And most everybody who professes
to believe on Christ understands something of the
fact that a person whose life is ruled by the lusts of their
flesh is carnal. They're fleshly. If they're ruled
by the lewdness of sin, by those just giving over, to the lewdness
of sin. We can understand that, that
they're carnal, they're fleshly. If someone is ruled by the pursuit
of personal gain, they're covetous, they're worldly. We can understand
that that is carnal, that's fleshly, has to be ruled by the flesh.
But the Apostle Paul declares throughout the book of Galatians
that it's just as carnal and it's just as fleshly when the
law is the motivator, when the law is the controlling rule of
a religious man's life. It's carnal. It's fleshly. The
papists say this. They say that the Spirit of God
comes to a sinner in grace, or that before the Spirit of God
comes to a sinner in grace. any good work that's performed
by the sinner is able to secure God's grace so that God will
come to him and reward him for that. And so that man has merited
that grace. That's not grace at all. And
they say likewise that after the Spirit has come, that a man,
by his works, by his law obedience, that he can, by that, merit God's
grace, to continue rewarding him in grace. That too is a work
of the flair. That's not grace at all. Both
of those are error, whether it's before Christ come or after Christ
come. But that's the same doctrine
that many yet hold concerning sanctification. Throughout this epistle in Galatians,
Paul's dealing with the issue of sanctification. After that a sinner is born of
the Spirit of God. This is what he's dealing with,
giving faith in Christ. I want you to notice some key
phrases here. Galatians 2.18 For if I build again the things
which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor." Look at Galatians
3, 3. Having begun in the Spirit, are you now made perfect by the
flesh? See, we're talking about after
God's begun a work of grace in our heart. Look at Galatians
3, verse 25. I'm sorry, Galatians 4, verse
25. I'm sorry, 3, 25. But after that
faith has come, you see this? After that faith has come, we're
no longer under a schoolmaster. Look at Galatians 4, verse 9. But now, after that ye have known
God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again back to the
weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
Look at Galatians 5.1. Stand fast therefore in the liberty
wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again
with the yoke of bondage. You see, we're talking about
after that God has begun a work of grace, We're talking about
after we've been freed from the law. We're talking about not
going back again. Not going back under it. Now
look back. I want you to see in Galatians
1 verse 6 what Paul calls this, Abraham. I marvel, he says, Galatians
1 verse 6, that you're so soon removed from him that called
you unto the grace of Christ unto another gospel. which is not another. But there
be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. Now, here's what I want you to
see. The Spirit of God, through Paul, is declaring that righteousness,
now understand something about righteousness, righteousness,
that which is right, righteousness of justification, of being made
the righteousness of God, of being cleared of all sin, the
righteousness of justification, and the righteousness of sanctification,
of being separated, consecrated to God, made holy. Both of these
are of the Lord. Both of the Lord. The triune
God of glory given to the believer. And the believer lives by faith. It's how it's begun. It's how it continues. And that's
how it'll be finished. We live by faith. By faith. Turning not again to the works
of the law. Now, Galatians 3 chapter 11 will
be our text. Verses 11 and 12. But that no
man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident. For the just shall live by faith,
and the law is not of faith. But the man that doeth them shall
live in them. I want to talk to you a little
bit about justification and sanctification. I want to talk to you a little
bit then about the law not being of faith. And then talk to you
about the just living by faith. Alright, here's a word about
justification. He says here, no man is justified
by the law in the sight of God. Well, justification is to be
made righteous before God. It's to be perfect with God, having never
sinned, having nothing against you, never ever one transgression
having been committed, nothing that could be brought up by God
Almighty. toward you that could ever condemn
you whatsoever. Now, the work was done by the
decree of God in eternity. Look over at Romans 8. Let's
look at this. Romans 8. Romans 8. And look at verse 29. Romans
8, 29. Whom he did foreknow, he also
did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that
he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom
he did predestinate, them he also called. And whom he called,
them he also justified. And whom he justified, them he
also glorified. Now, when was this done? Ephesians
1 tells us that God the Father blessed us with all spiritual
blessings according as He chose us in Christ before the foundation
of the world. Everything we just read right
here is included in all spiritual blessings. Justification included. How can that be? Because the
works were finished. from the foundation of the world,
because Christ is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
When Christ entered into covenant with the Father, when the Son
entered into covenant with the Father, He became surety for
the people, so that God the Father trusted all the works into the
hands of His Son. and because His Son is God, and
because He is surety. That is, He is sure to come and
do what He promised. He's God. He's God. And because God is one, and of
one mind, and nobody can turn Him, God rested. God the Father first trusted
in Christ, and He rested from all His works from before the
foundation of the world. so that his people were justified
in Christ, blessed in Christ, set apart in Christ, holy and
accepted in Christ before the world began. Now the promise
that was made of God to Christ, that covenant of works that came
about in the garden after God made the world and put Adam therein,
gave him that law and Adam broke it, that law didn't change. It
didn't disallow the promise that God made to the Son. So this
thing was done before then. I know people will hear that
and they'll say, well that's a slippery slope. Do you mean
slippery slope or do you mean stumbling block? Which one? Which one? This is not a slippery
slope to a believer. This is all my hope. This is
all my hope, that this thing's ordered and sure because God
ordered it and it's sure in Christ my surety. I'm able to believe
God. He was justified. When he died,
he went to be with God. Enoch did. Noah did. Abraham did. When as yet Christ
hadn't even come in the flesh and died at Calvary's cross and
laid down his life. How so? Through the forbearance
of God. They were justified in Christ
before we ever came forward. Now we need to get hold of that.
