Think for a moment about how Paul must have felt as he dictated this letter. Perhaps he picked up the manuscript and reread the arguments he presented and the instructions he gave. Probably some time had passed since the original dictation. He thought the letter was complete and as probably was his custom he prepared to sign his name at the bottom. But for some reason now he felt compelled to pick up the pen himself and write some final thoughts, praying that God would use this letter to get the Galatian Christians back on the right track. His writing was in large letters, was it to highlight the final point he was trying to make or was it because his illness was some type of eye disorder? In these few brief words he summarizes his argument, once more contrasting the positions of the Judaizing Christians or what we might call “just plain Christians” or as CS Lewis would put it, “mere Christians”. The conclusion Paul writes is quite effective. Nothing gives us away more completely than the things we take pride in. The truth is, by nature we all want to be the best at something, even in religion. The question we are left with is the fruit we bear really something to brag about? Let’s look at these concluding lessons from Paul and see the lessons that we can learn from them.
I. The Judaizers took pride in making a good showing according to human standards.
A. Paul clearly presents evidence that the Judaizers main concern was to put up a good front for the world.
1. Their concern for physical things had shoved aside any concern for spiritual things.
2. “Paul’s point was that the Jews wanted ‘numbers’ to prove their success; so many circumcisions in a given year was certainly something to boast about.”
3. The false teachers of Galatia were trying to compel the Gentile believers to be circumcised. But why should it matter to them?
a. Was it fear that failure to be circumcised might prevent the Galatian believers to miss heaven?
b. Was it egotism that needed to prove that the teachers were right and the uncircumcised believers were wrong?
c. Was it for the thrill of victory which has fueled many a partisan debate?
4. Once again remember, the impression they desired to make was both before men and in external matters.
B. The only reason the Judaizers persist in this false teaching is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ.
1. How could the circumcision of Gentile believers in Galatia result in the nonpersecution of these itinerant missionaries?
2. By insisting on the circumcision of Gentile believers, the Judaizers could cast themselves in a favorable light with the local synagogue authorities.
3. By circumcising the converts of the renegade missionary Paul, they could thus show to the fanatical Zealots back home that belief in Jesus as Messiah involved no breach of the Mosaic Law or the sacred ceremonies of the Jewish people.
4. The legalizers persevered in their error because of their desire to boast that they had been able to win over the Galatians for Judaism. There were two things wrong with this.
a. It was an attempt to win others to that which was itself bankrupt; for not even those who were circumcised (that is, Jews) were able to keep the law.
b. It was based on pride.
5. The promoters of heresy were curiously selective about their demands for lawkeeping. It was not that they refuted or denied the law, just that they did not “guard” its requirements carefully.
6. A man’s worth cannot be measured by the inches around his biceps any more than by his tattoos or his scars or any other extension of his ego.
7. What matters is the essence of the man, his relationship with God and others.
II. The Christian has a great deal to brag about, but they cannot take credit for any of it.
A. In sharp contrast to the crass boasting over circumcisions, Paul’s sole ground of boasting was the cross of Jesus Christ.
1. But what a grisly thing to boast about! The cross was a shameful symbol of pain and humiliation throughout the ancient world. Reserved for slaves and the lowest of criminals, the cross was forbidden as a punishment for Roman citizens.
2. The Greeks also found the cross disgusting. While they revered the human body as a thing of utmost beauty, the cross mangled and shamed it.
3. The Jews, as noted in Galatians 3:13, considered the cross a curse. How divinely absurd that this loathsome form of killing should become the symbol for a triumphant boast!
4. The reason is that everything we hope for is dependent upon what Christ did on the cross.
B. The cross crucified the world to us.
1. The “world” in this sense, of course, means not so much the physical world of space and time but rather the world-system that in its basic values and orientation is alienated from God.
2. For Paul, just as for every Christian who follows Jesus, the cross becomes the pivotal point of crisis where the believer and the world part company.
