Our Glory Is In The Cross That Jesus Bore For Us

Glory In The Cross

Galatians 6:11-18


Crucifixion was the most painful and the most degrading form of capital punishment to have ever been used.

It is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Calvary's Cross, that is governing principle of all our salvation!

It was the Cross by which Jesus became the atoning sacrifice for the sins of all mankind!

It is the Cross that is also become the symbol of the sacrifice of each of us in the service to Our Lord Jesus.

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Just as the Lord Jesus was a living sacrifice we must also become living sacrifices for our Lord!

It is the Cross that is the symbol of denying our own flesh and walking in God's Holy Spirit!

Mar 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Mar 8:35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.
Mar 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

It is the Cross that is the symbol of our own salvation, so if we are to have any glory then let our own glory be in the Cross by which our Saviour caused the death of all our sin!

It was the Cross that broke down the partition between our sinful selves and our Holy God so our prayers can reach into Heaven!

Eph 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Eph 2:14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Eph 2:15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
Eph 2:16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

It is the Cross that represents our complete surrender to God!

Luk 14:27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

SO, as we come to the end of this great book of the Bible and the foundation of the early Church, let us glory in the cross that Jesus bore in our names!

*****Gal 6:11 Ye see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand.

We should not forget, men whose intent was to destroy the Church had made their rounds through all the churches in Galatia.

They had taught a false version of Judaism rather than the truth of Christianity.

The Apostle Paul under the guidance of the Holy Spirit had written this great book of the New Testament.

Understanding the Book of Galatians means we must have a clear understanding of the message of the "Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ"!

The "Gospel" is the "Good News" of salvation.

The "Gospel" is not preached for us to consider if it is true because it's truth cannot be denied.

The "Gospel" is preached so that we can immediately accept it's message and be saved from "all" our sins!

Evidence teaches us that Paul dictated his epistles to a scribe on most occasions, one reason is that Paul was in prison when many of his epistles were written.

Another reason may have been that Paul's eyesight was failing him.

This was probably not the case in this letter at least in these last few scriptures.

These final words of Scripture to the Galatians were so important that Paul took the pen and wrote in his own hands.

Some 15 times the Lord Jesus used the phrase "He that hath ears let him hear".

In a sense this is exactly what the Apostle Paul is doing here.

By using large letters Paul wanted these Galatians to know without a doubt that it was Paul who had written to them and not someone impersonating him, as some had!

By using large letters Paul wanted to emphasize the importance of this great Book of the Bible!

The lesson we can learn from Paul is, that we need to give the utmost attention to what is said in these Scriptures!

Paul said it's all about the Cross!

*****Gal 6:12 As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.

To the Jew, his sign of faith was in his circumcision.

To the Christian it is something entirely different!

Jas 2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

These false teachers hated the "Gospel" and they hated the Apostle Paul.

These false teachers were all about religion and not about the truth.

These false teachers made legalism necessary for salvation, a lie from Hell.

These false teachers saw a means to fill their pockets and avoid the persecution of the Jews.

Those like Paul who preached the truth were ridiculed, mocked, abused, and rejected by society and beaten or killed.

Those that preached salvation as the free gift of God, through the cross of Jesus, were thought to be destroying religion by destroying the Laws of Moses.

It was easy to say you preached the truth and avoid persecution by just adding legalism to the truth of God.

These false teachers sought to make a good showing by boasting how many of these Galatians had been circumcised.

Remember the Jew were circumcised on the 8th day after their birth.

These men of Galatia were grown men. This was a mockery in itself!

It took real courage to stand for the truth of God and preach the truth and it still does today!

Something these false teachers did not have was courage, they were only full of deceit.

These false teachers sought recognition by the growth of their false ministry.

As we can see there are many of these false teachers still around today, who do not glory in the cross but only in their own false doctrine.

How do they get away with it?

People are easily impressed with numbers added to congregations.

People are easily impressed with magnificent worship centers.

SO, What is the truth?

Being impressed will not get you saved!

Paul told the Philippians, who struggled with this same false doctrine, let me impress you:

Php 3:2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
Php 3:3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
Php 3:4  Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:
Php 3:5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
Php 3:6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
Php 3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

Paul said these false teachers only glory in your flesh, or in your pocketbooks!

Paul said, I have spent my life doing these things of legalism and they did not get me one step closer to God!

Paul all these things that are counted as gain to the Jew are just losses in serving Jesus Christ!

*****Gal 6:13 For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.

It was a big deal to go back to Jerusalem and boast how many Christians had converted to Judaism.

And today it is a big deal today for ISIS to brag about how many Christians were murdered or how many Christians were converted to Islam.

Just in the past few days, it was also a big deal in the American networks to boast about how many so-called Christians are departing from the 'Faith".

What is the truth?

There are more Christians murdered in our world everyday simply because they glory in the cross of Jesus Christ!

Christians are to be Baptized after accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Church attendance is important.

Bible study, Church programs, Church activities are important!

BUT, if we cannot glory in the cross, and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation, we have missed the most important point in becoming a Christian!

