Please open your Bibles to the
book of Galatians chapter 3. Galatians chapter 3. The main text of today's message
is verse 13, speaking of Christ who was made a curse for us. But I want to go back and begin
reading in verse 10. As you know, there were probably
more than one church in that time in the area called Galatia. The Apostle Paul had been the
instrument that God used to start these local congregations and
to build them up. And of course, Paul was a missionary.
So he didn't stay there, he left and went other places. But he
would always hear about these churches, what was going on in
this church. Sadly, it was another episode
of false preachers who claimed to be Christian, subtly coming
into the congregation and preaching things that were contrary or
contrary to the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace in Christ.
Now at one point in time in the history of the New Testament
church, that was kind of rare a little bit, you might say,
but it has kind of taken on its own life in the life of the true
churches as we get nearer the time of Christ's second coming.
And Christ warned his disciples of this. He told them, he said,
in the last days, one of the greatest problems that we'll
face, in fact, I put it this way, and I know this, I've preached
through Revelation, I've preached through Matthew 13, and Mark
24, and all those passages that have to do with the end times,
where it talks about the end of Jerusalem, which took place
already in AD 70, and the end of the nation. And then leading
up to the second coming of Christ, which obviously has not taken
place yet, yet we pray like John, even so Lord come quickly. This
world is not getting better, you know that. So we realize
that and our only hope is Christ. But he told him, he said one
of the greatest signs of the nearness of his coming. Now we
don't know the day, we don't know the time, Nobody does, and
it's useless. In fact, it's wrong to try to
figure that out. Now, I've known preachers who've
done that. I never forget a guy used to
come by here every now and then. He traveled all over the United
States, and he had a shirt that had a date on it. I can't remember
what the date was, but I asked him, what's that date? I said,
is that your birthday? Which couldn't have been, because
it was future. But he said, that's when Christ
is coming back. I said, really? He said, yeah. I said, man, I better get ready.
Well, didn't happen. It didn't happen. But he is coming
back. And it could be any moment, any
day, any week. We don't know. But he said that
one of the greatest signs of the nearness of his coming was
people preaching, congregating around a false gospel, a false
Christ. Remember he said they'll come
saying here's Jesus and there's Jesus. Don't believe him he said.
You'll have some people who claim to be the Messiah but you'll
have others who claim to be preaching the Messiah when they're not.
And here in this church I believe that it was false brethren who
were physically Jews who claim to believe in Christ and claimed
to believe the sovereign grace of God, but who were telling
the people, but now that's not enough. Christ is not enough. His righteousness is not enough
for you. You've got to do your part. Now that sounds good to
the natural man, but it's heresy. It's wrong, it's sinful. I've
told you the story about a preacher friend of mine was at a conference
and a man got up and he made this statement trying to illustrate
the Christian life and he said, he said, the Christian life is
like walking on a tightrope and you're holding that balance rod,
you've seen tightrope walkers? On one end of that rod is the
imputed righteousness of Christ. This is the way he put it. Now
we believe in the imputed righteousness of Christ, don't we? We know
that's the heart of the gospel. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord imputeth righteousness without. That's the merits of Christ charged
to our account. And from that we get life from
the dead in the new birth. So he said on one end of the
rod is the imputed righteousness of Christ. On the other end of
the rod is your works of righteousness. And he said they gotta balance
out. Well that's not right. Now, does that mean we should
not try to be obedient people? Oh, no, we should try to be the
best people we can be, but not to make us righteous before God.
That's Christ's work. You understand that? Well, the
preacher that I was telling you about, he got up after that,
and he just challenged the man publicly, and he should have
done that. He did right. Now, somebody said,
well, you should not embarrass him. No, he preached a false
gospel. Remember when Paul withstood
Peter to the face in Antioch? It's recorded in the book of
Galatia. Because Peter did wrong. Now he's not just airing dirty
laundry to the public. We don't do that. In fact, we
protect each other in those areas. But when a false gospel is preached
from a pulpit where the truth is, it's got to be dealt with. And this church knows that. Because we've had it happen,
haven't we? Years ago. Well, this man got up and he
said, look, he said, the Christian life is not walking on a tightrope
with a balance rod between Christ's works and our work. Here's what
the Christian life is like. He said, the Christian life is
standing on a rock. Christ Jesus. Amen to that. He is the rock of our souls.
