← Back to sermon library

Good evening, everybody. You 
can turn in your Bibles with me to the book of Galatians. Galatians chapter 1. Returning 
to our working through the book of Galatians, it's been quite 
a number of weeks since we were in the book as far as An exposition 
of the book goes through the book of Galatians. We have had 
two sermons previous to this one, verses 1 through 5 and verses 
6 through 10. So tonight we're going to look 
at verses 11 through 24, but I'm going to read beginning in 
verse 1 of chapter 1 to the end of the chapter. This is the Word 
of God. Paul, an apostle, not from man 
nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, 
who raised him from the dead, and all the brethren who are 
with me, to the churches of Galatia, grace to you and peace from God 
the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for 
our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil age 
according to the will of our God and Father. to whom be glory 
forever and ever. Amen. I marvel that you are turning 
away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to 
a different gospel, which is not another, but there are some 
who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even 
if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you 
than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As 
we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any 
other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be 
accursed. For do I now persuade men or 
God? Or do I seek to please men? For 
if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. 
But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached 
by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from 
man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation 
of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former 
conduct in Judaism. how I persecuted the Church of 
God beyond measure and tried to destroy it. And I advanced 
in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, 
being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's 
womb and called me through His grace to reveal His Son in me, 
that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately 
confer with flesh and blood. Nor did I go up to Jerusalem 
to those who were apostles before me, but I went to Arabia and 
returned again to Damascus. Then after three years I went 
up to Jerusalem to see Peter and remained with him fifteen 
days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord's 
brother. Now concerning the things which 
I write to you indeed before God, I do not lie. Afterward, 
I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, and I was unknown 
by face to the churches of Judea, which were in Christ, but they 
were hearing only, he who formerly persecuted us now preaches the 
faith which he once tried to destroy, and they glorified God 
in me. Amen. Well, let's pray. God, 
we thank you for your Word. We rejoice in its declaration, 
its setting forth of the Son of God incarnate, who came into 
this world, sinners to save. We pray that you would help us 
as we engage in this act of worship, the preaching of your Word, that 
we would have that measure of your Spirit, that we might know 
your Word aright, that our souls would be lifted up to a high 
appreciation and joy for and in those things that you've revealed 
to us in your word. Do help us to understand. Do 
help us to glory in you and to give you praise. And we do pray 
that our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, would be exalted upon 
the praises and the worshipings of this gathered assembly. And 
it's in his name we pray. Amen. Well, just a reminder regarding 
the subject matter of the Book of Galatians. We've noted before 
that we could summarize it in a threefold manner. The pernicious 
error affecting the churches, the reigning truth to be confessed 
by the churches, and the implications of rejecting the truth for error. 
As the Apostle Paul is writing, and perhaps particularly in this 
section here, which begins at verse 11 of chapter 1 and continues 
essentially all the way through the second chapter, the Apostle 
Paul is vigorously arguing for the veracity of his gospel, which 
is the gospel of Jesus Christ, which comes from God and not 
from man. And his vigorous defense is because 
the very salvation of souls are at stake. If one is wrong at 
the point of the doctrine of justification, one is not heaven 
bound, but hell bound. And certainly these false teachers 
are to be opposed because they are introducing a pernicious 
error. They were propagating a pernicious 
error, a wicked error in the context of the Galatian churches. And so Paul is opposing it with 
great might. just what we covered previously 
here, verses 1 to 5, the gospel's liberty, with emphasis on the 
reality that Paul, in stating that Christ gave himself for 
our sins, verse 4, that he might deliver us from this present 
evil age, that the apostle Paul is pressing the Christians' liberty 
over and against the bondage that these false teachers are 
introducing. We noted the gospel's irreplaceable 
value, the apostle Paul saying that it is so important that 
even if an angel or one of the apostles came preaching anything 
other than that true gospel, then they were to be considered 
as and to pronounce as those who were anathema or dedicated 
to destruction, dedicated by the Lord to be damned eternally. 
