Participants: Jill Morikone (Host), Pr. C.A. Murray, Pr. John Dinzey, Pr. Tom Ferguson, Shelley Quinn
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP000039A
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00:01 The Bible tells us, "In the beginning was the Word,
00:03 and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." 00:07 It says, "To receive with meekness 00:10 the implanted Word, 00:11 which is able to save your souls. 00:14 And to be diligent to present yourself 00:16 approved to God 00:17 rightly dividing the Word of truth." 00:20 Join us now for the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:25 Our study today is the Gospel of Galatians. 00:32 Hello and welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:35 My name is Jill Morikone 00:36 and we are delighted that you've taken this hour 00:39 to open up the Word of God with us. 00:41 As we journey through the quarterly, 00:43 we are on the very last lesson. 00:46 I hope you've been with us through this journey, 00:48 we have been discussing Paul's letter, 00:50 his epistle to the Galatian Church, 00:52 the Epistle of Galatian. 00:54 But if this is your first time joining us, 00:56 we are glad you joined us. 00:58 And I know that the Lord has a blessing in store. 01:00 We are studying the gospel in Galatians. 01:03 This is the quarterly put out 01:04 by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 01:06 You're always welcome to stop by. 01:08 A local Seventh-day Adventist Church, 01:10 they will give you a quarterly 01:11 and you can study with the believers there. 01:14 But if you would like to have access to it 01:17 right now or online 01:18 you can go to ABSG.Adventist.org 01:23 That stands for Adult Bible Study Guide.Adventist.org 01:29 You can download it and you can follow along with 01:31 what we share. 01:32 We are excited about the last lesson, 01:36 boasting in the cross. 01:38 And I want to introduce our panel at this time 01:40 before we go any further. 01:41 To my left is Pastor C.A. Murray. 01:43 And it's just been a joy to 01:44 journey through the Book of Galatians together. 01:46 It has, it's been fun. 01:48 It really has. Amen. 01:49 Sitting next to Pastor C.A., it's Brother John Dinzey, 01:51 and thank you so much for being here as well. 01:53 Great blessing to be here. 01:55 And, Shelley Quinn, 01:56 it's always a privilege 01:57 to open up the Word of God and study. 01:59 Oh, we've had such a... 02:01 We really gained insight from each other 02:04 I think this time and it's... 02:06 Can't wait to watch these programs over. 02:09 And sitting next to you is 02:10 Pastor Tom Fergusson of the Marion district. 02:12 And it's always a privilege and joy 02:14 to have you with us as well. 02:16 And me too, I really enjoyed being here 02:17 and being part of this. 02:19 Amen. 02:20 I, just speaking for myself, 02:22 I have learned so much about the gospel in Galatians. 02:24 Before we go any further, 02:26 we want to go to the Lord in prayer. 02:27 Pastor C.A., would you pray for us? 02:29 It would be my pleasure. 02:31 Father God, again we praise You and thank You so very much 02:33 for the privilege that is our to study the Word of God. 02:37 We are thankful for the power in the Word 02:40 and the power that can be transferred to our lives 02:43 as we consume the Word 02:45 and make it part of our daily living. 02:48 We ask, Father, again that Christ will be glorified 02:50 as we look at Paul's care for this young church. 02:54 We see Your care for Your people 02:57 and for Your Latter-day Church, 02:59 teach us so that we will know 03:01 and then embolden us and enable us to do 03:04 so that we are made like Christ Jesus, 03:06 and we thank You for Your promise 03:07 to hear and answer the prayer of faith 03:09 in Jesus' name, amen. 03:10 Amen. Amen. 03:12 As I mentioned we're studying the Epistle 03:13 to the Galatian believers. 03:15 Paul's epistle is really a letter of reproof, 03:18 a letter of encouragement, and a letter of appeal. 03:23 It's a letter of reproof 03:25 to those teaching 03:26 and those believing in justification 03:29 by faith plus works as we've discussed 03:31 if you followed the Sabbath School Panel 03:34 and the lesson study 03:35 as we've discussed from week to week. 03:37 And the Judaizers had come in 03:38 and we're teaching that salvation, justification 03:41 was by faith plus works. 03:43 And Paul makes an impassioned argument 03:46 throughout the Book of Galatians. 03:48 Coming at it from several different angles 03:51 but the argument is that justification is by faith 03:55 in Christ alone. 03:56 That is where our salvation lies. 03:58 He also gives a letter of encouragement, 04:01 an encouragement that having begun in the spirit, 04:04 we are to continue in the spirit... 04:07 And not fall back to those works of the flesh. 04:10 It's a letter of encouraging us in justification by faith 04:14 and the work of the spirit in our lives 04:16 as we saw in Galatians 5, 04:18 "The work of the spirit 04:19 as opposed to the work of the flesh." 04:21 And finally it's a letter of encouragement 04:24 about the centrality of the cross. 04:27 The center focus of the cross is everything 04:30 we believe as Christians, 04:32 as brothers and sisters in Jesus. 04:35 And it's also a letter of appeal. 04:37 You look at the Old Testament books 04:39 and some of the major and minor prophets 04:42 and their passion, 04:44 and appeal for God's people who were turning away from God, 04:47 who were walking in their own devices, 04:51 in their own choosing. 04:52 And they appeal to come back to God, 04:55 I think one of my favorite passages 04:57 in the Old Testament Ezekiel 18, remember he says, 05:01 "Repent and turn again to me for why will you die." 05:06 And that's what Paul is doing really 05:08 to the Galatian believers, 05:10 it's an impassioned appeal 05:12 and sometimes it's a little strident 05:14 but it is an impassioned appeal 05:16 to come back to the centrality of the cross 05:18 and that's what we look at, 05:20 we have the last eight verses 05:21 to discuss today of Galatians 6. 05:23 Let's read our memory text together. 05:25 We are in Galatians 6:14. 05:31 "But far be it from me to boast 05:34 except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, 05:38 by which the world has been crucified to me, 05:42 and I to the world." 05:45 On Sunday's lesson, we look at Paul's own hand. 05:48 Really what we're looking at is Paul's closing remarks. 05:52 And the similarities and differences 05:54 between his closing remarks 05:56 in the epistle to the Galatian believers 05:58 as opposed to the other churches 06:00 that he wrote his epistles too. 06:03 There's certain common elements in Paul's closing remarks. 06:07 He usually gives a greeting to specific individuals. 06:11 He gives a final exhortation, a personal signature, 06:15 he signs it himself and a closing benediction. 06:19 Now I have here, it seems like the first program 06:21 when we began I pulled out Greg's letters for salutation, 06:25 but now I'm pulling them out for the closing of them. 06:28 So I want to take a look at this, 06:29 this is a letter he wrote to me in 1999, 06:33 we were just kind of friends, Pastor C.A., at that point 06:37 and the letter closes like this, 06:39 "Have a great day with Jesus." 