Grace and Christian Liberty

 The Gospel of Grace and Christian Liberty

Book of Romans Chapter 14

What is Christian Liberty? It is when sin no more has control of our lives.

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Rom 6:15  What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 

How do we obtain Christian Liberty?

Jas 1:21  Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. 

Jas 1:22  But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 

Jas 1:25  But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. 

Psa 119:101  I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. 

Psa 119:102  I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me. 

Psa 119:103  How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! 

Psa 119:104  Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. 

Psa 119:105  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 

Christian Liberty comes by being guided by the perfect law of God!

Christian Liberty is not a license to sin!

*****Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. 

What are doubtful disputations?

First we are never to argue with anyone about the Word of God. 

The Word of God speaks for itself and the Word of God is settled in Heaven!

Psa_119:89  For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven

Sometimes we can be so determined to glorify God that we act like the the Devil.

Those that reject the truth of God are not our friends even though we need to always pray for them.

2Jn 1:9  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. 

2Jn 1:10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: 

2Jn 1:11  For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds. 

There are also those who are just weak in their faith.

We must certainly not place burdens upon those who are weak in their faith that the Lord Jesus did not place upon any of us!

We must always receive those who are weak in their faith just as Christ has received us when we were first saved.

This happens many times with those who are babes in Christ.

There are babes in Christ who have been saved for many years because they failed to study the Word of God which is actually a commandment to us all.

We are not to argue with them, just receive them and when the opportunity arises, then we can point out their misunderstanding.

1Co 9:22  To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 

In the early Roman Church there were many disputes in most cases because of the laws given to the Jews by Moses that have nothing to do with the Law of Grace.

We should understand this passage as it deals not with the express commandments of God which deal with the "Grace of God".

This passage is dealing with differences of opinion of the Word of God.

We are never to dispute the Word of God, again the Word of God speakes for itself and is indisputable!

Christian maturity is measured by our obedience to the Word of God!

Listen to Jesus:

Joh 15:10  If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. 

Joh 15:14  Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 

For instance:

*****Rom 14:2  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. 

There are some Christians who become strict vegetarians and practically condemn those who add meats to their diet and vice-versa.

The one who just eats fruits and vegetables could be looked upon as a weak Christian yet, they both are subject to criticizing and condemning each other.

When the Apostle Paul was facing this issue, he was very careful to keep the differences of Judaism and Christianity.

For instance Paul had Timothy to be circumcised which conformed to the law of Moses because he was a Jew yet, he would not allow Titus to be circumcised. Titus was a Gentile (heathen)

Gal 2:3  But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised: 

Gal 2:4  And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: 

Gal 2:5  To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. 

It was not necessary for Timothy to be circumcised to be a Christian, but he would never have been allowed the time to preach the Gospel to the Jews had he not done so.

The lesson with Titus was to prove to the Jews that those other than Jews would not have to be obedient to the Laws of Moses to be saved.

These things were done in order to reach as many lost souls as possible, either Jew or Gentile with the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

No one has ever been saved by the Laws of Moses!

Rules and Observing old doctrines can never save and are in fact heresy!

There is only one way to approach God and it is by and through the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is that Christian who has become weak and judgmental, who is also weak in their faith!

*****Rom 14:3  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. 

Rom 14:4  Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. 

When we become judges then we have forgotten we are to be witnesses!

We see it is the vegetarian who has become the judge in this passage, yet God received them both.

1) The strong believer, who walks in the Liberty of Christ and does not live by strict rules such as those Laws of Moses, is also accepted of Christ no matter what that weak Christian thinks.

2) No one has the right to judge the servant of the Lord! 

Both of these people belong to the Lord, both are servants of the Lord because the Lord has already judged them and accepted them because of Grace, and not by laws.

They have no reason to judge nor pass judgement upon each other!

No believer has the right to play God!

3) God will hold up every believer!

*****Rom 14:5  One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. 

Rom 14:6  He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.

If we have a God who cannot keep us saved then we do not have much of a God!

2Ti 4:18  And the Lord "shall deliver me" from every evil work, and "will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom": to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. 

In the time of Paul these things caused havoc in the early Church!

If we truly believe the Word of God, then we must be persuaded that we are right and not wrong because God said we are!

We are to live as we understand the will of God!

We must dedicate everyday to the Lord!

What was the only difference between the saved Jew and the saved Gentile.

One set aside a few more days to celebrate God than the other, who gave everyday to the Lord.

Certainly nothing to cause a dispute as long as they both understood that salvation comes by Jesus Christ!