3. The cross helps us once and for all to see the truth about the world.
4. The world, seeking life, goes on its course toward final death. The Christian, accepting death, springs upward to eternal life. “Crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:21), yet the Christian lives.
C. The cross crucified us to the world.
1. To be crucified to the world is to be dead to worldly concerns, isolated from worldly pursuits, indifferent to worldly temptations.
2. To be crucified to the world, then, means to walk in the light, to bear the fruit of the Spirit, and to live in the freedom with which Christ has set us free.
3. If we truly follow Christ, we just don’t fit in with the world. The only place we belong and are considered important is the body of other misfits, the church.
4. The cross was God’s instrument for turning the world upside down. He took the symbol of criminality and transformed it into the means of rescuing the very people who rejected the rescuer.
III. What really matters is that through the cross of Christ we have become new creations.
A. As Paul recaps the highlights of his epistle in his own handwriting, he repeats the crucial truth of 5:6.
1. Whether or not a man’s body has been circumcised has become a matter of irrelevance! The proud distinction of the sons of Abraham is obsolete! A man is no closer to God because he is circumcised; nor is he superior to who is not circumcised.
2. God does not care which condition a man’s body is in, but God cares very much what a man is depending on for his salvation.
3. If he is depending on his circumcision, Christ cannot help him.
4. If he is depending on Christ, then he will be saved—regardless of what may have been done in the past in the matter of circumcision.
5. The cross of Christ has replaced circumcision as the ground of our confidence before God.
B. The only thing that counts is to be born again, to become a new creation.
1. The new creation implies a new nature with a new system of desires, affections, and habits, all wrought through the supernatural ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. No spiritual gymnastics, no twelve-step program on the deeper life, no quick-fix.
2. Paul extends a greeting of peace and mercy to the Galatians, and then to all of those who, like them, conduct themselves according to the rule of the new creation.
3. “Peace” is the presence of all that is necessary for one’s well-being, especially in a spiritual sense. “Mercy” is the expression of God’s kindness, which is especially appropriate for those who have stopped trusting in themselves and have thrown themselves at the foot of the cross.
4. The true Israel of God, the true descendants of Abraham, are those who have trusted Jesus for their salvation.
5. Paul was rejected by his fellow Jews, he had the scars from his beatings and the fatigue marks from his exhausting labors to prove it.
6. Paul also has a light in his eyes and a spring in his step and an ever renewing Spirit within.
7. He has been recreated not through something done to his body, but through the transformation of his whole being.
8. The doctrine of grace that has permeated the letter now becomes Paul’s final word. It’s what this letter has been all about.
An active, dedicated, hardworking church member passed away after a long satisfying life. As he approached the pearly gates, he noticed a sign posted on it which read, “Entrance requirement 1,000 points.”
When St. Peter appeared, the man asked him, “How do you accumulate these points?” St. Peter asked, “Well what have you done, , and why do you feel you should be admitted?” “Oh,” the man answered with enthusiasm. “I was an immersed believer in Christ for thirty-two years and I did not miss a Sunday in fourteen years. Also, I taught a Sunday school class for more than twelve years.”
“Wonderful,” replied St. Peter, “that’s worth one point.” The man gulped and anxiously went on: “And I tithed. More than that I served on the Finance Committee, the Building Committee and I was an elder in the church and a member of the Board of Trustees. If there was a fellowship supper, they knew they could count on me. I set up chairs, painted and ran errands for the preacher.”
He looked expectantly at St. Peter, who smiled and answered politely, “Fine, fine. That’s worth another point!” The man was perspiring: “I recruited many people for our church. I took the kids to camp; my car was always available if transportation was needed; and I always gave strong support to the missions program.”
“Wonderful,” was the soft spoken reply from St. Peter. “That’s still another point. Now you’ve got three!” Futility showed clearly on the man’s face. Worried, and with a note of resignation, he said, “That entrance requirement is awfully tough. Why, I don’t believe anyone could get in without the grace of God!”
“Ah,” said St. Peter warmly, that’s worth 997 points.”
