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Please turn with me to the book 
of Galatians, Paul's epistle to the Galatians. This morning 
we're going to take up some introductory matters as we begin an exposition 
of this majestic letter written by the Apostle Paul. to the churches 
of Galatia. In many respects, we just sang 
a great exposition of the book in its entirety. Augustus' top 
lady there in Hymn 440 simply or wonderfully expresses the 
truths contained in the Epistle of Paul to the Galatians. I'll 
just pick up reading in chapter 1 at verse 1, and then as I said, 
we'll look at some introductory matters before we embark on an 
exposition of this letter. 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. Even if 
we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than 
what we have preached to you, let him be a curse. 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 man or 
God, or do I seek to please man? For if I still pleased man, 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 us pray. Father, we 
thank You for this wonderful letter, Paul, to the Galatians. We thank You. for the doctrine 
of justification by faith alone. We pray, God Most High, that 
in our study of Your Word we would be comforted, we would 
be encouraged, we would be strengthened against the attacks of the devil, 
against this world. And Father, we would continually 
look unto the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of our souls. And we pray now that You would 
fill each one of us here with Your Holy Spirit. We pray that 
You would forgive us for all of our sin and its darkening 
influence upon our mind. We know, Lord God, that we are 
to love You with our minds, and we pray that You would help us 
to be receptive to Your Holy Word. And we pray, God Almighty, 
that You would just bless Your Word as it goes forth today, 
here and elsewhere. We pray it would run swiftly 
and be glorified. We pray that You would make a 
thousand people Your own today, cause men, women, boys and girls 
to believe Your truth. And we ask in Jesus' holy name, 
Amen. Well, they call Galatians one 
of the capital epistles of the Apostle Paul. Romans, 1st and 
2nd Corinthians and Galatians. Then, of course, there are the 
prison epistles and then the pastoral epistles. Names collectively 
given to particular letters. And Galatians is one that, as 
we know as Reformed Christians, has a rich heritage and a rich 
pedigree in the churches of the Reformation, or who look to the 
churches of the Reformation in terms of our theological commitment. Now, as we come to expound a 
particular book, as we've said before, it is helpful to consider 
introductory matters. It's good to know who's writing. 
It's good to know who he's writing to. And it's good to know the 
date and things of that nature. So that will occupy our attention 
this morning, and then we'll pick up some specific themes 
broadly considered of the book itself. But first of all, by 
way of introduction, we see the author is asserted here very 
clearly. He says, Paul, an apostle, not 
from man nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God 
the Father, who raised him from the dead. We'll notice later 
on, as we consider one of the themes, one of them is Paul's 
authority. One of them is Paul's place as 
an apostle of Jesus Christ. The idea is that he went to these 
churches in Galatia and preached justification by faith alone. 
And sinners believed the gospel and they were saved. And then 
after he left, others came along and told these Gentile believers 
That it was good that they believed the gospel, but they must also 
be circumcised. They must also undergo a commitment 
to the Mosaic law and ceremony. So they were upbraiding the apostles' 
message. And then they were questioning, 
or promoting within the people of God, questioning Paul's credentials. That's why so much of chapter 
1 is spent on Paul in terms of his early history. It's not because 
Paul is egotistic. It's not because Paul wants to 
share his autobiography. It's because Paul is under attack. 
And Paul defends himself when his attack means the Gospel's 
attack. That's why he does what he does 
here. He asserts his authority. He 
highlights the fact that it's not from men nor through man. 
but it's rather from the risen Christ and God the Father who 
raised Him from the dead. I suppose the Judaizers were 
saying things like, He wasn't sent out from Jerusalem. He wasn't 
one of the original apostles. He doesn't have those credentials. 
In other words, to try and discredit His message, they tried to discredit 
the Messenger Himself. It is what's called an homonym 
argument. And while it is fallacious, it 
is very effective. If we can destroy the character 
or the reputation of the man, then we shouldn't listen to his 
message. That's why much of this epistle 
is spent in Paul's asserting his authority as a legitimate 
apostle of our Lord Jesus Christ. And he does that at the very 
outset in chapter 1, verse 1. Now, as we try to construct the 
history of this letter, there's two theories as to who the churches 
of Galatia are. Notice there in verse 2, and 
all the brethren who are with me, in his greeting he says, 
to the churches of Galatia. Now, the kingdom of Galatia was 
made up of Celtic peoples who settled in the northern part 
of the Roman province of Galatia in about the third century B.C. But once it was made a Roman 
province, it engaged not only the northern cities, but the 
southern cities as well. And the northern Galatian theory 
says that Paul is writing to those cities who are in the north 
of Galatia. It was a very popular position. But I believe that Paul is writing 
to the southern churches in Galatia. And I believe that the book of 
Galatians coincides with the first missionary journey of the 
Apostle Paul. recorded in Acts 13 and 14. And 
God willing, we'll look at that missionary journey tonight to 
sort of fill in some more historical background. But this is called 
the Southern Galatian Theory. And the churches that were visited 
by the Apostle Paul on his first missionary journey recorded in 
Acts 13.1 to 14.28. That mission was done in 47 and 
48. All of the cities of the north 
and the south made up the Roman province of Galatia. But I believe 
when he says, to the churches of Galatia, he's referring to 
Pisidian Antioch, to Iconium, to Lystra, and Derbe. Again, 
those cities we can read of very clearly in Acts 13 and 14. Luke, rather, in the inspired 
account in the book of Acts, says that they returned through 
those cities. So they went and they preached, 
and then on the way back, they appointed elders in those cities. 
