Building His Kingdom One Soul At A Time Series

Building HIS Kingdom one soul at a time.

Galatians 1

Hopefully you recognize the title as part of our mission statement. The purpose of the CHURCH is to build GOD’S kingdom. We will do it one soul at a time, rescuing the lost one soul at a time. We have all seen movies where the hero is able to scoop up several at a time and pull them from danger, well we are not superheroes the best we may be able to do is one soul at a time.

As we look around us we see our nation, our community, and the world in trouble. You cannot watch the evening news or pick up a newspaper without seeing trouble in our world and in our nation. How about in our community? Maybe we don’t have the trouble that bigger cities have, yet we have people in our community that are on their way to HELL, they either know it and don’t care, or they don’t know the difference. What we will be doing for the next several weeks is examining Paul’s letter to the Galatians using it as a survival and rescue guide. We are going to become GOD’S Rescue squad for Paw Paw WV.

Children need to be RESCUED by God working in Power through His people, The Church. The question and the answer is still the same today as it was in Paul’s day. The question is WHO WILL RESCUE US FROM THIS BODY OF DEATH (Romans 7), the answer is JESUS CHRIST. He is the answer for community, for our nation and for the WORLD. Those of us who are in CHRIST are called to be part of GOD’S rescue squad.

GAL 1:1 Paul, an apostle--sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead-- 2 and all the brothers with me, To the churches in Galatia: 3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

We need to keep the main thing, the main thing. Jesus Christ came into this world to rescue the perishing. He came to save us from this body of death and bring us to life everlasting. Problem is not many realize they need to be rescued. They do not realize that they are dying and going to HELL. There was a man that came to us earlier, he needed help, not in the way he really understood. I sent him to another member of this congregation because I knew this person had information that could help this man. He came back to me telling me he did not like talking to that person because all that person did was ask him, Do you know Jesus? Have you been saved? Did you know that you must be immersed into Christ for the forgiveness of your sins? His complaint was that all this person talked about was JESUS. I asked him why he had a problem with that, to which he answered that he did not see Jesus as the answer to his problem. Some people do not know. Some have no problem coming to a church for help either financially or with housing or food, not realizing their problem is much deeper than this superficial world. They do not see that this world is dying, this world is temporal, that there is something after this world and they need JESUS.

When rescuing someone from danger, we often must get into the dangerous situation to show them the way out. We, the rescuers must leave a trail for ourselves to follow in order to get out. We, the rescuers, must know the truth and follow the truth.

In Galatia, they lost their way and Paul was trying to guide them back.

GAL 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel-- 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 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! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! 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. 11 I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. 12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.