The hearts of both these men were given to the Lord!

*****Rom 14:7  For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. 

Rom 14:8  For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. 

Rom 14:9  For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

The truth is that, no one can tell Jehovah God what to do!

No one can tell the Lord Jesus Christ what to do!

No one can tell the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit) what to do!

Only prayer can move the hand of God and this according to His will!

As Christians, we are to act like Christians according to the Word of God expressing that Jesus Christ is our Lord.

This is a Divine fact that is never to be questioned!

This being true, then we are independant of the world's judgement because we are subject to the rule of Jesus Christ!

We belong to the Lord in this world and we will still belong to the Lord in the world to come.

We belong to the Lord forever if we belong to Him in this life!

This being fact, then we live for the Lord by completing the work He gave us to do!

The Lord Jesus Christ has proven that He is the Master of Life, but because of His death it proves that He is also the Master of Death because he arose from that death.

Satan holds no control over the life or the death of those who love the Lord!

This is the reason the Lord Jesus laid aside His glory to come to this earth and bled and died for our sins and He rose again in that same body that we may live with Him throughout eternity.

Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ is Lord of the living and of the dead in Christ because He is the Master of both worlds.

The Lord does not give up His ownership of the Church when a member dies!

Php 2:9  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 

Php 2:10  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 

Php 2:11  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 

If we are to fear anything in this life, then we need to understand what the Lord is saying here!

What is the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

1Co 15:1  Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 

1Co 15:2  By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 

1Co 15:3  For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 

1Co 15:4  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 

So we can readily see that we have One Judge and that Judge is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Not Allah, not Buddha, not any false deity!

So why even as Christians do we try to judge anyone in the Church or even outside the Church.

The Lord has already taught us that we can tell by the way they live their lives.

*****Rom 14:10  But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 

Rom 14:11  For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 

Rom 14:12  So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

The Holy Spirit demands us to answer these simple questions ourselves!

Knowing these things, then why do we judge another brother or sister in Christ?

Why would we despise and look down upon a brother or sister in Christ when we know the only Judge is the Lord Jesus Christ who can see into the heart

The pure fact is "I know I belong to the Lord" but in reality I cannot know the truth of anyone else because I cannot see into their heart!

If you are a true Christian, then you have already been judged by the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the only Righteous Judge!

Php 2:9  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 

Php 2:10  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 

Php 2:11  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 

I got news for you, at the Judgment Seat of Christ, we will not be judged for our salvation!

We will not be at the Judgment Seat of Christ, unless we already belong to the Lord!

At the Judgment Seat of Christ we will be judged for what we have done since our salvation.

It is a "judgment" for rewards or loss of rewards.

Notice that phrase "every tongue shall confess to God". This does not leave anyone out!

If we have noticed the Holy Spirit began with teaching the weak Christian and now He is speaking to the strong Christian.

The fact remains we will not reach full maturity until we reach the "Judgment Seat of Christ"!

Everyone will give an account for themselves!

We will not be called to testify about others!

We will only be held accountable for our selves!

We will not be held accountable for what any other person has done!

We will stand alone before God at this judgment if we are one of God's children!

Joh 5:22  For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: 

Joh 5:23  That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. 

Joh 5:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

We must understand that we are to never become a stumbling block for any child of God!

*****Rom 14:13  Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way. 

 So now we see that having Christian Liberty, it does have it's limits!

We must never be an obstacle standing between someone and our Righteous God!

We must avoid any offence.

Php 1:10  That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; 

Php 1:11  Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God. 

We must respect the convictions of others.

We must remember that conviction is the first stage of repentance.

We must promote the work of the Lord in all others.

We must guard against any appearance of evil upon ourselves.

It is a full time job trying to be a good Christian which leaves no time to judge others.

Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 

Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 

When we are seeking the prize of Jesus Christ, there should nothing else have a greater importance!

We must remember the Lord Jesus Christ died for us all, not to judge us, but to save us!

Amen

Christian Liberty

Liberty No One Can Take Away

Book of 2 Corinthians 3


Today the Christian is considered more of a legalist than a believer.

Christians are looked on as just a people trying to force their will upon others.

These things are simply not true of the true Christian!

We can be sure that there are certainly legalist who may or may not be Christians but the commandments of God are not about legalism the Word of God is about proclaiming "freedom"!

We may be loosing our freedoms here in America but the freedom gained from loving the Lord is a freedom that we cannot lose.

This is a freedom that "No One Can Take Away"!