And that's my favorite hymn. My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest
frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ the solid rock
I stand. All other ground, no matter how
good it sounds, all other ground is sinking sand. So what's happened
here in Galatia? is these false preachers who
claim to be Jews, which they thought that that recommended
them because, oh, these guys know the Old Testament. But what
they were teaching people is that, yes, we're saved by grace,
but you've got to add your works. You've got to have the other
end of that balance rod, or you're not saved. You're not righteous. Now, that's a subtle heresy of
of truth. It's not true at all. And so
listen to what Paul says here beginning at verse 10. Now we
could go through the whole thing here but I want to get up to
the main text. He says, for as many as are of
the works of the law are under the curse. You hear that? Now what is it to be of the works
of the law? Well it's to be seeking salvation
or any part of it at any stage, to any degree, in any way, based
upon our works of the law. Now again, we ought to be or try to be the
best we can be in obedience in every area of life that the Bible
tells us. But not to be saved Or by grace
are you saved, through faith, and that's not of yourself, it's
the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. I want to be righteous within
myself, but I cannot be while I'm in this life. You know why?
Because I'm in a struggle with the flesh. And I will not be
righteous within myself according to the standard of God's righteousness
until I die and go to be with the Lord. Do you believe that?
But right now, now here's this, here's the comfort, here's the
peace, here's the assurance, I am perfectly righteous before
God in Christ. Based upon His blood washing
away my sins. His righteousness imputed to
me. One of the verses in that hymn,
this is all my hope and peace, this is all my righteousness.
Nothing but the blood of Jesus. You see that? I believe that. So to be of the works of the
law is a sinner trying to make him or herself right with God
by works. Now what does that mean? What
does that say about that person who's doing that? They're under
a curse. And what is the curse? It's death. And I'm talking about eternal
damnation. That's what the curse is. And
he quotes from Deuteronomy here. He says, cursed is everyone,
for it is written, cursed is everyone that continueth not.
Now listen to this, don't let this get by you. Cursed is everyone
that continueth not in what? What does that say? All things
which are written in the book of the law to do them. Now think about that. What is
he saying there? He's saying if you're going to
be right with God based upon your law keeping, you have got
to keep it all perfectly. No sin, no transgression, no
falling short, no missing the mark. The law says love God with
all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. That means perfectly. If you have any rivals within
your psyche, your mind, if there's any rival with your love for
God, you failed. And I know you have rivals. Now,
should we fight those rivals? Yes, we should. We should fight
every sin in every way. Fight it. But it's still there. and you can't get rid of it.
And these denominations that tell you that you can reach sinless
perfection, they're lying, they lie to themselves, they're deceived.
Plus the fact they'd stop growing old and getting sick too. Because
that's a result of sin. Perfectly. I'll never forget,
I was having lunch with a man who wanted to know what we believed.
He was talking about going into a lady who was dying. And he said a preacher came out
from her and said, well, I know she was saved. And he said, how
do you know that? And the preacher said, well,
she did what God required. And he asked me, he said, I asked
the man, well, what does God require? And the preacher, surprisingly,
didn't really have an answer for him. Some people say, well, to believe.
Some people say to repent and believe. But he asked me, he
said, what does God require? And I told him, I said, God requires
absolute perfect righteousness with no sin. And he looked at
me wide eyed and he said, nobody can do that. I said, that's right.
That's why salvation is by grace. And not by works. It's by grace
through the righteousness of one who can and did keep it perfectly,
the Lord Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh. And he's my hope. My hope is
Bill. So he says, cursed is everyone
that continues not in all things which are written in the book
of the law to do them. And here's one of the problems.
Let's say that today you could start keeping the law perfectly.
What are you gonna do about the past sins? Somebody says, well,
you repent of those and God accepts them. God does not accept you
based upon your repentance. He does not forgive you based
upon your repentance. God only accepts sinners based
upon the blood of Jesus Christ. And if you ever see that by the
power of the Spirit, you know what will happen? You'll repent.
Repentance and faith are the fruit, not the cause of salvation. So here's the conclusion, look
at verse 11. He says, well, if that's the case, but that no
man, no man or woman now, sinful woman, born of Adam, fallen in
Adam, that's what we are now by nature, sinners. People quote
Romans 3.23, all have sinned and come short of the glory of
God. That means we've all missed the mark of perfection. No man
is justified by the law in the sight of God. No sinner can be forgiven. What
is it to be justified? It's to be forgiven of all my
sins on a just ground. And what is the just ground?