06:41 That's a good close. That is a good close. 06:43 That's a fairly... Little antiseptic to me. 06:47 It's just a fairly, neutral close, 06:51 couldn't you say that's a neutral close. 06:53 Now this one was in 2001. 06:56 And the close for this one is a little different. 06:59 It says, "Have a great day with the Lord." 07:02 Now that's similar to the other close. 07:03 Then it says, "I think about you a lot, 07:06 looking forward to seeing you in a few days." 07:09 Now you can see the difference in the close from the letter 07:12 I got in '99 versus this letter in 2001. 07:16 Now I'm going to read you one... 07:18 Progress. 07:19 Progress, that was progress, that's right. 07:21 The final letter I'm going to show, 07:23 this is in 2002. 07:25 And it says, 07:27 "You are so very special to me, I miss you with all my heart." 07:32 And so you see the difference, 07:35 the progression and the relationship. 07:38 And you see in Paul's epistle when he closes out, 07:41 you see almost his relationship 07:44 as it were with each one of the churches 07:46 and the members that he is writing to, 07:49 that he is appealing to. 07:50 As I mentioned there is four common elements 07:53 in Paul's epistles in how they close. 07:55 And it's interesting of all the epistles 07:58 only the Galatian believers, the Galatian church, 08:02 he does not give any specific greetings. 08:05 Now the other one, 2 Thessalonians, 08:08 he talks about the Lord be with you all. 08:11 1 Corinthians he says from the churches 08:13 in Asia and Aquila and Priscilla. 08:15 We greet you with the holy kiss, 08:18 that showing affection, 08:19 that's reaching out before them. 08:21 Romans, I think Romans takes the cake. 08:24 He greets 25 believers 08:27 in the Roman Church in Rome by name. 08:30 Twenty five different people he mentions, 08:32 and seven of his friends send greetings 08:35 to the believers there at Rome. 08:37 In Colossians, six people send greetings and he says, 08:41 "Please, greet those people" in Colossians. 08:44 Philemon, "Five people send greetings." 08:47 In Philippians, he says, 08:48 "Greet every saint in Christ Jesus." 08:52 In Timothy and Titus, the same thing, 08:55 "Greet those who we love in the faith." 08:57 Now interestingly, 08:58 Galatians does not close with any greeting 09:01 to any particularly person. 09:03 Now, I'm not a Bible scholar 09:05 so I couldn't speak for exactly 09:08 why that takes place the lesson said 09:12 that it gives a little evidence of possibly 09:15 the distance between him and the Galatian Church, 09:18 I don't know if anyone wants to chime in. 09:20 Strained relationship. 09:21 Strained relationship between him and them, 09:24 whether it came about 09:25 because the Judaizers had so infiltrated the church, 09:28 maybe turn them against Paul 09:31 and his laborers in the church previously, I'm not sure, 09:33 but it gives evidence 09:35 that there's a little strained relationship, 09:37 kind of like the first letter just says, 09:39 "I greet you in the Lord instead of I miss you so much." 09:43 There's a difference there in that." 09:45 So there is the greetings, 09:47 the lack of greeting in this Book of Galatians, 09:49 then there is the final exhortation 09:51 and we'll get into that and discuss that, 09:53 that's what our discussion is this week. 09:56 Then there is the personal signature, 09:57 let's look at Galatians 6:11. 10:01 Galatians 6:11, he says, 10:04 "See with what large letters 10:06 I have written to you with my own hand." 10:11 Now it was customary, 10:13 Paul had his letters written by a scribe. 10:16 And whether that was due to the thorn in the flesh, 10:18 if it was due to poor eyesight or something else 10:21 but he had his letters usually written by a scribe. 10:25 But interestingly all his letters 10:27 and you see that in the other epistles 10:29 if you read the closing he'll say, 10:30 see I Paul have signed with my name, 10:32 or I have written, or I have, 10:34 so at the end he would write a little postscript, 10:37 but in this case it seems like he's so burdened 10:41 for the church of Galatia. 10:42 He's so burden for what's going on 10:45 that he is writing a little PS, 10:47 a little postscript here with his own handwriting. 10:52 In the office we get a lot of different letters from you 10:55 who write it, 10:57 and any letter that comes to Danny Shelton 10:58 would cross my desk, 11:00 and we would send a letter back. 11:02 And I put the letters once they're printed on letterhead, 11:06 on Danny's desk for him to sign. 11:08 Now he comes in and he looks at them, 11:10 in many letters he signs his name Danny. 11:13 Some letters get a PS, 11:16 so there's the typewritten portion 11:18 and then he might write praying for you, 11:21 written with his own handwriting. 11:24 Or he might write, thank you or some other message 11:29 that would be at the end of the letter. 11:31 So some letters simply had the signature, 11:33 and I think some of Paul's epistles had that, 11:35 just a simple signature or Paul's signature, 11:38 but this one in particular had extra, 11:42 he was so burdened with what was going on at the church, 11:45 he shared just a little extra with the believers there. 11:50 Now we jump over to Monday, Pastor C.A., 11:53 and you have boasting in the flesh. 11:57 Picking up the trajectory that you've kind of set us on, Jill. 12:00 He says in verse 11, 12:02 "See with large letters I've written. 12:04 This is, I'm writing with big letters 12:07 because I really have a burden for you." 12:10 One of the things we see in Chapter 6 12:14 as he's coming down to the close of this letter 12:17 Paul, if I can use this term is kind of in there pitching 12:20 right to the very end. 12:21 You know, he's pressing his point forward. 12:26 All of us here are church officers. 12:30 Couple of pastors, all of us are certain church boards. 12:33 You know, when you're dealing with church issues, 12:37 there's never really one issue, 12:39 there's always layers and text and subtext. 12:42 And you know, and when, when you, 12:45 pastor comes and someone gives you a story, 12:47 you kind of want to hear the other part of the story 12:49 before you make a decision. 12:51 You know, because you can, 12:53 you need to know that dealing with human beings 12:55 is never really that linear, that simple, 12:58 it can be very, very complex. 13:01 Paul here as we come down to the end, 13:03 it's kind of letting us know that this, 13:05 this is a complex situation, 13:07 this is a multilayered, multifaceted situation 13:11 that he is wrestling with. 13:13 And so I'm going to read verses 12 and 13 13:16 from the amplified version, 13:18 because it gives a nice culture of what we're dealing with. 13:21 He says, "Those who want to make a good impression..." 13:25 The New King James says good showing in public, 13:29 and then amplified adds before the Jews, 13:32 "Try to compel you to be circumcised, 13:35 just so they will escape being persecuted for faithfulness 13:40 to the cross of Christ. 