WHERE YOUR CREDENTIALS COME FROM
Galatians 1:10-24
S: God’s Call
Th: Grace-Full Living
Pr: WE ARE TO BE CONFIDENT OF GOD’S CALL.
?: How?
KW: Graces
TS: We will find in our study of Galatians 1:10-24 four graces that reveal how we are to be confident of God’s call on our lives.
The _____ grace that reveals how we are to be confident of God’s call in our lives is we (were)…
I. RECEIVED THE WORD (11-12)
II. REPENTED OF OUR PAST (13-14)
III. RECOGNIZED GOD’S WORK (15-17)
IV. REGARDED A BROTHER (18-24)
sort of inductive…
RMBC 5/7/00 AM
INTRODUCTION:
Have you ever felt unqualified for something?
ILL Personal (art project)
When I look at my own life, the list of the things that I am not qualified for seems to get longer and longer. One area that I am particularly not gifted in is art. I remember when I was in the 8th grade, we were making a project out of clay. As my class members were making cups and statues, and all kinds of useful and decorative things, my piece of clay never seemed to get rid of that “lump” kind of look. As the week went on, and several art classes later, my predicament was getting more serious. It was time to hand in my project. So I had an inspiration! Well, not really—it was more an act of desperation. I did what others with no artistic talent have done. I tried modern art. So I squeezed there, and thumped it there, made a curve here, flattened there…and “voila”! A masterpiece! But what was it? I think I called it “Ash Tray Out of Synch” or something like that. But it got me a “B” and I was more than satisfied with that. But let me tell you, when it comes to art, I am not qualified. It is not even close.
TRANSITION:
We continue our theme of “Grace-Full Living” with our second study of the letter to the church in the area of Galatia.
1. Last week, we studied, “Don’t Mess with the Message.”
If you were here last Sunday, you know that tolerant is not a word that we used when it comes to the gospel message.
For the thrust of our message was that anyone who adds to or subtracts from the Gospel message is playing with eternal fire.
There is no patience for those that change it, for when you do, you make it something that it is not.
You change it from “good news” to “bad news.”
Last week, we noted that Paul is answering the objections of a group of people we are calling “Judaizers.”
Since the Judaizers were basically emphasizing circumcision and the ceremonial laws of the Old Testament, they were probably Jewish Christians (in a very loose sense) who had come from Jerusalem and claimed to have James, Peter and John as their authority.
According to them, Paul was just a “Johnny-come-lately” to the apostolic band.
Well, just as last week we said, “Don’t Mess with the Message…”
2. This week, we could say, “Don’t Mess with the Messenger.”
Now, the Judaizers realized that they could not attack the gospel Paul preached without attacking him.
So they assaulted his character and they challenged his credentials.
Simply, he was not qualified.
They communicated that he was not a legitimate apostle and spokesman for God.
He had not been with Jesus in his earthly ministry; and now here he was starting churches in the name of the Messiah but telling Gentiles they didn’t have to be circumcised or keep the feasts.
So these people went out to set the Galatian churches straight.
Paul may claim to be an apostle, but he is not really one.
He may claim to preach the true gospel, but he only has it secondhand from the true apostles.
Not only that, his version is seriously flawed.
We can not be sure what their motivation was, but we know well that there was strong prejudice against the Gentiles in the Jewish community.
It was very evident during Jesus’ ministry.
So, when Paul declared himself an apostle to the Gentiles, there were probably those that considered the Gentiles to be utterly outside the sphere of God’s concern and grace.
Therefore, if they were coming in, there was only one way in, that is the Jewish way.
Even though the accusations were coming his way…
3. Paul had confidence about God’s call on his life.
He recognized God’s grace was at work in his life.
He knew that he was an apostle.
He knew that his gospel was true.
But his concern, though, was not for his own popularity or personal success.
It was God’s truth.
His defense of his apostleship was for the purpose of defending the integrity of the gospel.
You see…
4. Paul was confident about his motive (10).
He writes…
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.
Here he answers the accusation.
The accusation was that he was motivated by a desire to win man’s approval rather than God’s.
They were claiming that he had acted not out of integrity, or necessity, but a desire to gain easy converts.
