That the Truth of the Gospel Might Continue

None of us can doubt the Apostle Paul's sincerity when he declared about the false teachers who were stirring up trouble among the saints, "To whom we gve place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you" (Galatians 2:5). He was dead serious! He was willing to die for "the truth of the gospel." The gospel of grace was critical to him then and it should be critical to us today. Let me illustrate. A friend of mine was overwhelmed with guilt when he committed a sin. He confessed that sin to the Lord whose promise in 1 John 1:9 is "he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." He does that in grace but my friend felt that he needed to do more. So the following Wednesday he stood before the church to announce that he and his wife were going to the mission field. I knew his motive; others did not. He missed the idea that Paul fought for - the concept of God's free grace for getting saved and maintaining a Christian life. I had the opportunity later to deal with and help solve his problem. My ideas were Paul's and went along the same lines that I recently discovered in the April 2008 issue of DJ Online News. The article was entitled Guilt and Grace. I use their outline as a young lady helped her own brother who had sinned.

(1) She, like the Lord Jesus, came alongside him. She dispelled his fears by assuring him of her prayers and her struggles with similar sins.
(2) She, like the Lord Jesus, reminded him of God's grace. He was holy and blameless in God’s sight, not because he had obeyed God perfectly, but because Christ paid the penalty for his sin on the cross. More than that, God had clothed him with the perfect righteousness of Christ. He no longer held his sin—including the one he currently faced—against him.
(3) She, like the Lord Jesus, didn't discount his sin. She encouraged him to identify and accept responsibility for his sin. Knowing what God has already done for him and how He viewed Him in Christ, he was able to deal with his sin appropriately.
(4) She, like the Lord Jesus, pointed him to the Holy Spirit. She encouraged him to ask God to give him the strength and will to trust and obey Him, which He has promised to do through His Spirit.

We can be thankful for the gospel of grace that Paul fought for and helped to make available today.

Defending the Faith, A Risky Business

Life is full of risks. We take risks from the moment we step out of our bed. We take a risk when we decide on a marriage partner. We take a risk when we grow children. We take risks when we get in our car and hit the roads. Without risks we would never make progress. An old Chinese saying states, "He who stands all day on one leg never goes anywhere." Buffalo Bill said, "I had many enemies among the Sioux; I would be running considerable risk in meeting them." But meet them he must. The same was true with Paul who preached a pure gospel of grace. He would not allow for any legal rule to be added to the gospel. As such, the gospel became available to both Jew and Gentile alike. The old faithful Jews did not readily accept that new gospel. They claimed that God's people must keep the ceremonial law. Except for a two-week period when he became acquainted with the apostles Peter and James in Jerusalem, Paul did not go to that city for 14 years aftter his conversion. It took special instructions from the Lord by revelation (Gal. 2:2) for him to go as a representative to the Jerusalem Council. But when he went Paul took a risk by choosing Titus, an uncircumcised Gentile who was now a Christian, to accompany him But notice Paul's actions. He was so very-well balanced. A Christian who is willing to take risks does not mean that he is care-free. He should be directed by the Lord and act in a well-balanced way. Paul was fair with the apostles by laying out the gospel as he understood it and preached it (Gal. 2:2); he was also wise in that he asked for a private meeting with the apostles (Gal. 2:2). A public meeting with such a sensitive issue would have been a needless offense. Brothers and sisters, we need to be willing to take risks under God's leadership, but in doing so to be fair and wise in all we do.

Questions to Ponder:
1. How do you feel when your beliefs are contrary to popular opinion? What would you have done in Paul's place?
2. Would it matter to you if Paul's argument had failed? Why or why not?

