The last hymn that we sang is such a comforting hymn, isn't it? That third verse, his oath, his covenant, his blood, support me in the whelming flood. Those three things, God's oath. When he could swear by none greater, he swore by himself. That's the oath that we're talking about there. And then his covenant, of course, his everlasting covenant, covenant of grace. And his blood, it speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Let's open our Bibles tonight to the letter of Galatians. Galatians chapter 1 and verse 1 through 5. Galatians chapter 1, verse 1. Paul, an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead. And all the brethren which are with me under the churches of Galatia, grace be to you and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God and our Father. to whom be glory forever and ever, amen.

I hope the Lord willing to bring several messages to us again from the letter of Galatians the next several Wednesday nights. And tonight we're just looking at these first five verses, the salutation. The thing that we should always remember when we read a salutation In one of these letters, one of these epistles that were written by the apostles is never to forget that the salutation was inspired like all of the letter. I mean, when we start writing a letter, it's just kind of commonplace, dear so-and-so, and it's, you know, just without even thinking, we just start. But this salutation was certainly thought, and every word in it, every line in it, is important. And we must always remember it was inspired by the Holy Spirit.

The time when this letter was written is debatable. The date that I saw the most often is A.D. 58. And I know it was written before A.D. 70, before the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by things that are written here in the letter. And I would point out this is the only one of the letters that Paul wrote, only one of the inspired letters that Paul wrote that was not directed to an individual or to a particular church. You notice it is to the churches, plural, churches of Galatia. This whole idea of a national church doesn't come from the scriptures. You know, that's something that has developed over time, down through the centuries, and the Church of England, and the Lutheran Church of Germany, and Norway, and things like that, the Roman Catholic Church.

The church is a local assembly of believers, of baptized believers. the church of the Lord Jesus Christ called out, that's what it means, an assembly that's been called out of the world and we come together to worship the Lord. It is to the churches of Galatia. And reading about that area, according to what I found out, there's a northern Galatia and a southern Galatia. And of course, like most things in the scripture, some of the higher critics, you know, they come up with ideas that it was this part of Galatia and others this part of Galatia. But none of us really know. It seems it was a southern part of Galatia and churches. We know that the Apostle Paul visited in that area, but we don't know which towns. where these churches were located other than that they were in Galatia.

But that doesn't take away from the message. You know, you can get caught up in those things and miss the message of the Word of God if we're not careful. I do want to mention this, but I'm not going to spend any time to speak of dealing with it, but One of the reasons that Paul wrote to these churches is because some people, some men, professing to be teachers had come among them, and no doubt they came down from Jerusalem, which meant they carried some clout. These are churches in the country, you might say, and here are these men that come down from the big city, from Jerusalem, the center, where the temple of God had been, and where the Lord Jesus Christ had ministered, and where he had been crucified. And they came among these believers, and they were teaching something different than what the Apostle Paul had taught.

and to give traction, I guess, to their message, then they had to undermine the authority of Paul. Was he really an apostle? You know, he didn't walk with the Lord Jesus Christ like the other 11 apostles. Was he really an apostle? And if he was, if he was an apostle, he was an inferior apostle to those men like Peter and John, those in Jerusalem. And I point, I mention this because you see from the very beginning, Paul begins the letter, Paul, an apostle. He's going to get this message over that he was an apostle and even though later he visited Peter and the Lord's brother James, he tells us they didn't add anything to him. In other words, he received his gospel, the gospel that he preached directly from the Lord Jesus Christ.

He begins, Paul, an apostle. And he emphasizes the fact that he wasn't made an apostle by man. Paul, an apostle, not a man. Remember that man in, I guess it's Acts chapter one or two, that the disciples, the apostles got together and they named between two, they voted, drew straws or cast lots, however they did that, and named that man Matthias, an apostle. He was made an apostle by men. The word apostle simply means a messenger, and yes, There were apostles, messengers of churches, but there's only 12 apostles. And I say that emphatically because in Revelation we know the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, the foundation stones or the gates, I forget which it is, either the gates or the foundation stones are upon not 20 apostles, not 15 apostles, or 5 apostles, but 12 apostles, just like the Church in the Old Testament was represented by the nation of Israel, so you have 12, it's either 12 gates or 12 foundations.