*****2Co 3:1  Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?

We know that from time to time a church must seek a new Pastor and in doing so they will have to consider the credentials of that person.

Paul says that a new minister's first credentials should never be letters of commendation from himself or from others.

We should remember:
Paul had been accused of arrogance.
Paul had been accused of making himself better than others.
Paul had been accused of distorting the Word of God.
Paul had been accused of saying that it was only he who preached the truth.

Remember Paul had already said his ministry was based on a true calling of God!
And Paul had already said the main credential for a Pastor was what he "preached" the Word of God!

2Co 2:17  For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

1) Then the first qualification of the Pastor is that he preach the whole council of God and never corrupt the Word of God.

There had been some men who had come to the church at Corinth with great letters of recommendation but all they done was to dispute the Apostle Paul.

No one is qualified for the ministry of God just because someone else says they are!

There are many things that mean so much more than that!

2) The next qualification of the Pastor is, "does does he really care for God's Church".

*****2Co 3:2  Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:

An epistle is essentially a letter. Paul considered these "born again" Corinthians as his personal letter of recommendation.

These people were written on the heart of the Apostle Paul.

Anyone who knew Paul, knew how much he cared for this church. They were very dear to him!

So we also see that people who have changed lives, are far more important than letters!

It was these people who were the proof that Paul was an Apostle of Jesus Christ.

3) The greatest accomplishment for any Pastor is that his ministry bears fruit!

The greatest commendation for Paul was the changes lives of the people in Corinth and their testimony.

The testimony of this church before the world was Paul's greatest letter of commendation.

1Co 1:6  Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:
1Co 1:7  So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

1Co 9:2  If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord.

Each believer that steps outside the doors of the church and witnesses for the Lord is a special letter of recommendation for his Pastor!

The public and those who knew him, will see the difference of that changed life!

*****2Co 3:3  Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

When we accept the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, then His words are written in the fleshy tables of our heart, by the Holy Spirit.

Remember it is the Holy Spirit that inspired all the Word of God!

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

It is the Holy Spirit who is then  the writer of all Scripture!

It is the Holy Spirit who writes the words of Christ in our hearts!

1Co_6:11  And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

The Apostle Paul is saying it is this process of salvation that is much more important than any letter of recommendation by any human!

These are the things that should matter to any church seeking a Pastor!

These are the things that should stand out when a Christian walks out into the world!

A Pastor's greatest recommendation is the changed lives of people he has led to the Lord!

Every believer is said to be read of all men and this is all our challenge that Jesus is our example of how to walk in this world.

1Pe_2:21  For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Being led by the Holy Spirit!

Rom_8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

And then walk in "faith"!

*****2Co 3:4  And "such trust" have we through Christ to God-ward:
2Co 3:5  Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

Another recommendation that should be recognized is that Pastor will hold himself accountable to God.

If that person is looking to man for his help and his reward, then he is not a true Pastor called of God!

If he is called by Christ then Christ will provide his needs. His sufficiency is of God!

He knows he has no power to change the heart of a believer.
He knows he does not have the power to give life to any person.
He knows that the assurance and security and the care of that person, these things are of God.
He knows that he cannot impart the Holy Spirit to anyone, the Holy Spirit does His own work!
He knows that salvation comes at the expense of Jesus Christ.

Only Christ can qualify any Pastor, Preacher or Missionary to share the Word of God!

The phrase "God-ward" means that this man knows that he serves God, he serves before God, and God will certainly inspect his work!

John the Baptist also clearly understood these facts!

Joh 3:27  John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

It is God that enables us all!

*****2Co 3:6  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

We must remember what Jesus said at the Lord's Supper.

Mat 26:26  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Every can called of God is to be a minister of this New Testament, this New Covenant.

The Old Covenant was written on tables of stone.

**The New Covenant must be written of the fleshy tables of the heart of each individual!

The Old Covenant brought death. The "wages of sin are death".

**The New Covenant brings life. The "gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ".

A covenant is an agreement made between two parties, a contract drawn up between two people.

In the Old Testament God dealt with man through the law, but now God deals with each of us through the Holy Spirit.

In other words, today God deals with each individual in a personal relationship.

No one can share God's presence by God's Spirit unless God allows this to happen!

It is God who has allowed this to happen, which is why the New Covenant is far superior to the Old Covenant!

A personal relationship is far better than any relationship from a distance!

Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

The laws of man and the Laws of the Old Covenant were written of paper, stone, or wood
and therefore external.

The New Covenant is written on the heart of the believer and is therefore internal!

The Holy Spirit gives life and returns us to the relationship of mankind before the sin of Adam.

Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
Col 3:11  Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

The Believer is therefore "innocent" just as Adam was "innocent" before sin entered into him.

We are again wrapped up in God and the things of God!

Mat 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

If the Old Covenant is considered glorious by some, then the New Covenant must be considered even more glorious by all!

*****2Co 3:7  But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
2Co 3:8  How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?

There is no doubt that those 10 commandments written on stone tablets let all of us know what God considers to be sin and the "wages of sin is death" which means a complete separation from God throughout eternity.

The actual intent of those commandments were then to teach us repentance!

**Those laws have some glory because they were given to Moses and actually written the first time by the hand of God.

God's glory shone in the face of Moses.

Exo 33:20  And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
Exo 33:21  And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
Exo 33:22  And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
Exo 33:23  And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.

**Those commandments were glorious in that they revealed the nature of a Holy and Righteous God.

We can only approach God in this same way!

Exo 34:6  And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
Exo 34:7  Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

**Those laws are glorious because they show all the world the great need of salvation!

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

The glory of God was so bright upon Moses face, that the children of Israel could not look upon his face but this glory was to be done away with because it was only temporary.

The glory on the face of Moses faded in a short time!

The glory of the Old Covenant was only a temporary arrangement between God and man!

No one could keep all the law, all their lifetime and with just one failure came the sentence of death!

The New Covenant is much more glorious because of the ministration of the Holy Spirit!

Joh_6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Rom_8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

The Old Covenant brought only condemnation.

*****2Co 3:9  For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
2Co 3:10  For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.

The Old Covenant brought "condemnation"!

The New Covenant brings "righteousness"!

These things are as far apart as the East is to the West.

2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

By comparing the New Covenant to the Old Covenant we see that in actuality the Old Covenant really had no glory at all!

The Old Covenant then actually brings a curse to all who try to live by it!

Gal 3:10  For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

There is no one who has ever lived that have obeyed all the law all the time of their life!

So God had made these things to be only temporary!

*****2Co 3:11  For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.

The truth of the perfect relationship with God is that if we desire to have a personal relationship with our God we must invite God's Spirit into our hearts and our lives and that can only be done by asking the Lord Jesus Christ in believing faith.

BUT, Those that cannot trust in the Triune God can have no part of Him!

This is the God of the Bible!

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Eph 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

All those seeking some other way to reach our Father in Heaven will never find one!

The point of all these Scriptures of the Apostle Paul is to prove that a true Pastor will not serve the Old Covenant but he will serve the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.

Eph 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

It is the knowledge of these things that give us the hope that in truth is reality!

*****2Co 3:12  Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
2Co 3:13  And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
2Co 3:14  But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.

Many people ask, well what was the "spiritual" of the vail on Moses face.

The Old Covenant spoke with a veiled meaning but the New Covenant speaks clearly, is bold, and is plain in it's meaning, because the New Covenant is given by the Holy Spirit!

1Co 2:12  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
1Co 2:13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

We must notice that the people withdrew from the glory of God until Moses placed that veil upon his face. "They could not look to the end of that which is abolished".

Even today all those who are lost and even many of those who say they are Christian cannot look to the end of that which God abolished!

Some of these are certainly legalist.

Many still work and work to keep the law, believing all the time that they are earning the favor and the acceptance of God, but this is impossible!

We all at one time were blinded to the intent of the Law and many still are today, including most all Jews.

The Law was given to show us that man will always come up short of the "Glory" of God.
The Law was given to show us that man will always come up short of the "perfection" of God!
The Law was given to show the world that no one, absolutely no one, could keep those laws all their lifetime and that we all desperately are in need of a Savior who could keep the Law!
The Law was given to reveal the nature of God's Glory and God's Perfection!

In truth that veil was not covering their eyes, "it was covering their hearts"!

*****2Co 3:15  But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
2Co 3:16  Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.

Not just in Moses time. Not just in Paul's time, but even today when the Old Testament is read, those that still follow the law are still blinded to the truth.

The true purpose of the Law is still hidden!

In fact the purpose of the entire Old Testament is to point this world toward Jesus Christ.

The Old Testament still holds great importance to everyone:

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

We just cannot linger in the Old Testament but we must move on into the New Testament. Notice the message of Jesus:

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

The Catholic Church say that it was established by the Apostle Peter and what does Peter say?

Why then do they add to the "Doctrine of Peter"?

Act 10:43  To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Act 10:44  While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.

Peter said the Old Testament was a witness for Jesus Christ and whoever placed their "faith" in Jesus Christ would be relieved of the burden of all those old Laws!

Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament!

The New Testament is written in the heart of the believer by the Holy Spirit!

If your heart is occupied by God, it will be noticed by all others!

This is where the freedom of the Christian comes from!

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Our "freedom" and our "liberty" come from the Holy Trinity, the Triune God!

*****2Co 3:17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

We should be clear, the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit are not the same they are two of the persons in the God-Head with our Father in Heaven being the third.

There is no liberty without the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is Jesus Christ who freed us all from the burden of the Old Testament Laws.
It is the Holy Spirit who writes the New Testament Law into our hearts.
It is our Father in Heaven who forgives our sin!

Gal 4:6  And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Gal 4:7  Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

We must never doubt the intention of the Word of God, it is the entire Word of God that will lead us to perfection!

*****2Co 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We are being changed gradually and we will be changed, this is a continuous operation until we meet the Lord!

We must not be impatient if this process seems slow.
We must not be complacent over our partial transformation which we may feel.
We must never turn our gaze away from the Lord.

Remember Peter walked on the water as it was pavement, until he took his eyes off the Lord!

If the likeness of Jesus Christ is not your intention, then you only have religion but not salvation!

We must be changed into the same image, "from glory to glory" and that can only happen by the Spirit of the Lord!

Free from sin.
Free from the Law.
Free from the bondage of sin.
Free from the power of Satan, which is the fear of death.
Free from corruption.

Free to stand face to face with Jesus Christ!

1Jn_3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

When we stand before the Lord, that is when our own knowledge will increase and we will know all things.

1Co 13:12  For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
1Co 13:13  And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

This is the goal of each and every believer and this is why we are looking for the day we will meet our Lord in the air!

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Tit 2:13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
Tit 2:14  Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

Questions?

Let's Pray!

Standing In Liberty

Stand In Liberty

Galatians 5:1-15


What does the word liberty mean?

**Liberty means freedom from restraint.

We enjoy this liberty when there are no physical forces that restrain our ability to move.

**There is natural liberty.

Natural liberty means we have the ability to do as we please without any outside control.

We all know that we do not have this liberty because we are governed by a nation who desires to control all the liberties of it's people and we are loosing our liberties more and more everyday!

**There is civil liberty.

We live in a society that is governed by a set of rules approved by the people while there are many who live in a society that is governed by tyranny or oppression.

It seems that there is one party, who I will not mention who seem to want to live under government control.

We simply cannot allow our own government to become more oppressive.

**There is also religious liberty.

The freedom to worship according to our own conscience.

**BUT, Then there is Christian liberty.

The freedom from spiritual bondage!

The Lord Jesus Christ began His ministry with this message from the Book of Luke:

Luk 4:18  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

When Jesus established the Church, He gave each believer "Freedom".

BUT, This is not freedom to act in any way we want!

Following the desires of our heart is not what freedom is all about!

In fact Jesus also said these words:

Mar 7:21  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
Mar 7:22  Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
Mar 7:23  All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

So if we follow our hearts, we will certainly fall into the traps of Satan and the evils of this world!

So do we have freedom? YES.

Are we free to do as we please? NO! NO! NO!

To be saved is to filled with the Holy Spirit and He is to be our Guide to a sure and a perfect freedom!

Our freedom must be based on what is acceptable to the Lord!

Eph 5:9  (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
Eph 5:10  Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

Once we have tasted this "Freedom" we would be very foolish to go back into bondage of "Laws"!

We need to "Stand in the Liberty" given to us by Jesus Christ!

Let's pickup where we left off last week:

*****Gal 5:1  Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Laws are intended to govern human conduct but by whose standards?

Laws are intended to promote common good but again by whose standards?

Laws are intended to settle disputes but who decides what is truth and what is not truth?

Laws are intended to develop good behavior but who is our example of what good behavior resembles?

In other words laws only make people slaves to someone else's power!

What are the facts?

When we accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we are freed from the law and it's enslaving power!

We no longer have to worry if we are good enough, or if we have done enough good works, or kept enough laws to be acceptable to God!

And if laws are not according to the standards set forth in the Word of God, then they probably only meet the standards of some man who has exalted himself to a position of authority!

Jesus Christ died in order to set us free from laws and regulations.

Not to be free to do anything that we want to do, because that in itself is also slavery to our own desires.

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

To be truly free, is to live unselfishly!

1Co 10:23  All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.
1Co 10:24  "Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth".

The Lord Jesus Christ was righteous in all laws!