13:42 For even the circumcised..." 13:44 The amplified adds the word Jews, 13:46 "Themselves do not really keep the law..." 13:50 The word really is added, 13:51 "But they want to have you circumcised 13:56 so that they may boast in your flesh..." 13:59 And then this is what is added, 14:00 "That is the fact that they convinced you 14:04 to be circumcised." 14:06 So if, and the lesson says that there may be some doubt 14:10 as to their motives 14:11 in the early part of the Book of Galatians 14:15 because it's kind of alluded to in Galatians 1:7 and 4:17, 14:22 where Paul says, "They want to pervert your religion." 14:26 Or 4:17, where he says, 14:30 "They want to court you for no good." 14:33 You still may come away with the idea that, well, 14:36 circumcision was something they really believed in, 14:40 this is a benign kind of thing, they want you to do well, 14:44 circumcision is important to them, 14:47 so they want you to enjoy this right. 14:50 But here Paul, he's getting to the close now, 14:53 I don't have time to dance with you or allude the things, 14:55 I'm telling you that this is not good for you, 14:59 this is not something that they want for your good, 15:02 they're doing it for two reasons. 15:03 One, they want to be able to say 15:06 we got you to be like us. 15:07 Yes. 15:09 You know, not to be like Christ, 15:10 we got to do what we want. 15:12 And two, the subtext is that there were those 15:18 who came from Jerusalem, the Judaizers really want to, 15:24 and I'll use this term, I'll invent the term here, 15:26 Jewishish your Christianity. 15:29 They wanted to Jewishish your Christianity. 15:32 They wanted you to be as close 15:34 to what is comfortable for them as possible 15:37 because they know one that the cross is an offense. 15:40 So let's try to work our way around that, 15:43 let's kind of massage that a little bit. 15:45 And then two, Judaism was religio licita, 15:51 it was a recognized religion in Rome, 15:53 it wasn't celebrated but at least it was tolerated. 15:56 Yes. Christianity is religio illicita. 16:00 So let's try to stay in good standing 16:03 with the legit religion 16:04 so that we minimize the discomfiture 16:08 of being part of this new religion. 16:09 So you've got all this subtext, none of them are good. 16:13 And Paul is saying, 16:14 "None of these are for your benefit, 16:16 they're looking out for themselves. 16:18 They're not looking out for you, 16:19 they're not looking out for your spiritual growth, 16:21 they're just trying to have as little discomfiture 16:26 as possible for them." 16:27 So they can kind of keep you close to classic Judaism 16:31 than it's to their benefit 16:33 because one they don't have to deal with the cross, 16:35 and two, we don't have to deal with all of this Roman stuff 16:38 because your religion is illicita and not excepted. 16:44 The words he uses, I like this idea that, he says, 16:50 "They're doing this to try to make a good show 16:52 or a good impression." 16:55 The King James says, "A fair show", the lesson says, 17:00 it's kind of like putting on a mask 17:02 and looking at the Greek 17:04 as I was sort of playing with it this morning, 17:06 the idea is that they're trying to put on a smiley face. 17:09 You know, they're trying to put a little smiley face 17:12 on this thing. 17:13 So that the world will look at them positively, 17:15 and of course the world here is the other Jews 17:18 who are part of this. 17:19 So Paul is saying, "The deal is that it's not for your good, 17:26 they're really looking out for themselves." 17:28 And of course Paul contrasts this by begging the point, 17:32 I'm looking out for your spiritual good. 17:34 Yes. 17:35 I'm looking out for your growth, 17:36 I'm looking out for your security 17:38 where as they are looking out for themselves. 17:45 There's something I want to look at just in closing 17:49 here that the lesson says, and I want to find it. 17:54 While you're looking, I'm just going to say one thing, 17:56 remember the Judaizers came down "from James", 17:59 it doesn't mean James sent them but that because it just means 18:04 that they came from the church in Jerusalem. 18:05 Precisely, yeah. 18:07 So this was after the Jerusalem Council in 1849. 18:10 So they knew, the Jerusalem Church 18:12 wasn't practicing this, 18:14 they knew that they had told the gentiles, 18:16 "You don't have to be circumcised." 18:19 So these Judaizers were down there to stir the pot. 18:22 Precisely, precisely. 18:23 They didn't come with good intentions. 18:25 Yeah, and that's why they came from Jerusalem 18:27 and they came with that mindset, 18:28 let's try to keep things as status quo as possible. 18:30 What is interesting though, 18:33 through all of this you're in '49 or '50, 18:37 in within the next half century, 18:39 it is the Jewish community that makes the official steps 18:42 to separate themselves from Christianity. 18:44 The Christian church was really jettisoned 18:47 from the temples as opposed to walking away. 18:50 For many, many years, for most of the first century, 18:53 Christians and Jews worshiped together, 18:55 but it was the Jews 18:56 through enacting a certain part of the ceremony 19:00 that really smoked out Christians, 19:02 and by 100 AD they had pretty much separated them. 19:05 You know, so these, these attempts were kind of like 19:09 band-aid attempts and they really... 19:12 The Christian church was going to have to separate itself 19:15 if it was going to grow. 19:17 This was not just an improvement upon Judaism, 19:22 this was a whole new faith, this was a whole new, 19:24 a whole new way of looking at the world 19:26 of the acceptance of Jesus, 19:28 and if you've got a people who is rejecting Jesus 19:31 and your whole religion is built on Jesus, 19:33 you cannot coexist for much longer. 19:35 So Paul is trying to get this church 19:37 to stand on its own two feet 19:39 and realize that these attempts to Judaize you 19:42 to move you back are not for your good, 19:44 in fact they are for your detriment. 19:46 And that's what he's trying to say. 19:48 Let me just say this. 19:49 Let's look at my time, okay, "The Jewish leaders, 19:52 the Jewish religious leaders 19:53 still had significant political influence 19:55 in many areas, 19:56 they had the official sanction of Rome, 19:58 see, it was a legitimate religion. 20:01 Hence many Jewish believers were eager 20:03 to maintain good relations with them 20:05 by circumcising Gentiles 20:07 and teaching them to observe the Torah, 20:09 the troublemakers in Galatia 20:11 could find a point of common ground 20:13 with the local Jew." 20:14 So they're trying to keep the dust down for themselves, 20:17 not build up this community." 20:19 There's something I want to say before I'm gone, 20:22 and I've got so many piece of paper here. 20:28 "Whatever situation Paul has in mind, 20:31 his meaning is clear, 20:33 all who desire to live godly 20:35 in Christ will suffer persecution." 20:38 Yes. 20:39 That was true then, it is definitely true now. 20:42 Yes. And it will not change. 