the importance of the gospel is of the highest importance, 
and Paul vigorously defends it here. And so, as we come to chapter 
1, verse 11, and through to the end of chapter 1, verse 24, we 
want to note that 1.11 to 2.21 is essentially the Apostle 
Paul engaging in an autobiographical defense of the veracity of his 
gospel, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ. So he's setting 
forth these autobiographical words and arguments in order 
to show that the errorists were wrong about the gospel and that 
the Apostle Paul was preaching truth when he declared to them 
the riches of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, we're simply going 
to do two things tonight, or look at two larger sections. First, the divine origin of the 
gospel and the mission of the Apostle Paul in verses 11 to 
17. And then, verses 18 to 24, we'll 
look at the glory of God in the mission of the Apostle Paul. So first off, with the divine 
origin of the gospel and the divine origin of the mission 
of the Apostle Paul, we see first a statement concerning the authenticity 
of Paul's gospel. The gospel according to Paul 
is the gospel according to Jesus. Notice this statement that we 
see concerning the authenticity of Paul's gospel. Verse 11. But 
I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached 
by me is not according to man. This section here, verses 11 
to 12, correspond with Acts 9 one to nine, specifically touching 
upon the conversion of Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus. He states here, but I make known 
to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not 
according to man. And we need to notice the butt 
of transition here at verse 11, because it's connecting us back 
to verse 10, where we read, for do I now persuade men or God, 
or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I 
would not be a bondservant of Christ. But since I do not please 
men, but rather seek to please God in the proclamation of the 
gospel, he makes known to them that the gospel which was preached 
by him is not according to man. And so we see first here, this 
primary assertion is given that his gospel is not according to 
man. And I think we should note at 
the outset, there's a special meaning or a special application 
here. But first, we should note that generally speaking, the 
gospel of Jesus Christ is not according to man, but it is according 
to God. You know, as Pastor Butler has 
said before, the very proof of the veracity of the Word of God 
and the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the manner by which 
it comes presented to us by God. Would man ever concoct a triune 
God? only living in true God who eternally 
exists as Father Son and Holy Spirit all Three persons having 
the same essence the same power the same will the same glory 
equal all equal one in being undivided yet eternally existing 
as three persons would would man construct such a thing what 
would man construct and proclaim a doctrine that sets him aside 
as totally depraved, without power, without hope in the world, 
and that salvation only comes from one outside of himself, 
The very gospel of Jesus Christ is proof positive that it is 
from God, because no man would come up with such a thing. Men 
come up with doctrines of God where they're anthropomorphized 
and have sexual desires. The gods of lusts and the gods 
of wickedness. You know, man comes up with the 
God of atheism, saying that there is no God, but that somehow, 
nothing exploded and created everything. The creature becomes 
the God. Their God is chaos, their God 
is chance, and their God is creature. So the Apostle Paul can say with 
certainty that the gospel that is preached by him is not according 
to man. And another proof positive that 
it is not according to man is verses 13 and 14. Paul recounts 
his wickedness that he tried to destroy the church. No one 
seeking to propagate a religion according to man would highlight 
his own wickedness, his own previous perniciousness and pernicious 
error. So, generally speaking, and gloriously 
speaking, Paul makes known to them that the gospel which was 
preached by him is not according to man. But specifically, the 
gospel Paul preached and preaches did not originate from his own 
mind, but was revealed to him by Jesus Christ. We have that 
wonderful account on the road to Damascus that Paul is in the 
midst of, and the section verses 13 and 14, they would coordinate 
with Acts 7, 58 to Acts 8, 3. Not only to Acts 8, 3, but but that section specifically 
where we see that Saul went about persecuting the church. And so 
Paul is confronted by the risen and glorious Christ on the road 
to Damascus, and it's there he receives the revelation of the 
Lord Jesus Christ and the very commissioning of himself as an 
apostle. The gospel that was preached 
by him was not according to man, and we're given this explanation 
and reasoning for the assertion of verse 11 in verse 12. Notice that it begins with the 
word for. For, I neither received it from 
man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation 
of Jesus Christ. So this explains the primary 
assertion. How is it that I can say the 
gospel which was preached by me is not according to man? Because, 
or for, I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it." 
