Galatians Week 6 • Galatians 3:1-14

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If you've got your Bibles, going up to Galatians chapter 3.

Galatians 3 · chapter mention

As you turn there, I want to talk about something as we intro into our message this morning,

and it is this, oftentimes in our lives, God gives us and grants us people and situations

to help us see things in ourself that we're incapable to see.

About two months ago, I was standing in our kitchen, I was cooking breakfast.

We were going to have, oh, I'm sorry, I was cooking dinner, but I was cooking breakfast for dinner.

Anybody else like to do that around your house?

So we were cooking breakfast for dinner.

Aaron was running the griddle and cooking bacon and pancakes, because nothing is better than

a pancake that's flavored in bacon, right?

And so I was in charge of the grits and eggs.

And so I'm standing there behind her, I'm at the stove, she's at the aisle, and she's doing

what she needs to do.

And I go, and I grab the canister of grits.

And I began to read the back of them.

And she turned around, and what she watched was this.

She said, I think it's time you go to the eye doctor.

And I said, I've never been to the eye doctor.

I don't need to go to the eye doctor.

And she said, for that very reason, I think it's time that you go to the eye doctor.

So two weeks ago, I go to the eye doctor.

He puts up the screens in front of my face for me to read.

I'm like, that's a little blurry.

I can't really quite make out what's going on.

He said, on what?

I said, on any of them.

And then he started pressing things on the side for these lenses.

And for the first time in forever, I could see.

So then two weeks later, I come back, and my glasses are ready, and I get the glasses, and

I put them on.

And the thought came to myself, how in the world have I been driving, you know?

So nice.

Colors are better, right?

You see people around you.

And I've been reintroduced to these things called words that you can see on paper.

But here's the thing.

If Aaron wouldn't have pointed out to me two months earlier, you need to go to the eye doctor.

If the eye doctor through the exam wouldn't have pointed out to me, you need glasses.

Then more than likely, I would have continued on in a pattern of my life thinking that the

perception around me is what's normal.

That the perception around me is what's right.

When the reality is that God had to use people and individuals and situations to help me see

something about myself.

That I was unwilling to see, or I was incapable of seeing on my own.

As we're going through Galatians, as we're thinking through the power of the gospel, I want to ask

you this question.

Who do you know, maybe who are three individuals that you know that need the gospel?

I want you to think about that for a moment.

Think of three names of people that you're close to, of people that you know that desperately

need the gospel.

Now, if we were to go around the room and were to ask you those names, who would they be?

Here's the part I want to challenge you with this morning.

Here's the part that I think that God is sending us as a church, as for the most part, a group

of individuals of men and women and children who would say that we are a people of faith,

that we have trusted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

Here's what I would say.

If your name is not on your list of people who desperately need the gospel, then your list is

insufficient.

Because what we are finding in this study is that, yes, there are people that we need to take the gospel to,

but it's just as important that you and I, as those of us who are believers in Jesus Christ,

that we also, every single day, desperately need the truth and the transformation of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

That it's not just enough about coming into faith, but it's what a life of faith really, truly begins to look like.

If you were to come to me and say, Bo, help me find a passage of Scripture that says this is what walking with the Lord

looks like on a day-in and day-out basis, I'm brought to the passage of Scripture in the book of Acts.

It's the final part of Acts chapter 15, I'm sorry, of Acts chapter 16, and it says in verse 23

Acts 15 · chapter mention Acts 16 · chapter mention

that when they had inflicted many blows upon them, talking about Paul and Silas, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely.

Having received this order, he put them in the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

We could spend an hour explaining what is happening in this prison to Paul and Silas, but it's sufficient to say that they're not in a good spot.

That their circumstances are not what they would desire for them to be.

That it's not where they woke up that morning hoping they would find themselves.

But when we continue on reading, what we see is the power of the gospel in the life of a believer.

That they've taken the gospel and they've dove down into in that situation.

That in that moment, as bleak as it seems.

That in that moment, as awful as it seems.

That in that moment, they don't know if they're going to lose their life.

