Sermon - July 31, 2016 - Galatians 3:15-18 - Promise?

Last week we finished off with a reminder that it does not matter how good of a person we or our friends are. It is not possible to donate enough money or time to charities to get into heaven. You can’t avoid drugs and get into heaven and you cannot help people enough to enter into the Glorious Eternity. Being a good person is just as likely to get you into heaven as following the Law will.

As we have worked our way through the Letter to the Galatians we have seen a common theme. A person must have faith in the one and only Jesus Christ to find your way to heaven. Faith alone saves you. Abraham had faith, before the Law was written and it saved him. Moses had faith, and it saved him even though he made one simple mistake. You and I are saved by having faith in Jesus. Nothing more and nothing less saves you, it is Faith Alone that brings salvation. Once you are saved it is your job to carry that message to the ends of the earth.

Now Paul has taken a pretty solid stand on how we are saved by faith. He must have been getting questioned about why was the law even needed? If salvation was through faith and even Abraham had it, why did the generations that followed need the law? So Paul took the time to explain how the law fits into the overall plan.

Galatians 3:15-16

“¹⁵ Brothers, I’m using a human illustration. No one sets aside or makes additions to even a human covenant that has been ratified. ¹⁶ Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say “and to seeds,” as though referring to many, but referring to one, and to your seed, who is Christ.”

The Law crowd was saying that once the Law was issued through Moses the path to salvation had been completely changed. Their response to Paul’s previous claims about Abraham’s salvation by faith, was that all of that faith stuff happened prior to the Law. Now that the Law was in place, it brings salvation not faith. According to those cursed false teachers, the Law brought salvation. That faith that Abraham had, while a good thing is not required.

Paul then starts talking about a contract, or more specifically a person’s will. In Paul’s day a Roman covenant, contract, or will could not be easily changed or voided. It was a legally binding agreement that required some pretty extreme measures to override.

Today it seems people sue and settle their way out of contracts. If someone feels they were short changed in the will of a family member that died, they sue. We have seen it in the news a couple of times where an old guy marries a young girl and then leaves her the vast majority of his fortune. His children and other family members sue to try to get what they feel is theirs.

Reality is, even today the courts tend to side with the will unless it can be proven that someone did something seriously wrong. It tends to require something pretty severe to break the will or contract. If the young lady tricked her husband with dementia to change his will and cut out his children, that might be looked at as grounds to break the contract. Most other things would not give them grounds to change it.

Besides some outlandish manipulation, a will is pretty solid and hard to dispute. In Roman times, it is believed that it was next to impossible without going up the political ladder to get help. The will stood as written. Changes were not made.

Paul is telling the Galatians that the promises spoken to Abraham and his seed are absolute and cannot be changed. These promises cannot be replaced by a set of rules. They must be fulfilled. If a human contract takes a lot to break, a covenant from God is impossible to break. God made the promises and they WILL be fulfilled.

The promises given by God to Abraham were not fulfilled before the Law was given through Moses, so they are still valid. The reality is that they finally found fulfillment in our Lord Jesus Christ and are everlasting.

Genesis 15:6

“Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”

Abraham believed and was saved. That very same blessing that justified him through his faith is a permanent covenant which could never be changed by the addition of the Law.

Genesis 12:7

“Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him.’

Promises such as a great nation, land, divine blessing, and sovereign protection were given by God and will be fulfilled. God asked for only one thing. He wanted His children to have faith.

Now if you remember back a couple of verses we may not be direct descendants of Abraham, but we still get to take part of God’s promises.

Galatians 3:6-9

“⁶ Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness, ⁷ then understand that those who have faith are Abraham’s sons. ⁸ Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and told the good news ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you. ⁹ So those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.”

If we have faith, we are part of Abraham’s family and all of these promises from God apply to us.

Paul is also pointing out that the promises were given to Abraham and to his seed. Singular not plural, which ties back to the Old Testament scriptures. It is a reminder that those that believe have always recognized that the blessings would ultimately come from a single person, the Messiah. No Old Testament believing Jew would argue that point. They were looking for the Messiah, they expected Him to come as a conquering King. One who would free them from the Romans, One that would establish a permanent kingdom for the Jews. They missed the fact that Jesus is that Messiah. A direct descendant of Abraham, and Lord of All.

God’s promises will be fulfilled.

Galatians 3:17

“¹⁷ And I say this: The law, which came 430 years later, does not revoke a covenant that was previously ratified by God and cancel the promise.”

Doing the math, we find that the 430 years ties to when God gave the final confirmation of the covenant to Jacob.

Genesis 46:1-4

“46 Israel set out with all that he had and came to Beer-sheba, and he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. ² That night God spoke to Israel in a vision: “Jacob, Jacob!” He said. And Jacob replied, “Here I am.” ³ God said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. ⁴ I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you back. Joseph will put his hands on your eyes.””

Paul’s point is that what could possibly alter a 430-year-old covenant, especially one that was confirmed to each of the fore-fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

God blessed these men and not because they followed some Law, it was solely on their faith.

Was the law needed? Yes. It showed us what is required. It showed us how high the bar is and how hard it would be to keep every aspect of it. Today as we study it we are reminded that we cannot keep all of it, we will fall short, we will drop the ball. That is why we need a Savior.