One Truth, One Church

Unity is of crucial importance to God. It exists in the Godhead; it exists in the church universal; it exists in the gospel. But the unity of the apostolic gospel in Paul's day was under attack. Judaizers, false teachers who stirred up trouble in the Gentile churches, taught that besides the gospel that the apostles in Jerusalem preached, there was another that Paul should be preaching to the Gentiles. They claimed that the Gentiles needed to go beyond mere faith in Christ crucified. They needed also to observe the Law of Moses just like faithful Jews would. In Galatians 2:1-10 Paul recounts an incident that was critical over this issue. It took place in a council in Jerusalem about 14 years after Paul was saved. The gospel of grace that he and the apostles preached was carefully examined. Both Paul and the apostles in Jerusalem had already had tremendous and effectual ministries among the Gentiles and Jews. There was a happy ending to that council because it was determined that two gospels did not exist - only one. How important that is! Again, in another passage, Paul emphasized unity when he encouraged the Ephesian saints to practice it in their assembly. The basis for their unity is the same basis for ours, i.e. the unity found in God, the church and the gospel. He said, "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." (Eph. 4:4-6) It is fashionable today to speak of the theologies of the New Testament - the Pauline, the Lukan, the Johannine, the Petrine. The implication is that there are fundamental differences between them. This passage from Galatians teaches us that the only difference was in the audiences. The Jews may have been circumcised already but that did not give them an edge on salvation. The apostles in Jerusalem preached the gospel to Jews and they who believed were set free from the bondage of the Law. Paul preahced to the Gentiles and they who believed, though not circumcised, were promised heaven simply on the basis of grace. They were not obligated to live after the Law that could not save any one. How thankful we can be!

Questions to Ponder:
1. Do you think Paul would find modern Christian rules more justifiable than the Jewish ones he opposed? Why or why not?
2. Suppose God called you to share the gospel with people of a different culture. How would you decide which American Christian practices could be abandoned and which could not?

Story-Telling and a Hostile Crowd

I forget who said it but someone was referring to controversy when he stated, "No matter what you say or write, there is no controversy until someone does not agree with you.” It is to our benefit that Judaizers did not agree with Paul for now we can learn from the controversy over salvation by grace or by human works. Paul deals with his antagonists in three different way, each one being a way we should use when people disagree with us. In Galatians 1-2 he answers them personally, with stories from his own experiences; in chapters 3-4, doctrinally; and in chapters 5-6, practically. Since our thoughts have brought us to Gal. 1:10-24 we should note his story-telling practice. Personal stories have a particular charm because they cannot be refuted by a hostile crowd. We might call the stories our personal testimony. Every believer has a unique testimony that he should use over and over as he witnesses to people. This is particularly useful with those who may otherwise disagree with our message. Jesus used story-telling amny times to his hostile audiences. See Luke 15, the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son, where Jesus thus exposed the hypocrisy of those who criticized his association with the lost. Peter used story-telling in Acts 11 to defend his action in speaking the gospel to Gentiles (Acts 10). Paul uses it here in Gal. 1:13-24. He speaks of his pre-conversion days (1:13-14)and states the obvious, i.e. that he did not learn salvation by grace alone through his commitment to legalistic Judaism. At the time of his conversion (1:15-16a) God revealed the risen Jesus to him (v. 12; 1 Cor. 9:1; 15:8; Phil. 3:12) and he learned that salvation was by grace alone. His story continues because after his conversion (Gal. 1:16-24) he "conferred not with flesh and blood." Rather, Jesus Christ was his sole teacher during a period of three years in both Arabia and Damascus and he learned that salvation was by grace alone. When people disagree with your message, try story-telling, your own personal testimony.

Questions to Ponder:
1. If you had to argue for the reality of the gospel by giving one example of how faith in Christ has changed you, what would you share?
2. In what way is your experience of Christ an important part of your witness to others?

