2010 BBC Preach-A-Thon - Josh MacDonald

Legalism in Galatians and Why It Matters

Old you had to preach a sermon from a New Testament epistle and that you should pick a jugular text. That is to say a verse or verses that goes straight for the throat that goes right in for the kill.

What verses would you choose? I? thought of the book of Galatians a book where the Apostle Paul is defending the true gospel and justification by faith. A book where he holds back no punches where we read how he confronts the Apostle Peter to his face and Where we read an uncompromising condemnation of those who preach a false gospel.

We try and set the tone for the book by reading some of the opening sentences Paul wrote in chapter 1. I Am amazed that you are so quickly deserting him who called you by the grace of Christ for a different gospel.

Which is really not another only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 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 have received. He is to be accursed. Paul right out of the gates in this letter goes for the throat.

He goes for the jugular. He's writing here to the churches and Galatia false teachers preaching a false gospel have infiltrated the church. They're attacking Paul's apostolic authority and they're preaching a legalistic gospel of works saying Gentiles must first become Circumcised and uphold the Mosaic law in order to be saved.

And this is such a dangerous heresy that the Apostle Paul says if any man is preaching to you a gospel Contrary to what you received. He is to be accursed. When people think of legalism today, I think of this modern idea.

No smoking. No drinking. No dancing, etc. These long lists, but actually the biblical definition of legalism the legalism that's in view here in the book of Galatians is A legalism that strives to obtain salvation by a method other than Christ by adding works to the gospel.

That is to say trusting in your own righteousness instead of Christ's righteousness trusting in your own deeds to earn salvation trying to add anything to the perfect perfect work of Christ by doing or earning.

And The Apostle Paul in this letter goes for the kill defending justification by faith alone. Martin Luther described the doctrine of justification by faith as the article of faith that decides whether the church is standing or falling.

So why does Bethlehem Bible Church need to know these truths? Why is this so important for you here today? And the answer if the Apostle Peter can fall into legalism, so can you? Today we'll look at five Admonitions from Galatians 3 you must heed to avoid falling into the snares of legalism as the Galatians did.

Preach the Gospel to Yourself Regularly

First admonition we're going to look at is that you ought to preach the gospel to yourself. Regularly you ought to preach the gospel to yourself. Regularly, please turn with me to Galatians chapter 3 verse 1.

In chapters 1 to 2 in the book of Galatians Paul is defending his apostolic authority and in chapters 3 to 4 He begins his doctrinal arguments and in 1 to 5 the verses we're going to look at this morning.

He does it from the standpoint of the Galatians experience. Follow with me as I begin to read verse 1. You foolish Galatians who has bewitched you before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.

Look at the beginning of the verse you foolish Galatians. Paul speaking here with a combination of anger and love. He first preached the gospel to the Galatians. He has a love for them, but he's angry at their desertion of the true gospel.

The word foolish in the verse does not mean that the Galatians were stupid or had a mental deficiency. But it means they were mentally lazy and careless. They failed to use their spiritual intelligence and they'd been taught by the Apostle Paul himself.

Then he asked who has bewitched you. The word bewitched here means to subject a person to an evil occult influence commonly called the evil eye. And Paul didn't mean that they were under some kind of literal evil spell, but they'd been acting as if they've been mesmerized by these false teachers and Paul is amazed that they were so easily deceived and we can see why as we read on.

We can understand the Apostle Paul's frustration. Look at the rest of the verse before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Paul saying I was just there and my preaching was so vivid.

I painted such a picture of Christ and the cross before you that it's as if you could reach out and touch the cross it's as if you were at the crucifixion and Paul preached the true gospel vividly that God's only Son Jesus Christ lived the perfect life never sinned and died a sinner's death on the cross a substitutionary death in their place and Took God's wrath that was due to the sinners deserved by sinners upon himself.

That God accepted the payment of sin Proven by the resurrection of Jesus Christ and that the Galatians must repent and through faith in Jesus Christ alone Be saved nothing more faith alone and Knowing the true gospel.

They abandoned it. So the Apostle Paul says who has bewitched you. You must be under some kind of spell to abandon the awesome mercy and love of God in the true gospel. So you ought to preach the gospel to yourself regularly to avoid the same legalistic snare that the Galatians fell into.

They were given the true unadulterated gospel and yet they were deceived and if you think that you cannot be deceived. Think again and to illustrate this further turn back with me to Galatians chapter 2 verse 11.

Follow with me as I read. But when Cephas came to Antioch Cephas being the Apostle Peter I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned for prior to the coming of certain men from James. He used to eat with the Gentiles.

But when they came he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof fearing the party of the circumcision. The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.

The Apostle Peter fearing the same party of the circumcision fell into hypocrisy and This is the Apostle Peter who walked with Christ and was taught by Christ and he fell into legalism. Therefore you here today ought to preach the gospel to yourself Regularly because if the Apostle Peter can fall into legalism, so can you?

