"Gospel" in Galatians — James Ronald

You have a Bible, turn please with me to the book of Galatians. I have some thoughts that the Lord was laying upon my heart. It's basically, I guess if you want a word, if you want the word gospel, we'll lift it out as Paul would and mention it many times, gospel, gospel, even in this here particular letter.

The Gospel as the Central Theme of Galatians

As in most all Paul's letters, he has a big, big emphasis on the gospel and the word gospel is a theme in this little book and it's mentioned some 12 different times, the gospel. Paul loved the gospel.

Paul's Past, Present, and Future in Ministry

As I look down this chapter, I thought you know in chapter one, we'll read some verses in Galatians chapter one. You know Paul had a, he had a past and there was a present and there was a future in Paul and in his great ministry and service.

The past he talks about here in verse number, just to move down here quickly to verse number 13 and verse number 14. He talks about, he says, I persecuted the church of God and wasted it. I thought you know that's Paul's past.

We all have a past and remarkable Paul's conversion of course in Acts chapter, as recorded in Acts chapter 9, Paul's conversion but the past of his life, he was persecuting the Christians, seeing that they were imprisoned and even likely some of them, they would lay down their life, they would shed their blood and were killed, martyred for the namesake of the Lord Jesus.

So Paul was intent on that and persecuting the Christian soul as he was known then. But there was a present and it seemed to me the present in Paul's life, the present shall I say was to preach the gospel, was to reach souls with the gospel and to see the work of God and Christians established in the Christian faith.

And so many times you have in this here chapter even the preaching of the gospel and we'll come to that. But let me just mention for example in verse number 16 he says, to reveal his son and me that I might preach him among the heathen, among the Gentiles.

And so this was the ambition, the present ambition of Paul was to preach the gospel. And there was a future and the future beloved, the future is glory, glory. And I think that Paul would mention something of that and he never got far away from these simple things and he he talked about the glory here in this little doxology in verse number five, to whom be glory forever and ever amen.

So to God be all the glory. So again let's relate, we're not removed from that are we? We have a past and a sinful past and Paul he could speak of himself as the what? Chief of sinners, the chief of sinners but saved.

And then there was the present, the grace of God and Paul reveled in that didn't he? And he loved the gospel and he loved the Christians and he wanted their blessing and they're seeing them established and unified in the body of Christ.

And then there was a glorious future and we all look for that don't we? We look to them that look for him shall he appear the second time apart from sin unto salvation and so that'll be a great day when he takes these frail bodies of ours, Philippians 3, and fastens them like onto his own body of glory and so we're looking for that glory.

Reading Galatians 1:1–10

Well let's read please in Galatians chapter 1 let's read please verses 1 to 10 please. Verse number one, Paul an apostle not of man neither by man but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead and all the brethren which are with me unto the churches of Galatia.

Grace be to you and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God our Father and our Father to whom be glory forever and ever.

Amen. I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you unto the grace of God unto another gospel which is not another but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ but though we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that that which we have preached unto you let him be accursed as we said before so say I now again if any man preach any other gospel unto you then that ye have received let him be accursed for do I now persuade men or God or do I speak to please man for if I yet please man I should not be the servant of Christ.

Now we trust the Lord to bless and he will the reading and our meditation upon his word and I have some further readings here in the chapter possibly as we proceed. So here you have the gospel and I say overall again Paul is going to defend the gospel especially in some of the verses we read he's going to stand in defense of the gospel and I'll try and explain that.

The Gospel Declared in Romans

You know in Romans you're familiar the book of Romans most would be and there he gives a declaration of the gospel he declares the gospel and and the contents and what the gospel is in fact he it's it's well marked with a gospel that's how Romans begins.

Romans chapter 1 verse 1 he says it's the gospel of God. And then you look down about verse number three verse number nine rather he says it's the gospel of his son. And then you come down in Romans chapter 1 verse 16 what does he say.