God's eternal. He's eternal. And his decrees
are eternal. All right, now the judicial act
of this justification took place when Christ came forth, when
He was delivered up to death, He willingly laid down Himself,
and He was made a curse for His people, and He bore the condemnation
Himself on behalf of His people. Look here at Galatians 3.13,
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made
a curse for us, for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth
on a tree." Now, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son.
God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. Jew and
Gentile, those that He chose in Christ, He was reconciling
them to Himself. And He did that long before you
and I ever believed on Him. And he was raised again for our
justification. Because he had accomplished it,
because it was done, he was raised again. Declared, the work is
finished. It's accomplished. Now that happened
before me and you ever believed on him, didn't it? Just like
Abraham believed on him before it ever happened. And he was
justified. Well, before you and I ever believed
on him, we were justified in Christ. Alright? Then, when He
gives us faith in Christ, when He comes in the Spirit power
and He gives us faith in Christ, we received justification already
accomplished. That's what we did. Listen to
this. Let me read this to you. Hold
on just a second. Romans 5, 9. Much more than being now justified
by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 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. This came to us, brethren, when
God gave us faith. Faith didn't do anything. Faith
didn't add to what Christ did. Faith didn't make Christ work
to have saving effect. Christ didn't make the work to
be finished. Christ made the work to be finished.
Faith receives what Christ has done. Whether it's before given
to Abraham, faith believed what Christ would do. and it was accounted
to him for righteousness. And afterwards, it shall be imputed
to all those who believe. We believe him, and that righteousness
said of Christ, we behold, it's the fruit of that which Christ
did. Faith being given to us is the
effect of what Christ accomplished. Not the other way around. Not
the other way around. All right, now, here's the fourth
thing I want you to see, and this I want you to pay particular
attention to. Justification is spoken of in the sense of our
works manifesting that our faith is genuine faith, that we really
do believe God. This is how James mentions it.
Let's look at James 2, or how he speaks of it. James 2, look
at verse 21. He says, was not Abraham our father justified
by works." Now it's not talking about justification that Christ
accomplished. It's talking about He believed
Him. Now watch. When he offered up Isaac, his
son, upon the altar, see how faith wrought with his works
and by his works was faith made perfect. Faith was made to be
proven to be genuine faith. It was the ruling, motivating,
controlling of his inward man. Abraham believed God. He believed
God. He offered up Isaac and it was
a work of faith. He believed God was able to raise
Isaac from the dead. He believed God. And so what
God called him to do, he did. Look at verse 23. And the scripture
was fulfilled, which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed
unto him for righteousness, and he was called the friend of God.
It was shown that what God said was so. God said, he believes
me, and it was manifested by what he did. He believes on me.
You see then how by works a man's justified, not by faith only.
Now, I'll tell you why I point that last point out. The word
justification used in that sense, that a man's justified by his
works. This is what the Galatian brethren were being compelled,
how they were being compelled to mix law with grace. Now you, by your works of the
law, by you being circumcised, and by you keeping the law of
Moses, you'll prove you really believe God. You really believe
God. Paul's not confounding here.
He's not confounding the doctrine of justification and the doctrine
of sanctification. But here's what the truth is. In the context here, Paul is
talking about sanctification. He's talking about that we're
not sanctified by our works, by the keeping of the law. That's
not how we're sanctified. That's what he's declaring here.