Blood of Christ. To be justified is to be declared
righteous in the sight of God, in His court of justice, on a
just ground. And what is that? The righteousness
of Christ imputed to us. So no man is justified by the
law in the sight of God. Now you may be justified in the
sight of men, but men can be wrong. God cannot be wrong. So
he says, it is evident. That's evident. There ought not
be any argument there. That's evident. Well, why is it so evident? Well,
look at us. We're a sinful people. Even the
best of us still fall short, don't we? And he says in verse 11, for
the just, the justified, forgiven, righteous by God's grace, by
the blood of Christ, shall live by faith. Now what is it to live
by faith? It's to live our lives looking
unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. That's what faith
does. God-given faith looks to and
rests in Christ for all forgiveness, for all righteousness, for all
salvation, all blessings. I've told you before that if
you believe the Bible, there's not one blessing that God has
ever given us, physical or spiritual, that we can honestly say before
God, we earned it and deserved it. That's what grace is all
about. I don't earn or deserve it, even
the next breath I take, I didn't earn it, God gave it to me, it's
a gift. It's a gift, blessed with all
spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. And so
he says in verse 12, and the law is not of faith. The law
doesn't require you to believe, the law requires you to do it.
It's not a faith. But the man that doeth them shall
live in them. If that's the way you're gonna
try to be saved, you better do them, all of them. But you can't. Now, here's the remedy now. Verse
13, here it is. Here's our hope. This is where
our faith brings us. God-given faith brings us. And
this is where we repent of everything else that we thought could recommend
us unto God. Like Paul in Philippians 3, I
count it all but loss. What is it? Verse 13, Christ
hath redeemed us from the curse of the law. How? Being made a curse for us. Christ is our surety. That means
our sin debt was charged to him before the foundation of the
world in the everlasting covenant of grace. Christ is our substitute,
he took our place under the law. Look down there at Galatians
4 and verse 4, right down on the same page. But when the fullness
of the time was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman,
made under the law. Our salvation was conditioned
on him, that's what it means when he was made under the law,
he was made under its curse. And it says, being made a curse
for us, Christ is our Redeemer. Look at verse five of chapter
four. To redeem them that were under the law, that we might
receive the adoption of sons. You see that? When sinners are under a curse,
that means this, they're under the penalty of a broken law.
And when he says that Christ has borne that curse for us,
his people now, his sheep, that's who he's talking about, God's
elect, he means that Christ has borne the penalty of the broken
law in our stead. How can God the Father bring
His wrath down upon His perfect Holy Son? and still be just. It's all based upon the fact
that Christ was made a curse. The second Corinthians 521 says
he was made sin. What does that mean? A sin bearer,
a sin offering, a sacrifice, a substitute. And Christ, listen
to this now, Christ was not forced in that position. The son of
God, the second person of the Trinity, he covenanted with the
father and the spirit and he volunteered. And he says that
several times in the book of John. He says, no man takes my
life from me, I give it freely. Why? Because of his love for
his father and for the people to whom the father gave him. All of that. Christ hath redeemed
us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us. The
law's curse that we deserved and earned was brought down upon
him. And it says in verse 13, for
it is written, cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree. Back
in the old covenant law, when they hung them on a tree, now
crucifixion was not the Jewish way of putting people there.
It was either stoning or hanging by the neck. But this is a reference
to Christ hanging on the tree of the cross. He redeemed us
from the curse of the law. The Redeemer is Christ, the Son
of God, who was appointed and called to this work by the Father
and which he himself agreed to. He was spoken of in prophecy
under this character, the Old Testament. He came as such and
he obtained eternal redemption for his people. He sealed it
so that no one for whom he lived and died and was buried and arose
again would perish. As a man, he was a near kinsman.
You remember that? You remember in the book of Ruth?
The near kinsman, the kinsman redeemer? Only that near kinsman
had the right to redeem. Well, Christ is our near kinsman.
God gave him a people to save. And he had the right of redemption.
And as God, he was able to accomplish it. His name shall be called
Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. His name
shall be called Emmanuel. being interpreted, God with us.
