INTRODUCTION
• Today marks the start of a new series on Galatians, where the core component of the gospel of God’s grace will shine brightly as we move our way through the six chapters of this letter. We will better understand the heart of the apostle Paul and the core of his message.
• As we prepare to dive into Paul’s Galatian letter, it’s helpful to have some background context.
• Paul was a church-planting missionary.
• After establishing a church, he would continue to teach them through correspondence.
• One such congregation was a body of believers in Galatia, in Asia Minor. Paul wrote this letter to them in approximately AD 51 (Timothy Keller, Galatians for You [Purcellville, VA: The Good Book Company, 2013], 10).
• After Paul established a church, “Judaizers”—Pharisees who believed in Jesus (Acts 15:1, 5)—would often follow Paul around and add to his teaching to confuse the new believers.
• The main theme of what they would add is that you had to follow the law to be saved.
• The necessity of circumcision was an example of following the law—and a key one, as it was the sign of the covenant in the Old Testament.
• Today we do not have Judaizers, but we have plenty of people and organizations that seek to pull people away from Biblical teaching.
› Big Idea of the Message: The message of the gospel is of the utmost importance.
• We will see that it is vital that we do not allow the Gospel to be changed; we are not to add or subtract from its content.
• We will also see that there is NO other Gospel, and any claims there is another Gospel or Testament are false claims!
• The reason this message is important is the fact that souls are in danger.
• Every Christian has a responsibility to know the Gospel, protect the integrity of the Gospel, and live and share it!
• If you have been a Christian for any time, there is no excuse for not knowing your Bible.
• Paul sets the tone for the letter in chapter 1.
• He may come across a bit strong here and later in the letter, but this is because he is passionate about the faith of his brothers and sisters and concerned about a misunderstanding of grace and salvation.
• As passionate as we are about sports, movies, books, and entertainment, we should be even more passionate about the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
• Let’s begin with Galatians 1:1-5!
Galatians 1:1–5 (NET 2nd ed.)
1 From Paul, an apostle (not from men, nor by human agency, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead)
2 and all the brothers with me, to the churches of Galatia.
3 Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ,
4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father,
5 to whom be glory forever and ever! Amen.
SERMON
I. The foundation of the Gospel.
• Paul begins this letter to the Southern Galatia churches by going through his credentials.
• Jesus called Paul on the road to Damascus in Acts 26.
• Paul was not appointed by humans or human institutions but by Jesus Himself!
• An apostle was one who was sent on a mission; Paul was sent on his mission by the highest possible authority.
• Paul knew what he was talking about, and he should be listened to and respected.
• Paul opens with his greeting to the churches.
• He wishes them grace, which is God’s unmerited or undeserved favor and peace.
• In this context, grace is the unmerited favor of salvation God offers to all through Jesus!
• Salvation includes the forgiveness of sins to those who do not deserve it but rather deserve punishment.
• Salvation involves all that God has done to save people.
• Paul emphasizes the Father and Jesus because the Pharisees thought the Father was the only part of the Godhead.
• The Judaizers needed to be reminded of the distinction between the Father and Son.
• The peace Paul wishes upon us through Jesus is nothing less than one’s total well-being for all of time and eternity.
• There is a great deal at stake if we get the gospel wrong.
• Without the gospel, we have no peace and no salvation!
• In verse 1 of our Galatians passage, Paul once again unveils part of the foundation of the gospel! Not from men, nor by human agency, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead!
• In 1 Corinthians, Paul also lays out the foundation of the Gospel, the person, and the work of Jesus!
1 Corinthians 15:1–4 (NET 2nd ed.)
1 Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand,
2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received—that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures,
4 and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures,
• Paul continues in verses 14-18.
1 Corinthians 15:14–18 (NET 2nd ed.)
14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is futile and your faith is empty.
15 Also, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified against God that he raised Christ from the dead, when in reality he did not raise him, if indeed the dead are not raised.
16 For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised.
17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless; you are still in your sins.
18 Furthermore, those who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished.
• God raised Jesus from the dead!
• This is how through Jesus, we, too, will defeat death!
Galatians & Ephesians (A. Greeting (1:1–5))
Paul is eager to establish the core of the gospel truth in his opening verses. Jesus gave himself to save us from our sins (v. 4) and God the Father confirmed the validity of that sacrifice by raising him from the dead. It is by this act of grace, not by any works of law, that the Galatians are saved.
• In verse 4, we are told of the purpose behind the death of Jesus, to rescue us from our sins!
• Jesus gave Himself as a ransom for our sins!
1 Timothy 2:6 (NET 2nd ed.)
6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, revealing God’s purpose at his appointed time.
• In verse 4, we are told that the forgiveness of our sins rescues us from the present evil age.
• This is an interesting thought.
• The phrase “THE PRESENT EVIL AGE” has roots in the Old Testament.
• In the Old Testament, the people and the Prophets looked forward to the AGE TO COME.
• The age in which they currently resided was the PRESENT EVIL AGE; the AGE TO COME old be the time when the Messiah would appear and inaugurate (Gareth Reese, Galatians Commentary.)
• The foundation of the Gospel is Jesus, and all that happened was in accordance with God’s plan!
• We need to understand what the foundation of the Gospel of Jesus is built upon.