They put things in order in those particular churches. And I think 
that this is what Paul alludes to in chapter 4, verse 13. He says, you know that because 
of physical infirmity, I preach the gospel to you at the first. I suppose that Paul perhaps may 
have been on his way to the north. But I think he got sick. And 
he stayed in those cities in the south. And then as he went 
through, he came back and he strengthened those churches and 
they appointed elders. So when he says, at the first, 
it presupposes there was a first and then a second visit. And 
I think that that deals with material very well. And so if 
we date it, or if we take the South Galatian theory, and the 
first missionary journey was 47 to 48, he probably wrote this 
in 48 or 49. It is his first epistle, the 
first letter that the Apostle Paul wrote under the inspiration 
of the Holy Spirit for the good of these particular churches. 
One of the reasons why I think that this construction is accurate 
is because the Jerusalem Council, Acts 15, that took place in AD 
49. Very intriguing that in Galatians 
2, when he's dealing with Peter and that whole thing over eating 
with Gentiles, he doesn't mention the Jerusalem Council. Now I 
realize it's an argument from silence, but it's a pretty loud 
argument from silence. Had they already had the Jerusalem 
Council, he could have easily appealed to that. And probably 
Peter wouldn't have done what he did after the Jerusalem Council. So if you're taking notes, you 
want to jot down a few things here with reference to the date. 
Galatians 1, 15-17, I believe, corresponds to Acts 9, 23-25. 
Galatians 1, 18-19 corresponds to Acts 9, 26-29. Galatians 1.21-23 corresponds 
to Acts 9.30. Galatians 2.1-10 is the famine 
relief visit. That's when Paul went into Jerusalem 
on a famine relief mission. That's recorded in Acts 11.27-30 
and it is highlighted or it is referred to again in Acts 12.25. 
And then I believe Galatians 2, 11 and following corresponds 
to the time when after Paul returns from the missionary journey, 
he settles in Antioch. And it is from there that he 
sees Peter. And what happens in Galatians 
2, 11 and following happens there in Antioch. on the eve of the 
Jerusalem Council. It's from Antioch that Paul and 
Barnabas then go to Jerusalem to engage in this particular 
council. Now, I realize you're probably 
all scratching your head and saying, I couldn't remember a 
thing of that. I'll ask everybody on the way out to give me that 
historical reconstruction once again and tell me whether we're 
looking at the Northern or Southern Galatian theory. There's an extra 
bonus point if you can actually link Galatians 1 and 2 with the 
book of Acts. Now, having said all that, just 
for my own purpose and for you as well, as we move through the 
book, we will have cause to reference those sections in Acts that I 
believe coincide very clearly, very pertinently. The nature 
of this epistle. Notice, he says in verse 2, to 
the churches of Galatia, verse 3, Grace to you and peace from 
God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. That's a typical Pauline 
benediction, a typical good word that he pronounces to the church. 
He does it in terms of grace and peace. You cannot read Paul 
and miss that greeting. What does differentiate Galatians 
1 from every other epistle is some other kind and glowing and 
happy words for the particular church. In 1 Corinthians, I mean, 
you look at Corinth, they had some issues there. You cannot 
read 1 Corinthians and come away saying, wow, the early church 
was pristine and perfect and holy and godly and they never 
had any struggles or any problems. From the very outset in 1 Corinthians, 
he addresses sectarianism. Some say I'm of Apollos, some 
say I'm of Paul, some say I'm of Cephas, others say I'm of 
Jesus. Sectarianism. Men were following 
men. He has to deal with the issue 
of sexual immorality. 1 Corinthians 5. He says such 
is his name, not even named among the Gentiles. Namely, a man has 
his father's wife. 1 Corinthians chapter 7 is the 
deal of matters concerning marriage and fornication and sexual purity. Chapter 6 as well. Chapters 8, 
9 and 10, issues of Christian liberty associated very particularly 
with eating meats and things of that nature. 1 Corinthians 
chapter 11, divisions at the Lord's table. Some sort of a 
problem within the congregation in terms of women perhaps asserting 
authority in a way that was unbiblical. 1 Corinthians 12, 13 and 14, 
the matter of spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 15, the resurrection. He's not just teaching on the 
resurrection there in 1 Corinthians 15 just by way of a systematic 
theology. He said there are some among 
you who are denying a future bodily resurrection. Having all 
those issues and all those particulars, nevertheless, in 1 Corinthians 
1, Paul can commend this church. Paul speaks glowingly of this 
church. He speaks graciously and wonderfully. Not to say he isn't in Galatians, 
but I want to make a point in just a moment. He says, to the 
church of God, which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in 
Christ Jesus, called to be saints with all who in every place call 
on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours. Grace to you and peace from God 
our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God always 
concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you 
by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him 
in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ 
was confirmed in you." You see this? He's just pouring love 
on this church. He's just exuding love, if that's 
a word or a proper use of that word, on this church. A church 
who's engaged in things that we might be tempted to unchurch 
them for. I mean, imagine if we had matters 
of sexual immorality of the nature of this church. I mean, if we 
had all the issues going on in 1 Corinthians, I for one would 
be ready to say, let's just shut the door, man. We are not doing 
a good job here. But Paul doesn't de-church them, 
he doesn't unchurch them, but rather he smothers them with 
love. Now, when we get to Galatians, it's very brief. He says to the 
churches of Galatia, Grace to you and peace from God the Father 
and our Lord Jesus Christ. You might say, well, because 
it was his first letter, he was younger. He hadn't matured yet 
into this loving, gracious, love-pouring-out sort of a man. No, I submit the 
reason is, is because it's doctrinal. Practical issues are an affront 
to the church of Jesus Christ. Don't get me wrong. But the church 
of Jesus Christ isn't the church of Jesus Christ without justification 
by faith. That's why it is brief, that's 
why it is out of the chute, and that's why he says in verse 6, 
I marvel. I marvel not that you're growing 
wonderfully in the grace of Christ, but that you are turning away 
so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different 
gospel. You see, we might think that 
a trivial thing that these men came along and said you should 
be circumcised. But Paul understood when you 
add to it, when you say faith plus works, you are undermining 
the entirety of the Gospel itself. We might say it's no big deal. 