And he's showing us here that we're not sanctified by our law
keeping any more than we're justified by our law keeping. Would you
say you were justified with God because you've kept the law? Well then, if we're not justified
by the law, are we sanctified by the law? This is what the point Paul's
getting at. To be under the law for justification is to be bound
to fulfill it completely and continually, every particular
point of it, because the law says, do this and thou shalt
live. This is what he's quoting here
from the law in verse 13. I'm sorry, verse 12. The law's not a faith. The law
says the man that doeth the law shall live by it. If you do it,
you'll live by it. Well, to be under the law as
a means of sanctification, it says the same thing. You've got
to do it continually, completely. Do this, and you'll be sanctified. Look at what Paul says. Look at Galatians 5.3. I testify again to every man
that is circumcised, he's a debtor to do the whole law. This is
after you've believed on Christ. You believe on Him now, and then
you think somehow now you believe on Christ, but now you're going
to be made something more than what you are in Christ by something
you do. Well, then Christ is going to
profit you nothing. You're on your own completely
as if you've never even heard of Christ in the beginning. Alright? Cursed is everyone that continueth
not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do
them. You getting what I'm teaching
you? You getting this? Are you with me? You can't be
cleared of your sin and made righteous with God, justified. It can't be made so that you
never sinned before if today you just pick up and start keeping
the law. Neither, after you behold that Christ is all, and is all
your justification, and has made you the righteousness of God
in Him, you can't be made more than what you are in Christ by
your works of the law. You cannot do that. Both are
turning from Christ. That's what they were trying
to get them to do. They were trying to get them to turn from
Christ from Mount Zion to Mount Sinai. They were trying to get
them from being sons of God to servants. They were trying to
get them from being free men to back in bondage. They were
trying to turn them from faith to works. They were trying to
turn them from Christ back to themselves. This is what Satan
is ever trying to do to a sinner. He has been trying to do this
from the beginning. He used the law in the beginning
and said, has God said if you eat that fruit, you'll die? Oh,
you won't either. Go ahead and eat it. And then
soon as he ate it, he said, now if you don't stop eating that,
you can't be righteous with God. If you stop eating it, though,
you can be justified. Oh, and if you don't ever touch
it, you can get more holy. That's all the work of Satan.
That's a lie spawned in hell. If salvation is of God, of the
Lord, that's what it is. It's of the Lord. All right. Faith doesn't work by law. Faith works by love. That's what
it works by. It works by love. Let's look
at Galatians 5.6. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision
availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love.
Faith working by love. Now, that's a word about justification
and sanctification. Now, let's talk about the law
being not of faith. It's not of faith. Let's just
look at what the scripture says about the law. Look at 2 Corinthians
3 verse 6. Paul says that the Lord made
us able ministers of the New Testament as the covenant of
grace. Not of the letter, not of the
law of Moses, not of the works of the law, but of the spirit,
for the letter killeth. You see that? This is what the
law does, it kills. Paul said, I was alive once.
Before God came in spirit and I heard what the law was saying,
I thought I was alive by the law. But when it came, I died. It killed me. It killed me. Why? Because verse 7 calls it the
ministration of death. That's what it was for. It's
called in verse 8, or in verse 9, the ministration of condemnation.
That's what it was for. It's that word that's going to
make you behold that what you are and what I am is sin and
what we are is death. That's what it was given for.
Look down there at chapter 3, Galatians 3. Look down there
at verse 19. Wherefore then serveth the law?
Why was it given? Now he's saying here that Abraham
was justified. He was saying Abraham walked
with God. He was saying Abraham was the
friend of God. He was saying the works that
Abraham did manifest that he truly believed God. But the law
that was given at Mount Sinai wasn't given for 430 years later. Well, why was it given? What does the law serve? Look
at verse 19. It was added because of transgressions. It was given that sin might abound,
that it might make sin to appear to be what it is, sinful. The Ten Commandments tells you
more in depth and with more clarity what that one transgression was
in the garden. That's what it was in the garden. That's what happened. It tells
us more of how abundant sin is, and how awful sin is, and how
sin killed us, and how sin made us dead, and how sin made us
so that we couldn't come to God. But now look at verse 19. It
was added because of transgressions till the seed should come to
whom the promise was made. You see what I said to you in
the beginning that this thing was done before God made a grain
of sand because this thing was, the covenant was made to Christ. That's what he said there when
he said these promises were made not of seeds as of many but to
thy seed which is Christ. It was made to Christ. And the
law was given, and the law was given because of transgressions,
till Christ should come, to whom the promise was made. Christ
is coming. He came, He was coming to fulfill,
undo everything Adam did. And He was coming to make His
people the righteousness of God in Him. Christ is made unto us
wisdom, and redemption. But He's also made unto us righteousness
and sanctification. You see what I'm saying? He's
everything to the believer. Everything to the believer. Alright? And it was ordained by angels
in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a mediator
of one, but God is one. You know how that Moses wasn't
God. Moses was a man. And God gave that law to Moses. And the law came by Moses. And
just like Moses stood there between the people and God, the law,
the offended, broken law of God stood between every one of God's
elect people and God. It stood between us. So we couldn't
come to God. But Christ is God. And He is man in one. And in Him, there's nothing between
God, nothing to block God and the believer. Nothing between
us anymore. Now, we're one. Now, we're together. Now, there's nothing hindering
us together. We're together. Absolutely together. Look down there at verse Verse 24, wherefore the law was
our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ that we may be justified
by faith. How is it a schoolmaster? Well,
look down at chapter 4. Verse 1, the heir, as long as
he's a child, differs nothing from a servant, though he be
Lord of everything. You see, that's what God's elect
were from the beginning. God's elect, when you're born
into this world, if God chose you to put you in Christ, you're
an heir of everything, but you don't know it yet. And you don't
differ from a servant, though you're heir of everything. You're
a slave in bondage under the law. You're under the curse of
it. You can't be righteous by it. You can't be holy by it.
