Grace Abounds

A Sermon Series Through the Book of Galatians

“A Letter to the Recovering Pharisee”

Galatians 1:1-9

Introduction

The Pharisees who lived during the early church times were very religious. They paid very close attention to their theology, they were regular in their worship, and they would be considered a very moral group of people. But in all that attention to religious activities God was not in their hearts. Their religion was little more than hypocrisy – this hypocrisy was rooted in their belief that if they read their Bibles, tithed, kept the Sabbath, then God would do for them, what they had done for God.

This constant attention to trying to be good, follow the rules, and appear to be a good person was exhausting and ultimately was not pleasing to God because they were substituting their own righteousness for Jesus’ righteousness. They would say, “I don’t need Jesus’ gift of salvation, I can earn it myself.” So their daily lives reflected this idea of trying to earn God’s favor, and trying to manipulate God by their action to get him to do something.[1]

It is hard for a legalistic person, once they receive Christ, to leave legalism behind. So Jewish people become followers of Jesus, and while they say they need Jesus and his gift of salvation, secretly (deep down in their hearts), they believe God’s love for them is conditional upon how they behave.

Performance based “Christianity” denies the grace of God.

 While we are saved by grace, recovering legalists struggle to live by grace. The gospel is something we receive for salvation, but it is also something that we live and breathe every day. The gospel gives us freedom – as we move through the book of Galatians, I want you to ask yourself, “Am I living my Christian life, as if I know God loves me and that His grace is enough? Or are you trying to make God love you by doing religious activity?”

Paul’s Salutation to the Churches In Galatia (vv. 1-5)

Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man[2], but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2 and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Paul in the opening verses comes out fighting. We can tell from these verses that there were people who were attacking Paul’s authority as an apostle. An apostle was an official spokesperson for Jesus, “an envoy, ambassador, or messenger who was chosen and trained by Jesus Christ as a special emissary for proclaiming His truth during the formative years of the church.”[3] The first 12 disciples were chosen, called, and commissioned by Christ himself to teach on his behalf (Luke 6:13-16; Mark 3:14-19). Paul understands that people have to accept him as an apostle before they will accept the gospel.

Paul was not apart of the original 12, and so his critics attack his authority. In order to advance their doctrinal error, they are attacking his credentials. These false teachers are arguing that Paul’s gospel was not from God but from man (Paul made it up), and that Paul appointed himself to be an apostle – Paul is explaining where Christianity came from. But also, they are accusing him of watering down the gospel to make it easy – so that he would popular saying what people wanted to hear.

When the authority of Scripture is denied,

a person can make truth into whatever they want Him to be.

They denied Paul’s authority (as an apostle) and then created their own gospel. When the authority of Scripture is denied, you can then add or take away the parts you don’t agree with.

“To the churches of Galatia,” – “The Galatians were going astray because they are adding Judaism to the gospel of Faith in Christ . . . Disturbed by these tendencies Paul writes this letter . . . I order that they may preserve faith in Christ alone.”[4] These false teachers are called “Judaizers” in other places because they wanted to require the new Gentile (non-Jewish) followers of Jesus to become a Jew before they could become a Christian. It is the gospel of Jesus plus the law of Moses (dietary laws, circumcision, and other ceremonial law, feasts and holidays) .

We see this in Acts 15:1 “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” . . . (v. 5) “But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.”

“In turning from grace to a legalistic system of salvation by works, the Galatians had ignored the significance of the death of Christ. The heart of the gospel is Christ’s willing sacrifice of Himself for our sins. Salvation is not earned by one’s efforts to eliminate sin, but by one’s trust in God’s promise to forgive sin through the work of Jesus Christ.”[5] Without the cross, Jesus’ teachings and life example would introduce us to God, but we would have no way of having a relationship with Him – we cannot, in our own self-effort, be rid of our sin.

In these opening verses reminds the churches of the what the gospel is; the resurrection, “who raised him from the dead,” and his crucifixion, “who gave himself for our sins.” In his rescuing us from the danger of our sin it was not for a “second chance” – “giving us another opportunity to get life right and stay right with God. He did all we needed to do, but cannot do. If Jesus’ death really paid for our sins on our behalf, we can never fall back into condemnation.”[6]

From these we see four things about the gospel 1) Jesus gave himself willingly, “who gave himself.” Jesus’ life was not taken, it was given. It was a voluntary self-sacrifice. John 10:17-18 “I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.” Matthew 27:50 when Jesus is on the cross he “yielded up his spirit.”

2) The purpose of the cross is that Jesus gave up his life willingly for our sins. We had a sin debt that we could not pay, and on the cross “Jesus paid it all.” The punishment we deserved, He took upon himself. He became our substitute (substitutionary atonement). It enabled God to forgive us by satisfying his pure justice. Even if your acts of goodness counted, what was owed is eternally more than you can contribute toward your salvation.

3) “to deliver us from the present evil age,” – The purpose of the gospel is to deliver – Jesus came to rescue us. We are saved so that one day, we can enter into eternity, but God’s grace and salvation extend also, to our present day-to-day lives. We have been freed from the evil of this age.

