...and tonight's secret ingredient is...

Galatians 6:14 "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

Have you ever seen that cooking show where the man unveils the secret ingredient? "...and tonights secret ingredient is...SUSHI!" Then the competitors must create a dish or meal around the secret ingredient? Imagine if one of the competitors went to work, creating a fantastic meal, but did not include any sushi. So when he stood before the judges at the end, what should he expect? Perhaps he might argue that he didn't really care for sushi. I doubt that would change their decision.

And when we stand in judgment, what will we say if we have ignored the cross. Do you really think God will accept something like, "But I really don't care for the cross. That whole Mel Gibson thing was so gross. But I got everything else right."

Without the cross, nothing else is right. Nothing.

Running a good race

Based on Galatians 5:7-12

The Galatians had started out on the right foot. They were "running a good race." The picture I see here is of a marathon runner who has kept a good pace, is running with a good strategy. One that is not too fast or too slow, but will give them a good chance of finishing and even winning the race.

But someone cut in on them. Maybe it was a supposedly slower runner who wasn't supposed to be so good. So they doubted their strategy. Maybe they needed to pick up the pace, do something different.

Doesn't that sound like the way that Satan works? Faith? How do you expect to get to heaven merely on faith? Look, see my works? See how God has blessed me? God wants more than just faith. Now if you will just send a $20 seed gift of faith, then God will surely bless you. If you will tithe and even throw in some extra, surely that will make an impression on God. If you will throw away that beer and wine, that is what God wants from you. If you will...

That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.

Paraphrase: Jesus wouldn't ask you to do that.

Huh? Didn't Jesus say, "go the extra mile?" Didn't he say, "to marry a woman who was divorced is adultery?" Didn't he say to the rich young man, "Go and sell all you have, then come and follow me?"

Yes, he said all of those things and more. But always in the context of "and that still isn't enough." Jesus understood and taught that it is not the act that saves us, it is our heart, our faith. And real faith demands a response. No response is valid unless done out of faith.

If I am confident in my strategy, seeing a slower runner in front of me does not make me doubt myself.

That silly circumcision group, trying to bring the law back into that which only comes by grace! If I am required to do anything to obtain salvation, then why the cross?

Paul makes an interesting statement in verse 11. "If I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted?" In other words, if I give in and just preach what they want me to, then why all the hubub? If I preach a cross-less message, all will be well with these trouble-makers. And heck, that sells much better anyway. But I can't do that. Because a cross-less message is meaningless for salvation. It might make for a better community, but it is meaningless for salvation.

Its half-time!

Galatians 5:1 states, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."

Why is it that Christians are more often defined by what we don't do than by anything else? Don't smoke, don't chew, don't date the girls who do.

Paul doesn't seem to think too much of this idea either. Stand firm (in Christ, not in legalism), and do NOT let yourselves be burdened by a yoke of slavery.

He goes on to say that "if you let yourselves by circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all." Could that be stated any stronger???

It is not about circumcision, it is about depending on anything other than Christ. Remember Jesus' statement that we "cannot serve two masters?" (Matt 6:24) I don't think that this only refers to money! I do not think we can serve the law and Christ either. I think Paul agrees

To depend on the law, any law, any set of do's and don'ts, only alienates us from Christ. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Vs. 6)

So why do it? One reason comes to mind, fear. Fear that grace alone isn't really enough. Fear that God really will hold us accountable for our deeds. Fear that there really is a good/bad scale when we stand before God in judgment.

What is it that Isaiah says about our righteous acts? Calling them filthy rags? How does that play out on a balance scale? (Is. 64:6)

Or is it a fear of leadership as well? If we don't tell people to tithe, we might not have enough income. If we don't tell people to stay away from R rated movies (except ones about the death of Christ), they might go (and like them). Or perhaps it is just easier to preach works rather than the Gospel?

I am not advocating not doing good works. What I am saying is that any works not born out of faith and love are a wasted effort. And if any works born out of faith and love are meaningless, then wouldn't it make sense to spend more time on the why than on the how?

I wonder how many coaches spend their half-time talks going over the fundamentals? Don't they rather talk about the motivation to win? Isn't that how we get ordinary people to do extra-ordinary things?

Sometimes the truth hurts

Galatians 4:16 "Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?"

Paul had brought the Gospel to the Galatians, and they had received it with joy. They had received Paul with joy as well. If they could have, they would have torn out their own eyes and given them to Paul.

