Sowing Well

So, I wrote about reaping what you sowed a couple of weeks ago, but we never made it that far on Sunday morning. This week we are back on that passage, so I wanted to refresh our thoughts on the subject and go into greater detail on a verse that I had previously glanced over but hadn’t paid much attention.

The more I've studied this passage, the more uncomfortable I am preaching on it. Not because it is some complicated theological topic or a divisive doctrine but because of the right contextual subject matter of it. Read the passage and see for yourself:

The one who is taught the message must share all his good things with the teacher. Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows he will also reap, because the one who sows to his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, we must work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith. (HCSB Gal_6:6-10)

It would be real easy just to breeze right past verse six. I mean really easy. Verse 7 is such a great proverbial truth and is so easy to preach, but we can't leave out verse 6.

"The one who is taught the message must share all his good things with the teacher." (HCSB Gal_6:6)

I have to say I read this verse over and over and checked commentary after commentary just be sure because I couldn't believe what Paul was saying but sure enough, he was telling the churches in Galatia to pay their pastors. Now sure there are other lessons you could glean from this passage, but that is the verbiage that Paul uses.

Now to be clear Paul wasn't advocating six figure salaries for the elders/pastors of the church. Don’t miss Paul's primary concern in this passage; he is talking about money, but his concern isn’t the money

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What was Paul’s burden? The furtherance of the gospel. Paul knew that the God-ordained means for accomplishing this was the steady proclamation of the Word of God by faithful teachers. But these teachers would be greatly hindered if they could not take care of their daily responsibilities. He knew they would have to make their rent payment or buy feed for their donkey. Therefore, Paul is recognizing that by caring for the needs of the teacher, the church says in effect, "We want the Word of God taught faithfully and effectively, so we will help support you."

This excerpt from the Bible Exposition Commentary explains it like this:

“We must realize the spiritual principle that lies behind this precept. God does not command believers to give simply that pastors and teachers (and missionaries, Phil. 4:10-19) might have their material needs met, but that the givers might get a greater blessing (Gal. 6:7-8). The basic principle of sowing and reaping is found throughout the entire Bible. God has ordained that we reap what we sow. Were it not for this law, the whole principle of "cause and effect" would fail. The farmer who sows wheat can expect to reap wheat. If it were otherwise, there would be chaos in our world.

But God has also told us to be careful where we sow, and it is this principle that Paul deals with here. He looks on our material possessions as seed, and he sees two possible kinds of soil: the flesh and the Spirit. We can use our material goods to promote the flesh, or to promote the things of the Spirit. But once we have finished sowing, we cannot change the harvest.

Money sown to the flesh will bring a harvest of corruption (see Gal. 5:19-21). That money is gone and can never be reclaimed.

Money sown to the Spirit (such as sharing with those who teach the Word) will produce life, and in that harvest will be seeds that can be planted again for another harvest, and on and on into eternity. If every believer only looked on his material wealth as seed, and planted it properly, there would be no lack in the work of the Lord. Sad to say, much seed is wasted on carnal things and can never bring glory to God.” (Wiersbe 2003)

To whoever might actually read this, please heed Paul’s plea and care for those who teach, not out of obligation or tradition, but because you love the Word of God and want to see it spread to the ends of the earth.

What are you sowing?

See you Sunday!



Bibliography
HCSB. 2010. Holman Christian Standard Bible. Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.

Wiersbe, Warren. 2003. Bible Exposition Commentary – Be Free (Galatians). WORDsearch CROSS e-book. Colorado Springs, CO

Reaping What You Sow...