We were slaves to sin, now we are slaves to righteousness – the consequence of being a Christ follower is that we are freed from behavior that brings us destruction. Lightfoot said, “The Gospel is a rescue, an emancipation from a state of bondage.” Because we are free our lives now reflect Christ – an abundant life.

4) God initiatives our salvation, it originates from God “according to the will of our God and Father,” The cross was not an accident, or a historical tragic event that caught God off guard. He wasn’t in heaven hoping that everything would work out. In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prays that the cup of wrath that was coming with the cross be removed, Matthew 26:39 “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” It was the Father’s will that the Son die for the salvation of the world.

Peter says in Acts 2:23, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” It has always been the plan for God the Father to give His Son for the salvation of the world. In these opening verses Paul discusses salvation and we don’t play any part in it. “The gospel is not about what we do for God; it is about what God has done for us.”

Paul then says, “to whom be the glory forever and ever .” – All the glory goes to God, not to us for being good. Ephesians 2:9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

“The great point that the Galatians are to note is the fact that grace and peace are ours (v. 3) “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” through the merits of Christ’s self-sacrifice alone. All is due to his death for our sins. We are able to add nothing by any works of ours. We are not delivered by any observance of the law. The whole epistle is aimed at this error; the foundation is laid already in the greeting.”[7]

Paul’s Concern and Reason For Writing the Letter (vv. 6-7)

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ (the gospel that originates from Christ).

Paul’s writing this letter is in response to his astonishment that the churches were in danger – there is an urgency in his writing. They like soldiers on the battlefield they are “so quickly deserting” – they are switching sides. The tense tells us that it has begin but has not yet been completed – there is still a chance for them to see their error.

An OT example of a similar event was Exodus 32:7-8 “And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’” When people don’t honor the authority of Scripture, they want to add to it, or take from if; “They think they are improving the gospel, but what they are actually doing is forging a golden calf in the furnace of unbelief . . . we’ve abandoned it for an idol made by human hands.”[8]

They were not just switching from one man’s philosophy to another man’s philosophy – they were deserting the God who gave them the true gospel. And they were accepting a distorted Paul and Barnabas had gone through and preached the gospel, they had received it, and then they went back (on their second missionary journey)[9] and spent time teaching them – and then when they left these false teachers have followed behind them and are trying to undermine their work. Paul is astonished at how quickly they swept in, and how quickly the churches were listening to them.

 I think it’s important to note that these were teachers who said they were Christians – they would have acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah, and they would have recognized his death on the cross as being important (otherwise no one would listened to them).

They would have claimed to believe all the truths other Christians believed. But they wanted to improve the gospel by adding to it. If you add anything to grace then you have corrupted the gospel – it becomes a different gospel. The good news of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, is the only gospel that saves the sinner.

The word Paul uses in v. 7, “want to distort the gospel,” perverts the gospel, literally “reverses.”[10] All other world religions say that you do something to save yourself. The grace of God, and the gospel from Jesus reverses this – God does everything, you do nothing. Any edits to the gospel reverses it, and places it in the giant pile of worthless world religions. There is only one way to be rid of our sin – there are not multiple ways to God.

How does one go from following the true gospel, to readily accepting man’s attempt at religion? There are two things involved, “but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel,” The false teachers were troubling the church, so trouble or heartache comes along, and then combined with distortion of the truth (to make God in one’s own image). Something in your life happens, and an alternate version of reality presents itself.

Paul’s Warning For Those That Preach a False Gospel (vv. 8-9)

8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Paul then gives scenarios where a false gospel may appear – suppose Paul, or those who were with him on his journeys, or even an angel from heaven appeared – if anyone preaches a gospel different than grace alone, faith alone, Christ alone – they are to be accursed. The true standard of Christianity is not the messenger, but the message. Preachers can change and move away from the truth they once preached, and demons can appear as angels.

Paul is saying that even his apostolic authority derives from the gospel’s authority, not the other way around. The Bible judges the church, the church does not judge the Bible. Scripture is the plumbline that we hold up everything the church does and believes. My authority as your pastor comes from Scripture – you should follow me as long as what I say lines up with the Word of God. The word of God does not means what I want it to mean – I have authority only as long as what I say lines up with Scripture.

Paul uses the word accursed or anathema, referring to what should happen to someone who preaches a false gospel – This is an OT concept of setting something aside or devoting something to destruction. A different gospel brings condemnation – it is ternal life that is at stake.

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[1] Philip Graham Ryken, Reformed Expository Commentary, Galatians (Philipsburg, New Jersey; P&R Publishing, 2005) 3.

[2] This could be a reference to Paul and Barnabas being sent out on the first missionary journey from the church in Antioch.

[3] John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Galatians (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Press, 1987) 2.

[4] C. Marius Victorinus, Ad Galatas, quoted in F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Eerdmans, 1982) 21.

[5] MacArthur, 6.

[6] Timothy Keller, Galatians For You (USA; The Good Book Company, 2013) 16.

[7] R.C.H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians to the Ephesians and to the Philippians (Minneapolis, Minnesota; Augsburg Publishing House, 1961) 29.

[8] Todd Wilson, Preaching the Word, Galatians Gospel-Rooted Living (Wheaton, Illinois; Crossway Publishing, 2013) 30.

[9] Acts 13:13-14:23

[10] Keller, 18.