Paul's Closing Words

Is it just me or doesn't our singing seem so much better here than anywhere we've been lately? Amen. Okay, let's turn to Galatians chapter six. We're looking tonight at Paul's closing words to the believers in the churches of Galatia. And in these verses, once again, we are impressed as we see Paul's love and concern for the people of God.

Verse number 11, you see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand? Now, I'm sure most of you are familiar with this, but some people have wondered at that. How large or how long a letter? that I have written, this letter of Galatians, when we know that the Apostle Paul wrote much longer letters, 1 Corinthians, for example, 16 chapters, Romans, 16 chapters, I think 2 Corinthians, 13 chapters, and now this letter, six chapters, but of course the answer is in those final words, how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand." All of the other letters that the Apostle Paul wrote, inspired letters, I want to emphasize that, all scriptures given by inspiration of God, and it's profitable. How profitable is the Word of God to all of us, to all of God's children.

But he used in these other letters what is called, and this is a very difficult word for me to pronounce, Amalia Wences. Amalia Wences. In other words, he dictated the letter. He was inspired, and we believe the person who wrote the letter down was also inspired.

Look back to Romans for just a moment, and you see this in Romans chapter 16. when the man who wrote the letter, the actual words, Paul dictated to him these words. But in Romans chapter 16, verse 22, I, Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago in the sermon on Sunday morning Now that all of the word of God is inspired of God and that all of the New Testament was either written, all of the letters, the books, the gospels in the New Testament, they were either written by an apostle or by an associate of an apostle. And if you asked about the gospel according to Luke, of course he was an associate of the Apostle Paul, reading through Acts, which Luke also wrote.

How many times does he use the pronoun we, referring to himself as well as Paul and Silas? But that's another reason why we know that there cannot be added scripture, added inspired to the Word of God, because there cannot be any other apostles. Several weeks ago when we first began reading here in Galatians, I believe I mentioned there was four or five requirements that a man had to meet to be an apostle, which excludes anyone after the 12 apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And that's another reason we believe the gifts The gifts like the gift of healing, the gift of speaking in a foreign language, the gift of interpretation, the gift of prophecy, those various gifts that were in the churches, not just the church at Corinth.

That's where those gifts were being misused. And so Paul had to write and correct the misuse of the gifts in that church. But I'm confident they were in all the churches at that time. but only because the apostles laid hands upon those people and the Holy Ghost did not come into them. He had already indwelt them when he quickened them, regenerated them, and they believed, but with the laying on of hands, he fell upon them.

And that's the thing that was so astounding in Acts chapter 10 about Cornelius when Peter was chosen of God to take the gospel to that Gentile's house that the Holy Spirit fell upon them, that is, Cornelius and his household like he had upon the apostles on the day of Pentecost. And those works and marvelous things that were accomplished by the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. And the wonderful thing about the Holy Spirit being poured out is it testifies, it's another testimony to where Jesus Christ is tonight.

Where is he? Where is he? You know where he is. He's on the throne of God. The man, Christ Jesus, is on the throne of God. and the promise of the Holy Spirit, that which his father had promised him in that everlasting covenant of grace to pour out his spirit upon all flesh.

And we know that that took place. And that's just another testimony that we worship the Lord Jesus Christ, and he is the King of kings. I know it's difficult for us sometimes to To believe this, very difficult to see it, but the Lord Jesus Christ rules over all creation. There's nothing, there's not a gnat that flies in this world that is not under the power of Jesus Christ our Lord, the God-man. The presidents of China and the president of the United States are powerful men, but they're not going to do one thing that God has not ordained. His will is being accomplished, and that's the reason we can go to bed tonight and sleep and be at peace. Why? Because our God, our Savior, who loved us so much that he died for us, that he's the one who's reigning and ruling in this world.

Verse 12, as many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, who's he speaking about? He's talking about those false teachers that had come among the Galatians who were adding to the gospel, the simple, pure gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. They, according to Paul, they desire to make a fair show in the flesh.

They constrain you to be circumcised only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. The religion of these false teachers consisted in outward things like meat, what you eat and what you drink, days, which days you observe and which days you don't observe. And of course, it's all in one thing, circumcision. And Paul made it very clear that If a person is circumcised, then he becomes debtor to the whole law, to keep the whole law.

But these false teachers, they were much like the Pharisees that our Lord dealt with when he was here in the flesh, when he said this in Matthew 23. If you take the time, some time to read Matthew 23 and look at those woes, woes, woes, that the Lord Jesus Christ pronounced upon the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the scribes. He was in the temple in Jerusalem. But one of those woes in verse 23 is, Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. Those are the weightier matters of the law.