*****Gal 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

What does the false preacher glory in?

He glories in the size of the church!

He glories the number of converts to his own agenda!

He glories in himself!

He glories in the flesh!

Though the world be blind to the truth of Jesus Christ, as believers we must glory in the cross of Jesus Christ!

It is only by the cross on which Jesus Christ bore all our sins that we can be saved.

If there is one main thing the modern day church has gotten away from. it is glorying in the cross!

It is not the cross that is to be worshiped, it is the Lord, but it was by the cross that be are washed in the blood of Jesus!

The work that Jesus Christ did to get us saved is the work that we could never have done for ourselves.

Rom 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Rom 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Rom 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Propitiation means that it was the work of Jesus Christ on the cross that was the only acceptable means of paying my sin debt and your sin debt!

The propitiatory is the same as the "Mercy Seat" which was the blood sprinkled lid on the Ark of the Covenant!

It was the "Mercy Seat" where God met with Moses and it is "Mercy Seat", the Cross that Jesus bore, where God will meet with every believer!

It is only at the Mercy Seat, the Cross, where mercy and truth come together!

It is only in Jesus Christ, that God rests His lawful case against us!

Eph 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

Remember what God said to Moses:

Exo 12:13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and "when I see the blood, I will pass over you", and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

God said for it is the blood that maketh atonement for each soul!

Lev 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: "for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul".

At the time of Christ, the cross was the worst of deaths.

It is by the worst of deaths that Jesus Christ has destroyed all kinds of death for all those that believe!

Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Since there is no other approach to God, God will only accept those that come by the way of the cross and every individual from all walks of life stand on level ground at the Cross!

Nothing else in this world is as important as the salvation work of the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Gal 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.

What is the truth?

Circumcision or uncircumcision are nothing because these are things that a man can do, but only God make make a new creation!

It is at the foot of the cross where God creates the new man!

There is absolutely nothing that can make any human being acceptable to God beyond Jesus Christ and the work He did on the cross!

In fact we would not have any contact with God at all without Jesus Christ paving the way!

Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Joh 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Why is the world going to Hell? The world refuses to approach God through Jesus Christ!

And you cannot just mention His name as many others believe.

Jesus Christ is so much more than just a good prophet as many say He is!

Just using words, or just using a false profession of faith in the name of Jesus will get you nowhere with God!

God cannot be deceived!

And God will not be mocked!

Jesus Christ did not come to this earth "to preserve life"!

Jesus Christ came to this earth to "give life" beginning with His own!

When any of us are sincere in our belief, God will then and only then, give that person a new spirit, which is a newly created spirit!

That person is spiritually "Born Again"!

2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
2Co 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
2Co 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

This is the truth of the "Gospel"!

Anything else is as nothing and will not get you one step closer to the Almighty Living God!

This is the one rule and the ONLY MEANS to approach God!

*****Gal 6:16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.

So who can experience the "Peace" and the "Mercy" of God? Only those that walk by the  "rule of the cross"!

We must first have "peace with God" before we can have the "peace of God"!

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ":

Php 4:7 And "the peace of God", which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds "through Christ Jesus".

They both come by the cross of Jesus Christ!

These are not hard words and they are easily understood but this is still the stumbling block of our world.

The "Mercy" of God comes only by the cross!

That new creation of God will experience the forgiveness of all sins before and after salvation!

That new creation of God will be given perfect assurance of eternal life in the New Heaven!

That new creation of God will be forever under God's care!

The sign that began the nation of Israel was circumcision first performed by Abraham.

Gen 17:10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.

This was a fleshly sign and Israel will still inherit the promises of God to David.

The Jews of the Nation of Israel still expect the fulfillment of these promises because they take God at His Word!

Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

This is therefore the Israel after the flesh!

Who are the Israel of God?

Not the Israel of the flesh but the Israel of Faith! The spiritual children of Abraham by "Faith"!

Rom 2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

The Israel of God are the ones in whom God will fulfill all His promises!

It is not the Israel of the flesh that bear the scars of Jesus Christ, it is the Church that bears the scars of Jesus Christ and is the Israel of God!

*****Gal 6:17 From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

Just as Jesus Christ suffered for us all, we must be just as willing to suffer for Him!

In the time of Jesus Christ, certain branding marks were placed on slaves to designate their owner.

We as the Church are the blood bought slaves of Jesus Christ!

As tribulation leaves it's many marks on us, these are the marks that prove our slavery to Jesus Christ!

If we pick up our own cross daily and die to ourselves daily, we will also bear the marks of the cross.

What is the truth?

You will be made fun of by those in this world, just because you claim to be a Christian!

Your job will always be in jeopardy in this world, just because you claim Jesus Christ as your Savior!

You will be talked about behind your back and be the topic of jokes, if you claim to follow in the ways of Jesus Christ!

And if you are willing to turn the other cheek to avoid confrontation, you will certainly be struck on that other cheek, if you claim that Jesus Christ is the one and only way to get to Heaven.