I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God into salvation. So he speaks of the gospel in all these different ways. He says it's the gospel of God the whole plan of salvation from eternity originated in the heart of God and it's the gospel of his son his beloved son.

Oh that's the the the whole subject of gospel is is seen in the Lord Jesus Christ isn't it. And and he says I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Who's this divine person. He is the Christ. He is the Christ.

He is the Messiah. True he's the anointed of God. That's it Christ. He's the anointed of God. And to especially to Jewish years that would be something to acknowledge that that man who came born of a virgin born into the world was the son of God and he is the Christ of God the anointed.

And they would confess that Jesus is a Christ. Moreover Paul says. And if you go over to Romans on Romans yet chapter 2 and verse number 16 again I love that he says it is my gospel. It is my gospel. I think that Paul he he looked upon it as a special trust.

And possibly we'll pick up that in our reading as well. He looked upon the gospel as as a special revelation to his soul beloved. Pause. A moment. Would we value the gospel. What is the gospel. You you understand what the gospel is.

The Gospel Summarized in Christ's Death and Resurrection

Every one of us you know Paul says I give a declaration. 1st Corinthians 15 sums it up. Doesn't it. 1st Corinthians 15 he says I declare unto you the gospel Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures was buried and rose again the third day according to the scriptures.

There's a content. I I what has what has brought this home to my soul beloved is is that we might continue in the gospel. I can see in certain places in certain areas and I'm not. I'm not referring to the assemblies.

Generally speaking you know if I go out in evangelism most often you get into conversations with fellow Christians fellow Christians and we value the Christian family and the body of Christ. But many times it comes up you know get your bible and we'll start and we'll speak about the gospel.

And uh saved born again. Well let's go over let's tell tell us how it all happened how it all. And you know many times it's fragmented many times you come away a little bit disappointed so I in the light of all that and I love it we got nothing to boast.

We got nothing to boast. But if we're gonna what does Paul say. God forbid that I should both save in our Lord Jesus Christ we can boast in him and in the gospel. And I'm I'm happy I'm happy with the gospel that is that is going forth today from the assembly base and generally speaking our outreach and maybe I'll get time just to speak of that at the end outreach and the furtherance of the gospel.

Tremendous thing today. I'm glad glad for the gospel glad that ever I was born into a home that loved the gospel. My father served the Lord. Somebody was asking about that at the back. Yes he served the Lord many many years in the gospel from place to place and little companies of the Lord's people and seeing souls saved and little testimonies established for the honor and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And I shared with my father many years and his latter ministry in the gospel every summer and I those were happy happy days happy days to be born into a family a Christian family. I work with a lot of people a lot of precious souls and that's not that's not the background they have.

And as I look out in the company I'm not sure just what your roots might be and so on but we have a very rich heritage. I have speaking individually personally my father being saved. My father was saved as a young man into his teens likely struggling for many for a large period of time many years over over God's plan and God's way of salvation and trying to work it out and away.

One day one evening he came to the complete end of himself and he was reading the gospel verses again and going over such a verse like Romans 5 and verse 6 when we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

My father in his latter teen years related to that verse he was totally without strength. Not only that he was an ungodly sinner. What's reminding me of these simple things as I sat there in my seat and I looked up at this here wall chart behind me and the chart comes out in different different descriptions and my my chart my chart hasn't got something that this chart has on this chart has a lot of verses on and this chart would be similar to the chart that my mother saw.

My mother was brought up religiously and in church attended church attended the services and so on was morally upright and good living woman. But when she went out to work they had a chart like this posted on the wall and the home in which she worked lived boarded and went out to work and she would come home from work and she would look up the verses on and this chart here and study them out.

And there's something that appealed again. This wasn't in my chart. So this is what I wanted to point out. It says down here at the bottom it says the clean footpath. The clean footpath my mother she looked at that and she said you know what.

That's me. She says a clean footpath and never did really wrong hurt anybody harm in a way and lived a morally upright clean life. Excuse me. She's looked at it and she said you know what. That's furthest from the door she said.