Galatians 3:18

“¹⁸ For if the inheritance is from the law, it is no longer from the promise; but God granted it to Abraham through the promise.”

It is impossible for us to be saved by a mixture of the Law and the Promise. It is not through grace and works that one is justified. Obedience to the Law does absolutely nothing. Our inheritance, our justification, our salvation is tied to the Promise. The same Promise granted to Abraham, the father of our faith. Believe and be saved.

God’s way of salvation has always been by a gift of grace based on faith!

 It is the gift that was given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. A gift that was given to Moses, David, and Solomon. A gift that was given to the Matthew, Peter, and Paul and it is a gift given to you. All you have to do is believe. Have faith in Jesus Christ and the gift of grace is yours.

Same Promise, Same Gift!

The problem today is we do not believe it. Our tendency is to trust in what we can see, touch, and accomplish on our own. We trust in our ability to earn our position on a team as a kid. We trust in our ability to earn our living as adults. Our trust in ourselves, our abilities, and our accomplishments is ingrained into who we are.

Trusting something we cannot see or touch, that is a stretch for many people. How about trusting a promise from God that was given thousands of years ago to Abraham? Most of the people out in the world cannot even imagine the idea of something like that. Many can’t bring themselves to trust in the words of Jesus, and that was only 2,000 years ago. After all aren’t promises made to be broken?

How do we move past this distrust? How can we trust that God is going to fulfill His promises?

Hebrews 6:17-20

“¹⁷ Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath, ¹⁸ so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us. ¹⁹ We have this hope as an anchor for our lives, safe and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain. ²⁰ Jesus has entered there on our behalf as a forerunner, because He has become a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”

God guaranteed His purpose with a promise. A promise that is guaranteed by His character. A promise that is absolute, because it was made by a Holy uncompromising God. He cannot break His promise. To break His promise would be to lie. Which is something even the best of us have done, but Not God!

He cannot be around sin, which is the whole reason we need a Savior to enter Glory. So if God cannot be around sin, He cannot commit a sin Himself.

2 Chronicles 7:17-18

“¹⁷ As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, ¹⁸ I will establish your royal throne, as I promised your father David: You will never fail to have a man ruling in Israel.”

God’s promises to David and Solomon had a condition. They had to do their part.

God has promised you a lot of amazing things, but you need to do your part.

You need to have faith.

You need to follow Jesus.

God’s promises are guarantees that you can count on.

God has promised to take care of all of your needs.

God has promised that His grace is sufficient to cover all your sins.

God has promised that there will always be a way for you to escape temptation.

God has promised that you will have victory over death.

God has promised that all things will work together for the good of those how love Him.

God has promised that through faith in Jesus you are saved.

God has promised you eternal life, through faith.

God’s promises are unbreakable! You need to have faith and trust that God will fulfill His promises!

Have faith in God. Have faith He will take care of you. Have faith that He will help you to be His witnesses. Have faith and follow Jesus.

God Bless,

Robert

Sermon - July 24, 2016 - Galatians 3:10-14 - Faith Alone!

Let’s start with a summary of some of the key points we have seen so far in the letter to the Galatians. 

Those false teachers spreading a sugar coated or distorted gospel message will be cursed.

God’s Word will change you.

The Gospel is for all! Does not matter if you are a Jew, Gentile, Rich, Poor, Black, White, Brown, Popular or an Outcast. The Gospel message is for you.

Too much legalism or too much freedom will corrupt the message and hinder your ability to be a witness to the world.

Trust, but verify. Listen to the leaders God has placed before you but verify that what they are teaching you is the Word of God. Do not let yourself be led astray.

Simple belief in God and His Word will bring salvation, like it did for Abraham.

Some great words of wisdom from Paul to the embattled church in Galatia. Words that should be speaking directly to our hearts as well.

Today we are surrounded by false teachers who corrupt the Gospel message of Grace and Hope. Our only protection is to let God’s Word change us. Thankfully the life changing Gospel message is for everyone or we would be left on the outside looking in, since we are not Jewish.  We need to be careful with how much legalism is in our churches and how much freedom society around us takes for granted.

With all the different ‘opinions’ on the what the Bible says or how some teach that it needs to evolve, we need to be comparing everything we hear against the Bible. That is the only way we can keep from being led astray. We need to get back to that simple saving faith. The simple belief that Abraham had and let it guide us.

Some very important things for us to remember and apply to our lives so far, and we are less than half way through the Letter to the Galatians.

When we left off last week, Paul was making sure that the Galatians understood that they were saved by faith, just like father Abraham was. 

Let’s see what else Paul has in store for us.

Galatians 3:10-11

“¹⁰ For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written: Everyone who does not continue doing everything written in the book of the law is cursed. ¹¹ Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous will live by faith.”

Regardless of what those false teachers were saying, the Law is not the answer. Does not matter if you are Jew or Gentile, the Law cannot justify them. It cannot save them. It will only condemn them. If their faith is in the Law they need to preform every action and ritual perfectly. They would need to avoid all the things they needed to avoid. Every hour of every day with no mistakes, not a single slip in adhering to the Law. You would have to do it absolutely, 110% perfectly.