• The gospel is not a social improvement message; it is not a self-help message the; thee Gospel is built upon the person, work, and calling of Jesus!
• Let’s turn to verses 6-9.
Galatians 1:6–9 (NET 2nd ed.)
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are following a different gospel—
7 not that there really is another gospel, but there are some who are disturbing you and wanting to distort the gospel of Christ.
8 But even if we (or an angel from heaven) should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be condemned to hell!
9 As we have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell!
II. The genuine Gospel.
• Paul had worked hard to preach the gospel and establish churches.
• Paul understands what is at stake, and he has experienced the grace of Jesus.
• Verse 6 says he is ASTONISHED over how quickly folks are deserting the gospel for a fake message.
• The word ASTONISH denotes being surprised, indignant, or irritated.
• The word DESERTING speaks of one who is changing position.
• The word DESERT was used for a deserter from the army or one who leavers their faith or political views.
• The verb tense of the word DESERTING shows that those deserting the Gospel are doing so for their own benefit.
• In other words, they think they have something to gain by the treachery.
• There are no other testaments concerning Jesus.
• There is no other secretly revealed bible.
• We have the GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST!
• When we accept other “gospels,” we are distorting the truth.
• Many good people follow a false gospel that says that Jesus is a created being and is “A” god, but NOT GOD!
• This is why we need to know the true, genuine Gospel!
• Sometimes in a desert, a combination of hot and cold air and the pathway of the light from the sun forms a mirage.
• Our eyes and brain think they see water ahead, but nothing is there.
• Sometimes when we are in a spiritual desert, we can be tempted to believe things that are not true.
• Paul is exhorting the Galatians to remember that no matter what happens or what they see, they must not waver from the truth of the gospel (1:8–9).
• Paul feels so strongly that he wants them to understand that even if an angel should miraculously appear in their midst and tell them another way to salvation, they should not believe it (1:8–9).
• That’s a bold statement!
• But really, this is logical.
• If we believe we are saved by faith in Jesus, what we believe has major implications for our salvation.
• Paul is afraid of the corruption of faith jeopardizing the message of God’s grace.
• The genuine GOSPEL is a message, person, and work found in the Bible.
• The GENUINE gospel is not the work of a science fiction writer, nor is it “NEW” revelations found in North America.
• The 66 books of the Bible are the INSPIRED WORD OF GOD, and they contain the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the GOOD NEWS of what Jesus did for us.
• I say that without apology and with ZERO apprehension.
• I am willing to place my faith in the GOD of the Bible for my Salvation.
• Where are you placing your faith?
• This matter is so serious that Paul speaks of eternal damnation for those who pervert the Gospel!
• The Judaizers did not like the Gospel the Apostles presented, so they changed it to fit what they liked.
• It is like Burger King Jesus; instead, it was Burger King Gospel for them.
• Be a Jew first and follow the Law of Moses and the traditions of the Elders; then, you may be able to be a Christian.
• In verse 7, Paul stresses the fact there is NO OTHER GOSPEL!
• Let’s finish with verse 10.
Galatians 1:10 (NET 2nd ed.)
10 Am I now trying to gain the approval of people, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a slave of Christ!
III. The motivation for sharing the Gospel.
• Apparently, Paul was accused of changing his message for the crowd so that he would not offend people.
• He has been accused of being a people pleaser.
• Paul asks the question of his readers, “Am I a people pleaser?”
• Paul says one cannot try to please people and be a servant of Jesus.
• A people pleaser lacks courage and conviction.
• A people pleaser will sell out everything to be popular and get people to like them.
• Real leaders cannot lead without conviction and courage because people will pull you in 1,000 different directions.
• You have to lead with courage and conviction; you have to teach the Scriptures with courage and conviction!
• This is because what you teach will not be popular at times.
• Listen to Christ-focused what Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 9:22
1 Corinthians 9:22 (NET 2nd ed.)
22 To the weak I became weak in order to gain the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that by all means I may save some.
• This is not a people pleaser move, he will not sacrifice his convictions to win others, but rather he will be sensitive to others and will bend where it does not violate Biblical teaching.
• Paul is willing to sacrifice his “rights” to win people to Jesus when necessary.
CONCLUSION
• If chapter 1 sets the tone and explains the letter's purpose, verse 10 is the rationale.
• Paul is not trying to please the Galatians; rather, he wants to show his love for them and God.
• His ultimate goal is to be a servant of Christ, and a servant of Christ loves God and loves his neighbor.
• But showing love to someone is not always the same as making them happy or pleasing them.
• This distinction is often lost in religious circles today, but it’s important to see here that as Paul proceeds, his motivation is Christ-focused.
• In the movie Elf, Buddy is a human raised by Santa and elves at the North Pole.
• When he grows up and connects with his biological father, his father is rather self-absorbed.
• When Buddy gets in trouble and needs help, his father is more interested in his job than his son.
• This angers Buddy’s step-brother Michael, who tells their father, “Buddy cares about everybody. All you care about is yourself.”
• This confrontation causes a total life change for their father (directed by Jon Favreau [New Line Cinema, 2003], 1:13:15).
• Putting the gospel first helps us speak the truth in love to others, even when that truth is a hard truth.
• Our action point for this message is as follows:
› Application Point: Paul’s passion reveals that the gospel is what he cares about most. If someone were to gauge what you care about most based on your passion for it, what would they come up with?