Peter feared man a little bit. Didn't want to eat with the Gentiles, 
so he withdrew. Paul said, I withstood him to 
his face. Why? Because the message that 
he was sending affected the Gospel. That's why he's brief. That's 
why he's to the point. That's why he throws down. Because 
the doctrine of justification by faith alone is at stake. One introduction to the New Testament 
said this. This is Carson, Moo and Morris. 
They say that the character and nature of this epistle, it is 
the outpouring of a concerned evangelist and pastor over some 
tragic false teaching that had arisen among his converts. Amen. Absolutely. In His brevity of 
greeting, it is directly getting to the point. That's not a lack 
of love. It's not to suggest that He lacks compassion. It's 
rather He's rolling up His sleeves and He's getting to it. Here's 
what Luther said in his declaration concerning this book to the Galatians. Saint Paul, therefore, in this 
epistle goeth about diligently to instruct us, to comfort us, 
to hold us in the perfect knowledge of this most Christian and excellent 
righteousness. For if the article of justification 
be once lost, then it is all true doctrine which is lost. John Calvin said, Paul had purely 
and faithfully instructed them in the gospel, but false apostles 
had entered during his absence and had corrupted the true seed 
by false and erroneous doctrines. They taught that the observation 
of ceremonies was still necessary, specifically circumcision. Listen 
to this pastor who's under attack today. Calvin and Luther were 
being told that Calvin and Luther didn't read Galatians and Romans 
properly. We're being told that they read 
it with the lens of their current controversy. They read the Roman 
Catholic controversy and the Protestant controversy into Galatians. I disagree with that wholeheartedly, 
and you should too. These men were exegetes who knew 
the Word of God and could show us a few things about handling 
accurately the truth of God. He said, they taught that the 
observation of ceremonies was still necessary. This might appear 
to be a trivial matter. What's the big deal? After all, 
the churches in Jerusalem were still practicing circumcision 
as an ethnic, customary practice. What's the big deal, Paul? He 
said, this might appear to be a trivial matter, but Paul very 
properly contends for a fundamental article of the Christian faith. 
It is no small evil to quench the light of the gospel, to lay 
a snare for conscience, and to remove the distinction between 
the Old and New Testaments. He perceived that these errors 
were also connected with a wicked and dangerous opinion as to the 
manner in which justification is obtained. This is not about 
sociology or ecclesiology. It's about soteriology. It is 
about how a man stands before a holy God. It is to answer that 
question Job posed in Job 9, how can a sinful man stand before 
a holy God? Well, Paul in Galatians is going 
to tell us. He said, this is the reason why he fights with 
so much earnestness and vehemence. And having learned from him the 
important and serious nature of the controversy, it is our 
duty to read with greater attention. In other words, when we see Paul 
get this excited about something, as disciples of Jesus Christ, 
we ought to get this excited about it. And we ought to realize 
that the Judaizing tendency did not go away in the first century. It is still upon us. It is still 
a contest. There are still those out there 
who are adding words to faith in order to be saved. There are 
those who are collapsing the distinction between justification 
and sanctification and saying that our good words contribute 
to our final justification. To that, Paul says, no. And we must say no. J. Gresham Machen said this, the 
epistle to the Galatians is a polemic. Polemic means when we defend 
with vehemence a particular doctrine. Polemics is that discipline of 
Christian academics where we launch a counter offensive against 
the oncomers. He says the epistle to the Galatians 
is a polemic, a fighting epistle from beginning to end. What a 
fire it kindled at the time of the Reformation. May it kindle 
another fire in our day. Not a fire that will destroy 
any fine or noble or Christian thing, but a fire of Christian 
love in hearts grown cold. Incidentally, Machen wrote these 
as lectures or essays for Christianity Today, published in 1931 to 1933, 
expositional studies In the book of Galatians, up 
to chapter 3 and verse 14. It would be nice to see Christianity 
today publishing an exposition on Galatians and good, solid 
theological meat and food and doctrine for the church of Jesus 
Christ. Brethren, I encourage you to 
stay in this book with me as we go through it because it is 
most beneficial. I am convinced beyond a shadow 
of a doubt your comfort Your joy, your happiness in the Christian 
life is directly connected to justification. It is the statement 
of Paul in Romans 5, verse 1. Therefore, having been justified 
by faith, we have peace with God. Don't look to your works, 
don't look to your doings, don't look to your happenings, don't 
look to your contribution, but look rather to that merit of 
Christ. Look rather to His active and 
passive obedience. Look rather to the imputation 
of His righteousness received by faith and faith alone. Some specific themes in this 
epistle. The first that we see in our 
bare reading here is the integrity of the gospel. Again, this is 
what causes Paul to write with vehemence. I marvel, he says. I marvel. If the dating is accurate, 
this is not very long after he had been there preaching to them. 