She said to herself that pathway is leading down to destruction. It's leading down to the same place she says i'm lost i'm lost. But you know what appealed to her was a word. And i see it on this chart one word especially.

But i can't see the bible reference that was on her chart that she was looking at. And the word here is coming else you can see it. I can't see it. See the word come come and and the the scripture. What was the scripture reference.

You know it. Well matthew 11 verse 28 jesus said come unto me and i will give you rest. And that's what she did just as she were. She was a sinner truly on that road that was leading to destruction. She came just as she was and trusted the lord jesus.

The Gospel's Responsibility to the Next Generation

And so i had the privilege of being brought in to a christian home and hearing the gospel at my mother's knee and learning the courses. You know beloved little children young people here tonight we have a great responsibility.

You know our young people our young people you know what they're looking for. Beloved. They're looking for reality. Do these things mean anything to us when it comes to the gospel. We're just staying with something simple tonight.

Is it real. Is it real. Do they see souls saved. Do they see lives transformed. Do they see what paul would speak of in romans. And we'll come back to this. We'll come back to this romans 61 and 16. I'm not ashamed of the gospel of christ.

For it is the power of god unto salvation. That's it. It is the power of god. The the some some related to dynamite. Don't they the dynamite power of god in in transforming lives. That's what paul is speaking about.

And that's the power of the gospel. And that's what our young people are looking at. And then we got such a responsibility thinking about the children thinking of the young people. I was reading the other day maybe yesterday i was reading back in deuteronomy chapter six you know what it says.

We got such a great responsibility to communicate the message to tell our children. And when they ask to have an answer for them. You know i could just imagine the stories in the old testament there the the the children they would they would ask about the passover.

They would say what's the significance of getting a lamb and slaying and putting the blood on the door the keeping the passover. Mom and dad would tell them the story how that they were slaves in egypt.

And they were miraculously delivered by the by the blood of the lamb. When i see the blood i will pass over you stories that they would tell. Or they would look at the jordan river there they would see the jordan and along the jordan there somewhere on the bank and down in the jordan as well there was a pillar there was a pile of stones.

And the children would ask the parents what's the significance of that. And and they would remind them. Well we passed over the jordan we came through the waters. No the waters were divided. They come through on dry land.

And and they erected those pillars. And so when the children asked they would have an answer. And so when our young people and when our children and our i'm looking at some older dear saints here tonight and it's grandchildren.

That's that's what i have two grandchildren and we're trying to relate to them the message a message of the gospel. I never thought that i'd have two grandchildren staying in our home but that's that's the way it worked out.

My son is in africa as you know serving the lord and the gospel and the missions. And uh and two of his older grandchildren have come back and they're staying with us in the home. So we got my wife's busy you know and you're communicating to them the same message seeing them saved and and going on for the lord and uh baptized and and desiring christian fellowship.

That's a wonderful wonderful thing the lord has blessed in the gospel. Well to get back to it i said that the theme of this got the theme here is is the gospel. And it's mentioned some 12 times in the book.

Justification by Faith Alone

Uh let me just say this again that there's no salvation apart from faith in the lord jesus christ. And that was what paul was preaching uh over the page he says he says in chapter 2 and verse number 16 i really think it's extremely important he says knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in jesus christ or in christ jesus.

You're not justified by the works of the law. And this was and and i'll maybe develop it a little bit later. But you know they were being plagued by by uh law and and those that were teaching law you know gospel the gospel went here.

We have in verse number one paul an apostle not of men but by neither by man but by jesus christ and god the father. Here's the you know the trinity the the the equality of the father and the son just stamped right there again as they're together in this here verse.

Anyway here is paul an apostle. So he's one that is sent and commissioned as we shall see down down the ways with with the gospel. And uh and he's writing in verse number two i want to point this out again.

He's writing to the churches of galatia the glacians. Where does that take you. You check in your mouth check in your mouth. So on your map way up way up north uh in what we think of as asia minor or today possibly turkey.

