Galatians Chapter 2 | Wade Branch

Good morning, everyone. It is a beautiful day to be

together to worship Our God today and I'm privileged to have

the chance to lead our study through the book of Galatians.

And today we're covering chapter 2 about a month ago, we cover

chapter one. So I'm going to do a quick

refresher because I know for my own even studying I needed that

constant refresher as I go through.

So today we're going to do a quick refresher of chapter one

and try to get all the way through Galatians Chapter 2

Galatians 2 · chapter mention

today. I just want to say a word of

appreciation, Rishi ation for a congregation as a teacher, you

know, putting in the time to study it takes a lot of work for

anyone who studies. And and there's nothing more

motivating as a team as a person trying to lead a study then to

see that people are putting the stuff into their life and you

can tell by conversations we have with one another.

The way people act, the way we talk the way we pray, the way

people and our individual conversations, talk to one

another, you can tell people are putting the F into action and as

someone leading a study, there's nothing more motivating than

knowing. Okay, this is going to good use.

This is fruitful work and I can tell that.

So, thank you for your encouragement in the lives that

you live lead. And looking forward to hopefully

learning something together today in Chapter 2 of Galatians.

So, if you want to have this open in front of you, this is

where we're going to spend all of our time today.

And I'll remind you of, kind of our keynote verse that I put on

the board the first time and I think this summarizes the whole

point of the book of Galatians pretty well.

So remember Paul is writing this letter to a region called

galatia. It's a bunch of people in

galatia churches, in galatia and he tells them to stand fast or

hold on strong, therefore in the liberty or the freedom, which It

has made us free and do not be entangled again with a yoke of

bondage, he's going to use this phraseology, this bondage and

this being tied back and a lot of times he's mentioning the Old

Testament, how they wanted to pull the people back to the Old

Testament and say, okay, yeah, we need to be Christians, but

you also need to be tied into the Old Law.

And the hard thing for these Jews was, they had spend their

whole lifetime, and they had spent so much history, being the

center of God's plan. The Jewish people had this Rich

history and they were not ready to let go of it.

And the way they thought their history was important.

And so they started trying to say, okay, yeah, you need to be

Christians, but you have to be kind of a compound Christian,

you have to be a Jew and a Christian.

So if you want to become a Christian, you have to first

become Manju, and that's the entryway into Christianity.

You have to be circumcised like under the law of Moses.

Under the Old Testament, to become a Christian And that's

this entanglement because it was just making things all tangled

up and you had to be pulled back to something that wasn't there.

Anymore wasn't binding them anymore and you want them to be

free ultimately and we're going to cover some Concepts that will

go into General law. But a lot of times he's talking

about the law of Moses, the Old Testament, okay?

So I'll remind us that one of the most helpful things when I

was studying this as to re go through my outline to remind

myself where we're going in chapter 1.

When he started off by defending his apostleship the whole point

of it writing this letter is because he had the authority

from God, that gospel came from Divine Authority and his

relationship to the apostles is the second section.

We get into now his relationship with the apostles is important

because he already showed us. He's he was independent from the

apostles. Okay, the other bigwigs the

other important Apostles. He's already showed himself.

Hey I had my gospel A from them. I didn't have to have these guys

approval but he's going to go on to affirm even though I didn't

need that. Even though I didn't need their

approval, he's gonna go through and show us how he did have

their approval and so let's get into it.

Clickers mean, crazy. Okay, verse 1 of chapter 2, he's

already told us about his trajectory and his faith up to

this point. Then he says, after 14 years.

So, he was converted, he spent three years in Arabia, not even

around any of the other apostles.

Then he came back to finally, to Jerusalem after 14 years, I went

up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and also took Titus

with me. So he stresses this 14 years,

basically. What he's saying is, if I only I

went to Jerusalem the place where all the happening stuff

was going on where all the these great men were?

If I went twice in 14 years, do you really think I really needed

their Authority? Or I was getting my gospel from

them? It's like no, he's trying to

make a point after 14 years. I went back and he's gonna

outline the situation happened. When he did get back in amongst

them, Sometimes getting a bunch of religious people together can

create some problems. We're going to read about that.

In this chapter. So I went up again to Jerusalem

with Barnabas and also took Titus with me.

Okay. I want to make a stop and make a

point here, that kind of is built off of our last study, and

this whole chapter is about something Paul had to fight

against Paul was an apostle and he was immediately met with

adversity and that's why he's still defending himself, he's

trying to show them his legitimacy and I think I think

this is an important Point. Hell's forces had an assignment

again. It's Paul, they were trying to

help us forces were trying to work against the church and

there are many ways. The devil can do that.