Context is so important when you read scripture. It is so easy to read a passage without proper context and thus twist the verse into something completely different than the intended meaning. You can look at passages such as 1 Chronicles 4:10 better known as “The Prayer of Jabez.” Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things” – when you look that these it doesn’t mean that God doesn’t want to bless you or that through Christ you can’t do anything you desire, but those verses in context don’t have the intent that we think they do. Another one of those verses that are so often taken out of context is found in this week’s passage in Galatians 6. Galatians 6:7b …for whatever a man sows he will also reap… I can’t tell you how many times someone has said to me trying to justify their own attitude toward someone well ya know they are gonna reap what they sow…

Well duh… Yes, in the technical sense of the use of this term you are right they will reap what they sow. BUT, and this is a big but, that isn’t what Paul is talking about in this passage.

Paul is alluding to salvation in this passage. And when you include the rest of the relevant passage and the context of the remainder of the book, the intended audience, culture, Paul’s other writings and so forth you see that Paul isn’t calling for judgment on someone.

Paul is exhorting his fellow workmen to one not give up on anyone, and two stop trying to fool God.

Matthew Henry’s thoughts on the matter while wordy are precisely on target:

The apostle here supposes that many are apt to excuse themselves from the work of religion, and especially the more self-denying and chargeable parts of it, though at the same time they may make a show and profession of it; but he assures them that this their way is their folly, for, though hereby they may possibly impose upon others, yet they do but deceive themselves if they think to impose upon God, who is perfectly acquainted with their hearts as well as actions, and, as he cannot be deceived, so he will not be mocked; and therefore, to prevent this, he directs us to lay down as a rule to ourselves, That whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap; or that according as we behave ourselves now, so will our account be in the great day.

We must be ever vigilant in our obedience to Christ that we don’t attempt to fool ourselves into thinking we are better off than we are thereby trying to fool God.

Context, Context Context…

Everything makes so much more sense when you keep it within its proper context. 

Fighting an unCivil War

From 1861 until 1865, America was torn apart by the bloodiest war in our history. Today we know it as the American Civil War, but much like the political culture today, there was nothing civil about it. The War Between the States was an uncivil war in which over 650,000 Americans were killed. To put that into persepective more American’s lost their lives in the Civil War than World War I and World War II combined (622,000 Americans died in the two world wars). It’s a miracle of God that our nation even survived that terrible war.

There is another war an internal war, and it’s not very civil either. It’s the war that rages between your two natures. Each of us has a sinful nature, we simply call it human nature. When we become a follower of Jesus, God places His Holy Spirit in our hearts, and the war begins. Our sinful nature is always pushing us toward sin, and the Holy Spirit is prompting us toward holy living.

Paul offers his readers encouragement and instruction in facing this inner civil war in Galatians 5:16-26. Look at what he says:

“I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other so that you don’t do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I tell you about these things in advance—as I told you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit. We must not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”

Some people would argue that Christians shouldn’t have any inner conflict because our old sinful nature is dead and we now have peace with God.  But the truth is, we live in a sinful world. Because of this, we face temptation.  We are not immune from this.  In fact, often times the experience of this inner conflict can be much more intense or much more evident for Believers since we have a new nature.

Paul says the result of this conflict is that “you don’t do what you want.” You see, our spiritual and renewed nature desire to do good.  But what end’s up coming out more often than not is our sinful nature which pulls the other way – take this example, you want to apologize to someone for something, but then your pride gets in the way, and you ignore it.  Our sinful nature resists everything that is spiritual, even as a Christian.  The solution? To walk in the Spirit.

In verses 19-21 Paul lists off the works of the flesh. It doesn’t make very pleasant reading. But it serves an important purpose. To convince us of the corrupt and depraved nature of man.  Remember, we live in a fallen world it shouldn’t surprise us when we see these works of the flesh around us and in ourselves as well.

Paul doesn’t leave us there though with a list of stuff not to do. That’s not the Bible’s purpose nor is it Paul’s in these verses. How do we know this? Look at the next two verses (22-23) he gives us the “fruits of the Spirit” – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. 

So, we have a pretty good picture in these five verses of what we should and should not do. These acts of our sinful nature are a description of sin; whereas, the fruit of the Spirit is a description of the work of God’s grace.