That in that moment, the gospel penetrates and what comes from that is the fruit of faith in the life of the individual.

It continues on, verse 25.

It says,

About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God.

That's what it looks like.

That's what faith is.

That's what living for the Lord looks like.

That in the middle of all the devastating news.

In the middle of all that's gone wrong.

In the middle of everything that is falling apart.

That my positioning and my posturing before the Lord is filled with prayers and praise.

And as a result of that, it says,

And the prisoners were listening to them.

Oh, wow.

Faith.

A life that's impacted.

A life that's counting.

A life that matters.

A life that is central and centered in to the gospel.

So what does that begin to look like for us in our life?

Well, the individual who this is happening to, Paul, is the author of the letter that we are reading.

And so join me as we read Galatians 3, 1 through 5.

Paul is done with this section of his autobiography of what's going on.

And he says this starting in verse 1.

Oh, foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you?

It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.

Let me ask you this.

Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?

Are you so foolish, having begun by the Spirit?

Are you now being perfected by the flesh?

Did you suffer so many things in vain, if indeed it was in vain?

Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law or by hearing with faith?

And so we see this argument being proposed from Paul to the church at Galatia,

which is the same argument that you and I, as believers, if we're not careful,

is the same argument we need to hear,

and that we need to be drawn to our attention,

and that we need to be brought before ourselves.

And it is this, the concept or the idea of chasing our own perfection.

The understanding that so many times,

as we want to be a people of faith,

as we've surrendered our life to Christ to save us,

is that we walk out of that moment chasing something.

Not chasing after the glory of God.

Not chasing after Him.

But chasing our own perfection in who we are and in what we can do.

Paul's accusation of them in verse 1,

O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you?

Here's Paul's struggle with the church.

They have heard the gospel.

They know the gospel.

They have responded to the gospel,

and yet their life does not mirror the truth that they know.

He says, O foolish Galatians, because they're not ignorant.

It's not a group of people who would say,

we've never heard that.

It's not a group of people who would say,

no, this is different from what we understand.

It's not a group of people who wouldn't even say,

we believe differently.

It's a group of people who have checked all of those boxes in their life,

of what they know, of what they believe, of what they understand.

But when it comes to the application of the gospel as believers in their life,

they have fallen short.

And so Paul comes to them and he says,

look, if you know what the gospel is,

if you agree with what the gospel is,

then why can't we apply what the gospel is?

He says to them,

if you came to salvation through faith,

through hearing,

through the power of the Spirit,

then why is it now?

Why is it now as children,

as believers,

why is it now that your trust has moved to your works,

to the law,

and to the flesh?

You see, because if you know the gospel,

right, so to know the gospel means that we have a head agreement

of this is what the gospel is.

But then you agree with the gospel,

meaning that as you know the gospel,

there is something within you that says this is true.

Not that this is a truth,

but that this is true.

Then what should result from knowing the gospel

and to internally agreeing with the gospel,

that what should come from that

is the application of the gospel.

But for us,

for you and for me so many times,

that becomes void in our life.

You would seem silly.

It would seem foolish.

If I were to say to you,

I desperately need glasses.

I know that I need glasses.

I agree that nothing I can do

is going to help me get better within this,

but I refuse to put them on.

But the truth for us within the gospel

is that it isn't just enough to know it.

It isn't just enough to agree with it.

But even as believers,

the application of the gospel in our life.

I read a commentator this week that says this.

He said,

the same way that the Spirit of God entered your life

is the same way the Spirit of God advances in your life.

Through faith.

Through faith.

So what you and I need

is continual gospel application of that.

And when the gospel is heard,

both for the lost and for the saved,

the posturing of what it brings us to,

the positioning of our heart that it draws us to,

is to a point of repentance,

is to a point of brokenness,

to realize that I need this both for salvation and my life.

And when the gospel is applied to sin for me as a believer,

what it brings me to is to the point of repentance

that in my life that I understand

that the only way that I grow from the sin of my life

is through the work of God through faith.

And so we begin to see this for you and I.