The devil is deceptive, he is conniving, he can work in

relationships and become like that, that that water that's

into it gets into a crack and freezes and thaws and expands

that crack and makes things worse and worse.

The devil was working in the church to try to split people

apart. And Paul had to fight against

this, and I think there's a lesson here.

Hell's forces have an assignment against your life.

If you are serving God, if you are in the thick of it, there's

going to be challenges by nature of the fact that hell's forces

don't want you to do that. And the reason is heaven has an

assignment for you if you have an assignment from Heaven, hell

is going to have an assignment against you.

So may we not be surprised. May we take this in stride like

Paul did Paul handle the situation.

He kept going, we can admire Paul for his work here.

Admits the the all these barriers effaced there's a he's

he must have been thinking there's a whole world to preach

the gospel. To why do I have to face so many

barriers? He'll is forces have an

assignment against his life and because and against our life,

but that's because heaven has an assignment for us, okay?

So, Paul has gone to down to Jerusalem and he's taking with

him Barnabas and Titus. Now, we learn that both of these

men were well respected among the leadership in Jerusalem.

So, we're coming into this with two good guys Barnabas and

Titus. We're going to talk more about

Barnabas later because he gets involved in some in some

problems. But tie, this is one of those.

Who really holds firm in this process and becomes a beloved

helper to Paul. Everything.

Second Corinthians, we're told that he was like a brother to

Paul, he was comforted by Titus. Paul was comforted by Titus.

Paul trusted him to take a collection of money.

So to take a collection of money and transported, that takes a

lot of trust Titus. It says, another place had the

heart of love for the lost like Paul did.

So Titus, in many ways is a wonderful character.

We just finished the letter to Titus.

So that's one of the people. People who went with him and

we're going to get back to Barnabas and a little bit verse

20. Paul says, and I went up by

Revelation, so I didn't go there because Peter and them said,

hey, Paul, get down here, we have some orders for, you know,

he says, I went up by Revelation.

I went up because God told me to buy direct order and

communicated to them that gospel, which I preach among the

Gentiles. So he went there and

communicated, he was corroborating, the gospel that

he is sharing with it. Gentiles remember the world at

that time has two groups of people you're there Jew or

Gentile if you're not a Jew, your agent.

So he was preaching to people who are not Jews, he says, but

he he went and talked to them privately to those were of

reputation. So he went to talk to the people

in Jerusalem. These these men of renown in

Jerusalem privately first to those who are reputation

reputation, lest by any means I might run or had run.

In vain, I believe what he's basically saying here, as he

comes into this Jerusalem situation.

Okay. There's a lot of religious

people in this area and he wanted to talk to the leaders.

First to make sure there wasn't going to be any issues to make

sure. Hey, here's what I'm preaching

and I need to know if there's going to be any problems with

that. I need to know if there's going

to be any issues with you disagree with my gospel, he

didn't want to be running in vain.

He says yet, not even tied us, who is with me?

Being a Greek or a gentile. He says, Titus was Gentile, he

wasn't circumcised. And he was not compelled to be

circumcised, so he comes into the situation and nobody

convinced Titus to go back to the Old Testament.

He's showing how those forces are already working, but Titus

was not compelled to be circumcised.

He says and this occurred. So he's going to say it's kind

of gets a little bit confusing, the sentence structure here, but

he's going to say, this whole situation occurred, this whole

problem with people trying to pull them back to circumcision,

trying to pull them back to the Old Law, this occurred because

of false Brethren secretly brought in who came in by

stealth to spy out, our Liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus

that they might bring us. Into bondage there is that

language. We talked about in the

introduction later on in Galatians, he's going to

emphasize, don't go back to that bondage.

Don't go back to the requirements of the Old Law and

and Stand Fast and Liberty. And there's people who came in

to take them away from that. He's building a contrast here

between Liberty and bondage. And the reason this is such

bondage, the reason, the Old Testament was considered bondage

to them. Is because the Old Testament

didn't have a savior yet. They were tying people to

something that had no rescuer. They were tying them to a

sinking ship. If you tie someone to a ship

that has a savior, that is gonna be saved, great, but they were

being tied to an old law that wouldn't have a savior, the new

law brought the Savior, and that's why it was freedom and

liberty because they could be saved in it.

And he says, to whom we did not yield submission even for an

hour. So these people who came in, we

didn't we didn't submit to them. We did not stand or accept this.

This tragedy of of tearing down the gospel.