And as Paul closes out this passage reminding us that “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

Talking the talk is easy. It’s easy to say all the right things, have all the right answers. But we are not called to live an easy life, we are not to be about simply talk. We are called to walk the walk. That is why Paul said, “I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”

…Since we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit….

What does this mean for us? This means that we need to examine our lives, the way we live, the words we speak, things we do both in public and private and prayerfully ask ourselves where do they fit in the descriptions Paul has given us.

Are following the Spirit or are you following the flesh? Who is winning the inner civil war in your life today?

See ya Sunday!

Hard to Pass The Valleys

While I find, there are many blessings associated with being a Pastor there are days in which the role brings about unavoidable challenges. For me, one of those challenges is found in talking about death. This weekend I have the opportunity to speak at not one but two Celebration of Life services for longtime members of our community.  

It is hard to reconcile in our minds and our hearts the idea of celebrating a life that has been lost.  It is in moments like these, I am drawn to the words of King David in the Old Testament, Psalm 23, a Psalm written in a time of great pain and anguish. David wrote these words which you might be familiar with:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.
For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil;

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil;

Henry Ward Beecher, a pastor during the Civil War, called the 23^rd Psalm the Nightingale Psalm. He called it by this name because he said “the nightingale sings it’s sweetest when the night is darkest.”

The valley of the shadow of death literally means a “death-like shadow, or a deep shadow.”  It is a reference to all the dark and gloomy experiences of life through which we may have to travel. While this valley David speaks of isn’t limited exclusively to death, it most certainly includes it.

Now these valleys which we journey through are universal, every man, woman, and child who will ever walk this earth must walk these same paths. Just because someone is a Christian doesn’t mean they are exempt from anything this life throws at them.  Christians go bankrupt – Christians get cancer – Christians have accidents – and Christians die, just like everyone else.

Death comes to each of us. Having the Lord as our Shepherd does not grant us immunity from sorrow, it does assure us of his promises. The promise that we will be able to spend eternity with our Lord and Savior one day when he calls us home into his presence. I don’t know about you but that’s one promise I want to hold on to… 

Let's not repeat the past...

It is hard to believe that 2017 is here already! Where has, the time gone? As I sit here thinking back on the events that transpired over the past year and I look forward to the things yet to unfold over the course of the next; I am reminded of just how great our God is.

Paul did the same in Galatians 4. He steps back from his criticisms of their weakness and addresses them as brothers. Galatians 4:8-31 can be quite difficult for us to grasp yet it bears no less importance for us to understand. In this passage, we see several warnings, warning the churches to be wary of what they do and who they follow as things might not always be as they appear. The Judaizers he warns them in 4:17 are “enthusiastic for them” but not for any good reasons. Have you ever known someone who was very excited? Someone who seems very passionate about your well-being, about your beliefs? Yet, the more you learn about them you realize that they never really had your best interests at heart, they were looking out only for themselves and the things that concerned them?

This is what was going on in the relationship between the churches in Galatia and the Judaizers. Paul encourages his brothers in Galatia that it is good to be excited, it’s good to be passionate, but make sure your passions are in the right place. We should be enthusiastic for the truth.

Something else key that we see in this passage you have to back up a few verses to see it laid out for us. Looking at 4:9-11 Paul says: “But now, since you know God, or rather have become known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and bankrupt elemental forces? Do you want to be enslaved to them all over again? You observe special days, months, seasons, and years.  I am fearful for you, that perhaps my labor for you has been wasted. "

What on earth is Paul talking about? He is again expressing his bewilderment at their proclivity to wander. The Galatians were repeating the same mistakes, they were falling back into the same pattern however Paul here is addressing the Jewish special days, the elements of the Jewish faith.  The Christians in Galatia weren't Jews they were Gentiles, and yet Paul is calling these Jewish traditions “weak and bankrupt elemental forces” wow… That is a bit harsh, but it is true none the less. 