I should have looked this up. One of you, you know. You've got the 12 tribes of Israel. You've got Reuben and Simeon and Levi and Judah and so forth and so on, on their names. Why? Because it shows that the church is one. no matter which dispensation. I know when I use that word dispensation, I'm talking about that old economy, that old dispensation. The gospel has always been the same. There's only one gospel, but it has been administered in a different way, that old administration under the Old Testament part of our Bible. But now the New Testament, new dispensation, but there's only one church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

In reading these five verses this past week, several times, praying over them, I thought of how very much, five verses, five short verses, how much wonderful, comforting gospel truth we find in these five verses. I remember reading years ago in the Reformation of England, I believe it was, a man gave a wagon load of hay for one page of the Epistle of James. I mean, in his language, you know? I mean, we don't think about those things because we've had the Bible in English and our mother tongue ever since we came into this world. But there's been times when God's people had very little of the word of God. And I thought to myself, what if I was in this world and only had these five verses of scripture? That's all I had. Do you know there's enough gospel in these five verses? Let's look.

I have three things I want to point out to us. We have the glad tidings in this salutation. First, Jesus Christ is one with God the Father. Notice that in verse one. Jesus Christ is one with God the Father. There should be no doubt when a person received this letter, when a church received this letter, that the Apostle Paul believed and preached and taught that Jesus Christ is fully God. And we see that, I see that in two ways in this verse.

First of all, there's no way, now remember who Paul was, who he had been, I should say. He'd been a Pharisee of the Pharisees, the most fundamental group among Judaism at that time. There's no way Now we live in a day, and it's sad to say this, but people don't think anything about using God's name, of taking God's name. I remember I've mentioned this in a message I think once before, but watching that show where they go in and they take a person's house, and I think they were buying a new house or something, they just completely redo it. And when the people first walk in and see their new house, it's been remodeled and all of that. Everyone that I saw, I watched that show for a couple of weeks, maybe, the first words out of their mouth was, my God. People do not think anything. And the sad thing is it's crept into the church. It's come in among believers as well.

and holy and reverend is thy name. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. God will not hold a person guiltless who takes his name in vain. In fact, there's one verse that tells us God's enemies are the ones who take his name in vain. What I'm pointing out is there is no way that this man who had been raised in Judaism, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, would have ever connected these two names together, these two titles, Jesus Christ and God our Father. He would have never done that unless he knew, believed, and taught that Jesus Christ is God Almighty, equal with the Father. You see that in verse one? But by Jesus Christ and God the Father.

He would never, I'm just convinced of this as I'm standing here tonight. This man would have never joined these two names together as equals, Jesus Christ and God the Father, unless he did not believe and teach and preach that Jesus Christ is God. You know, sometimes some of these cults, the Jehovah's Witnesses is one of the worst, but they deny the deity of our Savior. They will say, oh yeah, he's a God, but not one with the Father, not the God. He's a created God. No, no. God Almighty in the flesh, God the eternal son. And I believe we see that in this salutation, in those very words, if a person just stop and think about it. Connecting those two names together tells me that Paul, as I've said several times, was convinced and knew of a certainty that Jesus Christ is God. Do you know that? I'm convinced that we do. And I'm so thankful, aren't you? Because you know, flesh and blood did not reveal that unto you. Isn't that what our Lord said? When Peter said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah. Flesh and blood did not reveal that unto thee, but my Father, which is in heaven. God's spoken to you, hasn't he? And he's spoken to you through his word, through a man, maybe a preacher, yes.

The second way I see this, when Paul said, first of all, that he was not made an apostle by men, but by Jesus Christ. Well, that means that, yes, he is a man, and he's more than a man. Paul said he wasn't made an apostle by men, by some kind of a group of men getting together and voting and deciding that, yes, we recognize him to be an apostle. No, he wasn't made an apostle by men, but by Jesus Christ.