We did not accept that we did not yield to that even for an

hour. Why?

So that the truth of the Gospel might continue with you now you

could read this and say well it wasn't that big of a deal that

these people stood up for the gospel because it would have

been Reserved anyway, right. Like if Paul didn't stand up,

the gospel still would have been preserved because God always has

a way of getting his word out. That's true.

That's, that is probably true. Even if Paul didn't stand up,

someone would have, but it doesn't take away.

The fact, that Paul, and his supporters here, preserve the

truth of the Gospel. So that we could have it today.

And the bottom line is if you don't do your job and God's

kingdom, it will get done. And maybe you'll get done

somewhere else. Maybe it's not going to flourish

here. If I don't do my job, God's

purposes are not going to stop. But that doesn't take away from

the fact that if you are involved, you have a role and

doing something extremely great beyond anything that you could

ever think to accomplish in your Earthly life beyond anything

else. Your work has long-term Eternal

consequences just like Paul's did.

Even though Paul was just a man. He helped preserved truth of the

Gospel by how he stood up in faith.

And preserving both the faith. And the people, the faith of the

people around him because it's going to say that Paul would

preserve the faith of the people around him because they would

eventually change from their error.

So he presumed help, preserve the faith, and their faith and

we can learn from the example for our own action, verse 6.

But from those who seem to be something whatever they were, it

makes no difference to me, God shows no personal, favoritism to

no man. For those who seem to be

something out of nothing to me. So he's really, he's really

tearing down these platforms and these pedestals that we put men

on and in this situation specifically we're going to

learn the people who seem to be something that was Peter.

James maybe John, some of those people who seem to be these

great people. He says, made no difference to

me. There's people He says they had

a nothing to me and I don't believe he's saying here that

they were useless, or weren't a spiritual strength for him.

I don't think that's what he's saying.

I believe what he's saying is in the context, he's talking about

how he's how his gospel was, was being taught truthfully on its

own. He didn't have to have anybody

else add to his gospel. Like, hey, Paul, your gospel is

weak in this area, Peter, and I have to say that to him, They

didn't have to add anything to his gospel, he didn't need that

from them. Verse 7, but on the contrary.

So not only did they not add to my gospel on the contrary when

they saw that the gospel for the uncircumcised have been

committed to me. As the gospel for the

circumsized was to Peter for. He who worked effectively, who

for he who worked effectively in Peter for the apostleship to the

circumcised also worked effectively and me toward the

Gentiles. And when James cephas and John,

who seemed to be pillars perceived, the grace that have

been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of

Fellowship that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the

circumcised. Okay, let's back out.

That's a a huge big sentence that has a lot information.

So he starts out by saying when they saw that, that I was

preaching, the gospel to the Gentiles, just as the gospel to

the Jews was committed to Peter. So Peters job was to go to the

Jews and Paul is primary job was to go to the Gentiles when they

saw that knowing that God is working in both of us.

That's what this paragraph here. That's in parentheses basically

says knowing that the God. Who supported Peters apostleship

also supported mine. Their response to that.

They gave me and Barnabas the right hand of Fellowship, they

saw that I was doing a good work basically and the right hand of

Fellowship, basically, keep doing what you're doing.

We're in agreement. We are on the same path.

We are we are supportive of your work Paul.

So again, this is further validating to the people who are

detractors of Paul, it's validating.

Hey, I didn't need the apostles but even they gave me their

validation. They gave me the right hand of

Fellowship. They said you're on the right

track. You keep doing what you're

doing. Yes, the affirmation the

agreement. Now I think it's interesting a

little side point. Why God chose Paul for one work

and Peter for another. And I think the beautiful part

is God, prepared them. For their work because their

work needed them and they needed their work.

God prepared. This work special for them

because the work needed their these men's effort, but they

also needed the work. And I look at Peter specifically

in this in this this thought process.

I look at Peter who went to the Jews.

Now, it's interesting when you can consider Peters character

Arc, Peter kind of went back and forth and it seems like he might

have had trouble with people's view of him.

For example, when Jesus was about to die, Peter said no, I'm

gonna stand up for you and nothing's gonna happen to you.

I'm gonna defend you. And and later he would give in

when a little girl came to him and said, you're one of the

Apostles and Peter, it was like the pressure of the crowd.

I don't know what it exactly was but Peter gave in to that crowd

pressure, especially from the Jews, it seems And we learned.

We're going to learn later in this situation.

How he's going to give in to the peer pressure of the Jews around

him, and he's going to go back. So it's interesting that God

sends Peter to the Jews. It's almost like he wants him to

deal with that. He wants him to deal with the

insecurity of going to his Jewish.