The Lord Jesus Christ paid our penalty for us because we could not be righteous in all laws!

Jesus Christ bore "our judgment" and "our punishment" for having broken the law, which was death!

It is only by the Lord Jesus Christ that we are able to stand before God as perfect individuals!

This does not mean that all the world is accepted before God, because most all the world rejects these things as the truth and do not trust in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ has made us free but only if we believe!

And once we are made free we are to "Standfast" in the "Liberty of this Freedom"!

These Galatian Christians were about to get caught up in the bondage of the law in which they had never known.

They accepted Jesus Christ as the Son of God but only as a great teacher and a great example.

This is how many religions see Jesus today!

They were beginning to ignore the reason Jesus had come.

They began to ignore that "Salvation" is only by the "Grace of God".

They began to ignore that our own righteousness came only by the death of Jesus Christ and eternal life comes only by His resurrection by the power of the Holy Ghost!

They taught that Jesus Christ had not come to give us the only approach to God but that Christ had only come to add to the teachings of the Law therefore the Gospel was only a doctrine of works.

We can see that many of the Church are still confused in our own day!

What are the basic rituals of the "Jewish" religion?

1) Circumcision, baptism, and church membership.
2) Committing fully to the Laws of Moses.
3) Observing all the rituals and ceremonies of the Jewish religion.

If we just omit the word "Jewish" we can see that this is the same doctrine of most all false religions.

But what does God say the truth is?

Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:3  For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

The pure truth is that God will never "Justify" anyone just because they try to be obedient to some law!

*****Gal 5:2  Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Gal 5:3  For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

**The first act in the obedience to Jewish Law was the circumcision of that individual.

This is a ritual observed by the Jew and some others and is in fact good medical advice, but still only a ritual.

Paul says that the same thing can be applied to all rituals, that if anyone attempts to approach God by any other means than Jesus Christ, they will fail!

God will only accept the work of Jesus Christ as the only means of justification and there is no profit that can come when we try to justify ourselves by any means!

**All those that choose justification by the Law must be perfect in obedience to those laws, which is impossible!

Anyone who submits themselves to any religious system, are submitting themselves to systems that Jesus Christ has freed us all from!

If we are going rely on works, laws, and rituals for our salvation then we had better be perfect in obedience to all those things. This means we will forever remain in debt and in bondage to those things!

**If any person seeks to be justified by laws, then they have fallen from "Grace" and Jesus Christ can have no effect on them at all!

To turn away from Christ Jesus is to be an apostate!

Rom 4:4  Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
Rom 4:5  But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

An apostate is anyone who has abandoned the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

*****Gal 5:4  Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.

To be "fallen from Grace" is not a loss of salvation!

When we propose to earn salvation by works, then we must reject the free gift of God's Grace!

A gift is anything that has been voluntarily transferred by one person to another person, without any type of compensation or it is no longer a gift!

When we have decided we need to try to pay for God's precious gift of the perfect salvation then, we have cut ourselves off from God's only method of salvation!

We are saved by "Grace" but we are also kept saved by "Grace"!

We cannot cancel God's Grace!

BUT, We Can Make God's Grace Have No Effect!

God writes to us about what will happen to a Church that leans toward works after salvation.

Rev 2:5  Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

When God removes a candlestick from any church, it means He will close the doors of that place of worship and move the light of that candlestick, which is the Lord Jesus Christ to another location.

Many a place of worship are no longer open because they fell from the "Grace of God"!

The Church will survive until God takes the Church home, but many places of worship will no longer exist at that time!

Or they will exist as the Laodicean Church of the Book of Revelation!

The hope of every believer is to be righteous when we stand before God but our righteousness can only come by the Lord Jesus Christ, this is the Gift of God's Grace and is based solely on our "Faith"!

*****Gal 5:5  For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Worldly hope, is a great desire mixed with at least some expectation of obtaining something that is good.

Biblical hope is something entirely different!

Biblical hope is confidence in our own future and founded only on God's promises through God's Grace!

Hope in the Bible comes from the privilege of being a "Redeemed" child of God and one day spending eternity with our own Creator and our own Savior who are One and the same!

This kind of hope can only come by the Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit of God comes to dwell in each believer who accepts the truth of the "Gospel"!

That truth is this:

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

That truth is this:

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

The Holy Spirit stirs up our own hope by giving us the assurance that God will take "Our Faith" and count it for "Our Righteousness"!

That sure hope of righteousness can come only by the Lord Jesus Christ!

No ritual can give us this hope!
No Law can offer this hope!
No amount of works can purchase this hope!