What happened?

Paul had left for a while, and humanness took over. Instead of clinging to the Gospel, the law crept back in. Their joy disappated as they forgot about that which is primary, and again focused on themselves and the law. And Paul doesn't hold back in letting them know the error of their way. So much so, that he fears it might make him their enemy.

But Paul does not let that fear hold him back. Because the truth is more important. It is almost as if he fears God more than men.

Verse 17 "Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them."

They wanted to turn it into a popularity contest. Paul knew all about being zealous, both for the right reasons and the wrong reasons.

If being zealous were all that mattered, Paul would have been saved as a Jew. But he wasn't. If fact, God delivered him from that state. Delivered him from knowing the law to knowing Christ. And Paul didn't want to go back at any cost, because he knew where he belonged. And he wanted the Galatians to know it too.

Where did my joy go?

Galatians 4:15 "What has happened to your joy? I can testify that , if you could have done so, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me."


When Paul first gave the Gospel to the Galatians, they were overwhelmed with joy. They loved the Gospel and they loved Paul for sharing it with them. I find that awesome. They loved it so much they would have torn out their own eyes and given them to Paul.


"Here, Paul, you take these eyes. Yours do not seem to be functioning so well, and having my eyes might enable you to be a more effective minister of the Gospel. "


Wow!

 Then the law crept back in. Jews were the culprit in this case, but they don't have to be the only ones responsible for this kind of thought. Don't we still do it today whenever we fall back on the trap of focusing on ourselves and what we do. But isn't it ironic that when we focus on ourselves our joy fades!


Remember Moses? Whenever he returned from the mountain, he had to wear a veil to hide is face, which was glowing from being in the presence of God. But over time, his face returned to normal. Perhaps it was just the day to day dealing with it all that helped it go.


Maybe that is why, when I sit in church sometimes, instead of being filled with joy, I find myself squirming in my seat. I am hearing social gospel, or moral deism instead of The Gospel. The Good News.

So I sit here and wonder...where do I go from here? I was reading in Ezekiel, and came across this verse (2:5) And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them.


So it is not whether or not I am happy, or whether or not they might be offended if I speak a truth that they might not be comfortable with. It is not about me convicting them or failing to convict them. It is not about me or them at all, it is about GOD. I think in some ways I have been letting them rob me of my joy. I have been robbing myself of my joy. And I want it back.


The prophets were never guaranteed success. God told them to go, and they went. Okay, so sometimes they grumbled...


So I believe that I must find my joy only in Christ. And I must speak freely and honestly about what I believe the Gospel to be.


So I suppose I better get ready for the ride. Somehow, reading the book of Jonah seems appropriate right now...

To know or to be known?

Galatians 4:9 "But now that you know God - or rather are known by God - how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles?"


Paul begins stating things one way, that we know God. But then he corrects himself, and states that we are known by God. So what is the difference?

• Me knowing God puts the emphasis on me. Perhaps as if I found it myself. The Gospel is never about me, and Paul deeply understands this.
• God knowing me is profoundly more humbling. It means nothing that I have met and spoke to ________ (insert famous person's name here). I may know them, but I doubt they know, let alone care about me. But suppose _________ (insert famous person's name here) goes out of his way to let others know that he has met me! That changes everything. Suddenly, I matter. Not because I have done anything, but it is because they know me. I had no idea this person was aware of me at all. I am humbled.

God knows me. Me, the speck on this rock floating in a vast universe He created. Amazing. Humbling. How can I help but respond in awe and respect? Anyone want an autograph? (Oops! I better not let this go to my head!)

Prisoner of the law

Galatians 3:23 says, "Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed."




Yes, I know that this is the same verse I started with last time. It's just that as I read it something completely different hit me. It was the phrase, "we were held prisoners by the law."


I don't like that idea, the idea of being a prisoner. I think of it as being held against my will. But wasn't it my will that got me into trouble in the first place? Do I have two wills?


I think this is what Paul refers to in Romans 7:19, where he says, "For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing." I am a prisoner of sin because of the law. For is I did not have the law, sin would not be sin. Sheesh!


So what does this possibly mean for me today? It means that I must be on my guard. It means that I must look to the things of faith and not of sight. It means that I must depend on God every moment of the day.


It also means that I have been set free. I am no longer a prisoner of the law if I live by faith.


I still feel like I am sometimes. But I am not.