Paul was quoting from Moses and the Levitical priests.

Deuteronomy 27:26

“‘Anyone who does not put the words of this law into practice is cursed.’ And all the people will say, ‘Amen!’”

The Law flat out demanded perfection. Every ritual, every sacrifice, every aspect of how one dresses, what one does on the Sabbath, and so on. Everything had to be absolutely perfect for the Law to save them. Can anyone here today say they can follow the law perfectly? Not a single mistake? We have looked at certain aspects of the law during Sunday school and I know I could not perform it perfectly.

Heck, I would probably throw in the towel just so I could eat bacon. Have to have my bacon.

Regardless of that, none of us are capable of fulfilling all of the law. Even Moses made a mistake but thankfully he was saved by his faith.

You are probably familiar with this verse.

Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

No one can do it on their own. The Law brings death and destruction not the redemption we are looking for. There is no way that we can come into God’s graces and spend eternity with Him, by simply following the Law and offering sacrifices. No matter how hard we try, we are not worthy.

We are not saved by the Law or the works we accomplish. It is by Faith Alone that we are saved.  

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

“⁹ Don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s kingdom? Do not be deceived: No sexually immoral people, idolaters, adulterers, or anyone practicing homosexuality, ¹⁰ no thieves, greedy people, drunkards, verbally abusive people, or swindlers will inherit God’s kingdom. ¹¹ And some of you used to be like this. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

We are washed clean by the blood of Jesus. We are sanctified by God working in our lives. We are justified by having faith. No law is going to save us; it cannot do what only Jesus can.

Galatians 3:12

“¹² But the law is not based on faith; instead, the one who does these things will live by them.”

One of the arguments from the false teachers that Paul was addressing was that you need both faith and law to be saved. They had said you that you need to have faith in Jesus and practice the Law at the same time.

Paul is quoting the Old Testament.

Leviticus 18:5

“Keep My statues and ordinances; a person will live if he does them. I am Yahweh.”

If you can perform the Law perfectly it could save you. But as we know and see throughout the Bible it is not possible. James talks about this in his letter.  

James 2:10

“For whoever keeps the entire law, yet fails in one point, is guilty of breaking all.”

Trying to live by the Law will eventually lead someone to faith. Let me clarify. The Law will lead some to faith once they realize they are not capable of doing it all on their own. They will then throw themselves on the mercy of God. Hoping that their faith in Him will save them.

Have you ever felt guilty for forgetting to read your Bible for a day or even for a week? Have you every crawled into bed and felt bad that you did not take the time to talk to God? Have you ever felt bad when you bumped into someone you said you would pray for and you realized you forgot?

Those are examples of the ‘things’ we forget to do and we are not living under the law. It is enough to make me realize that I could not follow the Law, I would be condemned for not following every detail perfectly. How about you? Would you find yourself in the same boat as me?

Galatians 3:13

“¹³ Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, because it is written: Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed.”

Don’t worry, it is not all doom and gloom. There is hope for all who have tried to keep the Law and could not do it. There is hope for those that thought they could work their way into heaven. There is a path to eternity for everyone regardless of how they have failed.

There is hope in Jesus Christ.

Mark 10:45

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life – a ransom for many.”

Jesus stepped down from His throne with the Father and took our place. He became a curse for us. He took on our failures. He took on our sin. He took it all in. He took the punishment we deserved and delivered us from it.

Jesus became a curse for you. Let that sink in for a moment. The Creator, Lord of All, The Sustainer, Jesus Christ the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, became a curse for you. Now that is Love!

Galatians 3:14

“¹⁴ The purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith.”

Paul is telling us in these verses that Jesus became a curse for us for two reasons.

First Jesus wanted to make sure that every single one of us had the opportunity to be blessed like Abraham was blessed. He wanted to make sure that blessings given to the Jewish people were given to the rest of us. The blessing that comes from Abraham’s descendant Jesus. The blessing that allows us to be saved by faith just like Abraham was. The blessing that makes it so we can be a part of the God’s family.

Ephesians 1:5

“He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His favor and will”

We are part of God’s family through our faith in Jesus. We get to share in that blessing through Jesus’ death and resurrection.

The second reason Jesus became a curse for us, was so that we can receive the promise of the Holy Spirit. A promise from the Old Testament, a promise that Peter spoke about on the day of Pentecost when he quoted the Prophet Joel.

Acts 2:16-21

“¹⁶ On the contrary, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ And it will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity; then your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. ¹⁸ I will even pour out My Spirit on My male and female slaves in those days, and they will prophesy. ¹⁹ I will display wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below: blood and fire and a cloud of smoke. ²⁰ The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the great and remarkable Day of the Lord comes. ²¹ Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Jesus became a curse so that the Holy Spirit, that was promised to Abraham’s ancestors, became a promise to all who believe. It is through simple belief that the Holy Spirit dwells in us and changes us.

We have friends and loved ones that think they will enjoy eternity because they are a good person. They donate to charities, don’t do drugs, they help out their friends and families when needed, and more… they really are good people doing good things.