Turkey and so that's where. That's where he had gone on his missionary voyage. Voyage. Uh actually i i think that this would relate especially to his first missionary journey as recorded in acts chapter 13 chapter 14 possibly.

And he would go up to listria derby antioch. And in the province there in that province in that area he saw those churches established soul saved and and uh brought to them the gospel. But here's a sad note.

Here's a sad note as i understand it when paul left there would be those who would come in and they would teach air. The air would be either adding to the gospel or taking away from the gospel message.

I think you can see that today. I'll relate in a moment. But you know they dogged the path of paul wherever he went there were those that came up and they were teaching the believers. Well you have to be circumcised and you have to go back under law.

And paul is saying no we're justified by alone and by faith and the lord jesus christ. He will even lift out that verse in chapter three is at verse number nine or so he will say the just shall live by faith.

Where does that come from. That comes way back from hadakah in the old right. And then three mentions in the new romans and galatians and hebrews. The just shall live by faith. That was what paul was trying to establish.

Uh and he will talk about the faith of abraham. Abraham believed the word is believe or faith. Abraham believed god and it was reckoned onto him for righteousness. Wonderful thing before ever. Uh circumcision came up or or anything like that god abraham had faith in god believe god and it was reckoned to him for righteousness.

Oh that's where in we stand beloved. Uh what does paul say. Galatians. I'm sorry. Philippians chapter three. That little verse come into my mind. Philippians chapter three he says that i might be found in christ not having mine own righteousness which is of the law.

But what. That which is through faith in our lord jesus christ. Isn't that wonderful. It's not according to the law romans. He establishes that clearly in romans we are dead to the law by the body of christ that we should be married to another even to him that was raised up from the dead our lord jesus christ.

So believers you're not asked to keep the law in any shape or form. We belong to christ and the indwelling spirit of god. Paul makes that clear again in romans chapter eight. It's the spirit of god that will give us the ability to to to to live the christian life and to fulfill any requirements at the hand of god by the grace of god.

Our righteousness is found in the lord jesus christ. Paul would say in second corinthians 5 and 21. You know it. Well he said he was made sin for us. He who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of god in him sin charged to the lord jesus our sin whose own self bear our sin and his own body upon the tree.

That there might be a righteousness come out of that and a righteousness imputed to the believer on the lord jesus christ beloved. We stand in perfect righteousness before our god tonight. All the blessings the gospel i was going to say there were those that add to it whether it be traditions whether it be ceremony number of families were reached recently in in in our city in saskatoon middle east families families that come you know i i suppose that most of our gospel work at present is with international families and people that are hearing the gospel.

So their families from uh jordan from iraq from egypt and uh not not not muslims i i don't work with that. These were professing christians. Some of them were associated with the caldean catholic church and a very very dark very dark background but respected the things of god and the scriptures.

And so a number of them quite a large number of them got saved in hearing the gospel. And and they would say they would say what about our families. What about our friends pray for them pray for their our families or refugees and coming through and in turkey and so on in the camps and pray for them.

And in a way a number of precious souls reaching the gospel from that dark dark community and background the power of the gospel i was going to say add to add to you know all their traditions you know i i went in the homes you know you visit in the homes and sometimes you're stumbling.

I remember one one doorway that mary the the figure of mary i think is as large as a as a being as you or i might be standing in the doorway all those all those sorts of uh images and icons and so on.

Lots of them just got rid of all those things and it was a complete turnabout cut off cut off from family and friends. And the real test of course as you know when it comes to believers baptism anyway i'm going to leave it.

What i wanted to say is all the things that people are adding adding adding and it only makes hurdles and difficulties. No justified by faith alone and the lord jesus. Sadly for those that take away those that take away from the gospel.

The Perversion of the Gospel

I had somebody recently in all those early chapters in genesis as to creation in the beginning god created the heavens and the earth. Uh questioning all that saying you know well it's just kind of just a bit of a myth.