So this means he was not under the instruction of, he first, 
he was not communicated the gospel by man with respect to his owning 
of it and reception of it, and he was not instructed in the 
things of the gospel, having come to his knowledge of the 
gospel of Christ by man, but rather, it came through the revelation 
of Jesus Christ. And so what's in the background 
here, or why does the Apostle Paul say this? When we say that 
Paul is giving here an autobiographical defense, we're not saying that 
he's arguing for his own acclaim and his own splendor and his 
own notoriety. The very gospel of his Savior 
and Master, Jesus Christ, is at stake. And the errorists, 
those who we read of, But in chapter 2, if you look at chapter 
2 for a moment and you see verse 4, we see the bracketed explanation 
there that these errorists came in by stealth to spy out our 
liberty which we have in Christ Jesus that they might bring us 
into bondage. And so the Apostle Paul is writing 
these things, he's defending himself and his gospel, and he's 
stating that he did not receive it from man. In other words, 
this isn't man's gospel. I didn't make this up, I didn't 
receive it from those who made it up, but it came through the 
very revelation. of Jesus Christ. And so by contrast 
then, or by that reality, these who came in to spy out our liberty, 
these who you're following after, these whom I'm marveling over, 
this reality that I'm marveling over, that you're turning away 
so soon, verse 6, from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, 
these are the ones who have their doctrine from man. These are 
the ones who do not have their doctrine from God. And so, no 
man communicated to Paul first the gospel of Jesus Christ, and 
he was not at the feet of any human instructor, and he was 
taught by the Master Jesus Christ. And notice this is a proof of 
the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's not a passage that we would 
often go to. Hey, where would you go to argue 
the doctrine of the deity of Jesus Christ? Well, Galatians 
1.12. but it's a place that we can go. Notice, I neither received 
it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation 
of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is set here in opposition 
to man. Yes, the Son of God, who is very 
and eternal God, assumed our humanity in time and in history, 
but he is, of course, also Son of God, one in substance with 
the Father, and he is set in opposition here man it's proof 
positive of the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ and John Gill 
writes this these words furnish out and Another proof of the 
deity of Christ, for if the gospel is not after man nor received 
of or taught by man, but by Christ, then Christ cannot be a mere 
man or else being by him, it would be by man. And which also 
confirms the authority and validity of the gospel and carries in 
it a strong reason for the apostles anathematizing all such as preach 
any other. These errorists, these heretics, 
these opposers of the truth, did not receive their gospel 
from God, but rather from men, from the traditions of men, from 
the wickedness of their own minds, and you are not to be turning 
away so soon from the true gospel and following after that. So, 
we see this statement concerning the authenticity of Paul's gospel, 
that's verses 11 and 12, And then we see the authenticity 
of Paul's gospel argued from his former conduct. Verses 13 
and 14. The authenticity of Paul's gospel 
argued from his former conduct. The gospel, according to Paul, 
is that which Judaism violently opposes. Notice at verse 13, 
here we see the clear evidence of this explanation. That he 
neither received it from man, nor was he taught it from man, 
but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ. This first statement 
is the clear evidence of that explanation for, again, this 
is connecting to it previously, an explanation, a reason. For 
you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted 
the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it. This second for basically Substantiates 
the first four of verse 12 and how does it do this? Well, Paul 
is saying this is a the clear evidence that this gospel that 
I preach to you is from God and not from man because before I 
preached it I violently opposed it and Before I proclaimed the 
truth of Jesus Christ, I violently opposed his church, and by virtue 
of that, I violently opposed him. One of the first things 
that the Lord Jesus Christ says to the Apostle Paul on the road 
to Damascus is, I am Jesus Christ, whom you are persecuting. And 
so, the very one whom he formerly persecuted is the one who gave 
him the very revelation of himself that he might go to the Gentiles, 
preaching the glories and the riches of Christ. But notice 
this language that the Apostle Paul uses. Again, I believe, 
proof positive of the divine inspiration of the Scriptures 
and the truth of Christianity. You have heard of my former conduct 
in Judaism, how I persecuted the Church of God beyond measure 
and tried to destroy it. We see here continually this 
setup for the amazing contrast in verse 14 Paul's life as a 
persecutor and his earnest defense that defense of the Mosaic law 
and I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in 
my own nation being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of 
my father's now I As we're working through this, we need to appreciate 
and understand that the Apostle Paul isn't simply engaging in 
recollections here of his life, of the life and times of the 
Apostle Paul. It is autobiographical, but he's 
engaging in this. It's retrospective demonstration 
of the glory of God in the true gospel of Jesus Christ, is what 
he's doing here. And so he's setting up for this 
wonderful contrast in highlighting his former conduct in Judaism. And by speaking with respect 
to his former reality that he was more exceedingly zealous 
