

 

Well goodness if Jesus was that successful with the proven sinners

One might assume that the other two groups will be a piece of cake.

Not so!

 

#2 THE PAPER SAINTS

Matthew 9:11-13

 

To see this group I really only have to give you one word.

“Pharisees”

 

(11) “When the Pharisees saw this”

 

If you aren’t familiar with the Pharisees just understand that

No one was prouder of themselves than the Pharisees.

 

• Originated during struggle for independence from Greece

• Stood against Greek influence in Israel

• Actually helped Israel win her independence

 

The problem of course was their passion took them way too far

And they considered themselves as more important than everyone else.

 

Of course Jesus never pulled any punches.

Matthew 23:1-7 “Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. “They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.”

 

So you know the Pharisees to have been very religious in all respects.

 

They appeared (on the outside at least)

To be the exact opposite to the sinners of verses 9 & 10.

 

These men loved Israel, these men detested those filthy sins,

They would have never committed those vile acts.

 

And that is why I call them “Paper Saints”

Because on paper no one looked better than a Pharisee.

 

Here one would expect that if Jesus can reach the vilest of sinners

Surely the religious would pose no threat, but that isn’t the case.

 

(11) “When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with tax collectors and sinners?”

 

Now that is interesting on a number of levels.

 

First, they don’t go to Jesus with their question.

• They don’t want the truth

• They want to destroy Jesus

• This is an underhanded, back door, gossip manuever

 

Secondly, it gives us great insight into the spiritual condition of Israel.

 

These were the spiritual leaders of Israel, and they couldn’t even figure out why Jesus would associate with these people.

It is no wonder that at the end of the chapter Jesus sees the people as “distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd”

 

The shepherds of Israel could care less about the lost sheep.

 

AND SO JESUS CONFRONTS THESE COWARDLY SHEEP KILLERS

(12-13) “But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. “But go and learn what this means: ‘ I DESIRE COMPASSION,AND NOT SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

 

Here Jesus exposes them in three ways.

1) YOU DON’T GRASP GOD’S MINISTRY (12)

 

“It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.”

And it really couldn’t get any clearer than that.

Healthy people don’t call for a doctor.

 

No one takes chemo unless they have to.

 

And that is Jesus’ point.

WHO WOULD YOU HAVE ME GO TO?

 

You see among other things the Pharisees are probably a little jealous

That instead of choosing to dine with them,

Jesus chose to dine with the tax collectors and sinners.

But Jesus responds that that only makes sense.

 

You don’t think you are sick, so you wouldn’t listen to a doctor.

They know they are sick, and so I must go to them.

 

So they didn’t grasp God’s ministry.

 

2) YOU DON’T GRASP GOD’S MESSAGE (13a)

 

“But go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,’”

 

Jesus here quotes from Hosea, reminding the Pharisees that

Of all their religion, none of it was what God really wanted.

 

If you could ever make one accurate statement about the Pharisees

It is that they always missed the point.

 

Matthew 23:23-24 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!”

DID THEY REALLY SUPPOSE THEY WERE LIKE GOD BECAUSE OF ALL THEIR RELIGION, WHEN THEY SHOWED NOTHING OF THE COMPASSION OF GOD IN THEIR LIVES?

 

Despite all their study of the Old Testament,

They had obviously failed to ever understand God’s message.

 

God’s message is all about redemption, not destruction.

 

Even when you read those difficult passages of judgment in Scripture

You are quickly aware that the only reason God gives them is because

He is trying to persuade men into repentance so that they won’t be judged.

 

God is a God of great compassion.

And yet the Pharisees didn’t get that at all.

 

3) YOU DON’T GRASP GOD’S MISSION (13b)

 

“for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

 

• It wasn’t for the righteous that Christ relinquished His glory and stepped out of heaven.

• It wasn’t for the righteous that Christ suffered the temptation of Satan.

• It wasn’t for the righteous that Christ endured the hostility of man.

• It wasn’t for the righteous that Christ submitted to death on a cross.

 

The righteous didn’t need it.

 

Christ came for sinners.

Christ suffered for sinners.

Christ endured for sinners.

Christ died for sinners.

 

1 Timothy 1:15 “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.”

 

SO WHY WOULD THEY EXPECT JESUS TO COME AND HANG OUT WITH THEM?

 

They already thought themselves to be righteous.

 

That is like preparing to go on a mission trip to reach the Lozi people

And when you get in Africa the missionary over there upset because

You spent so much time with the Lozi and not enough time with them.

 

It would be to fully misunderstand God’s mission.

And the Pharisees obviously did.

 

AND SO THESE MEN OBVIOUSLY HAD A PROBLEM.

 

• These men didn’t understand the message of God.

• These men didn’t understand the mission of God.

• These men didn’t understand true ministry.

• And in fact all they really wanted to do was stand in the way of it.

 

They were convinced that they were already pleasing to God

And so they saw no need for a savior.

 

And there we learn a valuable lesson.

A man doesn’t come to Christ unless he fully understands

The gravity of his sin and his desperate need for forgiveness.

 

If you are here today and you are not the least bit concerned or convicted about your sin, then Jesus has absolutely no appeal to you.

 

And that is why the invitation that Jesus gives these Paper Saints

Differs greatly from the one He gave the Proven Sinners.

 

• He told the Proven Sinners “Follow Me!”

• But look at what He told the Paper Saints, “Go and learn”

 

You see, they needed to go and spend time in God’s word

And get convicted of their sin, because in their present state

They were in no way ready for a savior.

 

And even though there is a third group to deal with later,

Take just a moment here and understand the point.

 

We know beyond a shadow of a doubt who Jesus is.

He can undo sickness

He can undo fallen creation

He can undo demonic possession

He can forgive sin

 

He is everything we are looking for.

BUT WHO IS HE LOOKING FOR?

 

Jesus is looking, not for the perfect,

But rather for those who know they are not.

 

Luke 18:9-14 “And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. “The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Psalms 34:18 “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

 

Psalms 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”

 

God is looking for the broken.

God is looking for those who recognize their sin.

 

Now don’t let that translate into some sort of theology

That makes you believe your sin is ok.

 

Jesus will call everyone of those sinners out of that sin

And begin to work sanctification out in them.

 

But He looked initially for sinners

Because they were the ones who knew they needed Him.

 

If you think for one minute that you are able

To make yourself attractive to Jesus through all your

Religious ordinances and churchy garb you are mistaken.

 

No one looked better on the outside than a Pharisee

And Jesus all but ignored them.