Only "Faith" and the "Love of Jesus Christ" can offer this hope!

*****Gal 5:6  For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Justification comes by "Faith" and not by love.

BUT, those who are justified should exhibit "Faith's energy through love.

After all, it is by love that all the Law is truly fulfilled!

1Th 1:3  Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
1Th 1:4  Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.

When we choose God's plan over any other plan that we may have, we can know the full extent of God's Grace!

A quick monitor of our faith is to see how much we love others!

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

It is by this first commandment that we can be saved.

It is by this second commandment that we exhibit Faith's energy!

Legalism cannot save us but it can surely hinder the work of God!

*****Gal 5:7  Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?

In times of war, roads and bridges are destroyed in order to hinder the movement of armies.

SO, What is the truth?

The Christian life is like a race!

**It is not always easy to be a Christian, especially as we get closer to the return of Christ.

2Ti 3:12  Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
2Ti 3:13  But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

**The Christian life is short.

Not many years, compared to the eternity of the Promised Land(the New Heaven), will be spent on this Earth.

**All those that persevere in the Christian life will receive a reward.

Jas 1:12  Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

**Christianity differs from the worldly race because all who run faithfully run together, while in other races each runner will hinder the other if the opportunity arises.

**In other races one winner will receive a corruptible reward but all Christians receive an incorruptible reward.

1Co 9:25  And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

In our Christian race we must not allow mankind to hinder us by destroying the only road and the only bridge to righteousness, which is the Lord Jesus Christ!

These Galatian Christians had been running the Christian race well until they had allowed false teaching to interfere in their race.

The object of our race must be running for the truth of God.

Psa 119:60 I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.

Upon accepting the gift of God's Grace, each of us also had an urgent need to repent and only then did we feel an urgent need to serve the Lord!

But we also began to realize the truth of God and became aware of just how short is our life in this body of flesh!

Pro 27:1  Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

These Galatians had felt all these things until legalism began to interfere with God's intentions for His children!

They were no longer obeying the truth of the "Gospel" and were now trying a different approach, other than Christ Jesus in order to please God, which will always bring failure.

These Galatians had allowed some false teacher to hinder them in their race and they were now stumbling toward the finish line.

God has little patience with a stumbling Christian!

What does God say to us so that we can run better? Just obey the truth!

Legalism does not come from God!

*****Gal 5:8  This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.

In other words anything that comes between us and the Lord Jesus Christ does not come from God!

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God says if we are "not" looking toward Jesus Christ, in our "Faith", then we are allowing the weight and the sin of this world to burden us down!

There is no other way to approach God than by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ!

Act 4:12  Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

When we are not running by the truth we will be running away from the truth!

And a little untruth will corrupt the whole truth!

1Jn 2:26  These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.
1Jn 2:27  But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
1Jn 2:28  And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

Why?

*****Gal 5:9  A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.

Even a very small portion of legalism will corrupt the purity of the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

Leaven in the Bible almost always denotes evil and corruption.

In the baking of bread even a very small amount of leaven(yeast) can influence the whole loaf or the whole lump of dough.

Just one false teacher or preacher that is allowed to teach in any place of worship can influence the  entire congregation!

Even when they have moved on to another place of worship to do the same thing, they will have convinced at least a few of their false doctrine!

1Co 15:33  Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.
1Co 15:34  Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.

It is a great shame to any congregation of believers that allow false doctrine to steer them away from the truth of the "Grace of God"!

This is the prophecy of the last Church Age and we can see this develop today!

Rev 3:15  I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

When the race of the Christian is hindered by legalism, then the Church will become a lukewarm Church and Jesus Christ said, it is this Church that makes Him sick enough to puke.

Today many are attempting to modernize the truth by removing the Lord Jesus Christ, His Death, His Burial, His Resurrection and His Blood from the truth!

God says to beware of this false doctrine!

Col 2:8  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Col 2:9  For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

We are only complete Christians if we remain in Christ Jesus!

Col 2:10  And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

We must have confidence in the pure truth of the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

*****Gal 5:10  I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be.

Notice that the Apostle Paul was not confident in these churches that he had established.

The Apostle Paul was only confident in them through the Lord.

Paul said, open up your scriptures and you will read the truth.

It is only by the Lord Jesus Christ that we can overcome false doctrine!

We are saved by Grace!
We are kept saved by Grace!
We will be saved by "Grace" and all by the Lord Jesus Christ!

Jud 1:24  Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
Jud 1:25  To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

What happens to those who change the truth of the "Gospel" to suit themselves?