And the persons redeemed are us, he says. Christ was made
a curse for us. Who are the us? That's his people,
his elect, his sheep. All who are brought to faith
in Christ in true repentance. Both Jew and Gentile, they're
called a peculiar people. And that literally means purchased,
he bought us. The people of Christ, whom the
Father gave to him before the world began. He said, all that
the Father giveth me shall come to me. And him that cometh to
me, I will in no wise cast out. It's people out of every kindred,
tongue, people, nation. And the blessing that he obtained
for us is redemption. A buying of us back again, as
the word signifies. He paid the price. Jesus paid
it all, the song says. And they were His before by the
Father's gift, and now He purchases us with the price of His blood.
You see, the Father gave Him a people, but they were sinful
people who had fallen in Adam, and God's justice must be satisfied. He's both a just God and a Savior. There's the answer to that eternal
question. Just. A just God and a Savior. A righteous judge. who honors
himself in holiness and righteousness and justice, and a loving, merciful,
gracious father. How can he be both? Based upon
Christ paying that purchase price for his people. the sense of which this made
a curse for us, the sense of which not only that he was like
a cursed person, looked upon as such by the men of that generation
and all who are in unbelief, but he was truly cursed by the
law. It was real. It was no legal
fiction. It was no hoax. I mean, it was
real. And how do you know it was real?
Well, he arose from the dead. The only sin can demand death. Only righteousness can demand
life. So in order for him to be raised
from the dead, he had to remove the sin. He had to take care
of the problem. He had to pay the price. He had to be a ransom,
a redemption for his people. And look at one more verse here.
Look at verse 14. Here's the results for us. that
the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through
Jesus Christ, that he might receive the promise of the Spirit through
faith." Now one of the things that these false preachers were
saying, these Jews who claim to believe the gospel, is that
these Gentiles who are brought into the church, if they're going
to really be saved and have assurance of salvation, they've got to
be circumcised. And one of Paul's main points in the book of Galatians
is absolutely not. Absolutely not. Circumcision
doesn't mean a thing. Christ was made a curse for all
of his people, his sheep, Jew and Gentile. They're all equally
redeemed, equally saved, equally righteous, without anything added. And what is this blessing of
Abraham? We'll look across the page again to Galatians four
and verse five. It says, Christ was made the
son of God, made of a woman, to redeem that were under the
law that we might receive the adoption of son, the adoption
of grace. That's the blessing of Abraham.
And spiritual life, spiritual circumcision, the circumcision
of the heart, salvation. How was Abraham justified? By
his works? By his heritage? No, he was justified
by grace. And what, that's Romans four.
And what does he say? I quoted him earlier. The blessedness
of the man to whom the Lord imputed righteousness without works.
Abraham was a sinner saved by grace. And the just shall live
by faith, looking unto Christ. So Abraham had the promise of
salvation, he had the promise of the spirit, and the same blessing
that Abraham enjoyed, even justification by the righteousness of Christ,
is what was promised to Abraham, that in him, his seed, that is
Christ, the Gentiles, even the Gentiles will be blessed. Let
me close with this. Turn over to Galatians chapter six. And look down at verse 14. Here's how Paul concludes the
letter to the Galatian churches. He says in verse 14, but God
forbid that I should glory. Now that word glory means to
boast. Now if you claim salvation, you're
making a boast. Somebody says, I know I'm saved.
Well, that's a boast. Now look at it. God forbid that
I should glory or boast except save, except in the cross of
our Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing wrong with boasting in
salvation if it's based upon the obedience unto death of Jesus
Christ as our surety, our substitute, our redeemer, our keeper. But
now if you boast of salvation based on your works, that's an
empty boast, that's self-righteousness, that's legalism. I know I'm saved
because I had an experience. I know I'm saved because I got
baptized. I know I'm saved because I gave
my heart to Jesus. All those things now suddenly,
they're not scriptural. Christ died to put away my sins
and he is my righteous. And he says, by whom the world
is crucified unto me and I unto the world. In other words, Paul
said, because of my standing in Christ and my faith in him,
I look at the world as being cursed. But the world looks at
me as being cursed. And he says in verse 15, for
in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision,
but a new creature, or a new creation. That's a sinner saved
by the grace of God. Remember Ephesians 2, 10, for
we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works,
not because of good works, unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them. And then verse 16, I'll
close. And as many as walk according
to this rule, what rule? God forbid that I should glory,
save in the cross. Peace be on them. They're at
peace with God. And mercy. God's shown them mercy. And upon
the Israel of God. That's the Israel of God. Spiritual
Israel. Saved by the grace of God. Because
Christ was made a curse for them.