Being a good person is just as likely to get you into Eternity as following the Law will. If the Law will not open the door for you, neither will your good works. We know a lot of people who are going about their lives thinking they are set, when in reality they are going to be faced with the ultimate rude awakening. Their works will get them nowhere if they do not have faith.

They need to hear the message that Paul is telling the Galatians. Faith in the One True God, Jesus Christ, is the only way to Glory. Faith Alone!

Our job as witnesses is to make sure everyone hears this message. The message that states that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life and that the only way to the Father.

What can you do this week to make sure everyone is hearing that Faith Alone brings salvation?

Go and share the message of Faith!

Robert

Sermon - July 17, 2016 - Galatians 3:6-9 - Old Testament Faith

Last week we started chapter 3 in the Letter to the Galatians and Paul was a little upset that they had allowed themselves to be so easily led astray. He could not believe that they had been so easily bewitched or hypnotized into believing something other than the Gospel message that he had personally shared with them. Paul goes onto to ask them how foolish can they be?

Ronald Reagan said we need to ‘trust, but verify’ and that was exactly the point that Paul was trying to make. It would be nice if we could trust people to only be truthful and to be completely honest and forthcoming. Sadly, that is not the case. Too many people have their own agenda, are clueless, or are just down right corrupt. We need to be careful with what we hear and read. We cannot count on people to always tell the truth. Instead we need to ‘trust, but verify’. Does not matter even if it someone saying they are quoting the Bible. We need to verify that they are telling the truth.

The false teachers were using the teachings of Moses to distort the truth of the Gospel that sets you free. Paul showed his knowledge of the Old Testament Scripture and looked back to a time before Moses.

Galatians 3:6

“⁶ Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness,”

Paul is countering Old Testament with Old Testament. The Law, as laid out by Moses was critically important, but Abraham is the father of the Jewish people. The False Teachers were using Moses, so Paul went back a couple of hundred years and said let’s take a look at Abraham and quoted the Book of Genesis.

Genesis 15:1-6

“15 After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield; your reward will be very great. ² But Abram said, “Lord God, what can You give me, since I am childless and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ Abram continued, “Look, You have given me no offspring, so a slave born in my house will be my heir.” ⁴ Now the word of the Lord came to him: “This one will not be your heir; instead, one who comes from your own body will be your heir.” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then He said to him, “Your offspring will be that numerous.” ⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”

Abraham trusted in God and believed that God would do what He said He would do. This all took place before Moses was given the Law for the people of Israel and obviously took place before Jesus paid the ultimate price for the sin of the world. So, how was Abraham justified? How was he saved from his sin?

The Bible tells us in Genesis 15:6 that it was through belief. It was not that he followed the Law, and it was not due to being circumcised like the false teachers were trying to say. The whole circumcision thing did not come about until Genesis 17. So we have God saying that Abraham was found as righteous, or justified, through simple belief.

So here is the question, how can a rule be put in place whether it is circumcision, some part of the Mosaic Law, or anything us humans have come up with since be required for salvation?

The famous Bible teacher Henry Allen Ironside was traveling and dropped in on a Sunday school class. The unprepared teacher asked how the Old Testaments saints were saved and somebody answered, “By keeping the law.”

The teacher said, “Correct!”

Ironside raised his hand and said, “Romans 3:28 says it’s not by the law.”

The teacher responded, “Oh, that’s right, so how were the Old Testaments saints saved?”

Another person said, “By making sacrifices.”

The teacher again said, “Correct!”

Again Ironside raised his hand and said, “Hebrews says the blood of bulls and goats is not sufficient.”

The teacher said, “Oh yeah… why don’t you tell us how they were saved!”

Ironside said, “The same way we are today, by faith!”

Nothing is needed, except faith in God. Believe in Jesus and what He did for you and you are saved. No rules, no actions, no hurdles to jump through. Just believe and you are saved.

Ephesians 2:8-9

“⁸ For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— ⁹ not from works, so that no one can boast.”

We cannot earn it! We don’t deserve it! There are no rules you need to follow. It is a gift! Freely given! All we have to do is to have faith!

It is amazing how many different things you can find people add to being saved. I googled it this week and found rules requiring baptism, presenting yourself in front of the church, worshipping on a certain day, physical signs of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and so much more.

When Paul was in jail an earthquake shook the jail and opened the doors and undid everyone’s chains the jailer asked Paul what must he do to be saved. Paul said.

Acts 16:31

“³¹ So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

Believe in Jesus! Have Faith! Nothing else is needed.

Bit by bit, Paul was tearing down what the false teachers has said.

Galatians 3:6-8

“⁶ Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness, ⁷ then understand that those who have faith are Abraham’s sons. ⁸ Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and told the good news ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you.”

Again Paul is showing his Old Testament knowledge and actually going back a little farther to when God spoke to Abraham and sent him from his father’s land into the land of Canaan.

Genesis 12:1-3

“12 The Lord said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. ² I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. ³ I will bless those who bless you, I will curse those who treat you with contempt, and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

God is telling Abraham that everyone will be blessed through him. It does not matter if you sat around the fire pit with Abraham or if you are sitting here today in Clark, faith in God brings salvation. As we have seen before it does not matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, black or white, rich or poor, a sports star, or a band geek, a business man or a farmer, all you need is faith. Abraham was saved by simply having faith and so are you.