It is even in all these things that prove that God is right and the world is wrong!

Scars are just the marks on the outside because we choose to carry the truth of God on the inside!

2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Co 4:11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

But to deny Jesus Christ will certainly bring eternal death!

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.

Who are the blessed?

Mat 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Mat 5:12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

And all the rewards for serving the Lord Jesus come only by the "Grace of God"!

*****Gal 6:18 Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

"To the Galatians written from Rome".

The Apostle Paul was in Rome when He wrote this Epistle to these Galatians.

Through all of this letter to these Galatians, Paul never forgot that these were his brothers and sisters in Christ.

It is a fact that we will make mistakes while walking in the Holy Spirit!

It is also a fact that we cannot lose our salvation because of that mistake!

We are saved by Grace!

We are being saved daily by "Grace"!

And in the end it is "Grace" that will lead us home!

We are still a foolish people if we allow false teachers to come into the Church.

If we take the time to read and study the Scriptures ourselves, we will not be fooled when we hear someone speak lies and try to lead God's people away from the truth.

What is the truth? We can trust the Word of God!

What are our choices?

We can either choose a life that is bound up in laws and legalism or we can choose Christian Liberty, bound up in the truth of the "Grace of God"!

Amen!

Amen still means, let God's Word be established in your heart.

Questions?

Let's Pray!

Christian Fellowship

Live In Fellowship

Galatians 6:1-10


We know that the Apostle Paul was correcting Christians by teaching the pure results of God's Grace.

Paul was teaching Christian fellowship.

In Hebrew the word "haber" was used to describe a companion of fellowship.

Ecc 4:9  Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.
Ecc 4:10  For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

The word "haber" was often used to describe the Pharisees as they banded together in the study of the Scriptures and fellowship around the table.

In the Greek, Paul's favorite word was "koinonia" to describe the Christians relationship with the Lord Jesus.

1Co 1:9  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

The true meaning of "koinonia" is best realized in our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Once we know the Lord Jesus Christ on a personal level then that fellowship with the Lord is to be shared with all other believers!

Php 2:1  If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,
Php 2:2  Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Php 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
Php 2:4  Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

In fact when we partake of the Lord's Supper, which only Christians are to do, we are showing our ultimate fellowship not only with the Lord but with each other!

1Co 10:17  For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

Our fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ will also show in our fellowship with each other!

If we partake of the Lord's Supper and then ignore the fellowship and the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ then we are not what we say we are!

When we share in the fellowship with each other, we will also share in the suffering of each other and the suffering of all Christians.

Jesus Christ freely gave Himself completely to each believer and Jesus is our example of our own giving of ourselves to His people.

We cannot say we are in close fellowship with the Lord and then not be in fellowship with all other believers!

1Jn 1:3  That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

1Jn 1:6  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

We are all in this thing together!

Rom 12:5  So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

If the Church would only gather "as one in fellowship", then we could make this world a better place for all God's people to live in!

Let's see how Paul describes Christian fellowship:

*****Gal 6:1  Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

It is a sad fact that God's Christian army is the only army on this earth that shoots its own wounded!

Christians are notorious for putting down other Christians when they fail or fall.

We seem to forget that our righteousness is as filthy rags and God only sees us through the righteousness of His Son!

Far to often we become judges when we are to be witnesses.

There is not one of us that has not failed the Lord on more than one occasion.

Jesus says when we do these things we are hypocrites and no better than that one who has fallen!

Mat 7:3  And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:4  Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:5  Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

To be honest it is a shame to have to go to the Lord in prayer asking forgiveness for the same things over and over again but if we do not we will carry the burden of that sin!

We are also not to judge a fallen brother or sister who has been overtaken in a fault!

We are see what it will take to get them restored to Christian fellowship and more important, fellowship with the Lord.

It is our job to witness for the Lord and show His love for us all and it is also our job to share responsibility in the restoring of fallen saints of God!

We may not be able to restore that fallen soul but we are to at least show the love of God to all our brothers and sisters, fallen or not!

If we are faithful Christians then we will also be faithful in this thing!

Our main concern should only be that we not fall into the same temptation that brought our brother or sister down!

The Bible describes the Church as the actual body of Christ, with Christ Jesus being the Head of the Church.

1Co 12:18  But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

We know that when a part of our own body suffers then our whole body suffers.

This is exactly the same for the Body of Christ!

1Co 12:26  And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.
1Co 12:27  Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

The Greek word used in our scripture for the word "restore" is refers to a dislocated limb of the body and that limb needs to reset in its place or repaired so the whole body can function as one unit!

Therefore:

*****Gal 6:2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

When a Christian falls into temptation, immediately other Christians are to seek the ways and the means of restoring that brother or that sister back into the fellowship!

A Christian community must remain a close knit group in Jesus Christ and we already know that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us! This is His promise and we are to follow in His ways!

What is the law of Christ that is to be fulfilled?

If we just look at the 10 commandments the very first one says we must love God with all our heart, all our mind, and all our soul.

The first 4 commandments can be avoided by obeying that first commandment!

