All right, Galatians chapter
6. The title of our lesson this morning is Glorying in the Cross. Last week, we looked at the beginning
of this chapter and looked at our attitudes, the believers'
attitudes under the law of Christ. We looked at our attitude toward
our fallen brother, our attitude towards ourself, our attitude
about giving and our attitude about God's providence, our attitude
toward all men. This week, we're going to look
at our attitude The attitude of a believer is to glory in
the cross. We'll see this as we go through
these final verses. Galatians chapter 6, we'll begin
in verse 11. Paul says, you see how large
a letter I've written unto you with mine own hand. Now, the
people there must have recognized Paul's handwriting and it's our
speculation that we think Paul's handwriting was not very good.
We think he had bad eyesight and he wrote large letters and
probably not very good handwriting. His writing in the language,
in the Greek language, which was not his original language,
his handwriting was not very good. And for that reason, Paul
normally dictated his letters. You read his other letters and
he may himself personally wrote the very beginning verses and
the very ending verses. Someone else wrote, hand-wrote
the rest, and he dictated his letters. But this letter, Paul
personally wrote the entire letter. And he did that to show his love
for the Galatian believers. It was a difficult task for Paul
to hand-write this whole letter, but he did it because it was
very important to Paul that these Galatians turn away from the
law as a means of justification. It was worth it to him to handwrite
this entire letter because it was very important to him that
these people he cared about, loved so much, that they turned
away from these false prophets who were trying to put them under
bondage to the law and that they turn to Christ alone, that they
rest in Christ alone, that they stay in Christ alone. So Paul
personally wrote this whole letter. And he did it because he cared
about the eternal well-being and about the souls of these
Galatian believers. Well, what do these false prophets
that come in, what do they care about? They don't care about
your soul. They don't care about your eternal
well-being. They care about your flesh. They
care about how they can count you as part of their program,
and they care about what they can make of your flesh. Verse
12, that's what he says. As many as 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. They
want to count you as a convert to their program. They don't
care about winning you to Christ. They care about winning you to
their program. And brethren, that's not caring
about you. That's not caring about the eternal
well-being of your soul. And the reason they mix grace
and works is because they're not willing to bear the persecution
that comes from preaching Christ alone. You preach Christ alone,
that man's works have absolutely nothing to do with it. You're
going to bear persecution because men by nature hate that message.
And these false prophets don't care enough about the glory of
God and they don't care enough about your soul to bear the persecution
that comes with preaching Christ alone. So they dilute and mix
the message. Verse 13, Paul says, for neither
they themselves who are circumcised keep the law, but desire to have
you circumcised. that they might glory in your
flesh. And here's the sad thing. These false prophets constrain
you. They force you. They put pressure
on you to keep the law or to keep, you know, their favorite
point of the law. They constrain you to be circumcised
and they put a burden on you. But all the time they're doing
that to you, they don't keep the law. And we know they don't
keep the law because it's impossible for this flesh to do that. They're
just making an outward show of religion and they're wanting
you to make an outward show of religion. And we'll see more
of this in a minute. But that outward show, that's
not salvation. Salvation is an inward work of
grace in the heart. And Paul says the reason they're
doing all this is that they might glory in your flesh. That word
glory means rejoicing. or boasting. They want to rejoice
in your flesh. They want to boast in your flesh.
Now, to glory in the flesh is to glory in something, to boast
in something, to rejoice in something that the flesh has done to contribute
to salvation. They want to glory in something
that we've done that made us more righteous than somebody
else. And this can be so subtle. You know, we have to be so careful
about this. I want to believe the right doctrine,
don't you? I absolutely want to have sound doctrine. But this
rejoicing, this boasting in the flesh could be something as subtle
as thinking that something that I know or something that I believe
makes me saved. No, sir. No, that's not the gospel. That's not trusting in Christ
alone. It's not me believing the right
doctrine that saves me. It's not me being a five-point
calvinist that saves me. Christ alone, His blood shed
for my sin, His righteousness imputed to me, it's Christ that
saves. You see that? Now, if the blood's
applied to your heart, if His righteousness is imputed to you,
you'll believe the right doctrine. But don't get to cart before
the horse. You're not saved because you believe the right doctrine.
You're saved because you're in Christ, because of what He did for you.