20:44 There was something I read the other day that said, 20:47 "Whenever we forget about love and charity 20:50 and growth in Christ, 20:52 then our religion can be used for any sort of, 20:54 any number of negative things, 20:56 it can be used to keep people down, 20:58 it can be used to keep people out, 21:00 it can be used to turn people away from God. 21:03 It can become a tool of oppression 21:06 as opposed to a tool of freedom." 21:08 And I think Paul is so strident 21:10 and so strong and risk alienating them. 21:14 He says, "I will become your enemy, 21:15 I've got to tell you the truth." 21:18 Risk alienating them 21:21 because he wants them to be on the right path. 21:23 And if I've got to be your enemy, 21:25 I'd rather risk being your enemy 21:27 than risk having you lose your way to Jesus Christ. 21:30 That's the balance I've got to tread, 21:32 and I'm willing to do that 21:33 but ultimately I want you saved, 21:35 I want you to understand that you are now in freedom 21:39 and I don't want to see you ever back in bondage. 21:41 And he's solid with it and he's secure with that 21:45 because that's his burden for this church. 21:47 You know, one of the reasons I think he was so solid 21:49 in that is because he had experienced freedom in Christ. 21:51 Precisely. 21:52 So once you have experienced something, 21:55 you want to share it with others. 21:57 Brother John, you have boasting in the cross. 22:00 Yes, we move over to Tuesday lesson 22:02 and it is entitled boasting in the cross 22:06 which at first glance, 22:09 when we think of the word boast today 22:11 sounds like a negative type of thing. 22:14 But let's look at Galatians 6:14, 22:18 in the lesson we read Galatians 6, 22:23 actually from the Bible, verse 14, it says, 22:26 "But God forbid that I should glory, 22:29 save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, 22:32 by whom the world is crucified unto me, 22:35 and I unto the world." 22:38 Now the title for Tuesday 22:39 is taken from the New King James Version 22:42 and these are the words found there, 22:45 but God forbid that I should boast 22:47 except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ 22:50 by whom the world has been crucified to me, 22:52 and I to the world. 22:54 So this idea of boasting in the cross 22:56 or glorying in the cross really is a shock 23:02 when Paul expressed himself that way 23:04 especially to the Jews for a few reasons, 23:08 and we will take a look at that as we move on. 23:13 I want to go to a scripture found in the Old Testament 23:17 and this is found in Jeremiah 9:23-24, 23:22 and I would like to ask one of the kind souls 23:25 close to me. 23:26 Jeremiah what? Chapter 9:23-24. 23:30 Sister Shelley, you look like you're near. 23:32 I'm almost there, almost there, Jeremiah 9. 23:35 Oh, Pastor C.A. has already got it. 23:36 C.A. has already got it. 23:38 Okay. Verse 23 and 24. 23:39 "Thus saith the Lord: 23:40 "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, 23:43 let not the mighty man glory in his might, 23:46 nor let the rich man glory in his riches, 23:49 but let him who glories glory in this, 23:52 that he understands and knows Me, 23:55 that I am the Lord, exercise in loving kindness, 23:57 judgment, and righteousness in the earth, 24:00 for in these I delight, says the Lord." 24:03 Thank you so much. 24:05 And so we see here in this scripture 24:07 that we are being told that 24:11 we should not glory in wisdom, nor money, 24:13 nor in any other thing, but in the knowledge 24:17 they are going to stand and know the Lord. 24:18 Yes. 24:20 So when Paul says 24:21 that he is glorying in the cross, 24:27 we have to try to get into his thinking 24:29 or understand what he's trying to say. 24:31 He's really saying that the cross helps him to see God 24:36 in a perspective unlike ever before. 24:42 Because here we have John 3:16, 24:46 it says, "God so loved the world 24:47 that He gave His only begotten Son 24:49 that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish 24:51 but have everlasting life." 24:53 The cross reminds Paul that God loved him so much 24:58 that He was willing to become a man, 25:01 Jesus became a man and died on the cross for us. 25:05 And so it is not just the instrument of the cross 25:09 that Paul is thinking about, 25:10 he's thinking about Jesus who died on the cross. 25:14 Amen. 25:15 And when Paul says that he is the chief of sinners, 25:20 he's thinking wow, for me Jesus was willing to die. 25:27 So for this reason Paul can say that he glories in the cross. 25:32 Now again to the Jews, it was a shock to hear what? 25:36 The cross, it was an offense as Pastor C.A mentioned, 25:40 it was for them, 25:42 for the Jewish mind it was an offense to think 25:44 that the Messiah on a cross crucified. 25:49 No, God forbid, because for the Jewish person, 25:54 the Messiah was supposed to restore 25:57 the people of Israel to prominence 25:59 and being on top of the world let say. 26:02 But here is Jesus that comes and dies on the cross. 26:09 This was a shock to the Jewish person 26:12 and really they did not understand 26:15 the gospel and that, 26:19 the things that was mentioned by John the Baptist. 26:22 And I usually ask myself, well, they really, 26:25 John the Baptist understand when he said, 26:27 "Behold the Lamb of God 26:29 which taketh away the sins of the world." 26:33 And so here, Paul is shocking them 26:35 by saying that he glories in the cross. 26:39 So the idea of this is shocking to the world. 26:43 And even, even to the Jewish mind 26:47 but even to the Romans, the Romans, 26:51 to them the cross itself was such a horrible thing 26:56 that it was not even lawful 26:59 for a Roman to be put on a cross. 27:02 It was so repulsive that it was not even mentioned 27:05 as a form of punishment suitable for a Roman citizen. 27:08 Oh, no, this has to be somebody else, 27:10 somebody that's not a Roman that is put on the cross. 27:13 And so I want to bring you another thought 27:16 that the Bible says, it says, 27:18 "Cursed is anyone that is, what? 27:20 Hanged on a tree. Hanged on a tree. 27:23 So when the scribes and the Pharisees 27:26 and the high priest wanted to bring Jesus to death, 27:32 they were happy that He was going to be put on the cross 27:34 because to them it was a message to all the Jews, 27:39 this man is so bad the He's being hung on a tree. 27:43 This man is so bad that there's no hope for Him, 27:45 He's cursed. 27:47 And so that was a message 27:50 that the leaders were trying to bring to the Jews, 27:54 don't follow this man, he's cursed of God. 27:58 And so to them it was a shock, the cross, 28:01 but today you see people there, 28:05 if you drive a few miles north of here on 57, 28:09 there's a monument and there's a big large cross. 28:12 That's right. 28:14 I think they call it Bald Knob Cross 28:16 and it's lit up. 28:18 We're not to worship the cross by the way. 28:21 We're not to worship the cross 28:22 but to remind us that a Savior came and died on the cross, 28:27 that is Jesus Christ. 28:28 And so when I think of what Paul says 28:32 that he glories in the cross, 28:36 I am reminded what he says in Romans 1. 28:40 Romans Chapter 1, 28:41 and I'd like ask a sweet kind loving Christian near me 28:47 to read Romans 1:16-17. 