for the traditions of my fathers, he's striking blows against those 
who were preaching error and trying to steal away the people 
of God unto damnation, which can never truly be stolen away 
unto that. But those in the church that 
had not yet come to Christ would have been stolen away to this 
false gospel, which would lead them to damnation. And the sum 
and substance of that false gospel had to do with the very traditions 
of the fathers that Paul beforehand was so zealous about. These, 
these errorists were, were seeking to, again, they were spying out 
liberty, bringing us into bondage, that is, bondage to the Mosaic 
law in order to be finally and ultimately justified before God. That is bondage. When anyone 
sets themselves under the law in order to be justified, that 
is the depth of slavery. to be a slave to something that 
will not save, but will only bring death. Remember that the 
law of God is the letter of death, but the gospel of Jesus Christ 
is light and life unto salvation. And to set people back under 
the bondage of the Mosaic law, circumcision primarily, but also 
the Mosaic precepts, is to bring people under bondage. And that's 
where Paul was previously. That wasn't gospel. Now, there were some differences, 
of course, because these errorists, these opposers, these false brethren 
would have spoken in a measure reasonably about Jesus Christ, 
but they're adding So destroying Christ by adding circumcision 
and adherence to the Mosaic law So all of that to come back to 
the point that Paul is highlighting his former life and his former 
self in order to set up this amazing contrast and to show 
that the gospel the true gospel did not come from men, but it 
came from God and The authenticity of Paul's gospel is argued from 
his conversion and his first movements, and that's what we 
see in verses 15 to 17. The gospel, according to Paul, 
is that which is in accord with amazing grace and the divine 
commissioning. Now, this section here coordinates 
with Acts 9, 19b, Notice the language, and what we have here 
first is this amazing contrast. The butt of verse 15 serves as, 
we can call a contrastive conjunction. That simply means that this butt 
is joining the previous context with the subsequent context, 
and it's contrasting the latter with the former. So we see this 
wonderful and glorious contrast notice verse 13 verse 15, but 
when it pleased God who separated me from my mother's womb and 
Called me through his grace to reveal his son in me wonderful 
language we We have the Apostle Paul here reflecting, no doubt 
with great glory and joy, though with genuine concern for the 
churches, in his calling through grace, in his reflection upon 
amazing grace. One of the most favorite things 
for the Apostle Paul to do To reflect upon the amazing grace 
of God. He has those wonderful but statements 
throughout throughout his epistles we were dead in our trespasses 
and sins we were we had the the lusts of our flesh the assailings 
of the devil and the allurements of the world but God, in his 
mercy and in his grace, condescended to bring us forth from the deadness 
of sin to life in Christ. Here we have this transitional, 
this contrastive, conjunctive but, but when it pleased God, 
who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through his 
grace to reveal his son in me. That language of separated me 
from my mother's womb doesn't really have literal application 
or connection to the physical act of birthing, though obviously 
in the physical act of birthing a child is separated from his 
mother's womb. But it carries the language of 
the stuff of Jeremiah 1.5, where one is consecrated beforehand 
unto a particular position and in time bears that position. For example, in Jeremiah chapter 
1, we read something to the effect of, you know, before you were 
born or before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. before 
you were born, I consecrated you, I ordained you to be a prophet 
to the nations. This is the stuff of what the 
Apostle Paul is talking about. Like Jeremiah, he was decreed 
unto a particular in-time consecration or setting apart to a particular 
position in the kingdom of God, and for the Apostle Paul, it 
was the proclamation of Christ and Him crucified. So we have 
this blessed and amazing contrast, and this next clause, and called 
me through His grace to reveal His Son in me. Now we can all 
enter into this first aspect of what this means, that all 
of us were called by the grace of God, and all of us had the 
Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ revealed to us. Isn't that a 
blessed thing, as Christians, to reflect upon the fact that 
we were the blessed, though undeserving, recipients of the amazing grace 
of God, bringing us forth from the madness of sin to life in 
Christ, and through that and by that and unto that, we were 
revealed, or God revealed to us, Jesus Christ? The greatest 
thing in the history of each and every one of our lives, all 
of you Christians out there, is the salvation that we have 
received by amazing grace and the revelation of Jesus Christ 
made to us. What a blessed thing that we 
have. We can look back upon our lives and we can see a lot of 
wonderful things. For many of us, the day that 
we were married, for many of us, the day our first children 
came into the world, then our second children, and not so much 
the third. Just joking, all of our children 
coming into the world. Marissa's not here, so I can 
say that. But we can look back upon our 
lives and we can reflect upon wonderful things. The one thing 
that we should reflect upon with the greatest joy, with a And 
if we can say an infinitely exalted joy is when God brought us forth 
from the deadness and the darkness of sin to life and light in Jesus 
Christ. But there's another element here 
with respect to the Apostle Paul in this called me through his 
grace. None of us were called to be 
apostles, but the Apostle Paul was called. to be an apostle. 