Jesus said if we loved our neighbor as ourselves then we could avoid the remaining 6 commandments.

Love is the law of Christ!

Joh 13:34  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
Joh 13:35  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Obedience to these two laws of Jesus Christ make obedience to those laws of Moses obsolete!

Since these Galatians wanted to obey some laws then they needed to obey these two "Laws of Christ" first and foremost, as we all do!

Jesus Christ never met anyone who was His equal in the obedience to the Word of God, He therefore bore all our burdens and we are to do the same for each other!

Rom 15:3  For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.

Jesus Christ had to endure severe pain and anguish but it was with great joy that He bore all our burdens!

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.

When we think of ourselves as being too good or too full of the Spirit, to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters in Christ, then we are not walking as Jesus walked and Jesus is still our example of how to walk in this world!

Mat 20:27  And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28  Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

*****Gal 6:3  For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.

It is very easy for a Christian to think of himself more highly than he is!

This in fact the greatest downfall of the believer!

Jas 1:26  If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.

When we think of that one that has fallen by the wayside as being unfit, or being weak in the Spirit, or too tarnished to retrieve, then we have forgotten why the Lord Jesus came to this earth to die for our sins.

Jesus Christ came to save the "nothings" of this world and make them into "somethings"!

We are all sinners and we cannot rate one sin greater than another as far as our relationship with the Lord!

There is no place in this life for any of us to think we are better than any other child of God!

When we think of ourselves as no longer sinners as some do, then we are deceiving ourselves!

1Jn 1:8  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

We must all approach God "by Jesus Christ" because there are no exceptions in the Word of God!

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

When we proclaim our own goodness, and forget that we are saved by "Faith" and "Faith Alone"we then become fools!

Pro 20:6  Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?

We must all examine our own works before we can be of any help to others!

*****Gal 6:4  But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.

That word "prove" means to "test".

That word "work" can best be understood "as our own conduct".

We are to test our own conduct before we are able to help others!

There are no Christians who are to be the official testers of other Christians!

Each Christian is to concentrate on his own works rather than on the works of other Christians!

We are to judge our own lives, using the Lord Jesus Christ as our example, and not some other Christian and certainly not by some fallen Christian which will only cause us to believe that we are not capable of falling ourselves!

If we do not clearly understand that there is an increasing amount of evil in this world and our flesh is so weak, that it is very difficult to remain unsoiled by this world we live in!

Many of our own desires can be beneficial until we step over the boundaries of what God forbids!

God has set the boundaries of our behaviour!

Our own senses will get us into trouble if we allow them to!

For instance, tasting food is good for nourishment, but too much tasting of food is bad and unhealthy.

Wanting to be recognized for an achievement is not sin, but loving recognition and seeking recognition is sinful.

The temptations of this world surround us every moment we are alive and if we spend our time judging others and not guarding our own lives, we will fall into temptation ourselves.

Criticizing and judging others is a great sin in the eyes of God!

Our attitude toward all others is to be that of love and caring!

Our attitude toward our brothers and sisters in Christ, must include ministering to them in their time of need and attempting to restore them back into Christian fellowship!

We can have a certain amount of joy in restoring a fellow child of God but our greatest joy is the knowledge that we ourselves, are pleasing God in our own daily walk!

1Pe 1:6  Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

God did not save us to be judges, God saved us to be witnesses and examples of God's love!

*****Gal 6:5  For every man shall bear his own burden.

Now we see God's warning.

We are personally responsible to the Lord for all our actions after we have surrendered our selves to Him!

We will all be judged for what we have done after becoming a child of God!

We all have our own burdens.

We all have our own personal weights to carry.

BUT, It is a fact that we do not have the ability to be perfect in our own selves!

AND, We will all stand before God and answer for our own actions!

2Co 5:10  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

There may be a time when we may be asked to judge but it is not in this lifetime!

1Co 4:5  Therefore judge nothing "before the time", until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

So what else are we to be doing, instead of looking upon the faults of our brothers and sisters?

*****Gal 6:6  Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.

We are to bear our own burdens but we must still think of others to help them in any way we can, especially those that are called of God to be His ministers!

As students of the Word of God, we all have the responsibility to respond to what God says!

That word "communicate" as used in this verse means "to share with".

Those "good things" can be many different things but they must also include carnal things.

It is the responsibility of all Christians to provided financial support to those that devote full time to preaching and teaching the Word of God and who are called of God to do so!

This is according to the written Word of God.

Their part:

1Co 9:14  Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.

Our part:

Rom 15:27  It hath pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, "their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things".

We may think we know some important people in this world we live in but the people most important to our society are the true God called preachers of the truth of God!

By sitting at the feet of God called preacher or teacher, we are all students sitting at the feet of God Himself!

There is also other great ways to communicate with or share with our pastor, we are also to share in his ministry!

This is much more than financial support.

We can be present when our pastor teaches. We are not to forsake the House of God!

We can be attentive to his message because if he is God called than his message is from God!

We can share his message with others. We are to witness using the Word of God!