 

It is not about how attractive you are to Jesus.

It is about how attractive Jesus is to you.

 

And no one is more attracted to Jesus

Than a sinner who can’t seem to get out of their sin.

 

So this morning if you are stuck in sin, then look to Jesus.

Simply leave your life of sin and follow Him.

 

But this morning if you are completely unaware of your sin.

Then go and immerse yourself in Scripture, see your sin, and then come to Jesus.

 

Because while Jesus willfully saves sinners,

He also adamantly rejects the righteous.

 

So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God

That He may exalt you at the proper time.

 

Matthew 9:12 “But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.”

 

Pruning Abraham

Genesis 13:1-18

March 9, 2014

 

As you know we are looking at the third major player in this account of “The Gospel According to Moses”

 

We started with Adam

The Tragic Reality of Sin

 

We moved to Noah

The Terrible Reality of Judgment

 

Now to Abraham

The Terrific Reality of Salvation

 

Abraham doesn’t just teach us faith, Abraham teaches us

“Salvation by Grace through Faith”

 

Now we will get to the faith part in a couple of chapters.

 

Genesis 15:6 “Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.”

 

That is the great statement of the faith of Abraham, but we are not there yet.

 

Right now we are looking at the cause of Abraham’s salvation,

And that cause is nothing but grace.

 

• Abram was a pagan idolater

• Abram had a barren wife

• Abram was a worldly greedy man

 

And yet God chose him, spoke to him,

And promised to make a great nation out of him.

 

Abraham did leave Haran, and went to Canaan,

And God told Abram, “You are home”.

 

This was great news, and Abram responded

By building an altar and worshiping God.

 

However, a famine hit in the land of Canaan

And Abram wadded up the promise through it over his back,

Headed for Egypt and traded off his wife for the favor of Pharaoh.

 

The promise of God to Abraham looked impossible.

 

“But God…”

 

God sent a plague on Pharaoh

And Pharaoh sent Abram away with his wife.

And to that we clearly saw the grace of God.

• God chose a man who did not deserve it

• God blessed a man who could not perform it

• And God protected a man who had instantly abandoned it

 

It was nothing but grace in Abram’s life,

And it is this same grace that we enjoy in our lives.

 

• God chose us when we did not deserve it.

• God blesses us when we could not perform it.

• And God protects that blessing despite our failures and fickle attitudes.

 

Well this morning I want you to see more of the grace Abram enjoyed.

And in this chapter God’s grace is seen in a different way.

In chapter 12 grace was seen in what God gave to Abram.

In chapter 13 it is seen in what God removes.

 

There are three things in this chapter that I want you to see.

#1 THE PLAN RESTORED

Genesis 13:1-4

 

As you remember Abram had just made a major mistake

So far as his inheritance was concerned.

 

When famine hit Abram bailed for Egypt,

Traded off his wife to Pharaoh and was getting rich off the proceeds.

 

It was a horrible defection on Abraham’s part.

He was basically throwing away God’s promise

In return for temporary gain.

 

But God intervened and now we come to chapter 13

And the original plan of God has been restored.

 

“So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him.”

 

Abram may have lost a little time in Egypt, but that is all he lost.

God has brought him back to Canaan

And the initial promise has been restored.

 

And if that were not enough, we notice that

God even allowed Abram to keep his prosperity in tact.

 

(2) “Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold.”

 

God could have very easily allowed the excursion in Egypt

To drain Abram of all his resources, but He did not.

 

So Abram is back in the land, with his fortune still in tact,

And because of the tremendous grace that God had shown him,

Abram worships again.

 

(3-4) “He went on his journeys from the Negev as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place of the altar which he had made there formerly; and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.”

 

Abram returns to his previous altar

And there again calls on the name of the Lord.

 

And if you are keeping score you will recognize that we are right back where we were before the little excursion to Egypt.

 

And again I remind you that God protected Abraham’s inheritance.

 

It wasn’t Abram’s faith that secured the grace of God,

It was God’s grace that secured Abram’s faith.

 

If it had been up to Abram, he most certainly would have lost the promise,

But God was protecting what He promised.

 

And now, after a stumble by Abram, he is now back on track.

 

I like the way security was stated in the Westminster Confession.

 

Chapter 17, number 1

“They, whom God has accepted in His Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by His Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.”

 

• Can they sin? yes

• Can they stumble? yes

• Can they fall? yes

• Can they make mistakes? yes

 

But thanks to God’s grace, they can’t do it totally or finally.

They are protected by grace.

 

And you can certainly see that in Abraham.

He messed up, he strayed off course, he went the wrong direction,

But God’s grace wouldn’t allow him to mess up totally or finally.

 

After his brief excursion, the plan has been restored.

 

The Plan Restored

#2 A PERSON REMOVED

Genesis 13:5-13

 

Well here we come to the real focal point of this chapter.

God is separating Lot from Abram.

 

Now you will remember that separation is not a new thing.

We saw God do that with the segregation of Noah’s sons,

and with the tower of Babel.

 

We saw God then separate humanity

That He might choose the one on whom His favor would rest.

 

Well, we see that same type of even here.

 

(5) “Now Lot, who went with Abram…”

 

And that has been the case every time hasn’t it?

 

You will remember that Lot was Abram’s nephew.

Lot’s dad Haran died back in Ur of the Chaldeans

And it is easy to see that Lot became as a son to Abram.

 

In fact, Lot was still one area

In which Abram was still holding on to his past a little.

 

Do you remember the requirement God laid upon Abram as He offered grace?

Genesis 12:1 “Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father’s house, To the land which I will show you;”

 

And hopefully as we read that verse you are beginning to see

That Abraham had not fully obeyed that requirement.

 

He had left his country,

He had left his father,

But he still had one of his relatives.

 

Everywhere Abram went, Lot had followed.

This included Haran, this included Canaan,

This included Egypt, and now back into Canaan.

 

There was still a part of Abram’s past that was getting in the way.

And this part must be removed.

 

Now, was it that Lot was a bad influence or something? NO

 

Peter wrote about Lot:

2 Peter 2:7-8 “and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),”

 

In just two verses Peter calls Lot righteous 3 times.

Lot was not a wicked man.

In fact, when God is about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah,

Scripture says He could not until Lot was safely removed.

 

God would even allow two nations to come from Lot.

(the defiled incident of drunkenness and sleeping with his daughters to bring about Ammon and Moab)

 

But the point is that the problem wasn’t Lot’s character,

Or Lot as an individual.

The problem was Abram’s commitment to Lot.