28:51 And who would do that for us, please? 28:53 Who fills up to that categories qualify. 28:56 Pastor Tom, please. 28:58 Hey, you want me to read Romans 1 verse, what? 29:00 Sixteen. Sixteen and seventeen. 29:01 Okay. 29:03 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, 29:04 for it is the power of God the salvation for every one 29:07 who believes for the Jew first, and also for the Greek. 29:11 For in it the righteousness of God 29:14 is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, 29:16 the just shall live by faith." 29:19 Thank you so much. 29:20 So we see, I am reminded of this one. 29:22 Paul says, I glory in the cross 29:24 because he's not ashamed of what Jesus did for him, 29:28 he glories in the thought 29:31 that Jesus was willing to die for him. 29:35 And so for me this is a powerful, powerful message 29:38 that Paul is bringing out that he glories in the cross 29:41 and whom died on the cross, 29:43 who died on the cross, that is Jesus Christ. 29:46 And I want to bring out another thought here 29:48 before we end and that is the last part of this verse. 29:53 I will read again, 29:54 "But God forbid that I should glory save 29:56 in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." 30:00 He doesn't separate the cross from Jesus 30:02 when he's saying he glories in the cross 30:04 is because of Jesus. 30:06 "By whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." 30:11 This is connected by what he says, 30:13 to what he says in the first part. 30:15 So what is the difference? 30:16 What difference is the cross making Paul's relationship 30:19 to the world, to him he says, the world is crucified unto me. 30:25 Amen. 30:27 He was not attracted by the world, 30:28 he was not attracted anymore to reach a high position 30:31 in the hierarchy of the Jewish structure. 30:34 Amen. 30:35 He was... 30:37 He had crucified the world and the things of the world 30:40 and the desires of all the world. 30:43 So I would like to go to 1 John 2, for this. 30:47 In 1 John 2, we have a message 30:52 that we need to bring out 30:53 before my time is over in this one. 30:56 In 1 John 2, we're going to read verses 15-17. 31:01 1 John 2:15-17, "Do not love the world 31:05 or the things in the world. 31:07 If anyone loves the world, 31:08 the love of the Father is not in him. 31:10 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, 31:13 the lust of the eyes, 31:15 and the pride of life is not of the Father 31:17 but is of the world. 31:18 And the world is passing away and the lust of it, 31:22 but he who does the will of God abides forever." 31:26 Amen. Amen. 31:27 And so, for Paul, the world is crucified unto him. 31:33 So he looked, looked at this that way 31:36 because as we read the lust of the flesh, 31:38 and the lust of the eyes, 31:40 and the pride of life is not of the Father 31:41 but is of the world. 31:42 And the one that remains is God. 31:45 And so I see Paul saying that he glories in the cross 31:49 because it reminds him that Jesus died for him. 31:53 And I think most of us can identify with Paul 31:56 when he says, "I am the chief of sinners," 31:58 and to think that for us Jesus was willing to die. 32:01 Amen. 32:03 It's something that we should rejoice in 32:04 and when he says, I glory in the cross, 32:07 is that he rejoices, 32:08 he's happy to know that Jesus died for him. 32:11 Amen. Amen, amen. 32:12 You know, I'm so glad 32:14 that we have this epistle to the Galatians 32:16 because I know it straighten them out 32:18 but it, it helps I mean, it helps us so much. 32:23 And nobody else in his own handwriting, 32:25 this is some of my favorite. 32:27 You know, and I have to ask what Paul has written here 32:30 from verse 11 to 18, 32:32 it's so incredible in Chapter 6. 32:34 So as you just focused on, 32:36 Johnny, we saw that in verse 14, 32:40 he's emphasizing the cross of Christ as the greatest, 32:44 most important essential element, 32:48 the foundation of Christianity. 32:50 Amen. 32:51 But now he goes on to verse 15, 32:54 and now he is going to emphasize 32:56 the second fundamental tenet 32:59 that he is promoting in this book. 33:02 And he says, "For in Christ Jesus..." 33:05 I'm in Galatians 6:15, 33:08 "In Christ Jesus, neither circumcision 33:12 nor uncircumcision avails anything." 33:16 I mean, he's basically saying circumcision 33:19 by itself is irrelevant. 33:20 And you know, throughout this whole epistle, 33:23 he's used really strong language against it 33:27 but he doesn't want... 33:29 I think he doesn't want the Galatians to conclude that, 33:32 it's more pleasing to God to be uncircumcised 33:36 than it is to be circumcised because he's saying, 33:38 "Hey, this isn't what matters, you know, don't, 33:41 we can just be just as legally legalistic 33:44 about we do is what we don't do." 33:47 So true religion is not an external behavior. 33:52 What he says here is, 33:54 "Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision 33:57 avails anything in Christ Jesus..." 34:00 But now he's gonna say what it's all about, 34:04 "But a new creation." 34:07 Hallelujah. 34:10 You know, I think back to what Jesus said 34:13 to the Pharisees when He told them, 34:17 you're nothing but a whitewashed tomb. 34:20 In other words, externally they obeyed all these laws 34:24 and all the rabbinical laws, 34:26 and they seem so pious and wonderful. 34:28 But Jesus said, "You're whitewashed tomb, 34:31 you look good on the outside 34:33 but you're full of uncleaned dead men's bones 34:37 on the inside." 34:38 So true religion is a condition of the heart, 34:43 it's a total transformation to become a new creation, 34:47 so what does that mean? 34:50 Let's look at 2 Corinthians 5:17, 34:54 2 Corinthians 5:17. 34:57 Amen. 34:58 If he's saying that when we live in union with Christ, 35:02 nothing else matters that would, 35:03 but that we become a new creation. 35:05 So, Johnny, why don't you read 2 Corinthians 5:17? 35:09 Oh, thank you very much. 35:11 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, 35:14 he is a new creature." 35:16 Creature or creation is used in some. 35:18 "Old things, wonderful news, old things have passed away, 35:22 behold, all things have become new." 35:25 Hallelujah, this is something I claim all the time 35:27 as an affirmation I speak that over myself, 35:30 and also I thank you Father that I, 35:32 because of You I'm in Christ Jesus, 35:33 thank you Father, that I am a new creation, 35:37 and thank you that the old things have passed 35:39 and the new things have come. 35:41 And you know what? I don't always feel that way. 35:43 Sometimes I feel like the old still hanging around, 35:46 but I'm going by faith. 35:47 See human effort cannot achieve this idea of a new creation. 35:54 This is the divine act of God. 35:56 It is when the Holy Spirit breeze, 35:59 God breeze on you and there's this regeneration 36:03 by the Holy Spirit. 36:05 He breeze spiritual life into someone 36:07 who is spiritually dead. 36:09 And you're justified by faith 36:12 and it's more than just 36:13 changing your record books in heaven. 