And like those Pharisees that our Lord rebuked, so these false teachers, they dealt with these outward things, and they would constrain the believers to be circumcised. And Paul says the only reason they did this was so that they would not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. He said, only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. In other words, if they preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the sufficiency of the sacrifice of Christ and that through faith in him and him alone, a man is justified. If they were to preach that, then the Jews would persecute them as they did Paul, as we, as we see here. The gospel was offensive to the religious Jews. Even today, never going to change, the gospel of Jesus Christ is offensive to the natural man, to the natural man. Why? Because it strips man, it strips man of any and all power to please God.

It tells us of an atonement that the Lord Jesus Christ made, that he is the propitiation for our sins. It's not anything that we add to his work, to his suffering and death, but his sacrifice, his substitutionary sacrifice is the propitiation The word propitiate means to cause peace, doesn't it?

People think of God only as a God of love, but this Bible is very clear that God is angry with the wicked every day. He is. He's angry with those who disobey Him and who live in unrighteousness and ungodliness. People think they're getting away with sin, but there's a payday coming. We know that. And the offense of the cross is still real today. If we add anything to Jesus Christ alone, then we are removing the offense of the cross.

What is, I heard a very famous preacher recently, or read this, and he's well known. He's no longer living, but he was very well known. all over the US and probably around the world. And he asked this question, what is the most offensive thing that I can say about God? He said, I asked myself that, what is the most offensive thing that I may say about God? And he said, this is it, John 14 and verse six. where Jesus Christ said, I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no man. No man, no man, all these other religions, no man cometh unto the Father but by me. The gospel is offensive to the natural man. Verse 13.

For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law, but desire to have you circumcised that they may glory in your flesh. That is these false teachers that teach you that you must be circumcised in order to be saved. You must submit yourself to the law. Then when you do that, you become debtor to do the whole law.

And they teach the law and boast in the law, but they don't keep the law. They don't keep the law. There's never been anyone apart from the Lord Jesus Christ who is able to keep the law. Well, I shouldn't say that because Adam and Eve, when they were first Created, they kept God's law.

Their law, the law of God to them was thou shall not eat of that forbidden fruit. And for a while they kept that law and they were able to keep it. But then they disobeyed and when they did, they lost that ability. And all of their children, you and I and everyone else in the world, we've all lost that ability. The law was never given as a way to earn salvation. What it does do, it does show us our need of salvation, doesn't it? It shows us what God requires but gives us no strength, no ability whatsoever to obey.

The scripture says, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. What is the glory of God? That I came short of, you came short of, all men come short of. What is that glory? Well, if we go all the way back to Genesis chapter three, I would say it is obedience. When Adam was in the garden, perfect, holy, righteous, he obeyed God. He had the perfect, he had the ability to obey God and he did for a while. And we see what sin is. What is sin? I know we go to 1 John and sin is a transgression of the law. But what is sin? Sin is disobedience.

That's what it is. That's what it is. And these false teachers were teaching and trying to get the Galatian Christians to commit to the law to put themselves under the law. And Paul says it in no uncertain terms. They don't keep the law. They would have you keep the law. They command that you keep the law. But they do this to glory, Paul says, in your flesh.

The word glory means to boast, or it's the same word, boast to the other Jews. These false teachers would boast to the other Jews of their converts, to their religion. Every religious person, Brother Mahan in his Bible lesson made this comment. He said, every religious person glories or rejoices in something. Everyone, and every person is religious, but every religious person glories or rejoices in something. And the false teachers, they rejoiced or gloried in the fact that they had brought men to these outward forms. You know that verse, look back to Jeremiah. This is a verse that we have marked in our Bibles, Jeremiah chapter nine. We think of every religious person as going to glory in something. Jeremiah chapter nine, verse 23.

Thus saith the Lord, let not the wise man glory or boast in his wisdom. There's been some very, very intelligent people in this world. I was reading the other day about Einstein, or saw a documentary that was dealing with him. But that man was very intelligent, wasn't he? Do you know that God gives talents to men. And he's given me a talent, you a talent, some he gives five, some he gives two, some he gives one. And the important thing is to be faithful with that talent, whatever it is that God has given us, to use it for his glory.

And I think of this, a wise man glorying in his wisdom, you know, at an early age, In his 20s and 30s, he's just so wise and let him live to in his 70s and 80s and dementia and Alzheimer's come in and all that wisdom, it's all gone. It's all gone. What is man? What is man that God is mindful of him? Neither let the mighty man, oh my, I've seen men so strong in their early life to become so weak and needing someone to help them along. Well don't glory in your wisdom, don't glory in your strength or might or riches, riches, Solomon said, make themselves wings, and they fly away.

But let him that glorieth glory in this. And like Brother Mahan said, every man's going to glory in something. Here's the thing we should glory in, that he understandeth and knoweth me. that I am the Lord, which exercise loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, saith the Lord.

I thought especially of this last week when I was at my computer and the news came on that Ted Turner had died. A mighty man of business, right? At one time, he's the one that founded CNN, and I think he owned more land in the United States than any other. There's only two men that own more land, thousands of acres. How much did he leave? All. That's how much he left, all.