And so God separated him from his mother's womb or consecrated 
and set him apart unto his apostleship to reveal Jesus Christ in him. And we have this proof of Paul's 
gospel authenticity in 16b to 17, that I might preach him among 
the Gentiles. I did not immediately confer 
with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those 
who were apostles before me, but I went to Arabia and returned 
again to Damascus. So the proof of Paul's gospel 
authenticity is this, these elaborating words that he did not receive 
the gospel from men. He's opening this up. God, in 
his grace, revealed by the revelation of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ 
to him, and not only from the first point of his conversion, 
but also his first movements as an apostle, he did not confer 
or he did not receive instruction and gospel instruction by men, 
but from God. Notice this language here, I 
did not immediately confer with flesh and blood. So Paul's first 
movements as a Christian and Paul's first movements as an 
apostle of Jesus Christ were not by the instructions and the 
conferrings with men, but rather by the revelation of Jesus Christ 
himself. And this language, I did not 
immediately confer with flesh and blood. Remember, because 
it's the same language, but remember that account in Matthew 16, Because 
this isn't just flesh and blood as that which is just flesh and 
blood man, as just sort of synonymous with man, but directly in contrast 
and opposition to God, Most High. In Matthew 16, Jesus Christ, 
upon the confession of Peter, says, flesh and blood did not 
reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. This flesh 
and blood is its language that is often set directly in contrast 
to that which is from God, and it is here. I did not immediately 
confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem 
to those who were apostles before me, but I went to Arabia and 
returned again to Damascus. So, we see again, this is corresponding 
with that section in Acts where we have 919b in Acts to verse 
25, and we have the Apostle Paul going about his apostolic mission 
in a measure of independence from the Apostles, not with the 
gospel that's distinguished from them, but the same gospel. You 
know, not with the gospel different from the Apostles, but the Apostle 
Paul in seeking to bring these back from following after errorists 
who were probably saying, that's why Paul has to say this, who 
were saying that the Apostle Paul did learn the gospel from 
men, that he perhaps learned it from Ananias, or that he perhaps 
learned it from the other apostles, or from someone. The Apostle 
Paul, in order to defend the true and saving Gospel, says 
that he did not confer with the Apostles, he did not get the 
Gospel from flesh and blood, he did not initially go to Jerusalem, 
but he went in his own missionary endeavors to Arabia and returned 
again to Damascus. This Arabia is only used three 
times, well twice, and they're both in the book of Galatians 
in the New Testament. We see Arabia largely in the 
book of Isaiah, but in other places as well in the Old Testament. 
In the New Testament, we see it in three places. In the book 
of Acts, we see that Arabs come to Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, 
and they receive the preached gospel of Jesus Christ. And Paul, 
as we read here, we don't read it later in the book of Acts, 
as far as him going to Arabia, but he went there. He went to 
Arabia. And I think it's interesting, 
hopefully for you also, to reflect on the fact that there were Arabian 
bishops who traveled to the Council of Nicaea. The gospel, Paul's 
gospel and Peter's gospel preached on the day of Pentecost to Arabs, 
including many others, and Paul's preaching of Jesus Christ in 
Arabia that was foundational for these bishops who, you know, 
a couple, who three centuries later would travel to Nicaea 
to articulate and defend the very trinity of persons in the 
deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. What a great thing we have in 
the foundational setting of the apostles. I don't think it's 
silly, 2,000 years to removed from the work of Peter and Paul 
and the Apostles to see that we have an unbreakable link back 
to the apostolic doctrine. Through the ages, the reigning 
ascended Christ, through the sending of his spirit, has equipped 
Christian churches to defend the true gospel of Jesus Christ 
throughout centuries. And we here in Chilliwack, 2000 
years removed from the work of the Apostle Paul, are the blessed 
beneficiaries, yes, of the Apostle Paul, but more largely the risen 
Christ who brought Paul forth from darkness to light, gave 
him his Holy Spirit that he might go about to the Gentiles like 
us to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a glorious thing 
we have. I don't think we'll be able to close with the glory 
of God in the mission of the Apostle Paul. We'll pick that 
up next time as we see in verses 18 to 24 continuing activity 
in the life of the Apostle Paul when he actually does go to Jerusalem. But just some closing thoughts 
here, and we'll leave that for next time. First off, the divine 
origin of the gospel, not from man, not from flesh and blood, 
but from God. We can all here have confidence, 
brethren, in the blessed fact that the gospel that we rally 
around, the gospel that we preach in this church, the gospel that 
we hear in this church is the very gospel of God. It did not 
come from men, but it came from the triune God, through the blessed 
person of the Lord Jesus Christ who came into this world. to 
declare his own riches, his own excellencies for the salvation 
of sinners who came into this world to live, to die, and to 
rise again for sinners. As Pastor Butler said this morning, 
the world can mock, the world can laugh, the world can think 
we're weird, but praise God that in due time he brought us forth 
by his grace to lay hold of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. 