Look with me in Romans just a moment. Turn over here, Romans chapter 9. You know, this is such a beautiful testimony here to the deity, deity of Jesus. And I've always pronounced that deity. I've learned or heard recently that's not the right way. It's deity. I don't know. I just know he's God. But here in Romans chapter 9 verse 5, the apostle is listing the advantages and the blessings that God had bestowed upon the nation of Israel. And let's, let me see. Let's begin with verse 3. For I could wish that myself were cursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh, who are Israelites. Now notice, to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises, whose are the fathers, and of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all. God bless forever. Amen. What a testimony this verse gives to the deity of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

All right, here's the second thing back in our text. Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins, verse four tells us, who gave himself for our sins. In verse one, of course, he wrote that he had been raised from the dead by the Father. And this tells us how he gave himself. He gave himself to die, not for his sin, we know that, for he had no sin of his own. Remember, he was able to speak to those accusers, which of you convinces me of sin? Nobody said anything. You know, would you ever say that? Your husband sure wouldn't say that to your wife. And your wife sure wouldn't say that to your husband. Which of you convinces me of sin? Well, we know we're full of it. And if we deny that we're sinners, the truth is not in us. Yes, he gave himself for our sins, not his sins, for he had no sins. And that speaks to us of substitution.

Let me read a couple of verses. You can turn back here if you'd like. In Isaiah chapter 53, I'm sure you're familiar with these verses, but in Isaiah chapter 53, And this is a prophecy concerning the suffering substitute, verse three, verse five rather. But he was wounded for our transgression. He was wounded, wasn't he? He was wounded. We can't even begin to imagine the wounds that our Savior experienced, both in body and soul. We think about his wounds in his body. But he was wounded in his soul too. He was wounded for our transgressions, for my transgressions. Put your name there. He was wounded for my transgressions. Can you do that? He was bruised for my iniquities. The chastisement of my peace was upon him, and with his stripes I am healed. Amen? Read it like that. Read it like that.

All, all we like sheep have gone astray. Yes, that happened in the Garden of Eden, didn't it? We fell, and our father Adam. All we like sheep have gone astray, but notice When we come into this world, we have turned everyone to his own way. And what is our own way? It is a way of wickedness. It's a way of transgression. It's a way of sin. But, or yet, the Lord, that is God Almighty, hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

How? How he bore the sins of his people and not be God? No, there's no way. There's no way. The weight of our sin, just the sins of us in this room. Yes. So when Paul here says, who gave himself For our sins, we see substitution, but we also see satisfaction. You say, where do you see satisfaction? God raised him from the dead. God was satisfied. God's justice was satisfied. God's justice could demand no more, could ask no more.

But Paul also tells us how he gave himself for our sins. He gave himself freely. He was not forced or somehow coerced into dying, forgiving himself. You know, in Hebrews chapter 10 and verse seven, and this is a quote from the psalm, but it says, lo, I come. Well, why are you coming? Why are you coming? I come to do thy will, O God. That's why I come, to do thy will. I have meat to eat of. Remember when his disciples came back and the Lord had spoken to that lady, that woman at the well, John chapter four? They had brought some food in the town there, brought it back, and he didn't take any. They were surprised, weren't they? Did someone bring him some food? Oh, he said, I have food to eat. my father's will. That's my food. That's my food. Though I come in the volume of the book, it's written of me to do thy will, O God.

In John 10 and verse 11, he said, I'm the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. Also in that same chapter, verses 17 and 18, therefore doth my father love me because I lay down my life that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me. At one point he said I could call upon my father and he'd send, forget how many legions of angels. Man could not crucify Christ. I'm talking about man doesn't have the power to overcome God in the flesh. No, he gave himself freely for our sins. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself.

And number two, he gave himself according to the will of God. Turn with me to Acts chapter two, just a moment. And listen to these words of the apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost. In Acts chapter 2 and verse 22, you men of Israel, Peter speaking, you men of Israel, hear these words, Jesus of Nazareth, A man approved of, is this the same man that denied just a few days earlier, a couple of months earlier, that he even knew Christ? Yeah. Same man. What's the difference? God the Holy Spirit, right? God the Holy Spirit. You men of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as you yourselves also know, him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain, whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that he should be holding of it."