Nationality people and saying, No this is right and I'm going

to stand up for it, even though I want to pull back, maybe and

go with the crowd, he had to deal with his own feelings in

his own weaknesses and I believe the work was important for

Peters growth because we're going to later.

Learn that he would change. And he would become an elder in

the church through all of his mistakes.

But his work, his responsibilities pushed in

there, and I want to encourage you to take on more

responsibility in your own life and serving God because there

are places your faith will never go in till you take on that

responsibility. There Are Places.

You can't push yourself until you step out of with the rules.

You currently have or outside of the confined roles that you

currently have of what you're willing to do for the Lord.

And take on more for his cause, Peter was a great example of

that. He was often failing but often

growing when we read about in the Bible it's interesting here

and I'm not sure if this was the intent of the author but I want

to focus on this phrase for just a second, it said and when James

cephas, which is Peter and John Who seemed to be pillars.

Now, this phrase has an interesting connection because

of the temple that stood at this time.

Okay, the Jewish temple was this, elaborate ornate wonderful

structure from the Old Testament and it had two pillars in front

of it. There are named Boaz and I

believe it's yanking or jaqen, however, it's pronounced and

these pillars We're massive, they're beautiful, they're made

of bronze or brass or something like that and they were they

were some some people said 30 feet.

I don't know exactly how tall they were.

Some of the measurements were a little bit fuzzy but these were

massive pillars. Temple was big.

These pillars were at least 30 feet high and diameter.

They were about six feet across. So this is a massive pillar

standing in front of this beautiful ornate structure.

But if you look at the top of these, there's no building it

sitting on it. That's called a non load-bearing

pillar in front of the temple. There were these two beautiful

pillars. That weren't holding anything

up. They were decorative And I'm not

sure if this is the the in the thought that Paul had in writing

this maybe he was comparing these men Peter and James two

pillars that were looked beautiful, but we're really

holding nothing up. But the point is true.

Nonetheless he's going to dig into them for their weakness in

their failures. I think it's interesting that he

uses this terminology, they seemed to be pillars.

Okay, so you have these men who gave, we already read this, who

gave Paul and Barnabas the right hand of Fellowship, keep doing

what you're doing verse 10. They desired only that, we

should remember the poor. The very thing which I was also

eager to do. Now, I believe this is

specifically referring to the poor who are in Jerusalem.

The poor Christians in Jerusalem.

We later learn that. And we're in Romans 15 verse 25.

Romans 15:25

It says this Paul is saying but now I'm going to To go to

Jerusalem to minister to the Saints for it.

Please those for Macedonia and aquella to make a certain

contribution to the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem.

So I believe when he's saying here that they all wanted to

make sure they were taking care of the poor.

I believe that was referring to the poor Christians in the city

of Jerusalem specifically. Now, it doesn't mean that we

don't have responsibilities to the poor in general.

We are to be good too many people.

Regardless of where they stand in religious circles, we would

be good to the poor. But I believe this is

specifically talking about the poor Christians in Jerusalem

verse 11. Now, when Peter had come to

Antioch, I withstood him to his face.

So we're about to get into, we're transitioning now from

Paul defending, his apostleship to a point where he is talking

about arising conflict, there is a rising conflict building with

Peter and Paul. Paul and Antioch, he withstood

him to his face. That's very controversial

language because he was to be blamed.

Okay, why? Why was why was Peter to be

blamed? It says for before certain men

came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles so he was used

to talk and have a good, you know, fraternizing with the

Gentiles. He was all doing his thing.

He had received the message with cornmeal.

Alias that he was to accept the Gentiles.

Now he was doing that, he was eating with the Gentiles but

when they came when those people who are trying to pull people

back to the Old Testament, came he withdrew and separated

himself Peter felt that pressure.

And he didn't, he wouldn't even the Gentiles because he was

fearing those who were of the circumcision.

Peter was the one who took a knife and slashed off the the

servant of the high priest Mal kiss.

This is the guy who's afraid of the Jews, the people of the

circumcision. Why?

Now, I want to set this scene, I just pulled this random picture

of a potluck. They have these things in

Jerusalem called their love feasts where they would all get

together and have a meal together.

And so I just wanted to put a context maybe for for the

gravity of what's about to happen.

You have a lot of people getting together eating together and

Paul's going to come into this situation and he's going to kind

of blow things up. It says, and the rest of the

Jews, also played the hypocrite hypocrite with him.