Whatever the world does, whatever the government does, whatever 
opposers do, We can latch on to that with hopefully an inviolable 
grip upon the gospel of Jesus Christ Knowing that sometimes 
if our grip loosens and slips a little bit we have the John 
10 great shepherd who does hold us in and that inviolable grip 
in his hand who does keep us. The true champion of the true 
gospel keeps us by his grace. The gospel we believe in is not 
according to man, but it is from God. And second, the divine power 
in salvation. God saves by amazing grace. As it's often been said, the 
example of the apostle Paul gives us great hope that the chief 
of sinners became the greatest proclaimer of the religion that 
he previously tried to destroy, should give the Christian great 
hope when we can see our family members, when we can see friends 
that we have outside of Christ in damning unbelief, perhaps 
following after a pernicious error like these propagated so 
many centuries ago. We should never be at a loss 
and say, you know, woe is me, because this person can never 
be saved. We do get, in our humanity, frustrated. We can, you know, wonder, you 
know, what's going to happen? I've spoken to this person 137 
times, and man, I'm going to do it 138th, but what's going 
on? What am I doing wrong? just have hope that the judge 
of all the earth will do right for his own glory and for the 
good of his church. And so we have hope in the apostle 
Paul, divine power in salvation. This one who persecuted the church 
beyond measure. and tried to destroy it, was 
brought forth by amazing grace to proclaim the very truths he 
previously tried to squash. And lastly, thirdly and lastly, 
the authenticity of Paul's gospel. Peace with God through justification 
by faith alone. The implications of this false 
teaching, of these errors, were not just that Paul's gospel was 
being attacked and affronted, that Paul's gospel was being 
attacked. Not just that the doctrine of 
salvation was being affected, as grave and as serious as that 
is, but the very character of God, is at stake in these errorists 
saying that we can be justified by circumcision and adherence 
to Mosaic law? The Proverbs say something like, 
the justification of the wicked and the condemnation of the just, 
both are an abomination to God. The only way that we can be just 
before God is if we have a substitute, not if we lop off foreskin and 
in our sin seek to justify God by weak and sloppy and miserable 
adherence to perfect law. The glory of God or the only 
way that the glory of God is upheld in a doctrine of salvation 
is if we have a substitute. And we have one in Jesus Christ, 
the just, the one who brought forth Paul, the one who commissioned 
Paul, and the one whom Paul preached. So have much hope and much joy 
and much Christian happiness in the fact that our gospel is 
not of man But it comes from our blessed God that there is 
a God who saves powerfully by his amazing grace There is much 
hope in that and as we move through the book of Galatians understanding 
that our peace with God has had a solely and alone, first and 
last, midst and throughout, by a triune God who saves without 
a helper, and who has saved us perfectly through the substitutionary 
work of Jesus Christ, the King of Kings. Let's pray. Heavenly 
Father, we thank you for your word. We rejoice. in your goodness 
to us and revealing your son to us, that you and your amazing 
grace made us to see our blessed Christ, having beforehand been 
those opposed to truth, opposed to the gospel, opposed to our 
creator and our sustainer, you did in your due time and by that 
grace bring us forth to behold the preciousness of our redeeming 
King. We pray that we would reflect with great joy upon that as we 
go to a moment of prayer, and as we live out the rest of this 
Sunday, and as we go into the week, that we would have fond 
daily reflections of our great God and the Christ whom he has 
sent. And it's in his name that we 
pray. Amen. We'll have a brief time of prayer, and when the 
piano's finished, you're dismissed.