Galatians 3:24-25 " So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law."

So praise God for the law. For without the law, I would not know sin, but without the law, I would also not know Christ. Had I not been a prisoner, I could not have been set free.

Faith

Galatians 3:23 says, "Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed."


I have lots of questions about this verse. Like, was there a time before faith? Was there a time when people were acting only in obedience, not acting in faith or at least not knowing that it was faith? And where does this place Abraham? Was he acting in faith or obedience? Seems like there had to be an element of faith when he went to sacrifice his son, through whom he expected the promise to be fulfilled. Was that the first inkling, the first revelation of faith that this verse speaks of, or is it speaking of a time under Christ, whereas now faith is revealed to us?


Whatever the case, it seems that faith rules supreme. Paul states in verse 26 that our sonship under God comes through faith in Jesus.


I think that there are some who still don't see the revelation of faith. They still pursue God through works. I thin that is one reason the book of Galatians was written. I think I too still struggle with trying to earn God's approval. Perhaps that is why the Bible speaks so much on rest.


Psalm 46:10  "Be still and know that I am God.


Maybe instead of slowing down, I need to stop for awhile.

Can you hear me now?

Isaiah 48:18   If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

Galatians 3:19  What, then, was the purpose of the law?


When I read the Bible sometimes I get bogged down in all of the stuff I am supposed to do. But the law was not put into place solely for the purpose of my obedience. It was put their to lead me to God. Isaiah tells me not just to obey, but to pay attention.


There is more to paying attention that just obedience. I need to look for God. Look for the reasons. Find out what God wants me to know, not just what he wants me to do.


That ain't always easy.

Peace, bro.

If God responds to my obedience, then I can impress Him. If He responds to my faith, then He will impress me!


Do I really want to worship a God that I can impress?


The law was given to show me my faults, of which there are many. Scripture tells me to "live by faith." But what does that mean? It means trusting God. It means allowing Him to set me free. I just read that sentence again. Me allowing God, somehow that does not sound right. How can I allow God? I don't think I can. So perhaps a better statement would be that I allow myself to experience freedom.


God wants me to be free, and has made it so that I can experience freedom. It is His gift to me, the gift of a loving father. But I fight that gift. I allow things to enlave me because I do not let go. I hold on to thoughts and emotions that are not good for me.


Galatians 3:12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them."


We live by what we do, and we do according to what we live by. So, if we live by faith, if we trust God completely, then we can have peace because what we do is guided by Him. If we hold on to other things, then we do not live by faith, and what we do is based on something other than God's guidance. And if we are fighting God, we cannot have peace.


My wife reminded me of something I had said before about peace. Peace is not contentment, it is not the absence of conflict so that we just become a floormat for those who want to walk all over us. Peace is a powerful force. Just like the U.S. has powerful peacekeeping forces that are a deterent to conflict, God is our peace. He is our powerful force that when we are in His hand, takes away the conflict and gives us peace.


Ephesians 2:14

You stupid people!

Galatians 3:1 You foolish Galatians!


Paul is not trying to make friends here. In fact, he sounds a little ticked off. Angry. Our Sunday School teacher mentioned last week that anger is fueled by love. I think Paul's anger was fueled by love for God, Christ, and the gospel itself. He goes on to say...


Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.


Where they actually denying the crucifixion and resurrection? Or was it their legalism that has Paul saying this? I am not sure. Either way, it is still an offense to the cross. They had been granted the power of the Spirit! (Vs 2), but apparently this was not enough to keep them from going down this path.


I find that VERY interesting. So having the power of the Spirit is not enough to keep one on the straight and narrow? No wonder there are so many times that we are admonished to guard what we have been given. Oh that the power of the Spirit would protect us completely and always guard our direction! But the Galatians had begun with the Spirit, and then wandered off to attain their goal through human effort. (Vs 4)


Why? Why go back to the law? I can only think of one reason, comfort. Satan exploited this completely. How can you depend only on the blood of Christ? Surely God wants you to do more. Just believing cannot be enough. He still preaches that message today. And many still buy it.


Sometimes I think we find ourselves indespensible to God. It is as if withour our help, the job just cannot get done. Is that the God we serve? One who needs our help to get the job done? Remember John the Baptist, when the Pharisees came out, curious, self-righteous?