In short, to be popular, Paul had diluted the message.
Paul’s answer to the accusation was not that he had begun to be a man-pleaser since his conversion, but that he had ceased to be so.
He testifies that Jesus changed that in him.
And now his life is one that is going to be characterized by persecution and suffering.
Ultimately, he is going to end up dying for his faith.
Is that the life of a man-pleaser?
No, rather, he is a servant of Christ, to whom he owes everything.
God has called him by His grace.
So…
5. We will find in our study of Galatians 1:11-24 four graces that reveal how Paul could be confident of God’s call on his life.
OUR STUDY:
I. The first grace that reveals how Paul could be confident of God’s call in his life lives is he RECEIVED THE WORD (11-12).
I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
Paul’s testimony is that…
1. The gospel is not man-made.
The gospel is not some human concoction.
Certainly, if it was, he could have come up with something better.
For, from the outside looking in, this doesn’t make sense.
For something man-made would have been permeated with works righteousness.
This gospel is not.
Nor does it come from the authority of the church in Jerusalem.
Paul does not come with their recommendation.
He does not need it.
His authority is independent of theirs, even if it is from the same source.
For…
2. The gospel comes from Jesus.
What Paul says here is a direct challenge to the Judaizers who received their religious instruction form rabbinical tradition.
For these people, rather than studying the Scriptures directly, they looked to human interpretations as their religious authority and guide.
Thus, biblical truths became diluted and distorted.
Paul, though more than well read in rabbinical tradition, did not need it.
In fact, it was useless.
The gospel comes from Jesus Himself.
Paul got it from Jesus.
This message did not come out of Paul’s head.
It came out of God’s heart.
For…
3. The gospel is about Jesus (1:3-5).
Note what Paul said previously where he perfectly summarized the gospel:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
It was, as we noted last week, grace to you and glory to God.
II. The second grace that reveals how Paul could be confident of God’s call in his life is he REPENTED OF HIS PAST (13-14).
For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
1. There is no neutral ground before we are “in Christ.”
We might like to think so, but if we are not for Jesus, we are against Him.
Note what Jesus says in Matthew 12:30:
“He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.”
Paul recognized that the last thing he had been was neutral about Jesus.
In Philippians, he writes:
If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.
Paul tells us in our text that he pursued and hunted Christians.
For those whom he regarded as enemies of Israel and God, it was a relentless pursuit.
He was going to cut down all opposition to the law and its tradition, for the Jewish way of life was at stake.
Christianity, not only needed to be controlled, it needed to be eliminated and extinguished.
So note Paul’s testimony at this point.
When it came down to it, it was not so much about the law as it was about him.
He is teaching us that…
2. We are about ourselves.
Paul was a rising star.
The text tells us that he was advancing, like one that is blazing a trail ahead of him.
He testifies that he was going where the other Jews dared not go.
At his relatively young age, he was already a member of the Sanhedrin.
He was considered one of the most rigorous Pharisees of the day.
But the truth is, is though he was a good theologian, he was far from God.
He had no time for God.
[pause]
ILL Notebook: Repentance (roses)
At a florist shop at McClellan Air Force Base in California, this sign could be seen in the refrigerated case: “Exactly How Mad Is She?” Under the sign sat three vases—one held three roses, one held six, and the last contained a dozen roses.
Aren’t you glad for new opportunities?
3. God gives us the opportunity to change our direction (Acts 9:3-9, 17-18).
Note the story of Paul:
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized.
Paul considered himself the chief of sinners.
He had been a persecutor of Christians.
But he did an amazing 180-degree turn from persecutor to apostle.
It was nothing less than a miracle.
It was nothing less than the grace of repentance.
Which leads us to…
III. The third grace that reveals how Paul could be confident of God’s call in his life is he RECOGNIZED GOD’S WORK (15-17).
But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
1. God begins His work in us early (Jeremiah 1:5).
Paul’s words are reflective of God’s words to the prophet Jeremiah:
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
Though occurring historically about three years after the crucifixion of Christ when Jesus appeared to him, Paul sees his call as something that happened at birth, just like Jeremiah, Isaiah and John the Baptist.