The false teachers would have been very hard pressed to debate with Paul or any of the Galatian church on this point. Paul was quoting scripture that was spoken directly by God Himself. Any Old Testament Bible teacher would never contradict these words.

Trust the Bible over what someone says. Sounds like last week’s message ‘Trust, but verify.’

To many people look at society and then try to determine which parts of the Bible they are going to believe and which parts they are going to cut out.

Years ago I heard a story, and it may have been made up to make a point, but I am going to share it anyways.

A Pastor was visiting a man in the hospital who was terminal. The man asked the Pastor if he would read him something from the Bible as his eyes weren’t working as good as they used to. The Pastor picked up the man’s Bible and starting thumbing through it. He asked if there was anything specific that he wanted to hear and then he noticed something funny. As he looked through the man’s Bible he found pieces of it had been cut out. When he asked the man about it, the man said I cut out the pieces that you said were not important.

People tend to ignore what makes them feel uncomfortable. Some might ignore those verses about sexual immorality or those about getting drunk. Others might ignore those verses that tell them that their faith is supposed to change them so that they can be the light unto the world or those verses that tell them to be a witness.

Society would like us to do just that. Cut out or ignore the verses that society deems as being too critical or old fashioned. You know those verses that talk about sin, morals, repentance, damnation, hellfire and brimstone, and those verses that talk about Jesus’ Second Coming and Judgement Day.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

“¹⁶ All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

The Bible came from God to teach, rebuke, and correct and we need to use it accordingly. We need to use the Bible to measure what the world says, not the other way around. Paul was using Scripture to counter false teachings and to discredit the false teachers. We need to turn to the Bible to make sure we know the truth and are not easily led astray. If someone is speaking garbage we need to turn to Scripture and use it to rebuke, correct, and teach.

God’s Word broke through the lies in Galatia and it will break through them today.

Galatians 3:9

“So those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.”

Paul wraps up this section by reminding the Galatians that yes, God has paid the price for all. All nations will be blessed through Abraham, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But there is a ‘big’ but.

The price has been paid, ‘but’ only for those who have faith.

2 Peter 3:9

“The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.”

God does not want any to perish. He wants to spend eternity with every human ever created. But they have to believe. It is that old saying, you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink.

God has led all humankind to water, but He will not force us to drink it. It is up to you; it is your choice if you are going to drink the living water He is offering or walk away.

Most if not all of us sitting here today have already made that choice, but there are a lot of people outside these four walls that have not. If we look to the Bible as our guide, as the ultimate authority. Our job is to be witnesses to the world. Everywhere we go, we are to be witnesses. Every believer no matter how young or old, is called to share the Gospel and make disciples.

Are you going to follow the world or lean on the Bible to guide you?

Thanks for reading!

God Bless,

Robert

Sermon - July 10, 2016 - Galatians 3:1-5 - Trust, but verify!

Last week we took a look at Legalism and Freedom. In Paul’s time they fought against too much legalism. Today the battle is the opposite and people take way too much freedom. To many believe that they can have “fire insurance” and live their life however they want.

Neither the ‘fire insurance’ type of life or legalism are what Jesus had in mind when He died on the cross for you. He did not expect us to earn our salvation through works, nor did He expect us to throw it away, what He has always been looking for is for you to simply follow Him.

Paul is having a hard time repairing the damage caused by these false teachers who have made their way into the Galatian church. These false teachers came in and added to the Gospel. They made it seem that a person would have a more complete salvation, could be made more holy, if they would simply follow the Law. They taught that faith was great, but it was through works, rituals, and actions that one was really saved. They essentially took the gift of Jesus and destroyed it.

Based on what these false teachers were saying about needing works to be saved, how would someone who accepted Jesus on their death bed be really saved? They have not had the time to follow the law, that have not been able to check any tasks off of a to do list. If someone had to earn their way to heaven, accepting Jesus on their deathbed would be too late.

If we have to work for our salvation, what good was Jesus’ death and resurrection? What the false teachers were teaching did not add to the work of Jesus Christ. It did not add anything to what Jesus did. Instead they were replacing the gift of Grace with something else.

You cannot add anything to the gift given by Jesus. There is only one way a person can be saved and that is by having faith in Jesus and what He has done for you. Nothing else matters. It does not matter if you accept Jesus as savior when you are just a child or the minute you go to eternity. No other action is needed to be saved other than faith in our Lord.

Paul has addressed the origin of his apostleship and that he has been teaching the true message of Christ. Now he turns to the Galatians and the corrupted message they have been hearing.

Galatians 3:1

“3 You foolish Galatians! Who has hypnotized you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was vividly portrayed as crucified?”

‘You foolish Galatians!’ What were you thinking? How could you listen to any of these crazy people feeding you a false message? Foolish, Foolish, Foolish!

Do you think Paul was upset? He could not believe what he was hearing from others. Having received the gift of Grace from Jesus himself, Paul could not understand how anyone could be swayed as the Galatians had been. What wisdom could lead them astray?