Let us glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me. And glory in the riches of Christ. All right, back to my text. I'm getting off base here. But God forbid, Paul says, but God forbid that I should glory. You know from the letter of Romans, that statement, God forbid, it's a very strong statement, very strong statement. God forbid that I should glory. saving the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world.

The word cross, it's used in three different ways in the New Testament. We might read cross and we're thinking about that wooden beam that was a means of execution. way that criminals were put to death. That's one meaning of the word cross, that wooden instrument of execution. And then it is used in this sense when the Lord Jesus Christ said this, he that taketh not his cross and followeth me is not worthy of me. Now, in that case, the word cross has to do with the afflictions, the persecutions, and the hardships that men will have in following Christ in this world. And then third, it refers, as it does here, it refers to what the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished upon the cross. in doing the Father's will. When we look at the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord, we sang about it just a few minutes ago, would he devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?

As we look at the cross, we see the greatest demonstration of God's love for his people, that he would give his only begotten son We see God's holiness, that he spared not his own son when the sins of his people were charged to his account. We see the innocent dying in the place of the guilty. And we see God's holy law honored there. And we see our pardon and our reconciliation to God accomplished by his work on the cross. We glory in the cross.

It is by the cross, Paul says, that the world is crucified to me. Now, some believe that Paul is referring to what he had earlier in this letter called the elements of the world. And we know that by that he meant the ceremonial part of the law, circumcision, meats and drinks and feast days, etc. In Colossians 2 and verse 14 we read, blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to his cross. There was a custom at that day, that's the way they would end a debt, they would nail a nail through the document and it was over. The Lord Jesus Christ, the scripture here tells us, he took that that handwriting, the world, the elements of the world, and he nailed it to his cross. Paul said, the world is crucified to me.

He didn't have anything to do with those things in that law. Verse 15, for in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creature, a person's relationship to God. It's not based on circumcision or uncircumcision. It's not based on trying to keep the law or not keeping the law. But my relationship to God and yours is a new creation, a new creature. A man may try to do all those things in the law. He can't keep it, but let's just suppose he tries. He does his very best to keep all the jots and tittles of the law, but that doesn't bring salvation.

But what does count is that he's made a new creature, a new creation in Christ Jesus. Remember in 2nd Corinthians, Paul said, if any man be in Christ, and that's the important thing, isn't it? To be in Christ. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.

All things are passed away. Behold, all things have become new. And that new creation is what he referred to in Ephesians, the new man, which is created in righteousness and true holiness. When we read it is called a creation, new creature, that word creature, same word for creation.

That's just another way of telling us salvation is of the Lord. Man cannot create. Now he can take materials that God has created and left here and he can build things, he can make things, but he cannot create. Only God is able to create. Salvation is of the Lord. Peace and mercy upon those who walk according to this rule. Justification, that's the rule, is by faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work. And verse 17, don't bother me anymore. Don't bother me anymore. From henceforth, let no man trouble me. Let no man trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. Don't bother me anymore.

I have clearly demonstrated and shown how that man is saved by faith in Jesus Christ and him alone, apart from the works of the law. And he says, I bear in my body, and what he means, of course, those wounds, those wounds, scars, that he had received for preaching this gospel. He'd been stoned, been beaten with rods, you know the story. Yeah, he said, I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus Christ. All for preaching, he said, I've borne this all for preaching the gospel. of the free grace of God, the justification by faith through the substitutionary work of our Lord. And you know in Romans 3, he said this message, this righteousness rather, is unto all and upon all that believe. All that believe. It's on you tonight. It's on me. Brethren, verse 18, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Now that message that I preached a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned earlier.

In that message I made the statement that Paul marked every letter that he wrote and at the end of every letter he does as he did here, he speaks about grace. You can go through the beginning of Romans, do this sometime, and look at the very last lines of each one of these letters and you will see that he always commended the people to the grace of God. But I want you to look in 2 Thessalonians just a moment. 2 Thessalonians. chapter 3 and verse 17. The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, see with his own hand.

He didn't write the letters, he did write the letter of Galatians with his own hand, but every other letter with his own hand he made some mark. authenticating the letter. And notice he said, which is the token in every epistle so I write. I just am so thankful tonight, I know you are too, for God's Word.

He's given us His Word. And people come along and say there, well, we don't have all the message. Oh, yeah, we do. Yes, we do. We have enough for living in this world and enough to know God all wrapped up in a book you can hold in your hand. That's amazing, isn't it? A book you can hold in your hand. I've got some books at home, takes two hands to hold almost, some dictionaries, but all that God has for us here, right here in this book. Thank the Lord for the inspired word of God. Okay, we're going to sing

Paul's Closing Words

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