See those rocks? If God wanted more children for Abraham, he could get them from those rocks. (Paraphrase of John the Baptist from Matthew 3:9)


That is the God I serve, the one who does not need me but loves me. The one who is above all, and can do all.


Job 26:14 "And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?"


All of creation, and it is but the fringe of his works. That is a GOD worthy of my praise.


There is a lot of phony faith in the church today. And it is actually chasing people away. I hope that I am not a part of it.


AMEN!

This might not make you feel good.

What does it mean to be a Christian? Many would say that it involves doing good things and being a good person, trying to please God, and maybe even going to church. I say that is a bunch of crap. And I think Paul would agree with me.


Galatians 2:16 says, "a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ."


While a Christian may and should do good things, there is a fundamental difference between trying to please God and being good, and falling on my face before God and totally depending on the grace, mercy and blood of Christ. If I rely on Him alone, then my response is because of what He has done, and not what I can or should do.


Proverbs 1:7  "Start with God - the first step in learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning." (The Message)


Paul started with God, but we often start with ourselves. What can I do to make things right? Answer: Nothing! Are not all our righteous acts filthy rags before God? (Isaiah 64:6) Here, God, let me take this filthy rag and clean up this mess I've made. Oh, that looks worse now, doesn't it. Wait, I have plenty more filthy rags where that one came from...


Sounds silly doesn't it?


Christ fulfilled the law. On the cross he said, "It is finished," and not "The rest is up to you now."


I love verse 19 of Galatians 2, "For through the law I died to law so that I might live for God."


Can he make it any clearer? If we do not die to the law, and we do that only through Christ, we cannot live for God! Death first, then life. Carry our cross first, then we get to be his disciple. But that doesn't always preach so good, does it.


Remember the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. One thanked God that he was not a gentile sinner, one fell on his face and begged forgiveness. Who was justified before God? Someone please remind me.


2 Chronicles 7:14 "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."




PS A word to the religious right: turning from our wicked ways (legislating morality, over-turning Roe v Wade, picketing abortion clinics, etc.) is meaningless without humbling ourselves, praying, and seeking his face first. Sorry.

Just being Peter...

I remember the Peter of the Gospels. The one who jumped off the boat to walk on the water, and then realized what he had done and started to sink. The one who one moment confessed Jesus as Messiah and moments later tells Jesus He shouldn't have to die. The one who swore he would not deny Jesus, then does so 3 times. So now we are into Galatians. After the resurrection, after the day of Pentecost. A new and improved Peter. Well, maybe not completely.


Galatians 2:11 "When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong."


Seems Peter had slipped. He was separating himself from the gentiles "because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group." (Vs 12) Others then followed suit.


But not Paul. He saw that they were "not acting in line with the truth of the gospel." (Vs. 13, and I love that line).

Peter should have known everything Paul did. Yet he slipped. He was still human. I take comfort in that. Mostly because I find myself more of a Peter than a Paul. I have to believe that there is a place in heaven for Peter. In spite of his flaws and failures, he is within the grace of Christ. Duh! If we didn't have flaws and failures, there wouldn't be a need for grace. But sometimes I feel like I push the limits of that grace. Sometimes I don't act in line with the truth of the gospel. And for those times, I need his grace. I need more of Him. And that is a good thing.

Going to Jerusalem

At the beginning of Chapter 2, Paul is headed to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus to present the Gospel to those there after a time of 14 years. I find myself asking why? Why to Jerusalem, the center of the church at that time, Isn't this where the apostles were? Isn't this a dangerous place for Paul?


I can think of 2 reasons he might need to go:

1. Some were complaining that Paul was not preaching the truth. This is a very real possibility, since many there were of Jewish background and probably had a hard time with what Paul was saying, who he was saying it to, and the success he was having. Verse 3 sheds a little light on this, as "not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised."
2. Perhaps it was that "they" (those in Jerusalem, from the leaders to the everyday Christians) needed to hear it and be reminded of the Gospel message. Verse 2 states that Paul "went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles, so we should assume that God was ordaining that this should take place.

Perhaps it was a combination of both. This just convicts me all the more of the need to guard ourselves from becoming complacent about the Gospel. If we think we have it down, if we think we have the truth and are okay, I think we are in danger. The Scriptures constantly remind us to be on guard. Thinking we have  it right is not being on guard.


What are you hearing this morning in your church? Is it truth? Or is it just a bunch of moral goodness dripping from the fountain of a Christ-less well? Or maybe there is just enough God in it that we can pat ourselves on the back and walk out feeling good about everything.


