The Gospel of Grace continues…
(Galatians 3:1-25)
You are saved by grace through faith
By faith we accept Jesus death on the Cross (Galatians 3:1)
By faith we receive the Spirit (Galatians 3:2)
You grow by grace through faith (Galatians 3:3-25)
By grace through faith we receive blessings (Galatians 3:6-14)
By grace through faith we are freed from the Law (Galatians 3:15-20, 23-25)
By grace through faith we gain righteousness (Galatians 3:21-22)
Slide 1
I hope over these last couple of weeks, you have been seeing that grace is more than just a prayer you say before dinner. Grace in its ultimate form is God giving us heaven when we deserve hell.
Slide 1 But grace is more than that too. It is God desiring and working to be part of our life every day even though we often don’t listen to Him or follow His ways.
I hope that this is something that you’re seeing as we have been going through Galatians.
We are continuing on today on our look at the letter to the Galatians.
We have seen
That the gospel is a message of Grace.
What the gospel of grace is not in its offer of salvation.
It is not
Enslaving
Just spiritual or physical
Discriminatory
Today we are going to be looking at how the gospel of grace continues to work in our life after salvation.
Slide 2
We are going to be reading Galatians 3:1-25 (p. 824-825)
Slide 2 3:1 You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? 4 Have you suffered so much for nothing-if it really was for nothing? 5 Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?
6 Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." 7 Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. 8 The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." 9 So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." 11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them." 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
15 Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ. 17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
19 What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. 20 A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one.
21 Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22 But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
23 Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
In beginning this chapter Paul is just flabbergasted by the Galatians. He begins by saying “you foolish Galatians.”
Now when he is calling them foolish,
he is not saying they lack intelligence. This word implies that
they have intelligence but are failing to use it.
They are not thinking as they ought and are capable of.
But instead of thinking like they should Paul asks who has bewitched you. Who has put you under a spell that you are not thinking like you should?
Then in the next verse and a half he says
(Galatians 1:1b-5)
Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard?
Basically what he is saying here is the first set of points in your outline. I am going to go through this quickly because Paul goes through it quickly to get to his next point. He is basically recapping that salvation is by grace.
So he is saying
Slide 3
You are Saved by grace through faith
By faith you accept Jesus death on the Cross (Galatians 3:1)
By faith you receive the Spirit (Galatians 3:2)
Slide 3 You know that your salvation was totally an act of God. You trusted in the work of Jesus by faith and by the grace of God He gave you eternal life and gave you His Spirit to indwell you.
It was not by anything that you did to earn it.
It was because you believed by faith.
After recapping the salvation experience of many of these Galatians, he goes on to tell them that not only are you saved by grace through faith but
Slide 4
You Grow by Grace through Faith
Galatians 3:3-5
Slide 4 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? 4 Have you suffered so much for nothing-if it really was for nothing? 5 Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?
He is saying, ok, you have accepted Christ as your Savior because the Spirit drew you to Him and you believed in faith.
Now are you trying to grow by your own efforts?
Do you think you can be sanctified if you try real hard to be good?
If you do all the right things, God is going to have to bless you, right?
You know what all the “good things” that are done in your own strength look like to God? Filthy Rags!
Slide 5
Slide 5 Isaiah 64:6 “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags”
Maybe you are sitting there right now thinking, “filthy rags.” I am working my hardest trying to do for the Lord and all that is producing is filthy rags. Well what is the point then? I might as well just give up. I’ll never be good enough.
And this is exactly the point that Paul is making here.
Trying in your strength to be obedient to the Law or some rules will never be good enough.
That is why our growth has to be by God’s grace also.
Listen you couldn’t save yourself in your own power, but it is only by God’s grace that you have been saved.
You can’t grow yourself either. Your own strength being used to grow yourself will produce nothing.
But, by God’s grace,
He can empower you to accomplish awesome things for Him.
Paul, in his letter to the Romans, writes about these awesome things we can accomplish for God and how that can occur.
Romans 7:4-6
4 So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
Slide 6
Slide 6
Do you know what the difference is between Filthy rags and fruit.
Slide 7
Filthy rags are produced by us in our strength.
Fruit is produced through us in God’s strength.
Fruit is produced when we are
serving in the new way of the Spirit
vs.