You kind of get the idea. He's roaming through these cities 
and just on the heels of his labors, men are coming in and 
saying, well, that's good. I don't think they were discounting 
Paul. I don't think they were saying he's a wretched heretic. 
You shouldn't listen to him. I think it was more suggestive 
and more subtle. Well, he wasn't sent out from 
Jerusalem. He wasn't one of the original 
apostles. He doesn't have the authority 
of a James or a Peter. Why, later on he mentions James 
and Peter. He received his authority directly from Christ, but he's 
not operating independently from the Jerusalem church. He said, 
we met together. They gave me the right hand of 
fellowship. They only encouraged me that we remember the poor. 
The very thing I was willing to do. We see in Acts 21 when 
he comes back to Jerusalem, bringing a gift from churches to drop 
on the feet of James, with reference to famine relief in that situation. James receives him. There's no 
animosity. There's no argument. There's 
no dispute. So the integrity of the Gospel 
is at stake and that's why Paul asserts his authority. He's not 
asserting his authority because he's authoritarian. He's not 
asserting his authority because he wants all the Galatians to 
call him or email him before they make a major life decision. 
He's not the right Reverend Dr. Paul that you've got to get authorization 
from to engage in some legitimate activities. No. Paul's not that 
kind of brother. But when the Gospel is at stake, 
and Paul's connection to that Gospel, he says, yeah, I was 
not given apostleship by men. I was given apostleship by Jesus 
Christ. Notice that declaration of Christ's 
deity. Incidentally, in chapter 1 verse 1. Not by man, but by 
Jesus Christ. There's a contrast there. This 
Jesus Christ is man, but He's so much more. He is the God-man. So the gospel, and notice very 
specifically in verse six, six, seven, eight, a 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. Pretty pathetic. I mean, there's ignorance. Sometimes 
people operate in ignorance, but there's times when people 
operate in knowledge and they want to pervert the gospel. They 
want to distort the Gospel. They want to twist the Gospel. 
They want to add their spin to the Gospel. They want to create 
a dependency upon themselves. They want to create a dependency 
upon their church structure. They want to create a dependency 
of priestcraft or whatever it may be. There are some out there, 
brethren, that really want to distort the Gospel. I say we've 
got it all wrong when we look to heroes today. This is a hero. This is a hero battling for the 
truth. A hero battling for the souls 
of men. I mean, we think that a noble 
thing, if a man gets all dressed out and gets all equipped and 
he goes to another country on a rescue operation of some sort. 
And he is. That's a heroic deed. But it's 
quite heroic as well to write an epistle that many are going 
to oppose, and many are going to try to drag your name through 
the mud, and many are going to scoff at you, and many are going 
to say, oh, he doesn't really care about you, for the truth 
of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for the salvation of sinners. 
You see, you might get a lot wrong in your Christianity. I 
get a lot wrong in my Christianity. Every Christian who has ever 
lived gets a lot wrong in their Christianity. But the one thing 
that we cannot get wrong, the one thing that binds us to Matthew, 
that binds us to Calvin, that binds us to Luther, that binds 
us to Toplady, that binds us ultimately to Paul, is the Gospel 
of Jesus Christ. If we get that wrong, Paul says, 
let the anathema of God be upon him. I know it's translated here, 
a curse. The word is used often in the 
Old Testament. It has the idea of being devoted 
to destruction. God would tell the people of 
Israel to go into a particular city, to raze the city and to 
leave things there. Don't take the spoil out of it. 
It's devoted to destruction. It is consigned to damnation. Paul uses this word not frequently, 
seldom in the New Testament, but in each instance it's powerful. 