36:15 What happens is you're completely changed 36:18 from the inside out because he is beginning, 36:21 I mean, you died to the old nature, 36:24 anyway I always say, 36:25 justification is a legal process, 36:27 it's changing the record books, 36:29 but we've got to realize this new creation thing 36:32 is that now you're being sanctified as well. 36:37 So when we're changed from the inside out, 36:41 it's death. 36:42 You know, Paul says, 36:44 "I've been crucified to the world." 36:45 He's saying, "Through Christ Jesus, 36:48 I have died to sin, 36:50 I've died to the world, to the lusts of the world, 36:53 the world's dying to me." 36:54 And I just want to ask you, 36:56 and I ask myself this all the time, 36:58 so I'm not pointing fingers. 37:00 If I pointed a finger toward anybody there 37:03 before pointing back toward me. 37:05 But the point is, are you crucified to the world? 37:10 Is the world crucified to you? 37:13 I ask myself this all the time. 37:15 You know, people get so attached 37:18 to worldly television programs 37:20 that they probably shouldn't even be watching. 37:22 I heard a good group of Christians 37:24 they were not from our church, 37:26 I was in a doctor's office 37:27 and they were talking about 37:29 how they had to get home to see... 37:32 Something. 37:33 Yeah, something, modern family is what it was. 37:35 And, and you know, things that are promoting things 37:37 that are not so godly, and it's something 37:40 that we can't let the things of the world. 37:42 The devil does something very interesting. 37:44 He will always, he doesn't hand you sin 37:48 in a brown paper bag like a garbage bag. 37:52 He wraps it up in shiny foil puts this little bow on it 37:57 and he hands you this beautiful package. 38:00 And it's nothing more than gift wrapped garbage. 38:04 But now somebody read for me please, John 3, 38:08 we'll read verses 5 and 6, John 3:5-6, 38:13 because as we die to self 38:15 and identify with the crucified Christ. 38:18 When we're being raised up again, 38:21 new life is being communicated to us 38:24 through the spirit and the word. 38:26 C.A., John 3:5-6? 38:28 John 3:5, Jesus answered, 38:30 "Most assuredly I say to you unless one is born of water 38:34 and the Spirit he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. 38:38 That which is born of flesh is flesh 38:41 and that which is born of spirit is spirit." 38:45 So becoming a new creation 38:47 begins with being born of the spirit. 38:49 I'm going to read Titus 3:4-7, I've got to get this in here. 38:54 Titus 3:4-7. 38:59 And what Paul writes to Titus is this, 39:03 "When the kindness and the love of God 39:05 our Savior toward man appeared, 39:08 not by works of righteousness which we have done..." 39:10 There's nothing we can do to save ourself. 39:13 "But according to His mercy He saved us, 39:16 through the washing of regeneration 39:19 and renewing of the Holy Spirit..." 39:22 This is a spiritual cleansing. 39:25 This is God's divine action initiated by the Holy Spirit. 39:29 He says, so the washing of regeneration 39:33 that, that means new birth, 39:35 it's through the spiritual birth 39:38 and the renewing of the Holy Spirit. 39:40 "Whom He poured out on us 39:42 abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 39:45 that having been justified by His grace 39:48 we should become heirs 39:51 according to the hope of eternal life." 39:54 So when you're a new creation, 39:56 you're born again by the Spirit of God, 39:59 but the word plays an important part 40:03 because James 1:18, James says that, 40:08 "Of God's own will, 40:09 He brought us forth by the word of truth." 40:14 And then in 1 Peter 123, 40:16 Peter tells us that we have been born again 40:19 not of corruptible seed... 40:20 Yes. 40:22 But incorruptible through the living 40:24 and enduring Word of God. 40:27 And then in Ephesians 5:25-26, 40:32 Paul writes that, 40:34 "Christ loved the church and He gave Himself for her 40:38 that he might sanctify or set her apart from evil. 40:43 And cleanse her with the washing of water 40:48 by the word. 40:50 So when we become a new creation 40:53 and we're born again we, 40:56 you know, 2 Corinthians 130 says, 40:58 "Christ is our wisdom from God, He's our sanctification, 41:01 our justification, He is our righteousness, 41:04 our redemption." 41:05 We're just, we're sanctified the Bible says, 41:08 by His blood, by His body. 41:10 It says, "The Father sanctifies us, 41:12 says the Holy Spirit sanctifies us unto obedience." 41:15 The Holy Spirit works to sanctify us, John 17:17, 41:19 Jesus said that, "Oh, Lord sanctify them by Your truth, 41:22 Your word is truth." 41:23 Amen. 41:25 So He is working to sanctify us, 41:28 He's washing us by the water of the Word. 41:31 So this is, we've got that washing of regeneration. 41:36 And that's what baptism is symbolic of 41:40 when we've been born again, we've been washed 41:42 by the Holy Spirit this regeneration, 41:44 that's what baptism symbolic of. 41:47 But then the renewable of the Holy Spirit 41:49 is it he takes the Word of God 41:52 and he's constantly washing us by the water of that Word 41:56 to sanctify us and to keep us pure and clean. 42:00 So I don't have time for the rest of my notes, 42:03 but it's just such a wonderful thing 42:06 to be a new creation in Christ. 42:08 You have to accept it as Romans 4:17 says, 42:11 "God calls things that are not as though they already were, 42:14 he's the God that gives life to the dead." 42:16 You've got to believe, 42:18 this is God's testimony about you. 42:19 You're a new creation in Christ Jesus, 42:22 and do not ever let the devil convince you otherwise. 42:27 Amen. Amen. 42:28 Wow, final remarks, can we believe it? 42:32 Final remarks I had 14 lessons 42:35 before you have the final remarks, 42:37 Jill, for us tonight today. 42:40 You know, as we went through the panel 42:42 all I could think about 42:43 is how Paul was forging new ground. 42:46 Yes. 42:48 He talked about the culture of the Jews, 42:50 the culture in Rome and how Judaism was accepted, 42:56 but then there was a season 42:57 where Rome tolerated Christianity 43:00 because it was tied to Judaism. 43:02 And eventually they were out on their own 43:05 because it was a unique path, 43:07 a new trail that was being blazed. 43:09 And Paul received kick back and persecution all the time 43:14 as a result of being faithful to the call. 43:17 And I think individual in our lives, 43:19 there's that kind of a call to something new 43:21 and different in our lives that sometimes people 43:24 that were closed to us need to become acquaintances. 43:27 We need to align ourselves with people 43:29 that are thinking in the same manner. 43:31 But I'm also thinking about, 43:33 in Adventism maybe there is a call 43:36 which is a remnant call, 43:38 which would be that fourth angel 43:41 that God is calling individuals 43:42 like he did to Apostle Paul to forged the way. 43:44 I know there are some that are actually doing that, 43:47 that we have in our, in the Adventist faith. 43:49 And, but I want us to turn back to Galatians 6. 