I'm preaching the gospel to yourself is not just a reciting of a bunch of facts or data. It needs to involve an engagement of the heart and a reliance on the Holy Spirit. To meditate on these things to meditate on Christ.

Remember Your Conversion Was by Grace, Not Works

It's the first admonition. That we've looked at is that you ought to preach the gospel to yourself Regularly so that you don't fall into the same legalism as the Galatians did. Which brings us to our second admonition.

You must remember your own conversion of grace and that you are not saved by works. You must remember your own conversion of grace and that you are not saved by works. Follow with me as I read verse 2 in Galatians chapter 3.

This is the only thing I want to find out from you. Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? Paul focuses in on this question. He zooms in the lens on this question and brings the Galatians back to their conversion experience.

This is the only thing I want to find out from you. It's as if Paul is saying the answer to this one question based on your own Experience will reveal the foolishness of your abandonment of the true gospel.

This is the only thing I want to find out from you. Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? The Galatians knew the answer to this question. The Apostle Paul knew the answer.

He preached the gospel to them and On one hand the Judaizers are saying that keeping the law is necessary for salvation. And on the other hand the Apostle Paul saying look back to your own salvation of grace.

What these false teachers are saying cannot be true. The Galatians were not saved by the works of the law they were saved by hearing with faith. Let me read to you Ephesians 1 13 and 14. In him you also after listening to the message of truth the gospel of your salvation.

Having also believed you were sealed in him with the Holy Spirit of promise. He says you listened to the gospel you believed the gospel and then you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. After listening to the message and believing not after keeping the law.

You must remember your own conversion of grace and that you were not saved by works. Let me illustrate this further. I want to briefly read from Acts Chapter 10. You don't need to turn there the Apostle Peter Goes to the home of Cornelius a centurion a Gentile and there are people people gathered in his house.

And Peter preaches to them the true gospel. In the next 1044 it says while Peter was still speaking these words the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who are listening to the message. Cornelius and those there with him did not receive the spirit by the works of the law.

But by hearing the gospel message and believing. What about Abraham look at verse 6 in Galatians chapter 3? Even so Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. So far, we've looked at two admonitions to avoid falling into the legalism that the Galatians did and Abandoning the true gospel.

You must heed these admonitions. Admonition number one that we've looked at is you ought to preach the gospel to yourself regularly. Admonition number two, you must remember your own conversion of grace and that you were not saved by works.

Sanctification by the Spirit, Not the Flesh

Which brings us to our third admonition? You must realize that if you have been saved by the Spirit You will be sanctified by the Spirit. Look at verse 3. Are you so foolish having begun by the Spirit?

Are you now being perfected? By the flesh. Paul has just asked the Galatians in the previous verses to remember their conversion that they were not saved by the works of the law. But by hearing with faith and he begins his next sentence.

Reiterating how foolish they've been. Are you so foolish for not using your brains for not thinking and so quickly abandoning the true gospel? All they had to do was think back to their own conversion and Now Paul hits the situation from a different angle in this verse first.

He says remember your conversion. Saved by the hearing with faith not by works of the law. And now he asked them having begun in the Spirit. Are you being perfected in the flesh? The first questions deal with justification and now he turns it to sanctification.

Paul saying do you really believe are you so foolish that being saved by the Spirit you can now be perfected by the flesh. You mean to tell me the Holy Spirit dwells within you but now apart from the Spirit you're going to sanctify yourselves.

The word perfected here means to complete to bring about completion. Our Christian lives have a beginning at conversion. Having begun by the Spirit the verse says and our Christian lives have a continuation in sanctification.

Till we reach heaven. Paul saying you were saved by the Holy Spirit. Are you now so foolish? To think that you can be perfected by the flesh have these Judaizers so mesmerized you. They think you can perfect yourselves by doing things by upholding the Mosaic law by keeping ordinances.

You here today to avoid falling into the same legalism. The Galatians did must realize and remember if you've been saved and received the Holy Spirit, you'll be sanctified through the Holy Spirit. The same word perfected in the Greek epitale.

Oh is also used in Philippians 1 6. For I am confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. He who began a good work in you will perfect it.

It doesn't say you by the works of your flesh by your own works. You'll be perfected. No, he who began a good work in you will perfect it. Do we as Christians have a role to play in sanctification? Yes.

But apart from the Holy Spirit We can do nothing in order to fall avoid falling into these snares of legalism. You must realize and remember if you've been saved by the Holy Spirit, you'll be sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

God's Grace Must Not Be Nullified by Legalism

Which brings us to our fourth admonition. You must not nullify God's grace and salvation by turning to legalism. You must not nullify God's grace in salvation by turning to legalism. Look with me at Galatians 3 verse 4.

Did you suffer so many things in vain if indeed it was in vain. The word suffer here can have two meanings. It could be a physical. Suffering most likely under persecution that he's referring to or it can simply mean experienced.