Now hear me on this, the observation of the special days, the traditions, the seasons in and of themselves are not the problem. It is the reason why they were attempting to adhere to them. They were pursuing these things with the goal of gaining favor with God. They went from pursuing pagan traditions for closeness to God to following the One True God, to following Jewish traditions... same mistakes, different approach... 

Think about it like this, Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, Pentecost, these are all important dates and seasons on the modern Christian calendar each year. Now if you were to approach any of these days or seasons with the mindset that by observing them you are gaining God’s favor you are falling into the same deception that the Galatians were in the first-century church. Take this a step further, though. Think about your daily walk. Your prayer time, your bible study, your trips to church to worship, your service at church or in the community. If you do any of these things for any other reason than to give glory to God, if you do them with the hope to make yourself more favorable in God’s eyes you are doing them for the wrong reason, and you have repeated the Galatian's mistakes.

It's not the day or the action it's the intent. Remember, God’s favor in you is not found in your performance for him. God’s favor for you is a result of the presence of Christ in you, made possible by Christ’s performance for you.

Embrace that with me this year as we grow together in our walk.

Remember it is:


Sola Gratia (saved by grace alone)Sola Fide (through faith alone)Solus Christus (in Christ alone)Sola Scriptura (according to scripture alone)
Soli Deo Gloria (for the glory of God alone) 

Sons of God

This time of year, much is made of the coming of the Christ Child and rightly so. We celebrate the birth of Jesus as we should because without the arrival of Christ mankind has serious a problem, we cannot be made right before a righteous God.

Galatians 3:26-4:7 is an amazing Christmas passage because it not only talks about the purpose of Christ’s journey it brings us into that picture. Take a look -

…for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ like a garment. There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise. Now I say that as long as the heir is a child, he differs in no way from a slave, though he is the owner of everything. Instead, he is under guardians and stewards until the time set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were in slavery under the elemental forces of the world. When the time came to completion, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!” So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Notice something the Paul does not describe us here as sons and daughters of God; nor does it describe us as more gender-neutral children of God. We see that elsewhere but this text is expressly referencing sons, and there's a reason behind that.

This isn’t a male vs. female issue either, it is not that Paul is being chauvinistic and simply ignoring the ladies in the room.

Paul has a purpose, and that is to ensure his readers knew that the ground was equal at the foot of the cross. If you think about it, more it was common in the first century, and still is very common in many cultures around the world that it is the son who receives the inheritance in a family.  

If you look back over the rest of Galatians 3 what did you see illustrated? The promise carried from Abraham to Moses to Christ. How? It was carried by an heir. Abraham's son Isaac, son Jacob, and so forth.

So, when we get to Galatians 3:26-4:7 and Paul is talking about adoption and sons, he's talking about receiving an inheritance that would be reserved for a son.

Now I’ve heard many bloggers and authors attempt to pervert this passage in recent days, but the truth of what Paul is saying is that “it doesn’t matter who you are, it doesn’t matter what your gender is, it doesn’t matter what your socioeconomic status is, it doesn’t matter what your ethnic identity is.

All that matters is this, that you are, in Christ, a son; and as a result of being a son, in Christ, you receive an inheritance.”

The pure and simple fact here Paul is being counter-cultural here because he is saying that every follower of Christ has the same rights and privileges in the family of God. Those of a son. Does not matter if you are a man or a woman, does not matter if you are rich or poor if you have placed your faith in Christ Jesus you have the rights and privileges of a son, Paul is saying that we're all in this thing together.

This is not something that is just automatic, we are not just universally sons of God. This is a privilege that we can enter into because God sent His Son so that we might receive the position of sons.

This is what we see illustrated in Galatians 4:4, "When the time had fully come, God sent his Son..." You get on later, it says, "So we might receive the full rights of sons."

What an incredible promise for us to study on Christmas morning!

