BIG IDEA:
STAND FIRM IN THE LIBERTY TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED
Gromacki: “After the Civil War a great majority of the slaves became sharecroppers. Although they were free, they did not enjoy their freedom. In some cases they were worse off than before. Under the influence of the Judaizers, the Galatians were beginning to find themselves in a similar situation. Set free by the great emancipator of the soul, Jesus Christ, they soon were acquiescing to the demands of the legalists. The apostle wanted them to take a stand, to act like free men, not like slaves.”
(:1) THESIS OF THE EPISTLE: STAND FIRM IN THE LIBERTY TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED
A. Our Calling – To Freedom in Christ
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free”
B. Our Commitment – Stand Fast
“therefore keep standing firm”
C. Our Caution – Avoid Legalistic Bondage
“and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery”
Why do we have to constantly be vigilant and on guard against this danger?
Piper: “If you want God’s favor, there are two ways to relate to him. You can relate to him as an heir, or you can relate to him as a slave. The difference is that a slave tries to become acceptable to his master by presenting him valuable service; but the heir trusts that the inheritance of his father is his by virtue of a will that was drawn up without his earning it at all. A slave is never quite sure he has done enough to please his master and win an honorable standing in the house. A son rests in the standing he has by virtue of his birth and the covenant his father made in his will to bless his children.”
I. (:2-6) FAITH IN THE LAW CANNOT BE HARMONIZED WITH FAITH IN CHRIST
A. (:2) Faith in Christ and Faith in the Law are Mutually Exclusive
“Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you.”
B. (:3) Obedience to the Law is an All or Nothing Proposition
“And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law.”
C. (:4) Faith in the Law Nullifies Faith in Christ
1. The Profile
“you who are seeking to be justified by law”
2. The Problem
a. It Cuts our Union with Christ
“You have been severed from Christ”
b. It Casts us down from our Standing in Grace
“you have fallen from grace”
D. (:5) Faith in Christ Has its Focus on the Future Realization of Righteousness
1. The Power of this life in Christ
“For we through the Spirit”
2. The Profile of this life in Christ
“by faith”
3. The Prize of this life in Christ
“are waiting for the hope of righteousness”
Piper: ” Righteousness is a hope and not a full present reality.”
Good argument against those who would teach some form of perfectionism.
E. (:6) The Only Thing That Matters is Faith in Christ Working Through Love
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.”
II. (:7-12) STANDING FIRM REQUIRES REJECTING THE DESTRUCTIVE TEACHINGS OF THOSE OPPOSED TO THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS OF CHRIST
A. (:7) Remember How You Started Off So Well in the Christian Race
“You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?”
B. (:8) Contrast the Source of Your Calling with the Source of This New Teaching
“This persuasion did not come from Him who calls you.”
C. (:9) Fear the Cancerous Nature of Heresy
“A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough.”
D. (:10) Validate the Confidence of the Apostle Paul
1. Confident the Galatians will Stand Fast in Faith and Liberty
“I have confidence in you in the Lord, that you will adopt no other view”
2. Confident in the Ultimate Demise of the False Teacher(s)
“but the one who is disturbing you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is”
E. (:11) Consider the Credentials of the Apostle Paul = His Ongoing Persecutions
“But I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? Then the stumbling block of the cross has been abolished.”
MacArthur: “Among their other deceptions and lies, the Judaizers apparently claimed that Paul preached circumcision just as they did. Because Timothy was half Jewish, Paul had him circumcised in order to minimize criticism from Jews among whom they would minister together (Acts 16:1-3). But Paul never advocated circumcision as having any part in becoming or living as a Christian.”
F. (:12) Indulge in Some Graphic Sarcasm to Drive the Point Home
“Would that those who are troubling you would even mutilate themselves.”
Barclay: “Paul ends with a very blunt saying. Galatia was near Phrygia and the great worship of that part of the world was of Cybele. It was the practice that priests and really devout worshippers of Cybele mutilated themselves by castration. Paul says, ‘If you go on in this way, of which circumcision is the beginning, you might as well end up by castrating yourselves like these heathen priests.’ It is a grim illustration at which a polite society raises its eyebrows, but it would be intensely real to the Galatians who knew all about the priests of Cybele.”
(:13a) TRANSITION
“For you were called to freedom”