He goes on to ask them ‘Who has hypnotized them’ or as I read in another translation who ‘bewitched’ them. Someone was pulling the wool over their eyes and it made absolutely no sense whatsoever. They had learned about Jesus from the apostle Paul. They would have seen his excitement when talking about his personal experience. They would have received a message that would have made it perfectly clear that Jesus was the only way to spend eternity with God. There was nothing else but a crucified Christ.

These false teachers have lead them astray with some message other than the true Gospel and the Galatians should have known better. Having heard the message from Paul, they should have been wise enough to catch the false teachings before being led astray.

Sadly, this problem happens today in churches all around the world. People will think that if they are going to church and being taught by a pastor that they are only hearing the truth. They trust that whatever is being said is correct. They don’t take the time to study their Bible’s. They do not make an effort to see if they are being taught correctly. They don’t question those funny sounding things that have been said from the pulpit. Instead they become the blind following the blind.

Yes, we are to follow Jesus. Yes, we are called His sheep. Yes, pastors are supposed to feed their flock of sheep, but nowhere in the Bible does it tell us to follow any man blindly.

When dealing with the Russians during the Cold War Ronald Reagan said that we must “trust, but verify.” He wanted to work with the Russians but was not sure that they would stick to their word.

That is the same for every one of us. If we are listening to someone teach the Word of God, we need to trust, but verify. It does not matter if it is a famous preacher on TV, a Sunday School teacher, the leader of our denomination, or this fool standing in front of you. Trust, but verify.

Psalm 118:8

“It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.”

Trust that we are trying to teach you correctly, but verify that what we are saying is correct. If you find that someone is not speaking the truth, turn away from them. Don’t let them feed you a false message. Don’t follow them blindly like a sheep to the slaughter.

Acts 17:10-11

“¹⁰ As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas off to Berea. On arrival, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹ The people here were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, since they welcomed the message with eagerness and examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”

The Bereans wanted to believe what Paul and Silas were teaching them and took the time to verify it. They opened up God’s Word daily and verified that what they were being taught agreed with the Old Testament scrolls.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

“¹⁶ All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

We need to test everything we hear against God’s Word. Comparing what one pastor says to another pastor, is not verification. Taking one teaching and seeing if it agrees with what your friends think does not verify anything. Checking to see if what you have heard fits with what you see on TV or what society believes does not confirm it is true.

The only litmus test that matters is the Word of God. As children of God we need to be diligent in making sure we are not being led astray. Making sure that we are rightfully dividing the Word of God.

I have had conversations lately with people who tell me that their pastor has told them they will see their pets in heaven. I asked him where that is in scripture. I have had another conversation about a pastor saying that God may be a female. I did not bother asking that time, I simply said my Bible reads the Father and the Son. I have looked it up in the Greek, Abba is pretty clear… it means father.

If you read or watch the news you will find pastor so and so saying gay marriage is ok. I have yet to find where in the Bible it says that, or where it counters where it says it is detestable in Leviticus 18.

I have talked to many people who say they are a Christian buy they do not believe everything the Bible teaches. I heard at the recent SBC Pastor’s Conference that one of the speakers did an altar call at a different pastor’s conference and more than 30 pastors responded. Too often we accept the labels of Christian or Pastors to mean we can trust what they are saying. What we really need to be doing is comparing everything to God’s Word.

The Galatian church did not compare the teachings of the false teachers to the teachings of Paul. If they had, they may have never been led astray.

Paul has a few questions for the Galatians to think about.

Galatians 3:2

“² I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith?”

Paul is asking them when did you receive the Holy Spirit? Did you receive the Spirit when you believed that Jesus was God and that He died for you or did you receive the Spirit when you finished off some of the actions you are being told you need to do?

Paul knows the answer to this question. He was most likely the one preaching when these Gentile believers accepted the message of Jesus. 

How about you? Did you receive your salvation the moment you believed and asked for forgiveness or was it after you started tithing? Answer is obvious isn’t it?

Galatians 3:3

“³ Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now going to be made complete by the flesh?”

How can a person become saved by faith and then be made holy by works? We are saved, or justified, by our faith in Jesus Christ. That is when the Spirit begins living in us and changing us. That is the process we call, sanctification. It is where we start shedding the things of the world and embracing the things of God.

We are not made complete by the rituals we follow. We are not sanctified because we offer sacrifices and follow a list of rules. We are sanctified by the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The Galatians probably thought that keeping the Mosaic Law would aid them in their spiritual lives, but in reality it is the opposite.

That is why we have to be careful with the rules we put on ourselves and others. There is no magic checklist that makes us more spiritual than the next person. We need to simply believe and let the Holy Spirit work in us. He will change us, He will cut away our sin, He will guide us to what we are supposed to do.

Saved by faith. Works are a byproduct of that salvation.

Galatians 3:4

“⁴ Did you suffer so much for nothing—if in fact it was for nothing?”

It is believed that the Galatian church faced persecution as new believers. If they are turning away from Grace and embracing Law that suffering was for absolutely nothing.

No one is going to suffer persecution for a bunch of rules that are hard to follow. You only endure persecution if you truly believe that something is worth dying for. The Galatians would only have endured the persecution if they believed that Jesus’ death and resurrection would truly give them life in Heaven.