I hope to see you this week in worship! If you can’t make it be sure to log on to Facebook and stream the service.

Merry Christmas! 

What's the Purpose?

One of the joys of having young kids is you are always being asked why. Why this or why that. How does this work? Why do I have to brush my teeth? Why do I have to eat my vegetables? Sometimes it can get a bit overwhelming. 

This time of year we are always talking about things like what is the purpose of Christmas? Or what is the purpose of Advent? 

The last few weeks the Apostle Paul has offered three arguments revealing the shortfalls of the Law. This week Paul offers the real purpose behind the law.

Paul starts off asking a question which I imagine was purely rhetorical in nature. He asks those in Galatia "Why then was the law given?" He knew that they knew the answer but to be certain they were all on the same page he follows it up with an explanation. 

The law was given because of sin. Sin prevented Man from having a right relationship with God, and God needed the means of making man aware of his sinfulness in which they would understand the sheer impossibility of being justified on his own. 

Paul further explains that the law was not given to give life but to reveal the confining nature of humanity on our own apart from God. Paul states that the law in a sense is our "guardian until Christ" meaning that the law is our tutor or our teacher, a legally appointed overseer, authorized to train (bring) up a child by administering discipline, chastisement, and instruction.

Why then was the law given? To reveal our need for a savior to be born and to point us to him that we might be justified before God.

Hope to see you Sunday!

Galatians 3:19-26
"Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise was made would come. The law was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator. Now a mediator is not for just one person, but God is one. Is the law therefore contrary to God’s promises? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly be by the law. But the Scripture has imprisoned everything under sin’s power, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Before this faith came, we were confined under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith was revealed. The law, then, was our guardian until Christ, so that we could be justified by faith. But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus."

Do you have a ticket to ride?

As I was in preparation for this week, I came across this illustration that fit so aptly in regards to the debate between faith and works to ascertain salvation.

I’ve heard it often said that “It doesn’t matter what you believe; it’s how you live that counts.”

Adoniram Judson Gordon, a Baptist preacher in the 1800's and founder of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, encountered this philosophy one time as he talked with a fellow passenger on a train. The man believed he could get to heaven by his good works. Pointing to the conductor who was making his way through the coach, Gordon asked his new friend, “Did you ever notice how carefully he always examines the ticket but takes no pains whatever to inspect the passenger.” The man immediately caught the significance of the question. He had just been saying that God was interested only in what we do and not in a “little bit of theological scrip called faith.”

“You see,” continued Gordon, “the passenger and the ticket are accepted together. If he doesn’t have one or has the wrong one, he will be asked to get off the train—no matter how honest he might appear to be. Just as the ticket stands for the man, faith stands for you.”

It doesn’t matter how many good deeds you do over the course of your life. In the end, if you don’t have faith the conductor won’t allow you to get on the train bound for glory.

This is what we see in the message that Paul taught in Galatians. Paul’s message echo’s what is shown throughout the rest of the Bible.

We see a lot in this week’s passage, take some time before Sunday to read it and come ready to explore its importance to our faith!

Galatians 3:15-18

Brothers, I’m using a human illustration. No one sets aside or makes additions to even a human covenant that has been ratified. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say “and to seeds,” as though referring to many, but referring to one, and to your seed, who is Christ. And I say this: The law, which came 430 years later, does not revoke a covenant that was previously ratified by God and cancel the promise. For if the inheritance is from the law, it is no longer from the promise; but God granted it to Abraham through the promise.

Redeemable Value

I have some very special collections in my office. If you come to see me, you will see my books dating back to the mid-1800's. All the Orange and Blue makes it evident where my sports allegiance lies. But there is one collection that you might miss upon first glance, and that is my
Coka-Cola bottles. In my travels on mission trips, one of the things that I always look for to bring home with is a glass bottle (or in the case of Cuba an aluminum can) of locally bottled Cola. 