If you want it you're gonna have it. And if you don't want it listen beloved we got the whole text of scripture. And if you take away any you lost it all all scripture is given by inspiration of god. Nor those that deny and take away from the lord jesus christ as to his virgin birth in question as to his spotless purity as to his atonement at calvary and the completion of that work.

And so they're taken away taken away from the gospel. No paul says no you you he says i'm not ashamed of the gospel. We'll maintain it and preach it and so on. What i want to leave you with maybe three headings just to make it easier for myself too.

I was thinking beloved i was thinking of the the power of the gospel the perversion of the gospel. And i'll try and explain that's a word that's used here. And and thirdly the um the preaching of the gospel.

The Power of the Gospel

Now some of those things i already have kind of said something about. So you think of the power of the gospel. You know when the gospel when paul brought the gospel to uh fuss and like a first thessalonians chapter one verse five he says our gospel came not unto you in word only but in power.

And you just read that opening chapter the first chapter of thessalonians number one that short chapter. And you'll see the zeal of the of those christians as they receive the gospel how they made them new.

It makes us all new to any man being christ he's a new creation. So it makes it makes new doesn't it. And those thessalonians turned to god from isles to serve the living and true god. Oh beloved beloved where are we in all.

This is our commitment to the lord jesus. Do we live. To serve. To serve him. To serve others and in so doing to serve our blessed lord. That's that's the purpose of being. Is why saved us. That our light might shine.

Let your light so shine before men that they might see your good works and glorify your father which is in heaven. Do the christians do the do the non-believers in the in the classroom in in the in the workplace.

Do they look upon us. And can they see a difference. Or maybe in the home. Well let me just go to the last verse. The last verse. And they glorified god and me. That's what paul said in conclusion. They glorified god and me.

Can that be said of your testimony and of mine. That is bringing glory to god. And others are looking in on it. And in turn they're coming to glorify god as well. That should be our christian testimony.

That is something of the power. The gospel came not just in word talk but it was seen in power as it come to Thessalonica. And as it came up into the churches in in uh in Galatia up in the province there Paul.

Verse number three. I really think that verse number three is very important as well because it gives us such content grace be uh i'm sorry. Verse number um uh verse number four i'm looking at verse number four who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil world.

You know sometimes in the gospel maybe we don't get past that who gave himself for our sins the substitutionary work of the lord jesus. And you know christ died for our sins. You walk away. What does it say here that he might deliver us from this present evil age in which we're living again.

It reflects upon our testimony beloved god gave his son that he might deliver us from this corrupt evil world. You know it fills our mind. Doesn't it. Or does it our senses there there's so much evil all about us.

We need to be preserved. And we need to come continually in confession for cleansing to enjoy ongoing fellowship. Fellowship with our father. You go to first john. For that first john. Chapter one. Walk in the light as he is in the light.

We have fellowship one with another. And the blood of jesus cleanses us from all sin. He writes. And he says that you might have fellowship with the father and with us and with one another. The fellowship the fellowship on the on the on the vertical with with with the father.

And the fellowship on the horizontal with one another. Sad thing when when a brother or sister would say you know i'm in i'm in happy fellowship with the father and they're at odds with her brother and sister wouldn't shake a hand wouldn't speak come on now.

That doesn't. That doesn't line up. Doesn't line up. If we enjoy fellowship with the father we'll enjoy fellowship with our fellow believers whoever and wherever they are. Okay. Well the fellowship that we can enjoy.

So here is the power of the gospel coming. And paul is thrilled by it. He says don't mix up. Don't mix up. Law and grace. I'm going to leave that i'm going to go to the what i'm thinking as the perversion of the gospel.

How the Gospel Is Perverted

You have that word mentioned in verse number seven here at the end he says they would pervert the gospel of christ. Now that word there simply means it means to change the very character or the nature of the word spoken pervert there uh to to uh distort to to to twist the message.