We can participate in his ministry at any level that he allows and that can be a benefit to his ministry!

We can invite others to come an learn from him.

We must surely support him financially!

1Ti 5:17  Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.
1Ti 5:18  For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.

Why should we do these things? To not do these things is to mock God!

What is wrong with this world we live in?

*****Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

The world is deceived about facing the judgment of God!

To be "deceived" is to be led astray.

Many of these of the churches in Galatia were being led astray and were not taking the judgment of God serious.

What happens to the Church when this happens?

The Church will get lax in sharing the Gospel with the lost.

The Church will become judges instead of witnesses.

The Church will attack God's true preachers, therefore mocking God!

That word "mocked" actually means to flare the nostrils, as in contempt, to sneer, as in turning up your nose at the Word of God!

What is the truth?

God will not suffer Himself to be imposed on by empty words!

God will judge according to the works, after salvation, of each individual Christian!

The lost He has already judged and they are condemned unless they repent and turn to Jesus Christ!

God will never accept excuses from His children and certainly no excuses from unbelievers!

2Ch 36:16  But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, "till there was no remedy".

We must not forget our God does not ever change!

We may mock God's messengers, we may despise God's Words, we may misuse God's preachers, but God will only allow this to go so far before He takes serious action!

As the farmer knows, it is where he sows his seed where the crop will actually grow!

*****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.

When we sow contempt for the Word of God, we will reap the judgment of God!

When we sow to our flesh, we are only trying  to fulfill the desires of our flesh!

We already know our flesh is only devoted to selfishness!

When we are all about self, we can no longer serve God!

When we are all about self, we will only reap destruction!

Corruption always leads to destruction!

Php 3:18  (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
Php 3:19  Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.

This destruction does not come from God. This destruction is the natural fruit of corrupt flesh!

Our flesh only ages, then dies, and then decays to the elements from which is was made.

Ecc 12:7  Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

When the spirit of that lost soul returns to the Lord, then that spirit will suffer the wrath of God.

2Th 1:9  Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

Sowing our seed to the Holy Spirit is an entirely different thing with entirely different results!

Mat 25:46  And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: "but the righteous into life eternal".

The decisions we make about where to sow God's Seed, the Word of God, are final, irreversible, and everlasting!

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

When we embed God's seed, the Lord Jesus Christ, into a Holy Ghost filled body of flesh, then we will reap a spiritual harvest that brings eternal life as opposed to a natural harvest that can only bring eternal death!

What is the truth of the Gospel?

Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
Rom 8:8  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

Those that so to the flesh cannot please God!

What else is God's truth?

*****Gal 6:9  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

One of the greatest downfalls of the Christian is that we expect instant results when we sow the Word of God but this in reality is a very rare thing.

Every farmer knows that once the seed has been sown then there will be some period of time before there can be a harvest!

Sowing the Word of God is not so much different!

The fruit that is reaped occurs in a later season from the sowing!

What else is the truth of sowing God's Word?

First, the fruit must resemble the seed that is sown.

When a farmer plants corn, he is not looking for beans to sprout!

Jas 3:12  Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.

When we sow the Word of God the results should be a changed life!

What else is the truth of sowing God's Word?

Second, the fruit will be in proportion to the seed that is sown.

2Co 9:6  But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
2Co 9:7  Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

We cannot sow the Word of God just once, we must continue daily.

What else is the truth of sowing God's Word?

Third, the fruit must be a new life that did not exist before.

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

That old man must become a new man!

The problem is we become weary in well doing.

To "faint" is to become "relaxed" in serving God!

We as Christians must not become relaxed in this ministry the Lord has given us to do!

We must continue to sow the seed until the Lord takes us home by our own death or by the Rapture of all God's people, whichever comes first!

Thank goodness our Lord has much more patience than we do!

Jas 5:7  Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Jas 5:8  Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

And the results of the harvest always lies in the hands of God!

1Co 3:7  So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; "but God that giveth the increase".

Just as God gives the increase to that farmer, God gives the increase in the sowing of the "Gospel Seed"!

What else is the truth of God's sowing principles?

Our own reward can come only from our own labor!

1Co 3:8  Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.

It may be easy to become discouraged, but God says just enjoy life, keep busy in the work of the Lord, and just trust God for the results and then witness as God provides the opportunity to do so.

*****Gal 6:10  As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

When  do we share the love of Jesus? As we have opportunity!

We can be sure God will provided many opportunities!

God leaves us here on this earth after salvation to give us the opportunity to be a part of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ!

If we are to make an impact on this world, it can only happen after we have surrendered ourselves to the work of the Lord Jesus Christ!

SO, let us do good to all men!

BUT, let's us especially do good to all those throughout this world that have answered the call of God.

Satan will do his best to hinder the work of the Lord now, but after the Church has been removed, Satan will prance around on this earth for a short period of time thinking we has won, just as he did at the Cross, but he soon find out that it is he that has only a short time left.

Rev 12:12  Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, "because he knoweth that he hath but a short time".

Because we know we are on the winning side, now is our time!

Now is our time to sow the seed of the Lord.