So the even Barnabas was Has carried away with their

hypocrisy. This is the problem of when we

don't stand up for what's right. And when we give into peer

pressure's and Temptation, it wasn't just that Peter was

unfaithful. It says the rest of the Jews

followed his suit and played the hypocrite.

The word hypocrite. Was someone who wore a mask?

They were fake. Peter was being fake and the

rest of the Jews also became fake.

So that even Barnabas was carried away with their

hypocrisy, Peter knew better and Acts chapter 11 verse 17.

Acts 11:17

We read it. We just talked about that

situation where he was sent to the house of Cornelius and he

had received this message from God.

You know what, except the Gentiles arise kill and eat.

It's not about the unclean animals of the Old Testament

anymore. He was told to move on.

And from there, he said to the other people, he said, if

therefore, God gave them the same gift as he gave us the

Gentiles. When we believed on the Lord,

Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand Stand gone.

And when those people heard these things they became silent

and they glorified God saying. Thank God has also granted to

the Gentiles repentance to life. He had already had the message

he knew, better Peter knew better than to pull away and be

Hypocrites against the people who are Gentiles Peter knew

better. And I think the saddest part of

all, this is even Barnabas was carried away.

Barnabas we read about is an encourager.

Barnabas was someone who would stand up for somebody when no

one else would? Specifically with Paul.

So this had to really hit home for Paul that Barnabas did this

in Acts chapter 9 verse 26. It says and when Saul who was,

Acts 9:26

it was Paul same person had come to Jerusalem.

So Paul's just been converted. He was previously, killing

Christians, having Christians killed.

So when he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples when

he was converted, he tried to Come in with the rest of them

but they were all afraid of him. And did not believe that he was

a disciple. Can you imagine that what I felt

to be the enemy and to try once you're converted to join?

The enemy cabin, say I was wrong.

I'm ready to support the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And everyone just to be afraid of you.

What if everyone in this room looked at you sideways?

We don't want anything to do with you.

We don't really believe you're a true Christian, how that would

hurt. But you know what with all those

other people Barnabas Took him and brought him to the apostles.

Barnabas took, this guy that everyone else rejected and

encouraged him and said, hey, we got you your.

All right, let's go, let's do some work.

Barnabas stood up for him when everyone else was against him

and how much it must have hurt Paul and hurt the people around

him, that even Barnabas was influenced by this peer

pressure. So that he wouldn't eat with the

Jews that he would withdraw from them and be afraid of people who

were Jewish, who were trying to pull them back to the Old Law.

Even Barnabas was carried away. But when I saw that they were

not straightforward about the truth of the Gospel, I said to

Peter before them all. So before everyone who was there

eating before everyone who is seeing this Paul stood up in

front of everyone and said, if you being a Jew live in the

manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews.

Why do you compel the Gentiles to live as Jews?

He says, you're not even living like a gentile.

You eat bacon for breakfast. You're not following the Old

Law. Why do you?

If you don't live in the manner of the Jews, compel other people

to live as Jews. He's calling me out for being a

hypocrite in front of everybody, and this has to be a people

Pleasers worst nightmare to be called out in front of everyone.

May we be authentic and honest in our faith.

Maybe we stand for, what's, right?

And don't do it just because of certain people who are around

all the time because we will be exposed one way or another lies,

get exposed. This is Paul's or Peters worst

nightmare. Now, I used to think that it

kind of stopped there and then he went on to Justice Paul was

writing about the situation, he's like right back to my

original thought but no, Paul is still going off.

This is still part of his speech in front of everyone.

We who are Jews by nature and not Sinners of the Gentiles.

So the world outside of the Jewish faith was considered to

be generally sinful. They did not follow God, he says

knowing that a man is not justified by The Works of the

law. But by faith, in Jesus Christ,

even we have believed in Christ Jesus that we might be justified

by faith in Christ and not by The Works of the law for by The

Works of the law. No flesh shall be justified.

What's he saying? He's saying that, we know better

than anybody. We can't do this perfectly.

We tried to live our lives. Perfect in front of the Old

Testament law and Paul really thought he was But it said that

we know that a man is not justified by The Works of the

law. There is nothing they could do

Under the Old Law to save them self.

They were only to be saved by faith in Christ Jesus.

We know that as Jews. Even we have believed in Christ

Jesus, that we might be justified and by faith in Christ

and not by The Works of the law. This is all tied in with the Old

Testament law. I believe we're going to talk

more about General on a second but he's saying Well, you can't

do it. You can't be justified.