We begin to see where this comes from

is in our life tangibly.

When you see victory over sin,

where does the credit and where does the power come from?

Where does the credit go to?

When we all battle the things that we do in our life,

of all of the sins that we face,

of greed, of lust, of lies,

of anger, of deception,

over being unwilling to submit to authority,

or being an abuser in authority.

When we begin to see that we're treading in a way

that more in lines with scripture,

then where is the credit given?

Where is the power noticed from?

Is it something that we've willed ourselves into existence?

Or do we give credit from where it begins?

You see, because when it is us doing it

in and through our own power,

we're masking the things in and of ourself that we do.

But when it is a work that is happening from God

through the power of His Spirit,

in faith in Him,

and in application of the gospel,

what we will know is we are no longer

modifying the behaviors in our life,

but we're being transformed and renewed

by the power of the gospel.

And it's what we begin to live in

and what we begin to experience

in the authority that rings true in our life.

And we begin to step in

and to experience the life of faith.

Let's keep reading about this life of faith

starting in verse 6 of chapter 3.

It says,

Just as Abraham believed God

and it was counted to him as righteousness,

know then that it is those of faith

who were sons of Abraham.

And the scripture foreseeing that God

would justify the Gentiles by faith,

preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham saying,

In you shall all the nations be blessed.

So then those who are of faith

are blessed along with Abraham,

the man of faith.

And so what you and I want to be known for,

what you and I want to be said about ourselves,

what you and I want to have seen in our life

is what does it mean being a person of faith?

To where our faith in God,

our faith in the gospel

is what is known and what is there.

Now Paul here is largely talking to a Gentile audience,

a non-Jewish audience,

and he gives them the example of Abraham.

Why in the world would he choose Abraham?

Why not someone else?

Well, what we see in verse 6

is quoted from Genesis 15 verse 6.

Genesis 15:6

It says this,

Just as Abraham believed God,

it was counted to him as righteousness.

Well, verse 15,

if you remember all the way back

to our Genesis study that we did.

I'm sorry, in chapter 15 of Genesis,

God is establishing a covenant with Abraham.

And the covenant is based in this,

what God is going to do,

the work that God is going to put in place,

and that God will uphold.

And what we find as we continue in reading

in the narrative in the life of Abraham,

of what comes from this,

is all of this takes place,

not because of who Abraham is,

not because of what Abraham does,

but God upholds the covenant that is there

in spite of Abraham's failures and sins.

And so verse 6

is just as much a statement of belief

that brings into salvation

as it is a statement of belief

or a statement of faith

that empowers the life of the believer

for us to live in faith,

that it was counted to him as righteous.

When you see the word counted here,

this is an accounting term

that means to credit.

And so in Genesis chapter 15,

Genesis 15 · chapter mention

what we see is that Abraham believed in God,

and what God did was God gave credit

or made credit on behalf of Abraham.

So that as Abraham goes forward in life,

there is a credit on him

that comes from God

so that Abraham is not partially,

but so that Abraham is fully seen

both as righteous,

both in his success

and even in his failure.

God says through this word,

what I'm going to do,

because you believed in faith,

I'm going to count it.

I'm going to credit it.

I'm going to pay ahead of what is there

so that in who you are,

it is established as righteousness forever.

And then it happens in faith

and through faith alone.

And so being a person of faith

means that we rest in the knowledge

that our standing

of who we are,

of what we have received,

has been given in credit.

So what does that mean

to be a person of faith?

What does it mean

as we look at the life of Abraham?

How do we take that,

how do we apply that to your life?

And it's believing fully

in the gospel promise.

Fully.

Fully, not just partially

in that God saves,

but in the full gospel promise

that what God does through faith

is that God saves,

that God keeps,

and that God grows.

I've said this quote here,

I don't know,

probably a thousand times,

but that God loves us too much

to save us

and then leave us right where we are.

But that God

in his full love for us,

he saves us,

he takes us in,

and he grows us

in our faith through him.