He pronounces it upon himself in Romans 9. He said, if it were 
possible that I could be anathema, separated from Christ for the 
sake of my own countrymen, I welcome that. That's a compassion I don't 
know anything about. He says that if it were possible, 
I would take the anathema of God Most High for the sake of 
my countrymen. Can we say that about Canadians? Can we say that 
about Americans? Can we say that about Haitians 
or Chileans? Can we say that about anyone 
other than ourselves? And yet Paul in Romans 9 says, 
I tell the truth, I'm not lying. I have continual grief in my 
heart. He had been to enough synagogues, he had preached the 
Savior enough times to see him reject it. Paul said, I could 
wish that I myself were cursed from God for the sake of my kinsmen. He uses it there. He uses it 
in 1 Corinthians 12. Nobody by the Spirit of God says Jesus 
is a curse. No one by the Spirit of God says Jesus is anathema. He says in 1 Corinthians 16.22, 
if anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. Let him be anathema. Let him 
be devoted to destruction. I submit the imprecatory Psalms 
of David are a walk in the park compared to 1 Corinthians 16.22. You know, you read about David 
saying, God, smash the teeth of my enemies, who were God's 
enemies. You see David say, the righteous 
will dance in the blood of the wicked. You say, wow, that's 
pretty strong, pretty powerful. Paul says, if anyone does not 
love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema. Let him be a 
curse. Let the wrath of God fall upon 
him. And then he uses it here for 
those who despise, who reject, who distort and twist the Gospel 
as subtle as it may be. I don't believe these Judaizers 
for a moment were coming in and denying the person of Jesus Christ. 
Their beef wasn't with Jesus dying on the cross and rising 
again. They weren't denying those Christian 
doctrines that we love. They were subtly adding a work 
to faith. And I know the temptation for 
some of us is to say, what's the big deal? Well, the big deal 
is simply this. Grace and works are mutually 
exclusive. If we are saved by a combination, 
then we have a cause to boast before God. God will have none 
of that. Salvation is of Him and through 
Him and to Him. Salvation is all about the Lord 
God Most High. John will learn this lesson well. 
Salvation is of the Lord. We need to learn that lesson 
well. We need to appropriate it. We need to bless God that 
by His grace, He pardons all of our sins and He imputes righteousness 
to us. The righteousness of Jesus Christ. Not because we earn it. Not because 
we are good. Not because we have merited. 
because God in His mercy and grace has saved us. A second 
doctrine or a specific theme in this epistle is justification 
by faith alone. You can't miss it. And as we 
look at justification by faith alone, we'll see it in coordination 
with the law and the place of the law and the gospel and all 
those particulars. Galatians 2, 14-21, Paul very 
clearly highlights that this is Biblical. We are not justified 
by works. We are not justified by a combination. He says in verse 16 of chapter 
2, 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. Very clear. Very obvious. It's very pertinent, very much 
appropriate to our time in church history that we get an accurate 
understanding of justification by faith alone. This is one of 
those principles that's parentally under attack. It's one of those 
principles of the gospel that people don't like. We want to 
contribute. There's something in us that 
wants a pat on the back. There's something in us that 
wants some congratulations. We want to be wiser. We want 
to be smarter. We want to be better. We want 
to be more respectable than the next guy. The Gospel is the great 
leveler. Justification by faith alone 
puts us all before a holy God. I love what Murray said. I came across this quote recently 
in his exposition, his commentary on Romans, and I thought it was 
very appropriate. He says, justification by works 
always finds its ground in that which the person is and does. You see, let's just suppose for 
a moment that belief on the Lord Jesus is good, but that when 
we add circumcision, we're believers, we're saved, we're going to heaven. 
What's going to be the differentiating and aiding factor on the day 
of judgment? Oh, those wretched Gentiles, 
they all believed, but they weren't circumcised. You got circumcised. You went the extra mile. Physically. You went all the way. Justification 
by works always finds its ground in that which the person is and 
does. It is always oriented to that 
consideration of virtue attaching to the person justified. Get this, please. If you don't 
get it, tell me later. I'll write it out and hand it 
to you. Actually, I'll email it to you. The specific quality 
of faith is trust and commitment to another. It is essentially 
extra-spective. We all know what introspection 
is, don't we? You've all heard of that. He's 
an introvert. He always looks at himself. Then there's the 
extrovert. He's always looking at everybody 
else. Sometimes in practice, some of us want to be alone. 
Others of us never want to be alone. We've got introverts. We've got extroverts. He says that justification by faith is 
essentially extra-spective. In that respect is the diametric 
opposite of works. Faith is self-renouncing. Works 
are self-congratulatory. Faith looks to what God does. 
Works have respect to what we are. It is this antithesis of 
principle that enables the apostle to base the complete exclusion 
of works upon the principle of faith. It's not a matter of either, 
I want to have a little justification, I want to have a little faith, 
I want to have a little works. No, you can't be wrong here. So that's 
not fair. Yes, it is fair. Either God gets 
all the glory or you go to hell. That is fair. You look to another 
and are saved. When they all got bit by the 
serpent in the wilderness and Moses put that brazen serpent 
up and he said, look at that and you'll live. They said, I 
don't want to do that. I want to do first. I want to 
suck the venom out of my wound and then I'll live. Well, they're 
sucking the venom out of their womb. They're dead. I don't want 
to look at that brazen serpent. I've got to go to the hospital. 
I've got to go to the doctor. I've got to have some natural remedy. 