What is Justified me? And he means basically, to be to

me made, right? It to be made Guiltless to me

made innocent in a sense. So here is the world reality.

The biblical reality is that everyone has sinned and fallen

short of the glory of God Romans 3:23.

Romans 3:23

We are all confined, understand, we have all sinned.

So, how are we going to be saved?

How are we going to be justified to where our sins aren't counted

against us and Eternity? It's not by the Old Testament

law, it's by faith in Christ. We are going to be saved because

of faith in Christ. Not because of an old law that

we follow perfectly and are saving is not going to come

through our own works, either. We're going to talk about that

in just a second for by The Works of the law.

No flesh shall be justified. This is true, both in Old

Testament context and in any law context for example.

If I were to go out driving down the street, I'm not going to

drive, you know, 35 exactly on the speed limit, a cop's not

going to pull me over and say congratulations, here's 50

bucks. You follow the speed limit,

that's not how the law works. Most law only punishes people

who have done wrong, it's such a boundary and keeps you in the

boundary. so law in general, Doesn't save you.

You don't get something from law.

Your only shown your weakness through law.

You're only shown where you messed up the cup only pulls you

over if you're doing something wrong.

But specifically to the Old Law. The old laws purpose was not to

justify people. The scripture says that by the

Old Law, all are confined under sin, the Old Law shows us that

we're all stuck in sin. It's like the walls close in

around us and we have nowhere to go under sin.

The law can find us all in that place where we had nowhere to

run. Its purpose was not to justify

us. Its purpose was not to free us

and people really give the Old Law, bad rep, the Old Law was

not evil. It just was not built to save

you. It was built to be a tutor.

It was built where told to lead us to Christ to show us that we

need Christ. The Old Law was the problem.

It was staying with the Old Law Without A Savior without the new

law to fill its place. Now, it is also generally true

that law does not save us and we are not saved by our works, but

that's the beauty of the law of Liberty.

We read about Christ's law and the Bible and the Plan of

Salvation and life. We live as a law of freedom

word. The Bible says, we're going to

be slaves to something. You're going to be slaves to God

or slaves to evil. So it's not that we don't have a

law. It's just that Christ's law.

When we follow it, fills with freedom.

It is embedded with freedom. Now, do our work, save us.

No, but true saving Faith justification by faith.

It's not because we worked our we earned it.

But part of Saving faith is full submission.

Full action. Full Readiness to follow God's

plan. Because it is the law of

Liberty. Now, Clinton friends, if you've

heard his lesson is actually, on our podcast, did a good outline

explaining this from a legal context, he talked about how

there's different ways in a court system where you can be

justified or basically let go and determined to be free.

The first one he mentioned was insufficient evidence.

Okay. Maybe a court says you can go

free because there's not enough evidence to convict you.

We already learned from Romans 3:23.

Romans 3:23

We've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

We learned that the the eye of God is going to and fro on the

earth seeing everything God is omniscient.

He sees all he's omnipresent. So God sees us.

There is no chance there is not a bit of chance.

The God not see something that we've done.

So there will be sufficient evidence to convict us maybe

privilege of race position or family, you know, in times in

history, in certain places by certain privilege, you could get

off, because of, who you knew who you were.

Maybe your family was. Not in this Kingdom.

Our God is a just God. He doesn't let the innocent go

or he doesn't let the guilty go and he doesn't condemn the

innocent based on any kind of privilege, maybe gift or

bribery, maybe you could give something to a judge and say

judge, I got a family, fortune, give you a lot of money to get

me out of this situation. Our God is a just got.

The Bible says that he doesn't need anything from us.

What are we going to give to God?

That he does not already have he created it all.

There's no gift or bribery we can give God, we cannot claim

fourthly. Lee superiority.

And anyway, we can't say, I'm more religious than other

people. I'm superior to other people.

I am doctrinally Superior to other people in, so I should be

saved. I should be Guiltless and we

cannot claim that I'm morally Superior to other people.

Why? Because we've already sinned,

and once you send, you are guilty of all the Bible says, So

I can't claim to be let free or forgiven because I'm superior to

anyone else in any way. That's just not how it works

with God. And for us, I think that's

important as a church. And as the Church of Christ We

are not saved because of our own Works.

We're not saved. Ultimately, because we do

communion The Way, We believe the Bible says, We're saved by

faith in Jesus Christ, and part of that is submission to what we

believe, but we are not going to stand for God and, and put our

good works out there as reasons why we should be saved finally,

you might be able to say ignorance, I didn't know,

because the Bible says, everyone has a natural law of the heart.