While we are not facing persecution of this level it is easy for us to lose that fire, that urgency, that steadfast belief that we had early on in our faith. As we lose sight of how amazing that gift of grace is we fall into the same trap. We tend to focus on the actions of being a Christian not the faith. We look at church attendance as a check mark on our weekly list instead of an exciting time of worshipping God. We tend to look at throwing some money in the offering plate as a chore that needs to be completed instead of remembering that we are investing in the ministry of Jesus and the Kingdom of God.

Faith slips away into a list of things we need to do.

Galatians 3:5

“⁵ So then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law or by hearing with faith?”

God works in our lives, He heals, He provides, He gives peace, He changes us and it has nothing to do with the works we accomplish. He works in us because we have faith in Him and He loves us. We cannot earn it, we do not deserve it, but He freely gives it if we follow Jesus.

Don’t let anyone lead you astray. Do not listen to the teachings of the world. Do not be swayed by people or their titles. Don’t be foolish.

Check everything you hear, everything you read, every teaching, against the Word of God.

Trust, but verify.

Thanks for reading!

Robert

Sermon - July 3, 2016 - Galatians 2:11-21 - Too Much!

So far we have seen Paul take a stand. He stood against the false teachers that were distorting the gospel message of Jesus. He had to re-enforce his position as an apostle, as someone who was personally called by Jesus Christ. He then spoke at the Jerusalem Council and the others agreed that the message he was bringing to the gentiles was the true gospel message. It was there that it was determined that the message being shared with the Jewish and the Gentile was one and the same. One message being shared to all that unites us as the Body of Christ.

It had already been decided that believers did not need to adhere to the law, but the problem continued to linger.

Galatians 2:11-13

“¹¹ But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned. ¹² For he regularly ate with the Gentiles before certain men came from James. However, when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, because he feared those from the circumcision party. ¹³ Then the rest of the Jews joined his hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.”

Peter an apostle was being a hypocrite. He behaved one way when he was hanging out with the gentile believers and then behaved differently when the strict Jews arrived. They had discussed this at the Jerusalem Council. Believers did not need to follow the Mosaic Law, but Peter was having issues with it when others were around. He accepted the gentiles as equal and dined with them accordingly, except when the strict rule guys were around. He was ok with eating ‘unclean’ things except when around those who would not eat the unclean things. As an orthodox Jew, Peter was having a hard time learning the lesson of freedom through grace.

Back during Jesus’ ministry, the Pharisees were questioning why the disciples were eating when they had not ceremonially washed their hands. Jesus talks about the heart being the issue not what someone eats. He later explains in more detail at Peter’s request.

Matthew 15:15-20

“¹⁵ Then Peter replied to Him, “Explain this parable to us.” ¹⁶ “Are even you still lacking in understanding?” He asked. ¹⁷ “Don’t you realize that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is eliminated? ¹⁸ But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this defiles a man. ¹⁹ For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies. ²⁰ These are the things that defile a man, but eating with unwashed hands does not defile a man.”

Man is to be judged on his words and actions, not by what he eats. Peter struggled to get it the first time and then the Holy Spirit gave him a second lesson.

Acts 10:9-16

“⁹ The next day, as they were traveling and nearing the city, Peter went up to pray on the housetop about noon. ¹⁰ Then he became hungry and wanted to eat, but while they were preparing something, he went into a visionary state. ¹¹ He saw heaven opened and an object that resembled a large sheet coming down, being lowered by its four corners to the earth. ¹² In it were all the four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth, and the birds of the sky. ¹³ Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat!” ¹⁴ “No, Lord!” Peter said. “For I have never eaten anything common and ritually unclean!” ¹⁵ Again, a second time, a voice said to him, “What God has made clean, you must not call common.” ¹⁶ This happened three times, and then the object was taken up into heaven.”

It seemed that Peter learned the lesson after this as he did go to Cornelius and ate whatever was put in front of him. Then as we know he was part of the Jerusalem Council where it was decided that freedom through Grace was more important than the law. It seemed like he understood, but then we read he was being a hypocrite.

Before we become too critical of Peter we need to look at our own lives. The Bible is full of teachings that we should be following. Not one of us can honestly say that we are following the teachings of Jesus 100%. It is not possible. Even on our best days we make mistakes. We say something critical, we judge non-believers, we gossip, or we don’t listen to the nudging of the Holy Spirit as He guides us to someone in need. Bitterness, worry, anger, hatred, or despair creep into our lives.

Yes, Peter heard from Jesus and he had the Holy Spirit speak directly to him and he still did not get the message. If we are honest with ourselves our chances of doing much better are slim to none. Peter struggled with the concept of freedom, I would say most people today have no problem with freedom. Our society is to free. People believe they can do whatever they want and it does not matter. The legalism Paul is addressing can be an issue today, but it is not as bad as it was back then. In some churches it might be, but in society as a hole it is not.  

I honestly believe our problem today is still freedom, but it is to the opposite extreme. People are not being pushed to follow rules that are outdated or to carry a heavy yoke around their necks. Instead they are rebelling against any rules or structure. The fast food mentality, do what I want when I want, instant gratification, overly sensitive culture we live in today is just as much a problem today as the super legalistic Jews were back then.