 

God was promising to make a great nation out of Abram.

 

Do you find it peculiar that Abram has yet to question how God is going to do this since he has a barren wife?

 

Do you know why Abram hasn’t questioned?

It is because Abram is expecting that it will run through Lot.

 

If you fast forward two chapters, after Lot is removed,

Notice what Abram says:

 

Genesis 15:2-3 “Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.”

 

The problem of not having an heir didn’t really come up with Abram

So long as Lot was with him.

 

It is clear that Abram was content to let the blessing flow through Lot.

 

But you and I know that God had other plans for Abram.

God had BETTER plans for Abram.

 

• God was going to give Abram a natural born son through his wife Sarai.

• God was going to miraculously do for Abram what he could not do for himself.

 

In short:

God’s plan for Abram was far superior

To the plan Abram had for himself.

 

So how does God get Abram to trade his plan for God’s plan?

The answer?

PRUNING

 

God would have to remove from Abram,

Something that Abram had failed to remove from himself,

In order that Abram might be able to receive the greater blessing.

 

First let me show you how God went about to do it.

(5-7) “Now Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. And the land could not sustain them while dwelling together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to remain together. And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. Now the Canaanite and the Perizzite were dwelling then in the land.”

 

Now think of all the ways God could have separated the two of them.

• Another famine…

• A deadly disease…

• A broken relationship…

 

But look at how gracious God was.

He allowed them both to become more prosperous

Than the land could sustain.

 

Now that is a gracious way of saying you can’t dwell together any more.

Even in this pruning work, God continues to be gracious.

 

But God has presented a scenario

That is going to require Lot to be removed from the equation.

 

Now, as we read this, notice also how Abram’s faith is already maturing.

 

(8-9) “So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are brothers. “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me; if to the left, then I will go to the right; or if to the right, then I will go to the left.”

 

Now does that sound awfully benevolent to anyone else?

 

I mean, this is Abram’s land, not Lot’s land.

Why in the world would Abram let Lot choose first?

 

Well, let me ask you: What do you think Abram learned from his little excursion into Egypt?

 

He learned that God was able to protect his inheritance.

 

Even though Egypt was a mistake on Abram’s part,

God used it to grow Abram’s faith.

 

That is why Abram isn’t worried now that he will somehow lose the land.

God had already taught him that his inheritance is safely his.

 

That is how great a God we serve.

 

Last week we learned that even when our faith falters,

It does not put our inheritance at risk because God’s grace protects it.

But now we go a step further and see that not only can God protect our inheritance in spite of our mistakes, but God can also use our mistakes to grow our faith.

 

What did Paul say?

Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

 

Now that is encouraging.

 

In this life journey I am on.

• I have been chosen by God to be His child when I did not deserve it.

• He not only chose me, but atoned for me and promised me an

inheritance.

• That inheritance is secured by him regardless of my weakness.

• And even in those moments when my weakness reveals itself, God can

take my mistakes and use them to grow my faith even stronger.

 

That is grace!

 

That is what God has done for Abraham.

Now Abraham can let Lot have first choice of the land

Because Abram knows that God will keep his inheritance safe.

 

So Abram gives Lot the choice.

 

And you will notice that Lot did exactly what we would expect:

(10-13) “Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere — this was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah — like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar. So Lot chose for himself all the valley of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the valley, and moved his tents as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked exceedingly and sinners against the LORD.”

 

Lot chose the land that looked the best for raising his herd.

Any good shepherd would choose the best grass for his sheep.

 

But even in this choice what you begin to notice is that

The faith God has given Abram is actually starting to pay off.

 

Abram is walking by faith here, but Lot is walking by sight.

And Lot’s sight led him to green pastures

Which unfortunately took him to Sodom.

 

You and I both know that this is going to prove to be a poor decision.

 

The main point here is that God is pruning Lot from Abraham’s life,

So that He can do in Abraham’s life abundantly more

Than Abraham could even imagine.

 

Abram doesn’t realize it now,

But he is trading a nephew for a natural born son.

 

Now, think about this for a second in your own life.

This is a process we refer to as PRUNING.

 

John 15:1-3 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.”

 

• Pruning isn’t fun

• Pruning isn’t even comfortable

• In fact pruning can be down right painful

 

But God must do it, in order that He can do in our lives

Exceedingly beyond what we could even imagine.

 

Think of it in this regard:

Matthew 13:22 “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”

 

In that parable Jesus painted the weeds that would choke the word and make it unfruitful as things like “the world” and “wealth”

 

None of us like to lose those things.

Unfortunately we have learned to find comfort in the world and in wealth.

 

But those are things that must be pruned, why?

So that we can be more fruitful.

 

Look at Hebrews 12:

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

 

There we aren’t depicted as plants bearing fruit,

But rather as runners in a race.

 

And just as there are things that can make a plant unfruitful (weeds),

There are things that can make a runner run slower.

 

There are things that hinder them.

And if you are going to run the race God intends,

Then those are things that must be removed.

Is it pleasant? No

Is it easy? No

 

But here is the point.

When God prunes things out of your life, understand that He is doing this, not to steal from you, not to make you miserable,

But because those things must be removed

Before He can do the greater work in you.

 

Abram was content with a nephew when God wanted him to have son.

 

What you and I must learn to do is accept that pruning with eyes of faith,

To understand that God has something better in store.

 

So when He begins to remove a few weeds,

Just know a garden will soon take its place.

 

So here God pruned Abram.

 

The Plan Restored, A Person Removed

#3 THE PROMISE REMEMBERED

Genesis 13:14-18

 

I can only imagine what a wonderful day this was for Abram.

 

I have no doubt that there was remorse in his heart

As he watched Lot travel away.

 

But as we have said many times before,

God doesn’t ask us to leave the world behind so that He can steal from us.

God asks us to lose this life that we might take hold of life indeed.

 

As Abraham watched Lot walk away, God grabbed Abram’s hand and said, “Abram, I know what I am doing”

 

Notice how God remembered and reiterated to Abram that entire promise.

 

1) A WORLD TO SEE (14-15)

 

“The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Now lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever.”

 

No, God didn’t give the whole world to Abram,

But He promised to Abram all the world he could see.

 

Look around Abram, as far as you can see in any direction, it’s all yours.

 

Lot is walking away, but you are losing nothing.

This whole land is yours, not Lot’s

 

Lot is leaving, but you aren’t losing descendants, you will gain them.

 

• Can you see how generous God is?

• Can you see how grace is better than anything Abram could have planned on his own?