I've got to go see the homeopathy. I've got to go to this. I've 
got to go to that. Look to the brazen serpent and live. Extrospective. Look to another. That's why we 
as wretches will go to heaven. Don't you ever in your own personal 
life meet people that are far nicer than you? I do. I meet them all the time. We don't go to heaven based on 
our niceness. If we could go to heaven based 
on our niceness, then Jesus died in vain. Galatians 2.21. We go to heaven because of God's 
goodness. We go to heaven because of Jesus' 
doing. His active obedience to the law. We go to heaven because of Jesus' 
dying. His death at Calvary. We go to 
heaven because He was raised from the dead. It is all connected 
in Jesus. He is a raising serpent lifted 
up in the wilderness. To Him we look and we live. That's 
the message of the Bible. If we get that wrong, we're going 
to hell. We get that right, we're going to heaven. It's not that 
hard. It really isn't. A third ask 
book, Galatians 3 and 4, unfold and unpack and deal with in beautiful 
theological discourse, this whole doctrine of justification. I'm 
like giddy with excitement. I hope you are too. Can't wait 
to jump into this book. It is so rich theologically. 
so wonderful in terms of what it holds out concerning Jesus 
Christ and His saving work. The atoning work of Christ is 
set forth to us. We don't have to wait long. Paul 
alludes to that in Galatians 1. Galatians 1, in the very greeting 
itself, Paul says two things in his greeting to the Galatians. 
He tells something about himself, but then he tells a lot about 
his Savior. It tells a lot about Jesus. Notice verse 3, Grace 
to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, 
who gave Himself for our sins. He doesn't wait. He's not going 
to get there later. This is most important and fundamental, 
the atoning work of Christ. He gave Himself for our sins. 
God made Him a curse to redeem those who are under the curse, 
according to Galatians 3. Paul says, the life that I now 
live by faith, I live in the Son of God who what? Who loved 
me and gave Himself for me. Paul never lets the cross lose 
its power before the eyes of his readers. The moment, brethren, 
you stop looking to the cross and you look to yourself, you 
are in a bad state. You cannot get better than looking 
to the cross. You cannot be happier than looking 
to the cross. You cannot be more complete. 
And we talk a lot about that today. Fulfillment in the Christian 
life. Completion in the Christian life. 
Add this to your Christian life. Look to Christ for your Christian 
life. Look to Jesus. Not as what one 
man calls a therapeutic deism that is operative in evangelicalism 
and Reformed circles today. A therapeutic deism. We want 
God to make us feel good. We want God to make us be. No, 
we look to Christ to make us righteous. That's what's important. That's what matters on the day 
of judgment. That's what it's all about when we stand before 
the Christ, holy God of the universe. A fourth element, the authority 
of the Apostle Paul. Already alluded to this. We won't 
spend time here, but I do want to read a quote from John Calvin. 
He says, if this had been merely a personal matter... They're 
attacking Paul's authority. If this had been merely a personal 
matter, John Calvin says, It would have given no uneasiness 
to Paul to be reckoned an ordinary disciple. He doesn't care. I've noticed this in the gym, 
for instance. When a guy starts to work out 
and he gets a little bump of a muscle, he starts wearing tank 
tops and showing himself off and he's looking in the mirrors 
and all this sort of thing. You're like, dude, you're still 
130 soaking wet and you've got a bump on your arm. The great 
big guys wear big baggy shirts. When a guy becomes a PhD, he 
probably wants to type his name so he can put PhD, or doctor, 
whoever. The guys who have been PhDs for 
a while, they don't do that. Just little weird observations 
in the life of Jim Butler. But Paul's point is this. Paul doesn't walk around bringing 
out his identification and credentials, saying, I'm an apostle. I'm an 
apostle. I'm an apostle. I'm Dr. Reverend Paul. No, he 
doesn't do that. What people thought of Paul in 
the grand scheme of things didn't affect him. I'm sure he wasn't 
happy. I'm sure it's not nice to be 
hated or spoken against. I mean, people named their dogs 
John Calvin in Geneva, not because they were fond of the great reformer, 
but just the opposite. You call your dog John Calvin, 
that means you've got a problem with John Calvin. I'm sure he 
wasn't thrilled when he was walking down the street and somebody 
calls to their Doberman Pinscher, John Calvin, come here. I think he's right. If this had 
been merely a personal matter, it would have given no uneasiness 
to Paul to be reckoned an ordinary disciple. But when he saw that 
his doctrine was beginning to lose its weight and authority, 
he was not entitled to be silent. If you're going to do away with 
the doctrine because you attack the man, Paul's going to say, 
no, the man does have authority. Jesus has spoken to me. I received 
this by revelation. I didn't go to seminary in Jerusalem, 
but that doesn't uncredential me. When your souls are at stake, 
I'm going to tell you what God has done for me in the person 
of Christ. He said it became his duty to 
make a bold resistance. When Satan does not venture to 
openly attack doctrine, his next stratagem is to diminish its 
influence by indirect attacks. Let's just uproot Paul. Let's 
just upgrade Paul. Let's just say Paul's got issues. And then they won't listen to 
Paul. They'll listen to us. Then they'll get circumcised. 
He later says in this letter to the Galatians, they want to 
boast in your flesh. It's almost a sick fascination. 
We've got 15 people today to get circumcised. We've got 55 
people in the month to get circumcised. That sick fascination carries 
on into the 21st century. We had 15 decisions for Jesus. We want to boast in flesh. We 
want to look at what we do. We want congratulations. We want 
to love Mewaw. Paul doesn't. Paul would give 
a rip if you love him or not. Paul wants you to go to heaven 
believing that we're justified by faith alone, in Christ alone, 
by God's grace alone. That's what makes Paul happy. 