It reveals this tremendous truth, that our salvation story begins long before we possess eternal life.
God is at work in our life, gently calling us, convicting us of sin and drawing us to Him.
For…
2. God calls us by His grace.
God calls us according to his unmerited love and kindness.
For Paul, the event on the road to Damascus was shocking and earth shattering.
His violence against God was so severe, perhaps that was the only way it could be done.
If so, it had to be humbling to have to receive such a direct divine encounter.
Nevertheless, he knows it was an act of grace.
ILL Notebook: Education (broom)
A young man who had been hired by the personnel department of a large supermarket chain reported to work at one of the stores. The manager greeted him with a warm handshake and a smile, handed him a broom and said, “Your first job will be to sweep out the store.” But the young man said, “I’m a college graduate.” “I’m sorry,” the manager said. “I didn’t know that. Here, give me the broom and I’ll show you how.”
Paul may have thought he was well educated in the Jewish Scripture, but he was going to have to learn some things over again.
He was going to see the Scripture in a new light.
He was going to the “seminary of the desert” to learn of Christ by being alone with Christ.
He spent his time learning, meditating and studying the Scripture.
And Paul found that…
3. God directs our lives.
He had a new mission.
It was to proclaim Christ among the Gentiles.
He was not to proclaim Jewish law, or tradition, or rabbinical interpretation.
His ministry was to proclaim the Messiah, Jesus, and Him alone to the Gentiles.
This leads us to…
IV. The fourth grace that reveals how Paul could be confident of God’s call in his life is he was REGARDED A BROTHER (18-24).
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles-only James, the Lord’s brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. Later I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they praised God because of me.
1. God shows us that we are not alone.
Paul was given the opportunity to meet with two of the pillars of the church, Peter and James.
I am sure that Paul had the desire to know Peter and become better acquainted.
But, it was a short time.
It was only 15 days.
Probably, it was a good time for both of them.
But note that Paul did not go to Jerusalem until after three years.
One reason was certainly the danger.
He was now a marked man.
And Jerusalem was not a safe place.
But according to God’s grace, it was time to go and find that he was not alone in the faith.
Then Paul heads back north, for…
2. God finds a place for us to serve.
Paul, essentially, goes back to his home area.
He finally ends up in Antioch, where he found his early ministry partner, Barnabas.
As time passed, it became evident that he was a specially chosen and gifted man of God.
And the church responded correctly.
God deserves the glory for the changes that He has made in Paul and the direction He has given.
APPLICATION:
The confidence that Paul had is to be ours as well.
We can have the same kind of confidence.
But, let me ask you…
1. What are your credentials?
What graces are evident in your life?
Can people point at you and say, “Yes, that one is a Christian”?
You see, just as Paul…
2. WE ARE TO BE CONFIDENT OF GOD’S CALL.
I find so often in Christian circles that we are busy being diplomatic and political, instead of confident.
We don’t operate out of conviction.
We do not speak the gospel message with boldness.
Instead, we are concerned about the approval of others and how we appear.
It seems we are afraid of being accused of intolerance.
But if we are to be like Paul, we are to be motivated to please Jesus only.
ILL #1159
Many years ago, one of the astronauts who walked on the moon was interviewed and asked, “What do you think about as you stood on the moon and looked back at the earth?” The astronaut replied, “I remembered how the spacecraft was built by the lowest bidder.”
We as Christians can rejoice that the work of salvation did not go to the “lowest bidder,” but was performed by an infinite God.
There will never be a deficiency in His work.
Our salvation is as sure as the Architect of that salvation, Almighty God.
Therefore, we can be confident.
We do not have to worry about what others think.
Being a “man-pleaser” is not our goal.
It is to please God, and God alone.
For consider His grace…
3. We have received the Word.
It is a grace!
It is a great message.
Consider the words of Paul in his letter to the Ephesians:
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is by grace you have been saved.
The good news is that though we are by nature, objects of wrath, love and mercy have won.
This is the good news.
And it is worth standing up for…
ILL Luther (McKnight, p. 68)
That is the very thing that Martin Luther did.
He unapologetically stood for the truth of God’s Word.