Is it possible. Is it possible. Yes the enemy the enemies at work. Hairy ironside gives a very simple illustration of something a story if i can just recite if i can recall i'm not sure if i can recall the end of the story but it involved a train trip a train trip.

And on the train there was a couple of passengers. There was this passenger particularly very nervous. Just you know he had never been on the route before. And he said to the conductor he said would you please tell me when we come to this little community that's where i'm headed and that's where his ticket ticket was for and so on.

He said just tell me when we get near that town so i can get get ready and get out off. The conductor went on his duty and a fellow passenger sitting by him said oh he said i know i says i travel this train route many times.

He said i know the exact spot i know the community i know where you went off. One off the train went on and uh mr ironside records the train stopped uh for a difficulty in the storm and uh the the fellow passenger he said yeah this is it this is it.

Okay. So he got off at that particular stop. A little bit later the conductor came through and he says we're coming to your stop. That man wasn't available. He wasn't there now i don't know the total end of the story but you know it was a wrong message.

It was a there's a twist on it. There's a perverted message. And you know satan and his demons are very active today in the perversion of the simple gospel message. And that's what you have it here in the context of these verses six and seven.

Uh paul says in verse number seven he says it is a different gospel. He says it it is another gospel. He says it is another another of a different kind another gospel of a different kind all together.

And then you've thought about this. He says in verse seven which is not another which is not another. And there's a little play a little play on the word another. He says there's a gospel out there and it's another of a different kind he says.

But he says there's really not another gospel. There's not another gospel because there's only one true gospel. Right. He had pronounced it he proclaimed it and it is justification salvation by faith in the lord jesus christ.

So he says really after all it's not another gospel at all. Or the new international version says which is really no gospel at all. So beloved let us be warned about those who would pervert the gospel of our lord jesus.

I sometimes think about this perversion in this way too. I can see in our world two things i can see man's man's way and god's way. Right. Man's way and god's way. As to the gospel. What's man's way. Man's way is no matter the religion no matter the place it is.

Do do do. Whereas god's way is done done the work is done. That's what the lord jesus said at the cross in that john 1930. It is finished work done work done. And salvation beloved is a gift. I often ask dear people and come into contact with them and bring them to gospel.

Or try and see them established. I would say to them is salvation a gift a reward. Oh my. Oh my. The answers you get for that you would understand salvation a gift a reward. Uh many of them would answer in our world in christendom they would say it's a reward.

You know you gotta you got to do your part a little effort into it. No it's not beloved. The word of god is clear. Isn't it a gift. The gift of god is eternal life through jesus christ our lord. Ephesians 2 8 and 9 that you know so well by grace are you saved through faith.

That not of yourselves. It is the gift of god not of works. Lest any man should boast. Don't leave out verse 10. Don't leave out verse 10. We are his workmanship created onto good works. Oh beloved. The good works.

Any good works spring out spring out of salvation. Not for salvation. But they come out of salvation. The good works that should be seen by all around. Okay. Evidence evidence. So man's way is due and god's way is done.

Paul’s Gospel Ministry and Joy in Prison

Very simply put. Okay i'm thinking. Finally thirdly i'm i'm thinking of the preaching of the gospel. We had the power of the gospel. Evident we had the perversion of the gospel by the enemy. Paul. You know paul the little man.

I think of him as a little man paul but he had a big heart. He had a big heart. He's a big soul. You know he could rejoice. I'm thinking. I'm thinking. And you recall in in philippians. Philippians paul is imprisoned for the sake of the gospel.

Same thing gospel. So he's in prison. And uh he says but you know again the word of god is inbound. Paul might be chained to a roman soldier. Or maybe two roman soldiers. You know what he did. He gave them a gave them the gospel.

So the gospel went up different change of change of guard. And they too would hear the gospel. And it went right to the palace. Right to the palace for those that were receiving the gospel and paul was rejoicing in that.

But what i was going to say. What i'm thinking. There were those outside the prison cell. You know what they were doing. They were rejoicing in paul being imprisoned. And now they would go with the gospel with the gospel.