43:58 And I have the last few verses which kind of sum up, 44:03 finish up this letter here and it says in verse 16, 44:06 "And as many as walk according to this rule." 44:09 Now, when you see that word rule 44:11 in the original language, 44:12 we're looking at, it's a standard, 44:14 it is a measuring rod, 44:15 it is something that he's trying to get the point 44:18 across as it's been mentioned by the panel. 44:21 There is an influence that the Judaizers 44:24 are having in the church, 44:26 and Paul comes and goes or he's writing letters, 44:29 his influence is only so go so far 44:32 in each and every church. 44:33 You know, pastors know that experience, 44:35 there are influences in the local church 44:37 and the pastor has so much influence. 44:39 And if there are these divisions taking place 44:42 or someone is in a works program they're trying, 44:44 they have an influence on a percentage of the members. 44:47 I hear Paul saying, this is where I stand, 44:50 this is where I want, 44:52 this is the rule that I live by, 44:53 this is the rule that Christ lived by, 44:55 this is the rule that we all need to follow 44:57 as he's closing this up. 44:59 And he's saying, "Peace and mercy be upon them." 45:02 So he's speaking of blessing on them 45:04 if they follow that rule, 45:07 and upon the Israel of God which is a spiritual name. 45:10 Yes, amen. 45:12 Which means what, wrestle with God and prevailed, 45:13 right? 45:14 You think of Jacob. 45:16 And what is it that they are to obey? 45:19 We read it before in verses 14 and 15, 45:22 but I want to do it again. 45:23 "But God forbid," verse 14, "that I should boast 45:26 except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." 45:28 Amen. 45:29 By whom, by the way Paul had a lot of gifts, 45:32 he had a lot of ability, 45:34 he could have been building a franchise 45:36 of any kind around the world 45:38 because he had the goal, 45:39 he had the ability, he had the intellect, 45:42 he understood the Jewish culture, 45:44 he understood Roman culture, 45:45 he understood how to interact in the world, 45:48 but his cause was for Christ. 45:49 Amen. 45:51 And so with that strength God is using this man, 45:54 by whom the world has been crucified to me. 45:57 The only way he can be an effective witness 45:59 is if the world, 46:01 he was dead to the world 46:02 and no longer had a draw on him. 46:04 So important for all of us 46:05 and that's where God is calling us too. 46:08 And I to the world, for in Christ Jesus 46:11 there is neither circumcision 46:12 or uncircumcision avails nothing 46:14 but a new creation is what, 46:16 is what God is calling for in all of us. 46:18 I invite us to turn to in our Bibles to 2 Corinthians 4. 46:27 2 Corinthians 4:10. 46:33 And, Jill, would you read that verse for us? 46:37 2 Corinthians 4:10, 46:39 "Always caring about in the body 46:42 the dying of the Lord Jesus, 46:44 that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body." 46:48 In this verse he's saying, 46:50 always carrying about in the body 46:52 the dying of the Lord Jesus. 46:55 He's really comparing and contrasting himself 46:58 with the Judaizers. 47:00 In Galatians 6:12 which we read earlier, 47:03 it talks about the Judaizers doing what Elder C.A. 47:06 has so eloquently unpacked for us, 47:09 that the Judaizers were actually 47:11 trying to be politically safe, politically sound and, 47:15 but because Paul was not a politician, 47:18 instead he was representing Christ. 47:20 Amen. 47:21 He was carrying about in the body 47:23 the dying of the Lord Jesus. 47:24 He was experiencing that crucifixion, 47:26 that persecution that Christ went through, 47:29 that the life of Jesus also may be manifest in our bodies. 47:33 So he's doing it not only for himself, 47:35 but he's doing it for others. 47:36 You see again the spirit of the law, 47:38 loving God with all your heart, and mind, 47:40 and soul loving your neighbor as yourself. 47:42 And, of course, Galatians 2:20, 47:47 "It's no longer I who live but Christ that's living in me, 47:50 the life also we manifest in our body." 47:52 Now let's go to 2 Corinthians 11... 47:59 24-28, 48:02 do we have a volunteer? 48:05 Chapter 11? 48:06 Yeah, yeah, Chapter 11:24-28. 48:10 All right turning the page, 24-28. 48:14 "From the Jews five times 48:16 I received forty stripes minus one. 48:18 Three times I was beaten with rods, 48:20 once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, 48:23 a night and a day I have been in the deep, 48:26 in journeys often, in perils of waters, 48:28 in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, 48:31 in perils of the Gentiles." 48:33 Through 28, "In perils of the city, 48:36 in perils in the wilderness, in perils of the sea, 48:39 in perils among false brethren, 48:41 in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, 48:45 in hunger, thirst and fastings often in cold and nakedness, 48:49 besides the other things, what comes upon me daily." 48:55 Oh, yes, "My deep concern for all the churches." 48:58 I love the last part, 49:00 I threw that in there for this point. 49:02 But you know, the forty stripes minus one, 49:04 the forty stripes is from the Jews. 49:08 That had happened five times 49:10 and then three other times he was beaten with rod, 49:12 that's a Roman thing to do that. 49:14 So he had it coming from both sides. 49:17 Stoned one time they were in Lystra, 49:19 you know, and what did he do when that, 49:21 but by the way when he recovered from that 49:22 because they thought he was dead, 49:24 he went back and preached again, 49:25 that's a choleric for you. 49:28 With the mission, with the mission, 49:29 with the God's mission, 49:31 and being shipwrecked in journeys often, 49:35 in perils of water, perils of robbers. 49:37 If you travel the robbery was a very common thing 49:40 and you were actually 49:42 because he would take risks where most of us say, no, 49:44 I think I'll stay in home, 49:45 I'm not going to that neighborhood, 49:47 I'm not going there. 49:48 He went out anyway 49:50 and as a result of course the enemy attacked. 49:52 And perils of my own countryman. 49:54 So his own people turned on him 49:56 and that will happen as you follow Christ 49:59 because they don't see as a matter of fact, 50:02 which you're following is foolishness to so many 50:04 that might even be in the church. 50:06 Perils among false brethren, 50:08 weariness and toil and sleeplessness often. 50:13 One thing I've learned about this group 50:14 is weariness and toil and sleeplessness 50:16 is a common thing. 50:19 I came here and recorded last time 50:21 and I was hearing about the sleep deprivation, 50:23 I'm hearing it again, and I'm experiencing 50:24 when I work with you, I don't know what that is. 50:27 So they are pushing, 50:28 they have the pedals to the metal for this group. 50:31 And that's one of the things God calls us 50:33 to maybe not to an imbalance in life, 50:35 but at the same time to be committed 50:38 and sometimes you're going to be suffering hunger, 50:40 he, you know, he actually suffered physical hunger. 50:47 And we talked in another lesson about the idea 50:50 that instead of taking from the brethren, 50:52 he would be mending tents or making tents. 