 

Just look Abram, it’s all yours, everything you can see.

 

Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

 

For all extensive purposes, God laid the world at Abram’s feet.

 

God’s pruning was not about stealing Abram’s leaves,

It was about increasing Abram’s fruit.

 

A world to see

2) A WONDER TO FATHOM (16)

 

“I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth, so that if anyone can number the dust of the earth, then your descendants can also be numbered.”

 

Now I know we’ve heard that analogy so many times that it really doesn’t shock us anymore, but think about that for a second.

 

“I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth”

 

What does that mean?

(his descendants will be brown?)

(his descendants will get in hard to reach places?)

(his descendants will make you sneeze?)

 

Well, can you count the dust? No

You won’t be able to count Abram’s descendants either

 

That’s a pretty remarkable statement to a man with a barren wife.

 

Psalms 139:6 “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it.”

That must have been how Abram felt.

 

In fact, Abram voices this amazement later.

Genesis 15:1-5 “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; Your reward shall be very great.” Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, ” Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.” Then behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.” And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”

 

• How can one even fathom such a promise?

• And certainly how can a barren man fathom such a promise?

 

A few years ago, Abram was a man with a barren wife, living in Haran trying to get rich so he could die and leave it all to his nephew.

But God, by His grace, has greatly changed Abram’s fortune.

 

This is the type of thing you just lay in bed at night and try to fathom. That is God’s grace to Abram.

 

A World to See, A Wonder to Fathom

3) A WALK TO REMEMBER (17)

 

“Arise, walk about the land through its length and breadth; for I will give it to you.”

 

Now I’ve heard so many “name it and claim it” preachers reference this as some sort of faith walk where Abram claimed the land.

 

No, no, no – there was no “if” in that statement.

This was a walk of sheer enjoyment.

 

• That land was going to be Abram’s whether he walked or not.

• That land was going to be his whether he ever claimed it.

• God promised it, it was going to happen.

 

This was a walk to remember.

 

I’ve never been in that boat, but many in here have bought land. And you know the joy of walking that land or driving through it, once it is yours.

 

There is a satisfaction and an excitement about it.

That was the kind of walk Abram had.

 

Only, I’m not sure if Abram ever finished the walk because the gratitude overflowing in his heart forced him to stop again.

 

(18) “Then Abram moved his tent and came and dwelt by the oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and there he built an altar to the LORD.”

 

If you’re keeping track, this is now the third time

Abram has stopped to worship God and give Him praise.

 

 

Why wouldn’t he?

• God chose him when he was unworthy.

• God protected him when he was unruly.

• And now God has pruned him in order to bless him when he was

uninformed of all God could do.

 

Such is grace!

 

Again friends can you see it?

 

Abram was saved “by grace”

Where it not for grace, I can tell you where Abram would be.

 

He’d be living in Hur, with no children of his own,

Scratching out a meager living that his nephew would inherit.

 

But grace entered the picture and rewrote Abram’s story.

God picked Him

God protected Him

God pruned Him

 

• So friends, rejoice that God has picked you

• Rejoice that God is protecting you

• And learn to rejoice when God prunes you, for it only means that He has something far greater in store.

 

And as a result of it all – worship God.

Build Him an altar, even if that altar stands alone in a pagan land.

 

God deserves your public worship, give it to Him.

 

Ephesians 2:8-9 “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.”

 

A True Messenger

Galatians 1:10-24

March 9, 2014

 

As you know we have begun a study of Paul’s letter to the Galatians.

 

And most recently we have studied what we called

“Galatians in a Nutshell”

 

The first 10 verses of this book really serve as

Sort of a table of contents for the rest of the letter.

 

After Paul planted churches in the region of Galatia,

The Jewish extremists known as the “Judaizers” followed him in

And started trying to turn his converts Jewish.

 

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.”

 

It was subtle, it was close, it could be argued with Scripture,

And yet it was a damning perversion of the true gospel.

 

And because it was so dangerous Paul actually wrote:

Galatians 1:8-9 “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!”

 

Those were some pretty harsh words.

“accursed” translates ANATHEMA

Which refers to an offering which has been

Devoted to God for destruction.

 

It is unredeemable, it is doomed to suffer, it is devoted for destruction.

And Paul said if anyone preaches a different gospel, that is him.

 

And so as we move through this letter, we will see Paul take the issues

He introduced in the first 9 verses and now take them a little deeper.

 

And he begins going deeper by revealing the truth about

The difference between a true messenger and a false one.

 

You will remember that Paul began this message by revealing

That he was a true messenger of God.

 

He is an apostle, he is sent from God not from man,

And now he will expound on that.

 

He is going to show why he is a true messenger, and why the Judaizers who are preaching the false gospel of works are not.

And in order to do that Paul gives a section revealing his own vindication.

 

He is answering his critics and at the same time

Revealing to the Galatians why he, and not they, can be trusted.

 

So put yourself in the Galatian’s shoes.

• Paul shows up and preaches one thing.

• Then come the Judaizers and preach something else.

 

WHO ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE?

 

And not only in this situation, but in all situations, how do you know if a preacher of the gospel is trustworthy as a preacher of the gospel?

 

2 Peter 2:1 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.”

 

We learn time and time again throughout the Scriptures that not everyone who claims to speak the truth of God really does speak the truth of God.

 

By examining Paul’s life,

Not only will we see the motives of a true messenger,

But by contrast, we will learn the motives of a false messenger.

 

So tonight, let’s break our text up into 3 points.

#1 THE MOTIVE

Galatians 1:10

 

You will notice that Paul begins with two questions.

They are not rhetorical.

 

He actually wants the Galatians to examine his ministry

And honestly answer the question.

 

“For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God?”

 

Let’s start with that question.

It is a vitally important question in order to determine if a preacher or prophet or apostle is the real deal.

 

“For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God?”

 

In other words, whose approval do you think I am trying to win?

Especially after twice pronouncing a curse on the Judaizers

And insinuating that the Galatians are near apostasy,

Paul wants to know if they think he is a man pleaser.

 

In fact he asks that question second.

“Or am I striving to please men?”

 

Apparently one of the attacks the Judaizers had mounted against Paul is that he was just a man pleaser who told people what they wanted to hear.

 

Paul begins this letter with a rebuke and a curse and then says,

“Does that sound like a man pleaser to you?”

 

What Paul is also doing is revealing to us

The motive of why a man begins to preach.

 

What is the motive?

The Bible is clear that false prophets preach to please men,

And true prophets preach to please God.