That's what he cares about. So Paul has to defend himself. And then, of course, this epistle 
deals with Christian life. Galatians 5 tells us that Christian 
liberty is the foundation for holy living. Isn't that great? Christian liberty is the foundation 
for holy living. That's what Galatians 5 is all 
about. In Galatians 6, he ends with some very practical exhortations, 
very practical instructions to the corporate body of Christ's 
people. Bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. 
He is a theology machine. And it is tempered with all that 
practical Christianity that we desperately need as well. Doctrine 
precedes the practical. The creed precedes the deed. If we don't have the creed, we're 
not going to have the proper deeds. And we see that pattern 
in the life and the ministry of the Apostle Paul. Now, by 
way of application, God willing, we'll pick up the greetings when 
we come back to this section. We'll be celebrating the Lord's 
table next Sunday morning rather than in our Sunday evening service. 
So, God willing, in two weeks we'll return to our study here 
in Galatians. Perhaps you can go home and think 
about and connect the book of Acts and Galatians and get yourself 
even more geared up for our study in this wonderful magisterial 
epistle of Paul to the Galatians. But a few things I think we learned 
before we close is the first is the battle for truth. The 
battle for truth. Paul does not play games when 
truth is on the line. In fact, in Matron's exposition, 
he spends a lot of time on the word not. He says, Paul, an apostle, 
not from men, nor through men. And he develops that. He says, 
Paul was a man who could say no. And he said, in his day, 
back in the early 20th century, that we're increasingly told 
that a Christian man doesn't condemn others. He doesn't look 
at the negatives. He doesn't look at the negatives 
in other systems. He says, that's not true. In 
order to make a positive and an affirmative declaration, we 
must point out the negatives. We must point out what we're 
not. We must show and demonstrate what we aren't in order to properly 
promote what we are. The battle for the truth rages 
on today. Brethren, we could plug in a 
whole host of things. Perhaps your mind is already 
thinking the Pelagian controversy in the early centuries of the 
church. Pelagius denied original sin. Pelagius denied that God 
in Christ saved sinners. He said, we have it in us to 
be justified. We said, that's not right. You go to the Protestant Reformation. Who were they fighting against? 
Roman Catholics. Brethren, I love Roman Catholics. 
I love my mother. She's a Roman Catholic. But the 
dogma of Rome has not changed. They still pronounce anathema 
on those who believe in justification by faith alone. And we've got 
Protestants today trying to bring those distinctions away so that 
we can have camaraderie. No. That cannot be. We can't have Christian camaraderie 
unless somebody is a Christian. They're believing the Gospel. 
There's some things very close to home today in terms of a battle 
for truth. You've probably heard us refer 
to it. You've probably heard us say the new perspective on 
Paul, the federal vision. You're probably wondering, what 
are all those things? In essence, they're an addition of works 
to faith. Now, I realize that federal vision and new perspectives 
would say, that's not true. That's not accurate. OK, we could 
debate it. We could spend time going through 
it all. But when you read everything, when you go through everything, 
when you look at the bottom line, the bottom line, That's what 
it is. But you know, there are some 
things even closer to home. I was amazed reading this in 
Machen. I think he has described so beautifully what is on us. He says, the error of the Judaizers 
is a very modern error indeed, as well as a very ancient error. 
It is found in the modern church wherever men seek salvation by 
surrender instead of by faith. I know we've heard that. Surrender 
your life to Jesus. That act of surrender could be 
construed as a work. You're to believe. Are you to 
be congratulated because you surrendered? I realize this probably 
challenges some of the delicacies in terms of theology. But when 
Paul was in Pisidian Antioch, he said everyone who believes 
in him will have remission for sins. Not surrender. Surrender comes after. A declaration 
of righteousness is made. That justification happens. And 
then, by God's grace, we surrender for the rest of our lives in 
submission to Him. He says, "...or by their own 
character instead of by the imputed righteousness of Christ." He 
says, in particular, it is found wherever men say that the real 
essentials of Christianity are love, justice, mercy, and other 
virtues as contrasted with the great doctrines of God's Word. Now, please understand what I'm 
saying and what I believe Major to say. Justice, mercy, kindness, 
love, all those things are operative and should be so. in the life 
of a Christian. But we are not saved because 
we exercise justice. We are not saved because we exercise 
mercy. We are saved by God's grace through 
faith in Jesus. It is sanctification wherein 
we work out justice and mercy and all those things. You hear 
it today. We want deeds. We want good works. We don't need to be weighed down 
with all that theological jargon. If we don't have the theology 
down, we'll never produce Christian good works. He says, these are 
all just different ways of exalting the merit of man over against 
the cross of Christ. They are all of them attacks 
upon the very heart and core of the Christian religion. And 
against all of them, the mighty polemic of this epistle to the 
Galatians is turned. Amen and amen. And this is not 
only true, brethren, this Judaizing tendency. Just allow me for a 
moment to make an application here. It's not just confined 
to a ceremonial aspect of the law of God. In other words, you've 
got to be circumcised. It's not just confined to the Roman Catholic 
system of merit. It's not just confined to those 
religious systems of thought. It can also affect us at the 
church level in terms of our custom. Our custom. What do I mean by that? Well, 
at our church, we believe the gospel, and we homeschool. At 
our church, we believe the gospel, and we go to these doctors. At 
our church, we believe the gospel, and we wear these kinds of clothes. 