It is not that we shouldn't leave church feeling good. It is just that we should leave it feeling good for the right reasons. I can't help but remember the day that my heroine addicted, agnostic brother agreed to go to church with me. After hearing what I thought was a stellar sermon that could have answered some of his questions and helped him deal with his problems, I asked him what he thought. His response haunts me to this day. He thought it was lame. What if he had come to your church this morning? Did the message preach to the choir? Were the Christians shouting "AMEN?" What would a non-Christian taken away from the experience? Would it be that this is a good bunch of people, or would it be that we serve an awesome God?


Should we ever have a Sunday that does not share in a powerful way, what an awesome God we serve?

Are we sold out?

Galatians 1:10 Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.


I contend that Paul was a most interesting choice by God to continue the spread of the Gospel after the book of Acts. He was a militant Jew, and here he is taking the Gospel to the Gentiles. Wouldn't he have been a better choice to take the Gospel to the Jews? Perhaps if you or I were writing this, but not for God. But then again, I don't think we would have chosen the harp playing, tiny shepherd boy David as King of Isreal over his brothers.


The Gospel is not always a popular message. Oh, sure, we like the idea of salvation. But becoming a living sacrifice? Counting everything else as dung compared to knowing Christ? (I like my home and car.) Being content in ALL circumstance? (I prefer to whine now and then.)


Paul was not a people pleaser, he was a Gospel preacher. Paul did not get the Gospel from someone else, he received it directly from Christ himself (Gal. 1:11). And I think for that, Paul was eternally grateful.


The change in Paul's life was evident. Going from persecuting the church to embracing it. Going from being a zealous Jew to preaching to the gentiles. I can imagine what his old friends must have been saying about him, when they weren't trying to kill him. So maybe Paul was the best man for the job. Who better to proclaim the message of salvation than someone who had nothing to gain from it and nothing to lose.

Are we sold out like Paul was? And by we, I mean the church and the individual. Is our message one that is so appealing that everyone would want some? Because if it is, then I question if it is really the Gospel. If we are sold out, it must be to Christ, and not to works or just the idea of salvation.

Well meaning people...

I have been reading through Galatians. Here are some thoughts.


Galatians is about the Gospel. That is because Paul was a Gospel preacher. To him, it was always connected to the Gospel first. The Galatians were also about the Gospel, but had gotten off track.


It's not that they were awful people, they had sincere hearts. Paul knew what it was to be sincere. He sincerely persecuted Christians before becoming one. But Paul also had experienced a radical change, and kept the Gospel central, something that even Peter struggled with.


Speaking of Peter, does anyone else find it interesting that after the book of Acts, the main character (outside of Jesus) in the New Testament seems to be Paul? Peter had been with Jesus, denied him but was reinstated, was involved in the conversion of 3,000+ on the day of Pentacost, was given the keys to the kingdom, and then in comes this former Jew, Christian hating convert. Would J.K. Rowling change the main character in the Harry Potter series in mid-stream? God did. I think there is a lesson there, but for another time.

Anyway, the Galatians started to go back to the old ways, relying on works rather than grace. Preaching a message of good works. Problem is, when we make that which is secondary primary, we also make that which is primary secondary. (That is for all the Math wizards out there.) In other words, when we encourage being a good person and doing good works instead of promoting Christ, are we really any different from the local Rotary Club?


Paul takes this pretty seriously. "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!" (Gal. 1:8)


I think our churches would do well to take note.

Grace

Paul understood that his apostleship came ONLY from Jesus. It was not the result of anything he had done, nor had any man done it for him. (Gal. 1:1)


Grace is the gift of God's favor upon us (Gal. 2:15-16), and in a similar way, it is not the result of anything we have done, nor is it the result of what others might have done for us. I am not justified by what I do (works), but rather by why I do it (faith). Paul admonishes those who are trying to turn this around in Galatians 1:6,7.


The actions might look the same to those who do not understand. One gives out of obligation (works) and one out of a sincere understanding and response to the grace of God (faith). The actions look the same, but from God's perspective they are completely different.


If I try to earn God's favor, I am defeated before I begin. I cannot earn His favor. Anything I get from God is simply what He chooses to give me. That is grace.


So to live by grace is to live in response to His beauty and love. To live in a way that tries to earn God's favor is to nulify God's grace. (Gal. 2:21)