They will bear their own judgment!

Remember each Christian has already been "Justified", that teacher of false doctrine will bear  his own judgment and we already know what that judgment will be!

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

False teachers shall be judged because they trouble God's Church and it's believers!

False teachers loose the chords of "Faith" in Jesus Christ and He alone!

False teachers disturb the security and the lives of the believer!

False teachers defile the House of God!

1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, "which temple ye are".

The Apostle Paul preached and taught the truth!

*****Gal 5:11  And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

We can be assured that all those that preach a false doctrine will be judged harshly because they have spread a falsehood about the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We should never forget this well used passage:

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: "but he that believeth not is condemned already", because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Any deviation from this truth will bring condemnation!

Any deviation from this truth will certainly bring the wrath of God!

God will not tolerate any attack on His Son and God will not tolerate any attack on those He has called to preach the truth of the Gospel.

The Apostle Paul could have stopped all attacks on his person, if he had only preached legalism but Paul had refused to give in to false doctrine!

And Paul adds this thought.

*****Gal 5:12  I would they were even cut off which trouble you.

The sign of the Law was circumcision and Paul said even as these false preachers desire you to be circumcised, to cut away a useless piece of meat, he would wish that their useless message of circumcision also be cut off!

**False teachers will judged because they spread a false gospel!

**False teachers will be judged because they are offended by the cross!

It is a fact the modern gatherings of people stay away from the Blood of Jesus.

In fact true Christianity is sometimes referred to as a bloody religion.

It is the cross that causes most all false religions to stumble in their approach to God.

They simply say that the cross was not enough to bring salvation to anyone.

We can be sure that God will remind them all, how much they are wrong when He returns the second time!

Zec 12:10  And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and "they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn".

Joh 19:37  And again another scripture saith, "They shall look on him whom they pierced".

How are our sins washed away?

Rev 1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood",

There is no greater love, than One who will lay down His life in order to save His family!

Joh 15:13  Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Joh 15:14  Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

Anyone who teaches any other doctrine than this will surely feel the wrath of God!

**False teachers will also be judged because they deserve it!

Paul said these that preach circumcision would be better off if they castrated themselves of that false thing they preached!

This may sound repulsive but false teaching is even more repulsive and when they meet Jesus, and they will meet Jesus, He will reward them according to what they have done!

Mat 16:27  For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then "he shall reward every man according to his works".

Every human being that wishes to approach God must come through the cross, which is through the death of Jesus, which is through the blood of Jesus, which is by the truth of the Gospel, which is through the Work of Jesus!

Any other way will lead to eternal death!

Why did God leave us on this Earth after He has justified each of us?

*****Gal 5:13  For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Gal 5:14  For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Gal 5:15  But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

God leaves all those of true "Faith" here on earth after salvation, in order to show the love of Jesus Christ to this evil world!

God, through His Son Jesus, has made us free from the Law!

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

BUT, Christian liberty is not a license to sin!

Paul has shown us over and over again, that the believer is not saved by any law, by any work, not by any ritual or ceremony!

When each of us accept the work of Jesus Christ as the only means of salvation, God takes our belief and counts it as righteousness.

This means we have become acceptable to God!

This freedom means we no longer have to struggle to be good to be saved!

This is freedom from ever having to wonder if we have done enough to please God!

This is not freedom to live as we want to after salvation!

This is not freedom to satisfy the demands of our flesh!

This not freedom to seek the things of this world!

This world is never going to change!

1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

So we cannot believe in Christ Jesus and still live in worldliness!

Bible belief is not intellectual belief!

Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is a commitment to live with Jesus Christ as our example of righteousness everyday of our lives!

Rom 6:17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Rom 6:18  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

When we continue in sin after we are saved, then we are showing that we have no knowledge of God's love!

2Co 5:14  For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
2Co 5:15  And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

God has made us free to love one another like He loves us!

Love is never offending!

Love is always caring!

Love does not take advantage of other people in any way!

Love does not use people to fulfill our own purposes!

Love will not ever hurt!

Love endures all things without becoming weak!

And, Love is certainly not biting and devouring one another!

When we give in to the fleshy desires of our evil heart we will fail in our godly love!

Jas 4:1  From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?
Jas 4:2  Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

When we give in to the desires of our heart we can not even get our prayers answered!

Jas 4:3  Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

It is only true love that can cover all sins!

Pro 10:12  Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.

It is this war, that we have within our own selves, that causes most all our own problems and if we are not truly committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, we will cause our own failures!

Questions?

Let's Pray!