Something you notice when you start looking at the glass bottles (even plastic bottles nowadays) is the detail that they provide. You get the product name and manufacturer of course. They also include the nutritional value, ingredients, often the bottling location. But there is usually one more little tidbit of information. How much that bottle is worth in redemption value to the manufacturer. 

My foreign made Cola bottles are printed in Creole, Thai, and Spanish thus it 's hard to know what their redemptive value is, however, the water bottles on my desk each are worth .5 cents each. Not very much but if you were able to collect enough of them you might be able to buy an ice cold coke. 

 In Galatians 3:13-14 Paul pens these beautifully powerful words:

"Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, because it is written: Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed. The purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith."

This is of critical importance. Because just as those bottles have a redemptive value, you and I also have a redemptive value. What is your life worth to God you might ask? 

His Son. 

It's that simple. 

Your life, my life, the eternal lives of all those who have believed as Abraham from the beginning of time till the Lord comes back to claim His bride share the same redemptive value. 

The life of His one and only Son. 


This was a price that Jesus readily paid to redeem you to the creator that you might share in the eternal blessings of dwelling in the presence of The Most High.


Knowing this should significantly impact the way in which we live our lives.  The question you have to answer is has it? 

See you Sunday!

Something to be thankful for...

As we come off the Thanksgiving holiday many people have asked the question around the table of "what are you thankful for?" Many of the answers surely included family, new jobs, new loves, new toys, the list could be endless.

In Galatians 3:6-9 Paul reminds us of something very old that we should always be thankful for. 

Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness, then understand that those who have faith are Abraham’s sons. Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and told the good news ahead of time to Abraham,saying, All the nations will be blessed through you. So those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.

Our source of justification is rooted in the covenant that God made with Abraham in Genesis 17 when he promised that ALL the nations would be blessed through him. Simply put, if we have faith in God, we have access to the same blessing of Abraham. 

If that isn't something to be thankful for this year I don't know what is.

How will you thank Him today?

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks to you, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds. 

Let our souls bless the LORD, and let all that is within us bless his holy name; yes, let our souls bless the LORD and forget not all his benefits. (Psalm 75:1; 103:1-2)

Sometimes being wrong looks better than being right...

Last week in worship we laid the foundation for JUSTIFICATION. The idea that it is the gracious act of God by which God declares a sinner righteous.

If you remember the emphasis is on the act of declaration, on the judge declaring something just or unjust, righteous or unrighteous and that this act is a point in time, not a process.

This week starting in Galatians 3:1-5 we see three important lessons illustrated:

1) Every error is the distortion of some truth
2) The cross is the central truth of Christianity
3) The highest truths are spiritually discerned

The Galatian believers had fallen into a trap; they were as Paul stated "hypnotized" with their adherence to this false gospel narrative which the Judaizers had brought up and convinced them of.

Paul was absolutely correct in calling them "foolish," they had allowed men to come in and change the gospel message from one of Christ alone to one of Christ plus all this other stuff. We must guard or hearts and our minds such that we too do not fall into the same deceptive trap of Jesus plus.

The church in Galatia fell into this trap because they wanted to be looked upon favorably by the men who had come up from Jerusalem. They wanted to in a sense for others to look at them and declare just how holy or just how righteous they appeared to be. But that feeling of self-justification and in seeking that peer-justification is what caused them such trouble in the first place. Our justification is found in Christ alone. Not in our peers, not in our Facebook feeds, not in ourselves, but in Christ alone.

This week we have the joy of baptizing a young man who has come to the understanding that his faith and his salvation is found in Jesus alone. Not Jesus plus good works, not Jesus plus good behavior, not Jesus plus following Jewish laws or traditions. His faith is grounded in Christ Alone.Where is your faith grounded?

See you Sunday!

You foolish Galatians! Who has hypnotized you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was vividly portrayed as crucified? I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now going to be made complete by the flesh? Did you suffer so much for nothing—if in fact it was for nothing? So then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? 