Peter here charged the men of Israel that day with the awful sin, deicide. We've heard of homicide, homicide, when a man kills another man. Fraternicide, when a man kills a sibling, a family member, deicide. They'd kill the Lord of Glory. They'd kill God, manifest in the flesh. You say, that doesn't sound right. Well, it is right. It is right, he died. And he did so according to the determinate will of God, the foreknowledge of God. But he did so by the wicked hands of men. And think about the same action, crucifixion, the same action, Look at it, the motive of man in his crucifixion was hatred of God. The motive of God in giving his son to crucifixion, his motive, the love of God. See, the hatred of God and the love of God. Man hated God. Men hate God. Why would we ever hate God? Because we're sinful. Because when Adam sinned there in the garden, we fell. And we have an evil nature by birth. Yes. The natural man is enmity. The natural mind is enmity with God.

Look over in chapter four. Acts chapter four. People say, well, who's responsible All of us are. In this prayer of the apostles in verse 26, Acts 4, the kings of the earth stood up. You read about that in Psalms 2, don't you? Kings of the earth stood up. The Lord shall laugh. Yeah? But not only the kings of the earth, The rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child, Jesus, whom thou hast anointed both Herod, Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, that's us, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, have gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

The same action on the part of those who crucified Christ, and that includes all of us, our motive was evil. God's purpose was good, to save many, to save many. We also see the purpose of him giving himself that he might deliver us, Paul says, from this present evil world. I looked up the meaning, the Greek word here translated, he might deliver. This word is used eight times in the New Testament and is translated five of those eight times by the English word deliver or delivered. But the other three times, it's translated twice by pluck, as you pluck something out, pluck it out and once by rescued. And according to Strong, his definition, the primary meaning is to tear out figuratively to release, deliver, pluck out, or rescue.

Here we were in this world, going, walking according to the course of this world under the power of the prince of the air, and God tore us out. He plucked us out. If he hadn't, we'd still be going down the road to destruction. He delivered us from this present evil world. What is meant by the present evil world? Well, in John's epistle, 1 John 5 and verse 19, he wrote, we know that we are of God and the whole world lies in wickedness. The lost, the whole world, lost world, are under the power of the wicked one, that is Satan, who is the god of this world, and all under his influence, and all led according to his will. But God plucked us out. For all that is in the world, this is the present evil world, all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, is not of the Father, but of the world. He gave himself to deliver us from this present evil world.

Now let me close here with the last point. Three prominent, look in this salutation, three prominent words. How could we preach the gospel without these three words? The first word is grace in verse three. Grace. Grace. How could we preach the gospel without this word? Grace. Unmerited favor. I heard this many years ago, I learned it, G-R-A-C-E, G, God, R, riches, A, at, C, Christ, expense. Grace, God's riches at Christ's expense. Grace, unmerited favor. And second, the second word is peace. Our sins had separated us from God. There's no peace, the scripture says. There's no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. A few weeks ago on Sunday morning, we looked at that prophecy of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, and I didn't get to the last part of it, but the last part of that prophecy was, or is, the day sprang from on high. It is the light of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The day spring from on high hath visited us from on high to guide our feet into the way of peace. One of the charges against mankind, fallen mankind in Romans chapter three is the way of peace they have not known. How can we have peace with God? Well, never apart from grace, that comes first, right? Never apart from God's grace.

But thank God, when we experience the grace of God, we have peace with God, a peace that has been purchased for us with his blood. And the last word is the word glory. Verse five, the salvation of God's people, your salvation. Why did he save you? Or you say, so I could go to heaven. No, that's going to happen. That's part of it. But why did he save you? For his glory. For his glory. Not your glory. You'll experience glory, yes. But God saved sinners for his glory. And he deserves all the glory. Because it's all his work. Amen.

All right, let's sing this last hymn.