Fight the Good Fight but Watch Your Attitude

Paul is an apologist - a defender of the faith. In fact, he is probably the apologist par excellence of all church history. The book of Galatians is one apologetic document that came from his pen. Every serious Christian should focus on this wonderful work. We can learn much about how to defend the faith just by studying it. For example, it becomes obvious that Paul's defence of the faith was never meant to do what only the Holy Spirit can do, namely bring people under conviction of "sin, righteousness and judgment" (John 16:8-11). It is basically meant to strengthen believers. For sure, it is never meant to win an argument against an unbeliever. Josh McDowell stated, "Apologetics is not for proving the Word of God but simply for providing a basis for faith." (Evidence That Demands a Verdict, p. iii). McDowell makes the amazing observation that though the majority of those to whom he has spoken did not deny his evidence, they did not accept Christ as Savior and Lord. "This is not because they were unable to believe - they were simply unwilling to believe." (op.cit.p. i) In Galatians 1:10 Paul showed a right attitude in approaching people with the evidence concerning the truth of Christianity. We need to watch our attitude. Then in verses 11-12 he spoke to the Galatian saints who had been troubled by the Judaizers who claimed to be the true Christians. They had been influenced by suggestions that he made up his own gospel. In another article we shall see where this all went.

Questions to Ponder:
1. Why do you think Paul focused on helping the saints in the Galatian churches rather than on the unbelieving Judaizers? Was this a departure from his normal evangelistic outreach?
2. How has evidence for the truth of Christianity affected you?

People-Pleasing Preachers

People-pleaser! The very term is meant for life outside the church. Clowns are people-pleasers! Wily politicians are people-pleasers! Hollywood actors are people pleasers! But are preachers and Bible teachers clowns, wily politicians or pretentious actors? They shouldn't be! God tells us that there will be teachers who will be just that. The Word prophesies of congregations that "will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears." (2 Tim. 4:3) The people may praise the scholarship, the rhetorical skills and the ability of people-pleasing preachers to manage large churches. But do churches really respect the integrity, the honesty with God's Word or any convictions of those preachers? I cannot imagine that they do! True respect is given to those leaders most representing the One who is our Lord and Savior. The Apostle Paul is such a man who demanded respect. He had been charged with preaching a gospel that was too easy. He was thus pleasing the people to draw in the crowd. The Judaizers who were troubling the Galatian churches taught that the gospel is improved if the Mosaic Law, as hard as it might be to obey, is added to the death and resurrection of Christ. But Paul insists that he was not being a people-pleaser by preaching the gospel of grace. "For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet please men, I should not be the servant of Christ." (Gal. 1:10) We displease God by trying to please people.

Questions to Ponder:
1. Why is it often tempting to try to please people? Why does this seem so important?
2. Is it always wrong to shape what you say according to your your audience's feelings? Why or why not?
3. This week, how can you avoid displeasing God by trying to please people? Think about some of the activities you will face.

How God Looks Upon a Distorted Gospel

I was only one year old in the Lord when a Christian cultist confronted me with the teaching that Christians must follow the laws of Moses. He said that we must keep the Saturday Sabbath. When I denied that, he left me with these words, "Well, I guess I'm a better Christian than you." This denial of the gospel of grace is what Paul faced in Galatia. Judaizers claimed authority from the Jerusalem church and were teaching that the Law must be added to the gracious work of Christ. The new Christians in the Galatian churches believed them and were in the process of deserting the Lord Jesus. This horrified Paul and so he moved quickly to offset the false teaching. He said, "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" (Gal. 2:21) To teach that human works contribute to salvation is to suggest that Christ's work was insufficient and needed to be improved on. The real question Galatians 1:6-9 poses is not why Paul became so incensed by this error, but why we, confronted with even deeper error in our own day, seem not to be shocked or dismayed at all. We accept it as a natural thing. Paul was a principled man and it has been through principled leaders like him that we have any Christianity at all today. Our easygoing tolerance is the sort of thing that could destroy it. Do you remember what the Lord said of those who cause believers to stumble? "And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea" (Mark 9:42)

Questions to Ponder:
1. Can you think of some modern perversions of the gospel?
2. How can one discern what is really true and avoid being led astray?