You can't be anything by you at all. You're a servant bound
under that law. You're under tutors and governors
until the time appointed of the father. That's what a child is,
though he's going to be the heir. You get this now. You children,
one of these days, you're going to inherit what belongs to your
father, to your earthly father. But right now, you're children,
and you're treated just like a child. Well, that's what we
were under the law. We were under tutors and governors. The law was like a schoolmaster. Every time we try to do something,
the law would say guilty. Every time we try to think a
good thought, the law would say guilty. Every time we try to
think we've done something by our works, the law would say
guilty. And it kept telling us guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty. Verse 4 says, When the fullness
of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made
under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that
we might receive the adoption of sons. And because you're sons,
God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying,
Abba, Father, wherefore you're no more a servant, but a son.
And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. And then
what happens? Look back up there at chapter
3, verse 23. Before faith came, we were kept
under the law, shut up under the faith which should afterwards
be revealed. But look at verse 25. But after
that faith has come, we're no longer under that schoolmaster.
Who is this faithful one? He just said it's Christ. And
when Christ came, there has to be the death of the testator
for the inheritance to be given. And when Christ came, He came
and He died. But He rose again. And now, when
He rose, He justified His people. He reconciled His people unto
God. And then when He comes into the heart in spirit. He doesn't use the law. He doesn't use Moses to teach
you what he's going to teach you. He comes in spirit in your
heart, not through another, not through the law, not through
something else. He comes personally, directly
and He makes the application in the heart, and Christ is formed
in you, and you become alive, and you behold, now there's nothing
between me and my Lord. There's nothing between me and
my Savior. There's nothing between me and my God. I've been made
one with Him, and He did it all. Everything. Everything. Just like that law was between
God and His people. Just like Moses stood there between
God and the people. Everything... Let's just go back
to the one. The one transgression. That one
transgression kept us from God. It stood between us and God. But Christ came. He gave that
law, he gave 600 and something laws on Mount Sinai through Moses. You can't grow your beans with
your corn. That's right. You can't plant
a corn stalk and plant a bean stalk beside it, because it saves
you the work of going out and cutting a bean pole and stabbing
it in there by that bean pole so it can run up that bean pole. Instead, you just plant your
bean right there by your corn, and you let it run up your corn
so that your corn and the beans are growing together. And now
you've saved yourself a whole lot of work. And they grow together. The law forbids that. You can't
do that. You can't put out your money
for usury. You can't lend it and get interest
from it, and you can't put it in the bank and get interest
from it. Can't do it. Can't withhold the
wages that belong to a man so you can draw interest on his
wages until payday and pay him. You got to pay him as soon as
the day is done. You see what I'm saying? If we try to keep
one law, we've got to keep the whole law. You want to be holy
by the law? You want to say that by the law
you've become something more than what Christ has fulfilled?
Dumb, Paul said. It's dumb. Not at all. But Christ
came and He blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that was against
us and nailed it to His cross. And then He comes in spirit and
He says, now, I'm yours and you are mine. And when He does this
and He fills the heart, you're led of the spirit and you're
no more led of the flesh. Let me give you this in Isaiah
48, 17. Thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel, I am the Lord thy God, which teacheth
thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest
go. How does Paul put that? Galatians
5.18. If you be led of the Spirit,
you're not under the law. There's not anything between
you and God anymore. Anything? Nothing. This is what
John Bunyan said. You're not now bound by the authority
of the law to fulfill it and obey it so as to have no salvation
unless you do so. Not at all. If you transgress
against one jot or one tittle of it, there's no more power
in it by which it can condemn you. Because you're not under the
law, you're under grace. You're under the direct dominion,
the direct habitation, the direct leadership of God Almighty, the
Holy One, the Spirit of God. Alright, now I want to end with
this. I want you to see this third thing. The just shall live
by faith. And I want you to look these
up with me as much as you can. If you can't, jot them down and
go back and look at the notes. But look at this. Hebrews 11
verse 6. Now this is what the scripture
said. Our text said, no man's justified by the law
in the sight of God. It's evident. The just shall
live by faith. It's how we start. It's how we
continue. This is where we end. We live
by faith. And the law is not of faith.