Now is our time to take advantage of the opportunities given to us by the Father.

Now is our time to sow to the Holy Spirit and not sow to our own flesh!

Lets us live in the fellowship of each other while we remain in the fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Questions?

Let's Pray!

Walking With God

Walk In The Spirit

Galatians 5:16-26


We all know that to walk is to move at a slower pace as compared to running.

In the Bible the word "Walk" is also used to denote our conduct in this life or our walk in life.

The Bible declares how we should walk in this life.

1Jn 1:5  This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
1Jn 1:6  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

The message we learn from the Word of God is this.

"If we walk in the truth of God we can be cleansed from all sin"!

One the greatest examples of Christian faith can be found in the Old Testament.

Gen 5:24  And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Enoch walked in the truth of God and Enoch never saw death!

When we walk with God then it pleases God and God gives us all the gift of eternal life but that walk with God must be a walk of "Faith", just as Enoch walked!

Heb 11:5  By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

BUT, that walk with God cannot be fruitful until we walk in the Spirit of God!

Rom 8:4  That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Rom 8:5  For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

To walk with God is to be in daily combat with our greatest enemy, which is our own flesh!

So let's pick up where we left off last week:

*****Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Let's revue verse 13 to clearly understand what the Apostle Paul is saying:

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".

Paul said there is only one way to use our Christian Liberty.

Paul said there is only one way to conquer the "lusts of the flesh", It Is By The Power Of The Holy Spirit!

What are lusts?

Lusts are the desires or the longing for forbidden things or deceitful things!

God says we are to put these thing off:

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

To put off is to put away or to cast off anything that can lead to corruption!

Corruption leads to destruction!

Jas 1:14  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
Jas 1:15  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

In fact the Lord Jesus Christ says that it is sin to lust even if you have not reacted to that lust!

Mat 5:28  But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

The best way to keep sin out of the temple of God is to keep it filled with the Holy Spirit!

Rom 8:1  There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
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.

Our own flesh is still our greatest enemy and it is our own flesh that Satan will attack with worldly desires!

*****Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

This conflict between the flesh and the Spirit is a constant theme of the Bible and we first see it in the Book of Genesis before the flood in Noah's day.

Gen 6:3  And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

So what is the truth?

When the Holy Spirit is not allowed to take control of our flesh, then we will face destruction!

All of us know we always seem to have a desire for something that we do not possess.

Our own flesh is difficult to control!

BUT, Our eyes are open to this sinful nature once we have accepted the truth of God!

The Apostle Paul and all the Apostles shared this same problem that we all have.

Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

Our flesh is contrary to God's Holy Spirit!

Our flesh is full of unregulated passions, desires and emotions and these things will control our lives and lead us to eternal death if we allow them to take charge of our true being!

This is what the Bible calls the "lusts of the flesh".

There is no law that has ever been written that can overcome these tendencies of the human being!

Laws just threaten us all with consequences for our failures!

It is only the Love of God that can truly constrain us!

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.

And it is only the conscious commitment to God's Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit that can enable us to live in a way that pleases God.

*****Gal 5:18  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Laws are made for all those that live by their own flesh!

1Ti 1:9  Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,
1Ti 1:10  For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine;

It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can walk away from all these things!

This what we call true repentance!

Repentance is a complete change of mind and a complete change of direction!

Repentance is walking the Christian walk by the power of the Holy Spirit!

Each of us that know the Lord Jesus as our Savior will always be at war with our own flesh because there can be no peaceful co-existence between the flesh and the Holy Spirit!

We have all given in to our flesh and done things we are not proud of!

We are all tempted and even when we know we have the power to over come that temptation, we still give in to our flesh.

In other words the flesh is controlling when we allow it to be that way!

This flesh we live in is so strong that it  will often keep us from doing what we know is the right thing to do!

So it is impossible for our flesh to keep laws!

It is the Holy Spirit of God that is the only answer to this dilemma!

So what does the Bible say are the works of the flesh?

*****Gal 5:19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal 5:20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Gal 5:21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

The works of the flesh include not only our sinful actions but also our sinful attitudes!

The works of the flesh are also separate from the works of the Law!

The flesh in itself is not sinful!

The flesh is God's creation!

The flesh was manifested for God's use and not to satisfy our own lust!

It is the "works of the flesh" that are the fruit of the sin in our lives passed down to us by Adam!

If God has taken the time and space to list these things then we should take the time to revue them one at a time.

1) Adultery: Is the sexual unfaithfulness to a husband or to a wife.

Adultery also includes looking and lusting after, even if the sexual act never takes place!

Mat 5:28  But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

This would also include books and magazines and the television.

Committing this act within our hearts is the same as committing the physical sin!

2) Fornication: Is all forms of immoral sexual acts!

It is premarital sex and also adultery!

It is any form of abnormal sex beyond the bonding of a marriage relationship between "one man and one woman"!

Fornication includes all sexual vice and depravity!

Fornication is sinning against our own bodies!

Fornication also includes seeking to worship anything other than our Creator!