And so to believe in God,

to place our faith in him,

to trust the gospel

is an area for our life

where we believe in the saving,

praise God for it.

But we believe in the keeping,

that that which he loves,

he holds on to dearly and forever.

But then he also grows.

That he grows you

and that he grows me.

And so we see a miracle happen

when we're broken free from our sins,

when we see the victories that take place.

It's the power of God

and the miracle

just as he multiplied the fish

to feed the thousands

as he is when he sets you free

from your lust.

He sets you free from your anger.

He sets us free from our pride.

It's in who he does.

But to be a person of faith

is believing in God's provision

and not our performance.

Abraham,

Abraham is promised a great nation.

Abraham is promised

that from his line,

from his lineage,

this will come.

But the problem is

he has no kids.

And the provision

and the belief

comes from God

and not from Abraham.

When Abraham takes matters

into his own hands,

what we see is failure.

When Abraham takes the situation,

control,

and says,

well,

then this is what I'm going to do,

then it's found in disobedience.

But when it is found in God

and who God is,

what we see

is the provision

of the gospel

that rings true.

We'll conclude

with reading verses,

starting in verse 10.

Paul writes,

he says this,

for all who rely

on works of the law

are under a curse.

For it is written,

curse be everyone

who does not abide

by all things

written in the book of law

and do them.

I want to read

that verse again.

I want to let that sink in

to our minds

and to our hearts.

Cursed be everyone

who does not abide by,

if you've got your Bible out,

circle it,

all,

all things

written in the book of the law

and do them.

Now it is evident

that no one is justified

before God by the law

for the righteous

shall live by faith.

But the law

is not of faith,

rather the one

who does them

shall live by them.

Verse 13,

underline this,

Christ redeemed us

from the curse

of the law

by becoming

a curse for us.

For it is written,

cursed is everyone

who is hanged

on a tree

so that in Christ Jesus

the blessing of Abraham

might come

to the Gentiles

so that we

might receive

the promised spirit

through faith.

And so we see Paul

come before

the old foolish Galatians

to bring a need

aware to themselves

of the battle

that is before them

and the battle

they're going to face.

And he draws a picture

of two people,

one who's going

to find it

in themselves,

one who's going

to find it

in their faith,

one who's going

to find it

in the works

that they do,

and one who's going

to find it

in the work

that Christ has done.

And so my question

for you this morning

is this,

who are you

going to be?

Who are you

going to be?

Yes,

yes it is faith

that saves us,

but it's the faith

that we live

through.

In verse 12

he says that the person

that relies on the law,

he says this,

they live

by them.

And the result

of living by them,

of the continuation

of works-based

righteousness

is what Paul says

is to be under a curse.

And so if a person

says,

I'm going to live

by the law

and desires

to be blessed

by God

to live a life

of faith,

to not live

in the reality

of the circumstances

that surround them

or the demand

that is there

or everything,

they can never

rise above

because they live

in their own perception,

they live

in the impossible task

and they're living

as a person

who's being cursed.

And so what God does,

what God says,

is that those

who live by faith,

not just for salvation,

but those who live

by faith

and being kept

by the hand of God,

that those who live

by faith

and growth

in the hand

of God,

that Christ

redeemed us

from the curse

by becoming

a curse

for us.

It's a beautiful phrase

that is used

in talking about

substitutionary atonement

of Christ

and it's called

the great exchange,

that Jesus Christ

as our substitute

and we begin

to think

about this exchange,

about what He did

and about what

we've done,

about what we deserve

and about what

He deserved.

We begin to see

this void

that separates

the two,

the void

that Scripture

says that in

this place

and throughout

the world

that there is not

one that is righteous

in themselves

other than

through Him.

That there's not

one who's fulfilled

the law

other than Him.

There's not

one who is perfect

other than Him

and so in the

great exchange

is He received,

Jesus received

what we deserve.

Punishment.

Death.

Let's don't forget

this wasn't just

the means.

It wasn't just

what needed

to happen.