50:54 You realize that he was going 50:56 like everyone around this table is going 50:58 and then he would make tents and sell them on the side, 51:00 everything just go, go, go. 51:02 And sometimes he didn't have the time 51:03 to make the tents 51:05 and he was hungry, fastings in cold and naked. 51:08 Fastings were not the religious fastings, 51:10 these were things were, okay, 51:12 I think I'm going to be fasting now for spiritual reasons 51:15 and also for circumstances. 51:18 And he just went without, he was cold and he was naked, 51:23 and the theologians think 51:24 that maybe that's because he got robbed 51:26 and they took his clothes and there he was, 51:29 that's possible to what happened. 51:31 But just not being properly garbed 51:34 with the weather conditions, 51:35 besides the other things 51:37 what comes upon me daily in spite of all of this, 51:39 this is why I want to throw that verse in, 51:41 his deep concern for all the churches. 51:44 I'd say when God has you on a mission. 51:47 It doesn't matter what the enemy throws at you. 51:49 You first of all, if you weren't 51:51 and if God wasn't in control 51:52 you wouldn't be doing it anyway, 51:54 right, you'd be doing something else. 51:56 Amen. 51:57 And when you press on, you realize on your heart 51:59 and on your mind are those churches, 52:01 are those people. 52:02 Yes. Yes. 52:03 And as a result of that faithfulness 52:06 God with His, His man Paul, the gospel, 52:10 the true gospel was spread around the earth. 52:13 Now we know there is a remnant message. 52:15 In that remnant message is exactly 52:17 what Paul was trying to hammer 52:20 and get across to the church 52:22 that should have known and didn't get it, 52:24 it's fulfilled in Christ and Him crucified. 52:27 Amen. Amen, well said. Thank you so much. 52:30 What a joy it has been to travel 52:32 through the Book of Galatians with each one of you, 52:35 and what a joy to travel with you at home as well. 52:38 I'm going to read a quote here from Ellen White about Paul 52:42 that I really like but before I do that, 52:44 I'm going to do something maybe you should not do 52:46 when you're hosting, I'm going to put you all on the spot, 52:49 I'm going to ask you all a question 52:51 and then I'll read the quote 52:53 so you have a little time to think about an answer 52:55 and then we'll come back to the question. 52:57 The question is: I want to see 52:58 if you can summarize Paul's teaching, 53:01 this would be in your own words. 53:03 Summarize Paul's teaching 53:04 and I'm going to give you each a different teaching, okay? 53:07 This is from the Book of Galatians from our study, 53:10 Pastor C.A., I'll give you Paul's teaching on the law. 53:13 Brother John Dinzey, 53:15 Paul's teaching on justification by faith. 53:19 Shelley, Paul's teaching on the old and new covenant. 53:23 And Pastor Tom, 53:24 Paul's teaching on the work of Christ 53:27 in the believer. 53:28 So obviously we don't have much time 53:30 just 30 seconds or so for each. 53:32 But first I want to read you this quote. 53:34 This is from Review and Herald, May 29, 1900. 53:38 "Paul was a living example 53:41 of what every true Christian should be. 53:44 He lived for God's glory. 53:47 His words come sounding down the line to our time: 53:50 "For to me to live is Christ." 53:53 "God forbid that I should glory, 53:54 save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, 53:57 by whom the world is crucified to me, 54:00 and I unto the world." 54:01 He who was once a persecutor of Christ 54:04 in the person of His saints 54:07 now holds up before the world the cross of Christ. 54:10 Paul's heart burned with a love for souls, 54:13 he gave all his energies for the conversion of men. 54:17 There never lived a more self-denying, 54:20 earnest, persevering worker. 54:22 His life was Christ, he worked the works of Christ. 54:26 All the blessings he received were prized 54:30 as so many advantages to be used in blessing other people." 54:34 What a legacy is the Apostle Paul's life. 54:37 So, Pastor C.A., if you were to summarize 54:40 in a few sentences Paul's teaching on 54:42 in the Book of Galatians on the law, 54:44 what would you say? 54:46 Law, good, trying to keep law, bad. 54:49 Righteousness, good, righteousness, freedom. 54:54 Trying to keep law, bondage. 54:56 Jesus, everything. Amen, well said. 55:00 Brother Johnny, what about Paul's teaching 55:02 on justification by faith? 55:05 One of the places I would go is to Ephesians 2, 55:08 where he says, "By grace are you saved through faith 55:12 and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God, 55:14 and for Paul to say that 55:16 he had come to an understanding that was revolutionary." 55:20 Amen. 55:22 Shelley, Paul's understanding on the old and new covenants? 55:25 His understanding on the old covenant 55:26 was that it was something, 55:28 it was progressive of revelation 55:30 of what God was doing, 55:32 but it was something temporary with 55:34 it did not replace the covenant of Abraham, 55:37 it was added to 55:39 because the people had been living in bondage 55:41 and sin for 400 years. 55:43 Now, it was no longer in place 55:46 but it is the new covenant Jesus Christ 55:49 that has taken its place. 55:51 Amen. 55:52 And, Pastor Tom, 55:53 Paul's teaching on the work of Christ 55:55 in the life of the believer? 55:56 Pre conversion, Paul was a killer of God. 56:01 He was under the spell of the enemy 56:03 and he would kill anyone that followed God. 56:06 Post conversion, he was dead to the world 56:10 and alive in Christ. 56:11 Amen. Amen. Well said. 56:12 And as church members, 56:14 we need to be dead to the world and alive in Christ. 56:16 Amen. Amen. 56:17 On behalf of thank you, Pastor Tom, 56:19 Shelley Quinn, John Dinzey, and Pastor C.A., 56:22 thank you so much for sharing 56:24 not only your study of the Word of God, 56:27 but your heart for souls and your heart for ministry. 56:30 It's been such a blessing. 56:32 And we thank you for joining us. 56:33 We want to encourage you, this is not the end. 56:36 It is the end of this quarter on Galatians but next quarter 56:40 we will continue our study of justification by faith 56:44 by studying the Book of Romans. 56:46 They're studying the Book of Romans 56:48 for the fourth quarter 56:49 so we will continue this journey of justification 56:52 by faith. 56:53 I want to make a special appeal to you at home. 56:56 If you feel like you are in bondage, 56:58 if you feel enslaved to sin, 57:01 maybe you feel in bondage to the works of the law, 57:04 Christ came to set us free. 57:07 We are saved by grace through faith 57:10 and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. 57:13 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 57:17 You know that we love you and that we pray for you, 57:19 and I want to close today a little different than normal, 57:21 with the last verse from Galatians 6. 57:24 This is really the benediction 57:27 that Paul gives to many of his epistles, 57:29 "Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ 57:32 be with your spirit." 57:35 Amen. |
Revised 2024-07-02