When called before the Roman Catholic authorities, note his words:
Your Imperial Majesty and Your Lordships demand a simple answer. Here it is, plain and unvarnished. Unless I am convicted of error by the testimony of Scripture or (since I put no trust in the supported authority of pope or of councils, since it is plain that they have often erred and often contradicted themselves) by manifest reasoning I stand convicted by the Scriptures to which I have appealed, and my conscience is taken captive by God’s word, I cannot and will not recant anything. For to act against our conscience is neither safe for us, nor open to us. On this I take my stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen.
We need to have the same conviction that Martin Luther and the apostle Paul had.
They had God’s Word.
It was a grace to them and to us.
And it is a part of our credentials.
We also have the grace of repentance.
4. We have repented of our past.
ILL Notebook: Repentance (guilty man)
Lloyd H. Steffen wrote in The Christian Century how when King Frederick II, and 18th century king of Prussia was visiting a prison in Berlin, the inmates tried to prove to him how they had been unjustly imprisoned. All except one. That one sat quietly in a corner, while all the rest protested their innocence. Seeing him sitting there oblivious to the commotion, the king asked him what he was there for. “Armed robbery, Your Honor.” The king asked, “were you guilty?” “Yes, Sir,” he answered. “I entirely deserve my punishment.” The king then gave an order to the guard: “Release this guilty man. I don’t want him corrupting all these innocent people.”
It is a grace to have the opportunity to start over.
And this is what God has done for us.
We have realized our guilt and our need to change.
And as a result, He has given us a gracious opportunity to have a new start.
This new opportunity adds to our credentials.
Add to that…
5. We have recognized God’s work.
Have you noticed how God has been working in your life, graciously, long before you realized it?
God has been providing opportunities to call on His name.
And after we did, He continues to direct us and guide us.
He graciously gives us the opportunity to serve Him and make an eternal impact on the lives of others.
If you have answered His call, rejoice in His grace today.
If you have not answered, recognize that God is at work in your life.
He is graciously calling you.
He whose love which cannot be measured, continues to call you, to come home to Him.
Our final grace and credential is that…
6. We have been regarded a member of the family.
There are those that know you and care about you.
They are called the family of God.
You are important to them.
And they have celebrated you.
7. Are you a subject of celebration?
When people are giving praise to God for what is going on in our lives, we too should rejoice in God’s good grace that is active in our lives.
And as a result, we can live in confidence.
Just as Paul, we are messengers and we have a message to share and live.
COMMUNION:
We come to this table because we are testifying that grace has brought us here.
We come because God is active in our life, filling us with grace, continually favoring us with His blessing.
And we come together, because we hare this grace together.
We are in relationship with one another as members of God’s family.
We have been changed by the message.
Together, we are God’s messengers.
We are united together because of the work of Jesus.
Those of us that know Jesus are invited to share in the elements of the table.
If you do not know Jesus, that is, you have not received Him as your Savior and Lord, you do not trust Him with your life, that is, you have not been changed by the message, just let the elements pass by.
Please wait until the time comes when you do have that personal relationship with the Lord Jesus.
We practice “communion” because we are to remember the death of the Lord Jesus.
We take the bread to remind us that it was by the body of our Savior that our salvation came.
He died in our place.
He became our substitute.
We take the cup to remind us that it was by the blood of our Savior that our salvation came.
He died for our sins.
He became our sacrifice.
Being led in prayer by _______________________, let us take a moment and thank Him for favoring us with his mercy, love and kindness.
(Prayer)
The apostle Paul writes, "The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
Let’s partake together.
____________________ will now come and lead us in prayer.
Again, the apostle Paul writes, "In the same way, after supper he took the cup saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
Let’s partake together.
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Be confident…God has given you a message that is the power of God; it has changed you and brought you, graciously into His kingdom;
Be confident…God has made you a messenger with good news, so don’t be afraid of men, but instead seek to please God and testify of the change God has made in you;
Be confident…God has qualified you by His grace; He has blessed you with His Word; He has given you the opportunity to start over; He has graced you with ministry opportunity; and He has favored you with a family that cares for you and loves you. Praise God!
Now to him who is able to establish you by the gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.