Peter was driven by fear.

Matthew 14:28-30

“²⁸ “Lord, if it’s You,” Peter answered Him, “command me to come to You on the water.” ²⁹ “Come!” He said. And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid. And beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Peter walked on water, until he got scared. He declared he would die with Jesus, but instead was afraid and denied Jesus three times. Fear got the best of Peter and it led him down the path of legalism and Barnabas followed his lead.

Today’s freedom in all things has led person after person down the wrong path in life and sadly as each person heads down the wrong path they are followed by others.

The issue is at the opposite end of the spectrum from Peters, but the results are the same. Let’s see what we can learn from how Paul handled things.

Galatians 2:14

“¹⁴ But when I saw that they were deviating from the truth of the gospel, I told Cephas in front of everyone, “If you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel Gentiles to live like Jews?”

Peter knew better, but fear was interfering with his actions. He knew there was no longer a barrier between Jew and Gentile. He knew that all were united in one Body of Christ through faith in Jesus. Yet, he was creating a wall between them and in essence denying the unity of the church.

Galatians 2:15-16

“¹⁵ We who are Jews by birth and not “Gentile sinners” ¹⁶ know that no one is justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ. And we have believed in Christ Jesus so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no human being will be justified.”

Paul is reminding us that we are not justified by our ability to follow the law. It does not matter if we are Jew or Gentile, we cannot follow the law and be justified. The only way to be justified, or saved, is through faith in Jesus.

Habakkuk 2:4b

“But the righteous one will live by his faith.”

How are we to be justified or saved? By having faith. It is not something that can be earned, and in reality we have a very very small part in it happening. We believe and then God acts, He declares that once we are believers that we are saved through Jesus.

It is not a process that we have to work through. It is not a process that allows for one believer to be more saved than another. Once we have faith in Jesus we are justified, we are saved.

Romans 5:1

“Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Have faith and instantly you are saved. Not by your actions, but by God’s. Through His action your sin is wiped away and you are forever part of His family.

When Peter separated himself from the gentiles, he made it seem like the Jews were better than everyone else. Those that followed the law were above those who did not. The reality is that both need Jesus and no one can be saved on their own. All need Jesus and it is only through faith in Him that one is saved.

Galatians 2:17-18

“¹⁷ But if we ourselves are also found to be “sinners” while seeking to be justified by Christ, is Christ then a promoter of sin? Absolutely not! ¹⁸ If I rebuild the system I tore down, I show myself to be a lawbreaker.”

Jesus took away the need for the law. At the Council meeting both Peter and Paul agreed that salvation did not come from the law, yet now Peter is trying to live by it again. If legalism cannot save you, why would you torture yourself with all of those rules. Why would you walk away from what has saved you?

Why would you grab on to the things of the world instead of having faith? Things that you know will only pull you down, things that will only lead to your ultimate destruction, when you could have Jesus?

Galatians 2:19-21

“¹⁹ For through the law I have died to the law, so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ ²⁰ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. ²¹ I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.”

If we can be justified or saved through the law, why did Jesus need to die? Why, because the law cannot save a single person. It was insufficient. Jesus died on that cross and rose again to pay the ultimate price. We are saved by faith, we have life through our faith, we are justified by our faith in Jesus. To return to the old ways is a slap in the face to Jesus.

Paul’s teachings are pretty clear. Having grace and trying to live by the laws is not the right path to take. If we look around today, we find a lot of people who say they have grace. Say that they are Christians but you see too much freedom in their lives. I am not saying legalism is not a problem today, but taking too much freedom is the bigger problem.

1 Corinthians 1:23

“²³ “Everything is permissible,” but not everything is helpful. “Everything is permissible,” but not everything builds up.”

Yes, we are saved by grace. Our own actions do not save us they condemn us. It is our faith in Jesus that saves us. But that does not give us the freedom to do whatever we want.

Choosing to live in sin is the same as saying that the grace you have been given is not enough. No different than the Israelites wanting to go back to slavery in Egypt when things got tough. No different than a dog returning to its vomit.

The gift from God is the grace that sets us free, we need to repent of our sins and turn away from them. We need to do our best to live our lives as Jesus commands, knowing that we cannot earn our way to heaven but should truly try to follow Him in every way.

As we saw earlier, Peter’s behavior led another to follow suit. His turning away from the gift of grace led Barnabas to turn away also. As much as each person is responsible for the choices they make, we influence people without realizing it. People are watching what path we choose, they are watching if we go to the bar, they are watching how we spend our free time, they are watching how we live our lives. If we claim to be a Christian, yet live our life with too much freedom. Partaking in things that are harmful. Living by a set of rules. Others will follow our example and our ability to be a witness will be hurt.

Our job as Christians is to simply follow Jesus. We are not perfect like Him, so we are going to make mistakes. It all starts by having faith in Him and the amazing gift of grace He has given us. It continues by doing our best to live our lives as He has commanded. Loving God, Loving Others, and Being a Witness.

As you live out your faith, Grace will be modeled. People will see what it truly means to be a Christ follower, opportunities to share the Gospel will arise, and lives will be changed.

Thanks for reading!

Blessings,

Robert