The law is not of faith. Well, our rule is faith. That's
what it is. All right, let's see. The rule
by which a sinner approaches God. What is it? It's faith. Look at Hebrews 11, 6. He says here, without faith it's
impossible to please God. For he that cometh to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek Him. So if we're going to come to
Him, what's the rule by which we come to Him? Faith. All right,
look at Romans 5, 2. Romans 5, 2. Faith is the rule by which we
have access into all the grace wherein we stand. Not through
laws, by faith. Look, Romans 5.2. By whom also
we have access? By faith into this grace wherein
we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Alright,
2 Corinthians 5.7. 2 Corinthians 5.7. Faith is the rule by which we
walk. Look at 2 Corinthians 5.7. We
walk by faith not by sight. Well, look at Matthew 21.22.
Matthew 21.22. Well, if we pray to God and ask
God's mercy, do we need to come to Him and plead our works? Do we need to come to Him and
plead the law? What's the rule of coming to God and asking God
for His mercy? Matthew 21, 22. And all things whatsoever you
shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive. Did you see
that? This is the rule of our prayer,
believing. Alright, look at Acts 13.39. This is going to reinforce what
I said at the beginning. Look at Acts 13.39, what Paul
is saying to us. Faith is the rule of justification. Acts 13.39.
By Him, by God, by Christ, Through the Spirit of God, all
that believe are justified from all things from which you could
not be justified by the law of Moses. All right? What about sanctification? You're
going to have a tough one there, Clay, proving that. All right?
Let's see about that. Acts 26.18. Acts 26.18. The Lord came to Paul and He
said, I'm delivering you, Paul. You know what delivering him
meant? sanctifying Him. It meant doing in His heart what
He'd done for Him in the election of grace, what He'd done for
Him when He sanctified Him by His one offering on the cross,
what He'd done for Him here by His Spirit. He delivered Him.
Look at verse 17. Delivering thee from the people
and the Gentiles unto whom now I send thee to open their eyes
and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power
of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins
and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that
is in me." You see that? It's the rule of
sanctification as well. Now, one more. John 5. John 5. We're going to have to be raised
one day. We're going to have to be raised one of these days.
We're going to be raised by the works of the law. John 5.40. What's our rule of everlasting
life and resurrection in the last day? John 5.40. Well, let me see. Alright, John 6, verse 40. John 6, verse 40. This is the
will of Him that sent me, that everyone would seeth the Son,
and believeth. That's faith. Believeth on Him. may have everlasting life, and
I will raise Him up at the last day." Now, that's the rule of
our life from beginning to end. The just shall live by faith. That's how we live. That's how
we live. All right? Now, what's the conclusion
of the whole matter? Look back now at Galatians 6.
Paul said this, he said, if you're circumcised, turn to the law
for righteousness, the righteousness of justification, the righteousness
of sanctification. Christ will profit you nothing,
absolutely nothing. Come to Christ. You hear me? Listen now, come to Christ. Believe
on Christ. And once you've come to Christ,
keep coming to Christ. Unto whom coming? Keep coming
to Christ. Run the race looking to Christ. I've thought of this on the way
over here. We see these runners, running's popular these days,
you know. I've been running some myself.
And when you run, you know what you do when you run? You see
them. They'll run and they'll come
up to an intersection, they'll slow down and they'll be looking
at a watch. You run and you start feeling your legs and your muscles
hurt, you know, and you think about that. You run and your
lungs start to feel like they're about to blow up, you're thinking
about that. And you start thinking about yourself. He said, run
the race set before you, looking not to yourself, not to your
weaknesses, not to your strengths, not to anything of yourself at
all. Look to Christ. by faith, run
it by faith. He's the author and finisher
of faith. And this is what Paul said, Galatians
6, 15. For in Christ Jesus, and remember
this about your brethren, remember this about yourself. In Christ Jesus, neither circumcision
availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. Being born
of God, in the heart, made new by God. This is what matters. Verse 16, and as many as walk
according to this rule. That's what we're talking about,
this rule of faith. Peace be on them, and mercy,
and upon this rule of God. Amen.