Slide 7 the old way of the law.
So we are going to grow by God’s grace through faith.
What are some of the components of that growth that is going to occur in our lives as we live by faith in God’s grace?
First,
By Grace through faith you receive blessings (Galatians 3:6-14)
Slide 8
6 Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." 7 Understand, then, that those who believe are children of
Slide 8 Abraham. 8 The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by
faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." 9 So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." 11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them." 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Through faith we receive not only the blessing of salvation, but also His Spirit by which we gain myriad of other blessings that God bestows on His people.
We get
Spiritual gifts. (1 Corinthians 12:4-7)
guidance from the Spirit (John 16:12-13)
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth.
power from the Spirit (Acts 1:8)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;
peace and joy (Rom 14:17)
the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,
Wisdom and revelation (Eph 1:17)
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
The Lord pours out blessing on us by His grace.
John 1:16-17
16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Now as we live in and continue in his grace, we desire to glorify Him in obedience.
Blessings increase not because of our obedience, but because we continue in grace.
It is when we begin to rely on works that we are no longer continuing in grace and we miss the blessings that result from God’s grace.
Continue in grace and receive the blessings of the Lord.
We grow also by realizing that
By Grace through faith we are freed from the Law
Slide 9
(Galatians 3:15-20, 23-25)
Slide 9 15 Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ. 17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
19 What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. 20 A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one…23 Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
Rom 8:1-2
8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
Do you ever find that we have these moments in life that we say, I have got to do this.
I am going to start living for the Lord
I am going to start reading the Bible everyday
I am going to be praying for 20 minutes each day
I am going to be the husband that God wants me to be.
We go on for a while doing these things and then bam.
We get burned out
We get fed up
Some circumstance flusters us and
We give up.
This is not very uncommon. But why?
Because we are relying on ourselves to do it.
It is
I will do this or
I will do that.
We may not realize this but this is the sin of pride.
Hosea 10:12-13
12 Sow for yourselves righteousness,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the LORD,
until he comes
and showers righteousness on you.
13 But you have planted wickedness,
you have reaped evil,
you have eaten the fruit of deception.
Because you have depended on your own strength
and on your many warriors,
(from New International Version)
We too often reap the fruit of deception.
We’re deceived into law and rule following instead of Christ following.
We began well enough but then we fall back into working at keeping the law in our own strength just like the Galatians were doing.
Don’t set yourself up to fail.
Instead have victory as you continue on in the Grace of Christ.
Finally, we continue to grow as we realize that it is
By Grace through faith we gain righteousness (Galatians 3:21-22)
Slide 10 Slide 10
21 Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22 But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
Righteousness is not going to come by keeping rules. We are not going to be obedient enough to be declared righteous.
When we receive Jesus as our Savior, we are declared righteous in terms of our salvation. That is the beginning.
But we need to continue on in righteousness that is by grace, not for salvation, but for living the abundant life.
Romans 1:17
17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
To continue on in righteousness means to continue on in grace. As we do that we gain righteousness.
And as we gain this righteousness, we do the acts of a righteous person.
We don’t do them out of obligation, we do them out of love.
When we are in love with someone, we find it enjoyable to do things for them. Things we would not even normally do sometimes.
While it is still a choice for us to do it, we do things gladly because of our relationship with that person.
It is the same way with God. When we are living in grace and we are realizing how much God truly loves us, we find ourselves desiring to do things that will glorify Him. There are still going to be choices that have to be made,
But when we are walking in His grace
we are doing things in His power as a result of His grace
rather than in our power as a result of a certain rule we think we should follow.
So for us to grow we must continue on in Grace.
We receive blessings which continue to help us grow in Grace
We are freed from the law which continues to help us grow in Grace
We gain righteousness which continues to help us grow in grace.
Don’t become a slave again.
Once we were slaves to sin. The law is there to show us our sinfulness and lead us to Christ. Once we have come to Christ, we do not need ever to go back to law keeping or rule following.
Instead, we become Christ followers who continue on in His grace.
Continue on in His Grace
Receive His blessings
Be free from the law
And gain a righteousness that grows as you continue on in His grace.
We are going to end in a song today. You can sing if you want but I really want you to listen to the words and meditate on this. It is called
Grace alone. It talks about everything we do and are being by God’s grace.