It was what

had to happen

because the law

says

that when you

break one,

one,

one thought,

one word,

one deed,

when one

is broken,

guilty,

guilty,

guilty,

guilty.

and the

punishment,

it isn't a

fine,

it isn't a

job to go do,

it isn't going to

make yourself

better,

it's death

for just one,

just one.

And so what

Jesus did

is Jesus said,

not for just one,

but for the many,

for the many,

I'll take it

I'll take it

on.

I'll take it

on.

And so I'm

going to step

out of perfection.

I'm going to

step out

of heaven

and step foot

on the cross

in the great

exchange

for what the

people who

mocked him

deserved,

for what the

people who

spit at him

deserved,

for what the

people who

abandoned him

deserved,

and for what

the people

who were

gathered in

this place

deserved,

and for the

pastor that

stands on this

stage for what

he deserved.

And I will

pay the penalty

on the cross.

It's the great

exchange.

And then the

exchange doesn't

end there,

is that we

gain something.

You and I,

not only is

the penalty

paid for us,

but there's

a reward

given for

a life

lived in

perfection.

And that

reward is

righteousness.

What that

reward is,

is proper

standing before

the Lord.

What that

reward is,

is a credit

that never

ends.

What that

reward is,

is an adoption

that's brought

into a family

where divorce

never is the

case.

What that

reward is,

is what

none of us

deserved.

none of us

deserved

righteousness in

him.

But it's

found,

not in what

we've done,

but what

he's done.

It's not

found in

what we do,

but what

he's done.

And it's

not even

found in

who we

are,

but it is

found in

who he

is.

In just a

minute,

we're going

to go to

the Lord in

prayer.

I want to

ask you this

question this

morning.

If you don't

know Jesus

Christ as your

personal Lord

and Savior,

where it will

begin for

you is

repentance for

who you are

and for what

you've done.

It only takes

one.

And faith

in who he

is.

But for all

of us in

here,

for all of

us in this

room,

chasing our

own

perfection,

determining

what we

are going

to do.

And we

wonder why

in our

life when

the beating

comes.

We wonder

in our

life when

the shackles

arrive.

We wonder

in our

life when

the jail

cell door

spiritually

closes on

us.

We wonder

why our

world falls

apart.

And the

question is

this,

because we've

been chasing

it in

ourselves.

Or is

there rest

in faith

that above

my

circumstances,

above what

I can

understand,

above what

is before

me,

that I

trust God

to save

me,

that I

trust God

to keep

me,

and that I

trust God

to grow

me.

Would you

pray with

me?

Lord, we

come to

you this

morning

thanking you

for who

you are,

thanking you

for what

you've

done.

Lord, may

every day

and every

moment,

may the

clarity of

the gospel

and the

importance

and the

value of

the gospel

rest in

us and

who we

are so

that every

day, every

moment that

we are

people of

faith,

faith doesn't

mean that

we're trusting

as long as

it's good.

Faith does

not mean that

we're trusting

as long as

we understand.

Faith is

not trusting

as long as

we agree,

but faith,

faith, Lord,

give us faith

in every

moment,

in every

battle,

in every

victory,

in every

circumstance

to trust

in you

and in you

alone.

With every

head bowed

and every

eyes closed,

no one

looking around.

If you

don't know

Jesus Christ

as your

Lord and

Savior,

I pray that

today would

be the day

that you

would trust

Him.

If you

do,

if you

do,

and you're

spending so

much of your

life chasing

after something

that you're

never going

to catch,

chasing your

own perfection

that's found

in who you

are and

what you

do and

what you

overcome,

and the

testimony of

your life

may begin

with Jesus,

but it

continues in

you.

Could

today be

the day

of

repentance?

Lord,

give us

the faith

to sing

in the

prison cell

or give us

the faith

to cry

out

in the

midst of

tragedy

or give us

the faith

to trust

in you

fully

to save

us,

to keep

us,

and to

grow us.

It's in

Jesus' name

we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

thanks again

for listening

to the

Willow Ridge

Church

weekly

podcast.

We hope

that you

enjoyed

listening to

this week's

message.

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