 

Matthew 11:7-9 “As these men were going away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? “But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ palaces! “But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet.”

 

Luke 6:22-26 “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. “Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets. “But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. “Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.”

 

False prophets did not care about what God thought,

They only wanted to be more popular at the end of the day.

 

It is those that Paul warned the Ephesian church about.

Acts 20:28-30 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.”

 

And who he referenced as he wrote to Timothy.

2 Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,”

 

A false prophet is obviously not perverting God’s truth

For the sake of having treasure in heaven.

 

Therefore their pay off must come while on earth.

And the only way they will ever get a pay off on earth

Is if they are pleasing to man.

WHAT IS THEIR MOTIVE?

At the end of the message are they more concerned that you are right with God, or that you like them?

 

You will see later in the letter that the motivation of the Judaizers

Is to please men.

 

Galatians 6:12 “Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.”

 

But that is not Paul.

He then answers it on his own behalf.

“If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.”

 

Notice what Paul said.

“If I were STILL trying to please men”

 

Obviously that used to be Paul’s motive.

 

In fact, if you look down to verses 13-14 you can see that was the case.

“For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.”

 

It’s obvious Paul was pleasing men,

Or else he would not have been advancing.

 

Philippians 3:5-6 “circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.”

 

That’s Paul’s life and he says right after that,

“whatever things were gain to me”

 

In other words, this was what he used for personal gain.

It allowed him to impress people, to please people,

And therefore it built his reputation among men.

 

Paul used to try and please man, BUT NOT ANY MORE.

 

“If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.”

 

Paul is no longer trying to please men, now he is trying to please Christ, and you CANNOT DO BOTH at the same time.

 

Serving Christ is NOT an effective way to become popular in the world.

Matthew 10:24-25 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. “It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!”

 

John 15:18-21 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘ A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. “But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me.”

 

John 16:1-3 “These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. “These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.”

 

And so you get the point.

It is all about motive.

 

Paul’s motive is not to please men, he only wants to please God,

And this is one of the ways we know he is legitimate.

 

So first, the motive

#2 THE MESSAGE

Galatians 1:11-12

 

Notice what Paul says about his message.

“For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.”

 

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

• Paul did not learn this from some human.

• Paul was not taught this in some seminary.

 

“For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.”

 

Paul got his message from God.

 

And that is another great indicator

To rather or not a man is a true spokesman of God.

 

Where does his message come from?

Who is the source for what he preaches?

 

• Now, is that to say that you can’t have learned anything from someone else?

• Is Paul knocking seminaries?

No, not at all. God gave the gift of teaching

That we might teach others and other might teach us.

 

Even in Bible times we read of Apollos

Acts 18:24-26 “Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.”

 

The explanation is simple:

Matthew 16:13-18 “Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

 

This was not a truth that Peter had never learned.

In fact, John the Baptist was teaching this from the beginning.

 

But when it finally stuck with Peter, he got it from God.

 

So it is from a true preacher of the gospel. We call it conviction.

They don’t just preach what the majority has come to agree is the truth. They preach what God has revealed to them through His word.

 

That is what Paul did.

As he read the Old Testament God burned in his heart

The gospel message of salvation.

 

Contrast that to the false prophets.

Jeremiah 23:25-32 “I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy falsely in My name, saying, ‘I had a dream, I had a dream!’ “How long? Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, even these prophets of the deception of their own heart, who intend to make My people forget My name by their dreams which they relate to one another, just as their fathers forgot My name because of Baal? “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock? “Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who steal My words from each other. “Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares.’ “Behold, I am against those who have prophesied false dreams,” declares the LORD, “and related them and led My people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting; yet I did not send them or command them, nor do they furnish this people the slightest benefit,” declares the LORD.”

 

All they do is say what they are told to say,

But they have never learned anything from God.

But not Paul

He preaches the message that God has given him to preach.

 

He preaches “the gospel” which is “not according to man.”

 

And think about that.

“not according to man”

 

Man never came up with anything like the gospel of God.

 

The true gospel is absolutely contrary to human logic.

1 Corinthians 1:18-25 “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.” Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

 

Later Paul says:

1 Corinthians 3:18-20 “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS”; and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS.”

 

God’s gospel is beyond human logic.

 

So when evaluating preachers one main question is

Where did their message come from?

You have to trace the origin.

 

Is it the message of Christ, or the message of men?

AND THEY ARE NOT THE SAME MESSAGE

 

When Christ came preaching, He was a radical.

No one preached His message. It was unique

And different from anything the people were hearing.

 

Matthew 7:28-29 “When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

 

John 7:45-46 “The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, “Why did you not bring Him?” The officers answered, “Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.”

Mark 6:2 “When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands?”

 

Christ’s message was radical and different from the world’s.

 

And what that means is that you cannot preach the world’s message and still claim to be a messenger of Christ.

 

Look at the message.

• Is it Christ’s message?

• Did it come from Christ?

 

Paul wants the Galatians to know that the message he is preaching was the message Christ preached, and Christ gave it to him.

 

Look at his motive and look at his message.

#3 THE MISSION

Galatians 1:13-24

 

So when you want to evaluate a messenger, you evaluate his motive, you evaluate his message.

 

And then you evaluate his mission.

In other words, what is he trying to accomplish?

 

Here Paul actually gives you a contrast.

We get his original mission and then we get his present one.

 

Look at his ORIGINAL mission

(13-14) “For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.”

 

Now look at who Paul used to be

And you find several indicators of a false messenger.

 

Let me show them to you.

PERSECUTION TO DESTROY THE CHURCH

“I used to persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it”

 

Attacking the church physically or spiritually or emotionally or verbally

Is not an indicator of a mission of the Holy Spirit.

 

Is the church perfect? No

But you must understand that Christ loves His church.

• He is not out to destroy her

• He is not out to grieve her

• He loves her

 

And when you see people whose ministry is more about attacking the church than caring for her, that is the wrong kind of mission.

 

That’s was Paul’s original mission and it was not of God.

Incidentally it was also the mission of the Judaizers.

 

They weren’t physically attacking the church,

But they were trying to dissolve it into Judaism.

That is a faulty mission.

 

Look at the next characteristic of Paul’s former mission

AMBITION TO OUTGAIN HIS CONTEMPORARIES

 

“I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen”

 

Look, ladder climbing is NOT a Holy Spirit inspired mission.

 

The Bible never looks favorably on ambition.

James 3:13-18 “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

 

And seeking only to out do your contemporaries

Is NOT something God inspires.