Galatians 3:1-5

Christ in Conflict

Galatians 2 is an amazing chapter. In it, we have been presented the truth that it is only through faith in Christ that we are accepted before God.  There is something else which we learn from the interactions in the text; that is the proper way to handle conflict within the church. 

Conflict was brewing when Peter came to Antioch. Paul, rather than mumbling about it, or griping to Barnabas or his other disciples chooses to deal with the problem directly. Paul opposed Peter to his face in dealing with the hypocrisy which Peter was exhibiting. This picture is one of right belief with wrong behavior. In actuality, this is one of the most dramatic and tense episodes in all of the New Testament. A little context will help to explain. 

For centuries the Jews had kept strict dietary laws and other commandments which were intended to keep the Jews and the Gentiles from intermingling and the Jews becoming corrupted by their idolatry and immorality. This is why the religious establishment was shocked when Jesus ate with the tax collectors and sinners in Mark 2:16. For Peter, however, the change took place in Acts 10. Peter had a vision in Acts 10 in which God revealed to him that "God does not show favoritism, but in every nation, the person who fears him and does righteousness is acceptable to Him." 

Fast forward to Galatians 2, Peter has seemingly forsaken this understanding for the sake of appearances. He isn't teaching a contrary message, but he isn't living out the message he was claiming. His actions and his words weren't matching up. 

Enter Paul into the conversation. Paul deals with the problem by reminding Peter of the Truth He already knows. Paul demonstrated obedience to Scripture and love towards Peter by helping him to see the error in is actions. 

We need to strive to do the same. When we see someone who is not living the life that they claim they are we should address the problem directly with love. 

However, before you jump into a confrontation, study to know the truth, study to understand the truth and not just to construct a good argument from Scripture.

It is said that scripture is sharp as a two-edged sword. However, some who use the knife are surgeons and others are butchers.

We should all seek to be surgeons when it comes to using God's Word. 

See ya Sunday!  

From Terrorist to Evangelist: God didn't give up on Saul and He won't give up on you!

Wow, is the only thing that I can think to say and that's not even close to being sufficient when reviewing the life and works of a missionary by the name of Paul. When you see the scope of Paul's work, the letters he wrote, the churches he planted, the men and women whose lives were changed forever because of his faithfulness. I'm not sure there has ever been a more effective or a more prolific missionary for Christ than his servant Paul.

A man like this must surely have walked in close connection with Christ on earth right? Surely he was a part of Jesus' inner circle.

Not a chance. We know this based on the personal testimony we see here in Galatians 1:11-24 and the account in Acts 9 of a man by the name of Saul on the road to Damascus. Saul, an up and coming Pharisee, a pupil of the well-known Hebrew scholar Rabbi Gamaliel. 

Saul followed in his teacher's footsteps with his passion for the Torah, and his understanding and reverence of Yahweh.  This passion is why we are not surprised to see a young Saul with the coats of those stoning Stephen laid at his feet in Acts 7:58 and then are introduced to Saul the Persecutor in Acts 8. Saul was in his mind being obedient to the Holy Scriptures and as a result protecting the church. 

Having the completed picture we know better, we see Saul for the legalist that he was. That was until God got a hold of him. 

In Acts 9 Saul had a confrontation with Christ (who had already ascended to heaven at this point) while on the road to Damascus. Following this life changing experience Saul, whose name was changed by God to Paul dedicated his life to the spread of the good news of Jesus rather than the persecution of the followers of Christ. 

What does this all mean for us today? Well for starters it goes to show it doesn't matter who you are or what you have done God can still use you. 

Paul, before his conversion to Christianity, was a killer of Christians. He was by definition a terrorist. A religious extremist. But God brought him out of that life into a new life. God can do the same for you today! God wants to do the same for you if you would let him! Will you heed his call in your heart?

Hope to see ya Sunday!