1Co 6:18  Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.

3) Uncleanness: Is moral impurity.

It is any action we take in this life that dirties, or pollutes or soils our lives from being pure in the eyes of God!

Rom 1:24  Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

4) Lasciviousness: is absolute filthiness, indecency, outright shamelessness!

This is unrestrained evil thoughts and all evil behaviour!

These are people who have sinned so much that they no longer care what other people think about them!

In fact these people will openly do such things in the eyes of the public, in order to show the world they will do as they please unrestrictedly!

These include but are not limited to, an abnormal display of affection, carnality, gluttony, and sexual immorality!

Rom 1:27  And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.

4) Idolatry: Is the worship of any idol, or any work of man's hands.

Idolatry is creating within our own minds an image of God other than who God says He is!

Idolatry is devoting your time and energy to things other than God.

God said know this:

Eph 5:5  For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

And God says this:

Col 3:5  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, "and covetousness, which is idolatry":
Col 3:6  For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:

6) Witchcraft: Is the use of sorcery, (including the use of drugs) or evil spirits, to gain control over the lives of others and this includes over your own life!

Witchcraft is seeking to control our own fate including, astrology, palm-reading, seances, fortune telling, using crystals or cards or any other from of witchcraft, rather than seeking God and the written Word of God.

Isa 8:19  And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
Isa 8:20  To the law and to the testimony: "if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them".

7) Hatred: Is enmity, hostility, or animosity directed at another individual.

Hatred comes from within an unclean heart!

1Jn 2:9  He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, "is in darkness even until now".

1Jn 3:15  "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer": and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

8) Variance: is fighting against another person in order to have the advantage over that person.

It includes, strife, discord, contention, fighting, struggling, wrangling in order to gain a promotion, or a property, or recognition.

To be variant is to be a deceiver!

Satan is known as the Deceiver!

One who is variant will do anything, legally or illegally, morally or immorally or anything within their power to gain the advantage over someone else!

Pro 26:21  As coals are to burning coals, and wood to fire; so is a contentious man to kindle strife.

9) Emulations: like covetousness is that desire to have what someone else has, not a copy of, but that very thing.

It includes, jealousy, desire, and wanting.

It mainly includes material things but also includes recognition, honor, and/or position.

Pro 27:4  Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?

10) Wrath: Is a sudden burst of anger.

It is violent and explosive.

It is a quick temper that can also just as quickly fade away. It is anger that does not last!

God's answer to wrath is this:

Jas 1:19  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
Jas 1:20  For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

11) Strife: Happens within our own selves.

Strife is that conflict, that struggle, that fight, within ourselves to do what is right.

Php 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

12) Seditions: Are rebellions.

Things that create division.

Sedition is standing against another without even knowing the truth.

Sedition is rejecting the Word of God!

God told King Saul:

1Sa 15:23  For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

God says it is these people who are self-willed and ignore the Will of God.

2Pe 2:10  But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.

13) Heresies: Are things that reject the fundamental beliefs of God!

The basics are the rejection of Jesus Christ.

The rejection of the Scriptures.

Rejecting God's Church.

Rejecting Faith and the "Grace of God"!

Heresy, is holding to some teaching other than the truth of God!

Jesus said this:

Mat 15:8  This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
Mat 15:9  But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

14) Envyings: This is going beyond jealousy. This not just lust for the things of others but includes begrudging the fact that person has them.

This is not just wanting that person to loose those things but for them to also suffer because of the loss of those things.

Pro 14:30  A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.

15) Murders: Murder is taking the life of another person.

The sixth commandment says:

Thou shalt not kill!

This is a direct commandment of God but it also includes hatred.

Every human being is a creation of God and only He has the actual right to take their life!

1Jn 3:15  Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

16) Drunkenness: Includes anything that affects our senses.

Alcohol in any form, drugs in any form, "that are taken to affect our lust for pleasure or to loosen our moral restraint", must be avoided!

Pro 23:20  Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:
Pro 23:21  For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

Pro 23:29  Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
Pro 23:30  They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.

1Co 6:10  Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

17) Revelings: Is the uncontrolled indulgence of personal pleasure.

Taking part in wild parties.

Indulging in feeding the lusts of the flesh.

Orgies.

God says these are things what the world does and we are to avoid them!

1Pe 4:1  Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;
1Pe 4:2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.
1Pe 4:3  For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries:

These are the things we must avoid.

These are the things of the world.

God simply says that those who live by the flesh "shall not" inherit the Kingdom of God, which is the promise given to Abraham!

The world believes that God will accept them if their good out weighs their bad on the scales of life but this is not what the Bible says.

God says without the righteousness of Jesus Christ, we are still unrighteous!

1Co 6:9  Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God?

God says we must walk in the fruit of Holy Spirit!

*****Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

In the Book of Genesis, God, speaking to the Holy Trinity, said let's make man in our image.

Gen 1:26  And God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness": and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

This image of God is not in our form or features.

This image of God is not in our intellect, for we know that God's Angels and the Devil are far more superior in these things.