That is something the false messengers do:

 

2 Corinthians 10:12 “For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.”

 

Ambition is nothing more than promotion of self,

And you can’t promote self and Christ at the same time.

 

Ambition is a sign of a false messenger.

 

One more:

TRADITION OVER TRUTH

 

“being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions”

Now we know that tradition is not necessarily a bad thing.

 

The problem occurs when tradition becomes the measure of truth

Instead of truth becoming the measure of tradition.

 

If the truth validates a tradition, then by all means keep it.

But if the truth contradicts it, then that tradition must be discarded.

 

However, because they love to please people (who love tradition),

False messengers are not zealous for truth, they are zealous for tradition.

 

That used to be Paul, and that was the Judaizers.

They didn’t care about the truth gospel, they only cared about their traditions, and this made them false messengers.

 

Persecution of the church

Ambition to excel

Tradition over truth

That was Paul’s former ministry.

 

Now let me show you what his ministry became when God changed him.

 

(15-24) “But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus. Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days. But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. (Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying.) Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which were in Christ; but only, they kept hearing, “He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy.” And they were glorifying God because of me.”

 

Now notice the characteristics of this true ministry.

 

IT BEGINS WITH GOD

“God, who had set me apart”

“called me through His grace”

 

That is a God initiated ministry.

 

Earlier we read about the false prophets whom God did not send,

but they ran anyway.

A true prophet is one who runs because God sent him.

That was Paul.

And with every messenger,

• We are looking for evidence of God’s call on their life.

• We are looking for evidence of the gift

• We are looking for that fire in the bones to answer the call

• We are looking for the fruit of that ministry to suggest that God is working through him

 

That was Paul, his ministry did not begin with men, it began with God.

 

IT REVEALS HIS SON

“was pleased to reveal His Son in me”

 

Who does the ministry glorify?

Who does the ministry promote?

 

We live in a day where preachers actually promote themselves

More than they promote Christ.

 

• They push their television ministry

• They push their website

• They push their radio spot

• They push their latest book

• They unashamedly ask for support for those things

 

But you are hard pressed to hear much about Jesus’ ministry,

Or Jesus’ book, or Jesus’ mission.

 

A true messenger reveals God’s Son, not themselves.

 

It begins with God, It reveals His Son

IT IS CONCERNED WITH GOD’S FAVOR

 

“I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem”

 

Paul goes on and on about how he was doing was for God, not for man.

And it is not that he was opposed to Peter, James, and John,

It was just that he didn’t feel the need to get their approval.

 

He was serving God and he wanted God’s favor, not mans’.

Paul was concerned about pleasing God.

 

And that is also a characteristic of a true messenger.

 

And finally

IT HAS A REPUTATION OF HELPING THE CHURCH, NOT HARMING

 

“I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which were in Christ; but only, they kept hearing, “He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tired to destroy.” And they were glorifying God because of me.”

 

That church was encouraged by Paul, not confused.

 

Remember the Judaizers came in and were “disturbing” the Galatians.

 

That is not a true messenger.

Paul came in to encourage the church, not disturb her.

 

 

So if you want to know the difference

Between a true messenger and a false one.

 

Look at his motive – why does he do it?

Look at his message – is it the same message Christ preached?

Look at his mission – does it promote Christ and bless the church, or does it promote self and disturb the church?

 

And with that criteria, it is not hard to spot who is real and who is not.

 

And it is important that we see the difference

That we not end up in the same confused condition as the Galatians.

 

Galatians 1:8-9 “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!”

 

Galatians in a Nutshell – part 2

Galatians 1:6-9

March 2, 2014

 

I promise that I had no intention of giving you two sermons a couple of weeks ago that were divided into part 1 and part 2 and then taking this long to get back to them.

 

However, two weeks ago we began a brand new study

Of one of the finest books in the Bible.

We began studying Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia.

 

To sort of pull you back into the proper thought here,

We began by revisiting a question that one of Job’s friends asked him.

 

Bildad asked Job:

Job 25:4 “How then can a man be just with God? Or how can he be clean who is born of woman?”

 

• Bildad wasn’t doubting that man was sinful…

• Bildad wasn’t arguing man’s need of righteousness…

 

Bildad’s question was how is sinful man

Supposed to obtain that righteousness?

 

Now, if we had that much time and if we really cared

We could do an extensive study of various religions

And see how they answer that question.

 

But for brevity sake, we can really quite easily

Break every religion that has ever been down into 1 of 2 categories.

 

Through the ages humanity has answered that question one of two ways.

 

1) Sinful man obtains righteousness by earning it through human effort.

 

He does something or does enough that finally gets him over the hump

And causes God to say he is “good enough”.

 

Now every religion differs on what those “good works” are,

But still at the end of the day, the answer is that something is required.

 

And I told you then as well, that this answer is by far

The most popular and most widely accepted.

 

Most of the world believes this is the way a man becomes just before God

 

2) Sinful man obtains righteousness as a gift from One who is righteous.

 

In other words, it is the belief that sinful man has already blown it and regardless of his efforts from this day forward, he can never change his sinful past, and therefore can never be fully righteous.

If he is to be just, someone else must give their righteousness to him.

 

That means that you must first find one that is righteous and then you must convince that righteous one to give His righteousness to you.

Sounds far-fetched when you say it like that doesn’t it?

 

And yet, this is the message of the Bible.

The only difference is that we didn’t have to convince the righteous One to share His righteousness with us, He did it freely.

 

2 Corinthians 5:21 “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

 

Only Christianity believes that righteousness is credited to sinners

As a gift from One who is perfectly righteous.

 

In fact, Christianity is the only religion that is even capable of believing this system because only Christianity has a righteous Savior.

 

And so only Christianity believes that man is made just before God

As a gift by grace.

 

Adrian Rogers said, “Grace is exclusive to Christianity”

 

And no book defends that truth like the letter Paul wrote

To the regions of Galatia.

 

This region was a region that cost Paul much to reach.

He was run out of two cities by Jewish hostiles

And was stoned and left for dead in a third.

 

And now, after Paul has departed, a group of men known as Judaizers

Had swooped in and were distorting Paul’s message of grace.

 

The Judaizers basically said, that believing in Jesus was fine (they may have even done that) but that if a man was to be saved, he must also be circumcised.

 

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.”

 

They believed that adherence to the Mosaic Law

Was necessary for salvation.

You could believe in Jesus, but you must also become Jewish.

(The closest to this today would be someone like 7th Day Adventist)

 

And so they attacked Paul’s message of salvation by grace through faith.

 

The result of this perversion was the book of Galatians.