Everyone knows has God in their hearts, and no one is Guiltless

because we all have a responsibility that it comes

from something God put within us.

Us. We cannot claim ignorance and

finally, we get to this issue of innocence and this is what we've

been talking a lot about with the juice.

Maybe they felt that they were innocent because they have been

justified by the law, they kept the law perfectly, but we've

already learned that you cannot be freed because you kept the

law perfectly. Verse 17 but if while we seek to

be justified by Christ, so Paul is still going on.

This is part of his continued speech in front of everyone but

if while we seek to be justified by Christ we ourselves are also

found Sinners is Christ therefore a minister of sin so

it is as Christ's true work and Christ effect in our lives is

that his fault. If we are still Sinners,

certainly not for. If I Build again, those things

which I destroyed. I make myself a transgressor.

If I build up against in it wasn't Christ, working me, that

built that sin up, it was my own transgression going back to it,

he said Verse 19 for I through the law died, to the law that I

might live to God. I threw the law.

So the law showed him, his weakness and showed his showed

him. His inability to be saved on his

own Works through that. He died to the law that law.

He died to it because he was shown that he couldn't be

perfected by it. He couldn't be made justified by

it. So he died to it, why not?

So we could just be left stranded, he died to it, so he

could be living to God so that he might go to.

The saving presence in the saving work of God and the

Christ Liberty that I might live to God.

How do you do this for? I have been crucified with

Christ. It is no longer I who live, but

Christ lives in me, I have been crucified with Christ.

He's talking about his his own will, his own desires, his own

life, what his control was? He said that's been killed and I

saw the picture that help me get this in my Head.

It's a submission. We let ourselves be crucified

saying I'm not going to live this life for me anymore.

I'm sacrificing what I want because I want Christ to live in

me instead, so that I might live to God.

That's how we are living with God because we are crucifying

ourselves allowing that to happen to live to have Christ

live within me. You know what the pressure is

off. The pressure for me to figure

out my own life and make all these decisions and figure out

eternity and decide where my family is going to end up in

eternity and provide for my child.

All that pressure is off because Christ is the one living in me,

Christ is the one giving me my direction and my hope and my

purpose. And my life.

My hope is in still. My direction is acquired and my

plan is set because Christ lives in me.

And the life which I now live. I still have to live a life

here. I can't just skip straight from

work, from here to the spiritual life, the life.

I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who

loved me and gave himself for me.

Paul saying this in front of everybody, can you imagine the

silence in the room? Can you imagine the shock?

When all this talk about law and stuff, was brought back to where

that may needs to be The Son of God who loved me, the Son of God

who gave himself for me, Paul puts me there twice because we

need to put ourselves there twice.

You were saved you were but you were justified by Christ and we

need to have faith in him and that's where our Focus needs to

be and the one who loved me and gave himself for me.

So I Crucify My Flesh and give it back to Christ.

I do not set aside the grace of God.

Paul says For if righteousness, comes through the law.

Then Christ died in vain. He says, I'm not going to just

take God's grace, all that goodness, the things that I

didn't deserve to get with it. I am rewarded with he said, I'm

not gonna take all that the liberty and just set it aside.

He says, because if I do that and say, okay, thank you for

this nice gift box of Christ, and I'm going to set it here.

I'm going to be a Jew. If I do that.

Then Christ died in vain, if I say, thank you for that gift,

but I'm going to live my Jewish life and be justified by my

works of the law. Then there was no point in

Christ died. Christ died for no reason.

I can't imagine Peter in this situation.

I wonder if he heard the rooster crow a fourth time.

I wonder if all of this being brought back to the Son of God

who died for him. I wonder if that what that

brought to his mind the pain that you felt again when he

realized I've rejected him again just in a different way.

This brings us to the end of the chapter.

So I just want to close with a couple points.

I think it's I think it's awesome.

That the Bible includes everything.

We just read. If you were trying to start an

organization, that is going to change the world, you would try

to keep the roots very pure. That's where most religions try

to do. They try to justify their

founding fathers and they're the people who set the religions

say, well, this person is great. They're Flawless, they're nice

and everything was good. The Bible doesn't do that

because that's not reality. The Bible says, three of these

key members, they all messed up. The people who were with James,

it says, the people who were with James, cause this problem.

So James is at fault somehow, it seems here, the Peter, that one

of the primary gospel preachers at the time he denied Christ,

Bib. The biblical Integrity is

fascinating to me, because it shows us a real reality shows us

real religion, where it allows us to track people's full circle

Peter, he denied Christ. And then on the day of

Pentecost, he was the one. He was the one to deliver the

message to the Lost. How about that?