We need to make a distinction between our church culture, which 
we all have. Every church, every single church 
has a church culture. Every single church. I don't 
care who they are. They've got a culture. We make a distinction 
between that culture and how a sinner is right before God. 
We are not saved because we believe and go to Free Grace Baptist 
Church. We are not saved because we believe and we go to this 
doctor. And it could be anything, any number. I think I heard years 
ago there was a debate in a church over cloth diapers versus pampers. Well, if we're going to go to 
heaven based on our response to diapering a baby's bottom, 
then I'd have to say Christ died in vain, according to Galatians 
2.21. Calvin, I think, nails this point as well. He says Jerusalem 
was at that time the mother of all the churches. That's where 
it started, remember? Day of Pentecost. Men from every nation gathered 
together in Jerusalem. What happens? They gladly received 
the Word. They were baptized. They continued 
steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine, in the breaking of 
bread, in fellowship and in prayers. What does that mean? Maybe you 
say, we're a church. The whole first section of the 
book of Acts focuses on Jerusalem. That was the first church. He 
says, Jerusalem was at that time the mother of all the churches, 
for the gospel had spread from it over the whole world. And 
it might be said to be the principal seat of the kingdom of Christ. 
Anyone who came from it into other churches was received with 
due respect. If you were in first century 
Corinth and a brother came from the Jerusalem church, you received 
him. Welcome, brother. He might have thought it was 
a bit odd. Roland Allen and his missionary 
method, St. Paul's or ours, makes that beautiful 
distinction. The difference between what the 
church in Jerusalem must have looked like and what the church 
in Corinth must have looked like. In terms of some of the periphery, 
they believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. But in terms of those 
customs, in terms of those non-essentials, in terms of those things that 
we really shouldn't lose sleep over, there was a lot of differences. 
He goes on to say this, "...but many of the Jerusalem church 
were foolishly elated with the thought that they had enjoyed 
the friendship of the apostles, or at least had been taught in 
their school, and therefore nothing pleased them but what they had 
seen at Jerusalem." The Judaizers leave from Jerusalem and let's 
go visit these new churches in Pisidian Antioch. Let's go to 
the church in Iconium. Let's go to Lystra. Let's go 
to Derbe. They start talking to some Gentile believers. The 
Gentile believers say, man, the gospel is great. I looked at 
Christ. I'm saved. So did you get circumcised? Well, no, I 
didn't get circumcised. That's what we do in Jerusalem. Everybody 
there is circumcised. You've got to be circumcised. 
That's what Moses said. Incidentally, Moses never said you had to be 
circumcised in order to be saved. He said, every custom that had 
not been practiced there was not only disliked, but unsparingly 
condemned by them. He says, this peevish manner 
becomes highly pernicious when the custom of a single church 
is attempted to be enforced as a universal law. Please get that. If somebody comes to our church 
and they're a believer in Christ, let's love them. Who cares if they do some of 
the periphery different? By the same token, I'd like to 
know that if I visit another church, they don't look at me 
suspect because I don't do some of the particular things they 
do. We're not saved by what we do. We're saved by who we look 
to. This whole idea of custom, again, 
which is in every single church. Every church has a custom. Every 
church has people that like each other and gravitate toward each 
other and do sort of the same things with each other. That's 
fine. I'm not condemning it. I think it's an impossibility 
to not have it. But it is wrong when we elevate 
that custom as a requirement, whether spoken or unspoken, to 
be saved. Well, if they would only this, 
wouldn't they be great? If they would only this, wouldn't 
they be great? In my pastoral experience, brethren, 
and in my life experience, this is one of the most difficult 
elements of church life, is everybody living harmoniously with their 
different preferences. That's why I think Galatians 
is so important. were saved by grace through faith 
in Jesus. That's the point. That's Paul's 
message. That's what Paul wants to get across. And if you don't 
know this Jesus today, the Bible is very clear. You believe on 
Him. In fact, this morning in Sunday School, in the study of 
the Confession, Pastor Cam referred to John 3, verse 36. He who believes in the Son has 
everlasting life. And he who does not believe the 
Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." 
You see, at the end of the day, in the final analysis, what is 
most important is what thinking of Christ. Are you looking to 
Jesus? John Calvin said, to believe 
the Gospel is nothing else than to assent to the truths which 
God has revealed. Believe and you will be saved. 
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. Well, 
let us pray. Our Father, we thank You for 
this epistle to the Galatians, and we look forward to studying 
it. And we pray that Your Spirit would guide us and that we would 
love Your truth, that we would buy the truth and sell it not, 
and that we would contend for it and fight for it and defend 
it and love it in our own lives, God. And may these things promote 
worship in our hearts and in our lives. May they promote true 
adoration to our great God and to the Lord Jesus Christ. And 
we pray, Father, that You would just bless our time as we fellowship 
together in the luncheon. We pray that You would bless 
this food, that You would strengthen and nourish each one of us to 
glorify and honor and praise You. And we ask through Christ 
our Lord. Amen.