No doubt many who turn to Christ suffer persecution. Probably the Galatian Church did as well. We know Paul suffered in Galatia Persecution. But we need to look at the context to determine the meaning.

The meaning of the word here should simply be rendered. Experience for a couple of reasons. It doesn't make sense that the Apostle Paul would be introducing a new topic that would never be mentioned again in the letter.

And persecution and suffering of the Galatian Church everything Paul said in the previous verses and in the following verse has to do with blessings they received and Verse 1 Christ was proclaimed to the Galatians and verses 2 and 3 they received the Holy Spirit and In verse 5 it talks about the working of miracles in their midst.

It wouldn't make sense for Paul in the context to say did you suffer these things? But more did you experience so many things in vain? Did you experience the preaching of the gospel of Christ in vain?

Did you experience the receiving of the Spirit in vain? Did you experience the working of miracles among you in vain? So Paul asked the Galatians did you experience so many things in vain? Did you learn nothing from all of these experiences?

You actually nullify all that you've experienced and you nullify the cross by turning to a false gospel of works. Look at the last verse in chapter 2 of Galatians. Paul writes. I do not nullify the grace of God for if righteousness comes through the law then Christ died needlessly.

Saying if you can be saved by keeping the law then Christ died for nothing if you can provide your own righteousness. To be seen right before God you must not nullify God's grace and salvation by turning to legalism.

Did you experience so many things in vain. And he adds if indeed it was in vain. Paul briefly changes his tone here. Softens it allows for a glimmer of hope that the Galatians haven't completely Abandoned the true gospel hope for repentance that they would turn back to the true gospel.

And the point of Paul's rebuke as is the point of any rebuke To a brother or sister in Christ is to restore the sinning brother or sister. I really like these false teachers were teaching needs to be confronted head-on.

Going right for the jugular as Paul did it needs to be stopped in his tracks. But Paul's hope and our hope should be that through a harsh rebuke like this repentance of the Galatians Would be granted.

So you must not nullify God's grace and salvation by turning to legalism. This brings us to the final admonition. You must remember God never blesses legalism. God never blesses legalism. Follow with me in verse 5 of Galatians 3.

God Never Blesses Legalism

So then does he who provides you with the spirit and works miracles among you do it by works of the law or by hearing with faith. Paul now goes back to the question. He asked in verse 2. He changes the tense from past to present.

In Verse 2 he asked did you receive the spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? In verse 5 he restates the question in a different way. And this is the same question that back in verse 2 he start off by saying this is the only thing I want to find Out from you.

It makes sense that he starts off verse 5 with the words. So then It's as if he's saying so then after all I've said answer me this only the only thing I want to find out from you and he restates the question does he who provides you with the spirit and Works miracles among you.

Does he do it by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? Does he referring to God who provides you with the spirit? The word provide here means to give abundantly and with great generosity. Does he who provides you with the spirit and works miracles among you do it by the works of the law or by hearing with?

Faith. The word miracles here can have two possible meanings. It can be an outward Spiritual gift healing prophecy, etc, or inward moral and spiritual blessings faith. Hope love and Paul could have both of these in view here outward miracles were performed by Paul and Barnabas and x14 and 15 in southern, Galatia and Inward inward spiritual blessings are received at salvation.

The main point of Paul asking this question is have they received these things by keeping the law or by hearing the gospel and Believing. The Galatians did not receive these things because of their obedience to the law.

They received the spirit when Paul preached the gospel to them so vividly publicly displayed the gospel before them and they believed. And you must remember God never blesses Legalism this morning. We've looked at five admonitions that you must heed to avoid falling into the snares of Legalism as the Galatians did and as the Apostle Peter fell into the same hypocrisy.

In review you ought to preach the gospel to yourself regularly. Admonition number one. Admonition number two. You must remember your own conversion of grace and that you were not saved by works. Admonition number three you must remember if you have been saved by the Holy Spirit you will be sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

Admonition number four you must not nullify God's grace and salvation by turning to legalism. And the final admonition you must not think God's blessings come through legalistic means. The Galatians neglected to think they neglected to use their spiritual intelligence to hold fast to sound doctrine and heed.

Such admonitions as these the result was an abandonment of the true gospel. And you and I are not above falling into legalism so pray that the Lord would protect us from error and Heed these admonitions.

And that we would hold fast to sound doctrine as says in Ephesians 4 14. We are no longer to be children. Tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men by craftiness and deceitful scheming.

But speaking the truth in love we are to grow up in all aspects into him who is the head even Christ. Let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you for your word. We thank you so much for the opportunity to preach today.

We just pray that we glorify you through all of our preaching and through the rest of the preaching today that you would Keep us from error have us hold fast to sound doctrine and sound teaching. We just thank you and Praise you in Jesus name Amen.