It is a fiery work, it is a passionate work.

And as I told you a couple of weeks ago, it was really this book more than any other that is credited for starting the Protestant Reformation.

 

This book defends salvation by grace alone!

 

Two weeks ago we started studying what I called “Galatians in a Nutshell”

That is really what the first 9 verses really are.

 

The first 9 verses serve as sort of a table of contents

For the rest of the letter.

 

Everything Paul reveals here, he will greatly expound on later.

But these 9 verses give us a very clear picture of exactly what he wants to say.

 

Last time we saw:

#1 THE SOURCE OF PAUL’S MESSAGE

Galatians 1:1-2

 

Paul will expound on this more later (even in this first chapter)

But the basic point was that his message came from God.

 

The Judaizers first attacked Paul’s message by attacking Paul.

 

They would try to prove that he was not God’s spokesman,

And that is a point Paul wastes no time refuting.

 

(1) “Paul, an apostle (not sent from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),”

 

Paul was neither trained nor sent by men.

He came from God and he spoke God’s message.

 

He was not the radical, the Judaizers were the radicals.

 

#2 THE SUBSTANCE OF PAUL’S MESSAGE

Galatians 1:3-5

 

And here we saw the basic theological point

Of what Paul will be saying throughout the letter.

 

1) RECEIVE GRACE (3)

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”

 

One of the main points Paul will make throughout this letter

Is that grace is only available in Christ.

 

• If you try to add anything to Christ

• If you try to take anything away from Christ

THEN YOU LOSE GRACE

 

What God did in sending His Son to die in our stead

And to grant His righteousness to us

Was without a doubt the most gracious thing

That has ever occurred in the scope of human history.

 

But if you ignore God’s atonement and seek to earn righteousness on your own, you will forfeit that grace.

 

He will say later:

Galatians 5:2-4 “Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.”

 

• Does anyone really want to give up grace?

• Does anyone really want to go back to works?

 

Well don’t!

Receive Grace!

 

2) REMEMBER CHRIST (4)

“who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,”

 

What a statement!

 

Have you forgotten what it was that Christ did for you?

• You and I were sinners

• You and I were imprisoned by that sin

• And we were prisoners in this evil age

 

But God devised a plan

God chose to rescue us from our certain peril

God forged a rescue mission if you will.

 

That rescue mission was to punish one innocent Man

For the sins of everyone else.

 

That was the plan, and Christ was compliant.

He “gave Himself for ours sins”

 

Isaiah 53:4-6 “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.”

 

1 Peter 3:18 “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;”

 

And we could go on and on with verses like that.

 

But the point is, do you remember what He did?

• Do you remember the cross?

• Do you remember Him saying “It is finished!”?

• Do you remember the atonement?

 

Well, if you go back to trying to earn righteousness

You must not think much of it.

 

You must think His work was insufficient…

You must think His death was only partially successful…

Don’t disregard the power of the atonement of Christ.

 

Receive Grace, Remember Christ

3) GLORIFY GOD (5)

“to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen”

 

See what the Galatians failed to realize is that

There is a reason why people so easily gravitate toward legalism.

 

You would think that with grace available no one would choose works instead,

And yet that is what happens in most people’s lives.

 

When given the option, people repeatedly choose works over grace.

WHY?

 

Because the one who does the work gets the glory.

 

People don’t choose legalism because they like to work.

People choose legalism because they desire glory.

 

And one thing I know about glory is that

If you are glorifying yourself you aren’t glorifying God.

 

And that is also something that has Paul so angry.

• This message of the Judaizers throws grace out the window,

• Overlooks the magnificent work of Christ,

• And gives the glory of salvation to the sinner instead of the Savior.

 

That is the substance of Paul’s message and that is why he is so angry.

 

Well, that catches us up to speed

With where we left off a couple of weeks ago.

 

Let’s move forward tonight.

#3 THE STING OF PAUL’S MESSAGE

Galatians 1:6-7

 

Here is another theme that will continually resurface throughout this book And that is that Paul is flabbergasted at what the Galatians are doing.

 

“I am amazed…” he says.

 

That word “amazed” translates THAUMAZO

Which means “to marvel” or “to wonder”

 

It is a word that Paul only uses one other place in his letters.

 

2 Thessalonians 1:9-10 “These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed — for our testimony to you was believed.”

 

Paul said that when Jesus returns

All those who have believed in Him will marvel at Him.

 

Paul actually says that the only other event in human history

That can cause him to marvel as much as he is right now

Is the return of Christ.

 

Can you see how perplexed he is by the Galatian’s defection?

“I am amazed…”

 

Later he will write:

Galatians 4:19-20 “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you — but I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.”

 

Paul writes as one whose mind is literally blown.

He can’t fathom what the Galatians are doing.

 

WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

“I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel”

 

THE GALATIANS WERE DESERTING GOD.

Some would assume at most they were only deserting Paul’s gospel,

But that was not it.

 

They were deserting “Him who called” them.

 

They weren’t just deserting the truth, they were deserting God.

How?

They were abandoning “the grace of Christ”

 

I am actually quite grateful that our study of Galatians is coinciding with our study of Genesis, for we are getting to see grace in both places.

 

But take Abraham for a second.

We’ve seen Abraham for a couple of weeks now.

• A pagan…

• A barren man…

• A worldly man…

• Even a fickle man (deserting the promised land)…

 

And when we look at Abraham we know there is only one reason

Why he ever became the patriarch we know of today.

He was a recipient of grace.

 

But there was a point in Abraham’s life

When he also tried to desert grace and embrace works.

 

Paul will even talk about it:

Galatians 4:21-23 “Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman. But the son by the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise.”

 

Do you remember the story?

Genesis 16:1-2 “Now Sarai, Abram’s wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.”

 

What was happening there?

• Abraham was taking matters into his own hands.

• He and Sarah had decided that God needed help fulfilling the promise.

• SO ABRAHAM TOOK GOD OFF THE CASE AND TOOK OVER HIMSELF

 

Abraham wasn’t just deserting grace, he was also deserting God.

Abraham was telling God, I’ll do it on my own.

 

That is where the Galatians were.

• They were throwing grace out the window.

• They were throwing Christ out the window.

• They were throwing God’s salvation out the window.

 

And Paul can’t believe it.

Why would you so quickly determine to throw Christ aside?

 

And certainly you can feel the sting in Paul’s message to them.

It carries the tone of a father who is utterly disappointed in his son.

• Paul didn’t see this coming…

• Paul certainly expected better…

• They have let him down, they have perplexed him…

 

And you need to understand this.