This image of God is not in immortality, for we are not like the self-existing God!

This image, God is speaking of, are the moral dispositions of the soul!

Ecc 7:29  Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.

It is because of the sin of Adam that we must be "Born Again" into righteousness!

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Once we are "Born Again" and become a temple of God and filled with His Holy Spirit, then there should be a noticeable change!

If we are led by the Holy Spirit, then we can avoid the works of the flesh and walk according to God's nature, or God's image!

What is the image of the Holy Spirit?

We can see that image in His fruit.

Note that word "Fruit" is singular and not plural. The Holy Spirit has only one "fruit"!

All these traits will be present in each believer and not just some of them!

1) Love: The Greek word used for love in this verse is "Agape".

Agape love is a love of the mind. Agape love, loves regardless of feelings.

Agape love, loves a person even if that love is not deserved.

Agape love, loves all those that are undeserving of any love.

Agape love is the Love of God!

Agape love is the love that was demonstrated by Jesus Christ for all the ungodly!

Rom 5:6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Agape love is the love that was demonstrated by God, through Jesus Christ for all sinners!

Rom 5:8  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Agape love is the love of God for all those who do not deserve the love of God, through Jesus Christ!

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Agape love is God's gift and comes only by the Holy Spirit!

Rom 5:5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Agape love is the greatest thing that God teaches each of us that believe!

Mar 12:29  And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
Mar 12:30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
Mar 12:31  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. "There is none other commandment greater than these".

Agape love is the greatest possession that a Christian can have!

1Co 13:13  And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; "but the greatest of these is charity".

All the fruit of the Holy Spirit is based on God's love!

2) Joy: Love brings a delight of the mind. There is great joy when we consider our present situation and compare that to the glories of the Promised Land, the New Heaven.

Christian joy is a deep seated pleasure and it ignites a cheerful heart.

Rom 14:17  For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

3) Peace: Peace is a state of quietness and tranquility, free from agitation, again a temper of the mind.

But more important than this, peace also means we are joined to or woven together with God!

Peace by the Holy Spirit is knowing the greatest good, enjoying the very best, possessing the inner goodness of God!

The peace of God is independent of our own environment in this world!

Joh 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

4) Longsuffering: Is best described as "Patience"!

The longsuffering of the Holy Spirit means to never give in, and it is never broken, no matter what attacks it!

Longsuffering means we never strike back.

Praise God because He is longsuffering or I could not be saved!

1Ti 1:16  Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.

5) Gentleness: Gentleness is best describes as being kind and good, useful and helpful. That word "Grace" also fits well with gentleness.

Gentleness cares for the feelings of others.

Gentleness experiences the hurt of others within itself.

Gentleness suffers when others suffer.

Luk 6:35  But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

Rom 12:10  Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;

6) Goodness: Is the state of being good!

Goodness treats all other people as they should be treated.

Goodness does not stand by and allow others to take advantage of other people.

A good person will not let evil run rampant!

Goodness is the trait of the Church that stands up to this evil world!

God says goodness will disappear from this earth when the Church is removed at the Rapture!

2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: "only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way".

7) Faith: Is faithfulness. Loyal and steadfast in devotion.

Faithfulness will never doubt God.

God's own faithfulness is our assurance of our salvation!

Our faithfulness as believers is our means of salvation!

1Co 1:9  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

8) Meekness: Is humility.

Meekness is a humble state of mind but to be humble is not to be weak!

Meekness is to be strength under control!

A meek person loves people and loves peace more than he loves war.

A meek person desires to be a friend to all and to help all.

God desires us to be meek:

1Pe 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
1Pe 3:16  Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.

We should never forget that the Holy Spirit is also the most powerful force that exist!

9) Temperance: Is to be the master of your being. To always be in control of your body and of your flesh!

It means self-control in all indulgences; lusts, desires, passions, and sensual urges and includes cravings.

To be temperate is to stand against our own flesh!

To be temperate is to win the war with our flesh everyday!

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
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.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is the exact nature of God!

Our walk with God must show that we are aware of God's nature, as we strive to be like the Lord Jesus!

*****Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Gal 5:26  Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

When we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, we become His property and His possession!

Just as the flesh of Jesus Christ was crucified on that cross, we are to crucify our own flesh so that we are no longer slaves to our own flesh, subjected to its lusts, and subject to the judgment of God.

Upon our confession of "faith" God considers that we have also died in Christ' death and identified with Him!

In the eyes of God our flesh is dead!

We have been made free from the bondage of our flesh!

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 if we live in the Spirit then our walk in this life should resemble the Spirit!

Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Notice now we see the warning. We are never to become super-spiritual!

We are never to think that others have been blessed with greater Spiritual gifts than we possess!

We are never to do anything that might cause divisions in the Church!

Pride can still be our greatest enemy!

Pride comes when we forget the cross that Jesus bore for our sins!

No matter where we stand with God, we are to measure our growth by the Lord Jesus Christ and we will always come up short!

We must remember it is by God's Grace and God's Promise that we can become God's children!

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!