Okay, happily-ever-after, nope. He needs to then be adjusted and

have to go to the house of Cornelius and learn about the

Gentiles saving. Okay.

Now he's good, right? Nope.

We just read about a situation where Peter really messed up in

front of everybody. This is honest, this is real

life. But we later learned that Peter

must be blameless. The Bible says that to be an

elder in the church to be a pastor, you have to be

blameless. It wasn't that he was perfect,

obviously, clearly, but he had gotten his wrongs right to be an

elder. He had right his wrongs, isn't

that awesome? Praise God.

That we are given examples of how to take things full circle

to not. Look at our passing a man messed

up. See you guys, I lost my chance.

We're shown what some of the primary leaders really messing

up? That is both encouraging to us

and it's confidence-building. They weren't serving a fake

religion and a fake God. The development, the

developmental issues, because of this whole conflict in

Jerusalem, you'd think that would have been massive, right?

Like we're trying to start a church and now there's all this

mess but God takes something beautiful and make something

great out of it. Again, to remind us Health

forces have an assignment against your life because heaven

has an assignment for you, Paul stood up in front of all this

from all in front of all these people.

And the Bible says, people accused him or made fun of it,

basically for being a week speaker.

Maybe Peter was a Brawny, man. He was a fisherman.

You got to pull Nets around all day.

It wasn't just like casting reel.

He stood up in front of may, be a tough guy and tough crowd.

But Paul stood up and said something.

And back to this idea that God brought all this full circle, we

can trust that God. Used this awkward encounter and

Antioch for everyone's good. It was good for Paul because

Paul stayed true and proclaim the gospel.

What a great opportunity, what a great confidence Builder, what a

great Sometimes, your faith is made known to yourself by what

you stand up for. It was good for Peter because

Peter was corrected. And as a result became even more

convinced in the truth than before, it was good for

Barnabas. Because barmes, came to the

correct belief on this matter. He would be changed later.

It was good. For The Men Who Came From James

has started the whole mess because a line was drawn at the

true gospel and they had to decide sometimes people need to

see that there's a line. You don't cross that it was good

for the Jewish Believers in Antioch.

They have the truth sped out clearly for them maybe these

Jewish Believers remember they're they're just having a

hard time believing the fact that these Gentiles can just

walk in when we been here Garden Gate this whole time but they

were shown the truth of the Gospel.

It was good for the Gentile Believers in Antioch so it's

good for the Jews but was also good for the Gentiles because

their faith and Liberty in Christ was strengthened if you

were a gentile and you saw somebody stand up against all

this, Mickey think. Okay, I'm on the right path.

I felt a little bit rejected before I felt a little bit like

this is pointless before, but I'm strengthened knowing that I

do have faith and I do have Liberty in Christ Jesus.

And finally, it was good for us because as we learned before the

true still lives today, God took something that was really,

really not good for an early church and good came from it, in

many ways. That's our lesson for today.

In Galatians, Chapter 2. We're going to get further into

Galatians 2 · chapter mention

this justification by faith going forward.

So if you want to learn more about, why is it we've justified

by faith and why can't we? Be justified by works.

Chapter 3 is coming. Thank you for your kind

attention this morning. If you've heard all this and

you're like, you know what, I want to be a part of this

wonderful plan. The Bible says that to believe

something you have to hear it first.

So maybe maybe if you've heard the gospel, this morning, that

Jesus Christ died for us, that nothing we could do to save

ourselves. That's the Son of God dies for

us. Maybe you believe that this

morning, you ready to change your life to repent and confess

that Jesus Christ is Is the son of God.

Unto salvation. You can start that process and

you can be added to a church like our new brother Kenny was

last week. Beautiful.

Wonderful thing to see. You can do that today.

It doesn't take some massive corporate meeting and all these

things. It takes some water.

There's water covering massive percentage of the earth.

We happen to have some our convenience here.

You can be baptized for the remission of your sins and added

to that church. You could submit to be in that

crucifixion with Christ through baptism through his death.

We are joined with him in baptism and you can rise to walk

in newness of life. If you need to get something off

your chest, if you need to make something right with the

Brethren here or maybe you just need the prayers of the church.

We're happy as a family of gods, take care of that this morning

to support one another. In any way we can serve you

while we stand in seeing this, on an invitation, We thank you

for listening to our podcast, put on by the Church of Christ

at 22:15 plans. Road in Bakersfield, if you

would like any additional information or you would like to

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Please email us at info at search of Christ.

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