 

 

Paul is not disappointed in the Galatians

Because they weren’t doing enough FOR God.

Paul was disappointed because

They were trying to do enough WITHOUT God.

 

Do you understand what a slap in the face it is to God for you to try and earn what He has already provided?

 

I remember when Carrie and I were dating, and she was transferring to Tarleton because she was madly in love with me.

 

• She has her electric piano and we were going to take it to her dorm room.

• We put it in the back of pickup, but she wouldn’t let me tie it down.

• We had to wait for her dad to come home so he could tie it down.

 

(I built furniture for a living, I hauled everything I built once a month to Canton,

I was now hauling her furniture)

 

But I wasn’t capable of tying it down.

 

Now that is minor and stupid, but think about it in God’s terms.

 

He sent His Son in human flesh to pay the ransom for our sin.

It was a gracious gift of salvation.

 

But instead of just letting Him do it, the Galatians were saying,

“I appreciate your help, but let us tie it down.”

 

They were insulting God.

They were deserting Him.

 

And when you or I try to earn God’s favor through various religious works, we are doing the same.

 

Now works ARE important.

• God determined that we would do good works.

• If you don’t have works you don’t have faith.

 

But works are only the result of grace and NEVER the cause of it.

 

To try and earn what God is giving is either to doubt God’s power,

Or to doubt His generosity.

 

This letter stings because the Galatians are deserting God

And Paul just can’t believe it.

 

They are deserting God “for a different gospel”

 

“different” translates HETEROS

(HOMO is same – HETERO is different)

It is not the same gospel message.

It may sound a lot like what I preached, but it is different.

 

Paul says in verse 7 “which is really not another”

 

It may have many of the same concepts as the true gospel,

But it is not like the true gospel.

 

If you add anything to or take anything away from the true gospel,

Then it is not the gospel.

 

Think of it like a recipe for a fine dessert.

• There is only one way to make that dessert.

• If you add to or take away, it is not the same.

 

It may taste close, it may look close, but it is not the same.

 

And the gospel is something that cannot be changed, or you lose it.

If you add works, you lose the gospel

If you subtract grace, you lose the gospel

 

And these men had come into Galatia with an altered gospel,

And Paul is blown away that the Galatians would accept it.

 

“only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.”

 

Do you see their gimmick?

They first DISTURB, and then they DISTORT

 

They came in disturbing the Galatians

By convincing them that they still were not pleasing to God

Then they distorted the gospel to satisfy that need.

 

It is a dangerous circle, but always the circle of the false prophets.

 

They accuse, they manipulate, they threaten, they guilt

And then they offer a false gospel to sooth that guilt

 

It is a cunning work of Satan

To convince people to follow a system which cannot save.

 

2 Peter 2:1-3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

 

They pull you away from Christ and enslave you to a false salvation.

The Galatians were believing this false system of salvation.

• They were accepting it.

• They were leaving God.

• They were abandoning Christ.

• They were deserting from the true gospel.

 

And Paul can’t believe it, he is shocked!

If you wonder why this letter is so direct and fiery, that is why.

 

The Source of Paul’s Message, The Substance of Paul’s Message

The Sting of Paul’s Message

#4 THE SINGULARITY OF PAUL’S MESSAGE

Galatians 1:8-9

 

It is impossible to miss the passion or severity

With which Paul is speaking.

 

“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!”

 

Now you might be familiar with language like that in the Old Testament.

We hear a lot of the curse there.

 

But that is not common in the New Testament.

In fact being accursed is reserved for people

Who have heard the gospel and rejected it.

 

Hebrews 6:7-8 “For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.”

 

The cursed are those who know better and reject.

 

And the other cursed people are found here.

Those who distort the gospel.

 

“accursed” translates ANATHEMA

It was in reference to an offering devoted to God for destruction.

 

Joshua 6:17 “The city shall be under the ban, it and all that is in it belongs to the LORD; only Rahab the harlot and all who are with her in the house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.”

 

(And you’ll remember Achan’s sin of stealing some of it)

 

Jericho was ANATHEMA

Devoted to God for destruction.

 

The main use of the word was of an offering devoted for destruction.

You sinned, so you presented a lamb to God – why?

So the lamb could be destroyed that you might be forgiven.

You never presented a lamb to God with hopes of it being given back.

It was devoted to God for destruction

 

And Paul says if anyone – and I mean anyone

Me, an angel from heaven, anyone

 

Preaches a different gospel, let him be devoted to God for destruction.

 

In 2 Peter 2, Peter reminds that

• If God didn’t spare sinning angels

• And if God didn’t spare sinners in Noah’s day

• And if God didn’t spare Sodom and Gomorrah

 

2 Peter 2:9-10 “then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority.”

 

Jude 12-13 “These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.”

 

These men (or even angels) who distort the gospel

Are absolutely unredeemable.

They are already handed over for destruction.

 

And just to make sure we didn’t hear Paul wrong:

(9) “As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!”

 

WHY SO SEVERE?

Because if you lose the gospel, you lose salvation.

 

Romans 1:16-17 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.”

 

Adrian Rogers said it like this:

“I’m not the best preacher in the world; there are a lot of people who can preach the gospel better than I can. But no one can preach a better gospel than I can, because there’s only one and God will bless it and God will honor it.”

 

That is what Paul was saying.

 

And that is Galatians in a nutshell.

It is a fight to preserve the true gospel.

 

 

 

And the sheer passion of the book

Reminds us of what an important battle this is.

 

We live in a day where distortions to the gospel are overlooked…

Tolerance is the virtue of the day…

 

And Paul was that type of man in so many areas

• He could quit eating meat

• He could live like a Jew or Gentile

• He could go out of his way not to be an offense

 

But the preservation of the gospel was a hill on which to die.

• It was a truth worth fighting for

• It was a truth worth losing friends over

• It was a truth worth losing ministry colleagues over

 

Above all else, the gospel must be preserved.

 

And as I told you a couple of weeks ago,

This became the motive for the Protestant Reformation.

 

The reformers learned that many things could be compromised

But salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone

For the glory of God alone was not one of them.

 

As the church we are commanded not only to know, understand, and preach the gospel, but we are also commanded to defend it.

 

1 Timothy 3:14-15 “I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.”

 

If we allow the gospel to be distorted,

Then we have failed to “the pillar and support of the truth”

Which God intended.

 

• We must learn it

• We must understand it

• We must preach it

• We must defend it

 

Galatians 1:3-5 “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.”