The word of God (The Bible) is such a powerful learning tool when we read it within its historical context. For so many years I have read the Bible, or parts of the Bible anyway, and read it for what was written on the page. While this is a good thing to do, there is something so much more powerful about reading the Bible through the eyes of the people who would have received it 2000, 3000, or however many thousands of years ago.
For the last few weeks our pastor has been speaking through the book of Galatians. I have just recently read through this short book myself, but I certainly didn't come up with the same line of thinking that our pastor has brought out. This is the passage that we were focusing on today.
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel-". Stop here for a moment. Paul is talking to the Jewish Christians in this passage when he is writing here. "not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." (Galatians 1:6) Here Paul is not talking about the David Koreshes or Harold Campings of the world. He is talking about the early Church, the Christians who could have quite possibly walked and talked with Jesus and saw some of the miracles He had done. Those are the people Paul is talking to in this passage. Not that it doesn't have application for us today, but it is specifically written to the Galatians.
"But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8-9)
This is quite the statement isn't it? Let anyone who preachers something that is contrary to the gospel be cursed. Paul is one dude you do not want to mess around with. Paul has always seemed like the kind of guy that isn't afraid to speak his mind and tell it like it really is and I think, rather, I know that his mindset is not on earthly things, but on eternity. Let's read on and I will get to my point. Jump ahead to chapter 2.
11 "But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party.[a] 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
Do you see what just happened in this passage? The Jewish Christians in Galatia were basically saying to the Gentile Christians in Galatia that they needed to be circumcised in order to be a "real" follower of Jesus. But Paul calls Cephas out on it and tells him and his friends at the circumcision party (I hope you caught that) that they are not in step with the Gospel. Thus I come to my point.
For my entire life I have lived with the thought that it is the Gospel plus something. The Gospel + dressing up when I go to Church, the Gospel + doing daily devotions, the Gospel + being at the church every time the doors are open. But the truth is, there is no Gospel +. There can't be the Gospel + because that would mean that Jesus death, burial, and resurrection were not enough. That Jesus death, burial, and resurrection almost got the job done, but not quite, because to be a Christian you have to __________.
I have missed this scriptural truth for so long. How could I have missed this? There is nothing more than the Gospel. It is just the Gospel. There is nothing else that needs to be done. IT IS FINISHED. The work of Jesus Christ on the cross finished it. The blood of the passover lamb was shed for the last time to cover our sins. We no longer have to continue the same routine of the Gospel + because we are free. Do you get this, we are really free from the burden of sin. The debt has been paid. There is nothing anyone can do to make God love you more than he already does and there is nothing you could ever do to make Him love you less. The transaction for the payment of our sin is finished, we don't need any cash back, and God used the little magnetic pen to push yes when the credit card reader asked "is this amount ok?" "Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, but He washed it white as snow". What an amazing truth. We are free.
For the last few weeks our pastor has been speaking through the book of Galatians. I have just recently read through this short book myself, but I certainly didn't come up with the same line of thinking that our pastor has brought out. This is the passage that we were focusing on today.
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel-". Stop here for a moment. Paul is talking to the Jewish Christians in this passage when he is writing here. "not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." (Galatians 1:6) Here Paul is not talking about the David Koreshes or Harold Campings of the world. He is talking about the early Church, the Christians who could have quite possibly walked and talked with Jesus and saw some of the miracles He had done. Those are the people Paul is talking to in this passage. Not that it doesn't have application for us today, but it is specifically written to the Galatians.
"But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8-9)
This is quite the statement isn't it? Let anyone who preachers something that is contrary to the gospel be cursed. Paul is one dude you do not want to mess around with. Paul has always seemed like the kind of guy that isn't afraid to speak his mind and tell it like it really is and I think, rather, I know that his mindset is not on earthly things, but on eternity. Let's read on and I will get to my point. Jump ahead to chapter 2.
11 "But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party.[a] 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
Do you see what just happened in this passage? The Jewish Christians in Galatia were basically saying to the Gentile Christians in Galatia that they needed to be circumcised in order to be a "real" follower of Jesus. But Paul calls Cephas out on it and tells him and his friends at the circumcision party (I hope you caught that) that they are not in step with the Gospel. Thus I come to my point.
For my entire life I have lived with the thought that it is the Gospel plus something. The Gospel + dressing up when I go to Church, the Gospel + doing daily devotions, the Gospel + being at the church every time the doors are open. But the truth is, there is no Gospel +. There can't be the Gospel + because that would mean that Jesus death, burial, and resurrection were not enough. That Jesus death, burial, and resurrection almost got the job done, but not quite, because to be a Christian you have to __________.
I have missed this scriptural truth for so long. How could I have missed this? There is nothing more than the Gospel. It is just the Gospel. There is nothing else that needs to be done. IT IS FINISHED. The work of Jesus Christ on the cross finished it. The blood of the passover lamb was shed for the last time to cover our sins. We no longer have to continue the same routine of the Gospel + because we are free. Do you get this, we are really free from the burden of sin. The debt has been paid. There is nothing anyone can do to make God love you more than he already does and there is nothing you could ever do to make Him love you less. The transaction for the payment of our sin is finished, we don't need any cash back, and God used the little magnetic pen to push yes when the credit card reader asked "is this amount ok?" "Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, but He washed it white as snow". What an amazing truth. We are free.