And you get away from these men that preach that something that
you do has contributed anything to your salvation. You trust
Christ alone. Paul says they glory in your
flesh. They glory in counting you in their numbers. You know
what they do? They say, we got you, and they
don't. And I tell you how deadly that is. If I seek to win you
to me, If I seek to win you to my way of thinking, to my side,
I've not won you to Christ. Our goal is to win your soul
to Christ. They glory in your flesh. They
glory in winning you to their side. And that was not Paul's
attitude. That was not Paul's goal at all. Look at verse 14. But God forbid. What a strong statement, an oath
almost, that Paul took. God forbid. that I should glory,
save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world
is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." Now, you know, if
anyone could glory, if anyone could rejoice or boast in his
flesh, it was Paul, wasn't it? Paul could glory in his family
tomb. He's a Hebrew of the Hebrews. Paul could trace his lineage
straight back to Abraham. Paul could boast in his past,
his education. He had the best teachers. His
mama and his daddy taught him the law. He sat at the feet of
Gamaliel. There were two great schools
at that time. Harvard and Yale. Paul went to
one of them. Paul could glory in his law-keeping
outwardly as a Pharisee. He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees.
He was the best of the bunch. Then Paul could boast in his
apostleship. You know, there are only twelve
apostles out of all the people in the world. There are just
twelve. All twelve of those men could have boasted, I'm one of
the elite few. And Paul could have boasted,
I'm the chief apostle. He could have boasted how mightily
he was used of God. Do you know a man more mightily
used of God than the apostle Paul? He could have boasted in
all the churches he established. All the people who were converted
under his ministry. Boasted he wrote most of the
New Testament epistles. He could have boasted his experiences.
Adam, he's taken to the third heaven. I guarantee if it happened
to me, I'd be boasting about it. I mean, I'd be telling you
about it all the time. Not Paul. Paul said, I count
all that but done. God forbid that I should boast
in the newer. God forbid that I should boast
in anything Save the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, when
we talk about the cross, the scripture speaks of the cross.
We don't mean that piece of wood, whether it was a T or an X, whatever
it was. We don't mean that piece of wood
that our Lord was crucified upon. We mean the whole message of
Christ. Everything that Christ accomplished
on the cross. When we speak of the cross, we
speak of the salvation that is entirely what Christ accomplished
on the cross. And we mean nothing that we do
or nothing that we don't do can add to it or subtract from it.
So why do we glory in the cross? I told you the believer's attitude
is to glory in the cross. Why do we glory in the cross?
First of all, we glory in the cross because it's in the cross
that we see God's love for sinners. The only way we can know God
loves sinners. It's by going to the cross. God
must love sinners. And that gives me such peace
and comfort and assurance. God must love sinners. Look what he did to his son in
order to save him. That gives me hope. God is love. We know that from Scripture.
But the only place that love is seen is at the cross. We go
to the cross. Yes, we see God's holiness. Yes,
we see God's justice. Yes, we see God's wisdom. But
at the cross is the chief display of God's love. Look at 1 John
chapter 3. 1 John 3, verse 16. Hereby perceive we. Here's how
we know the love of God. Because He laid down His life
for us. Go to the cross. That's how we
perceive God's love. Look over at page chapter 4,
verse 10. Herein is love. Not that we love
God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation
for our sins. That's how we know God loves
us. they sent his son to die for us. I can glory in God's
love for sinners. Secondly, we glory in the cross
because it's at the cross we see God's eternal covenant of
grace ratified by the death of the testator. Look back at Jeremiah
31. Now this is the eternal covenant
that's fulfilled in Christ. Jeremiah 31. Verse 31, Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel,
and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant
that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by
the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, which my covenant
they break, although I was a husband unto them, saith the Lord. But
this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of
Israel, After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in
their inward parts, and I will write it in their hearts, and
will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall
teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying,
Know the Lord. For they shall all know me, from
the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord. For
I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin
no more." Now how could God forgive the iniquity of His people? How
could God not remember their sins anymore? For He had made
Him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made
the righteousness of God in Him. That's how. The imputation of
sin to Christ was so real that when Christ shed His blood and
He died under the penalty of that sin, That sin was forever
put away. It's gone. So there's nothing
left for God to remember. That's how God won't remember
their sin anymore. God doesn't just pretend His
people are righteous. He has made His people righteous. God only sees what's real. And
His elect are literally, actually righteous in Christ because of
His work on the cross. And I can glory in that. I can
rejoice in that. And when I boast about that,
what's my boasting? It's Christ. It's Christ alone.
He's all my boasting. Thirdly, we glory in the cross.
Because in the cross, the curse of sin is removed forever from
God's people. Look back a few pages at Galatians
chapter 3. At the cross, the curse of sin
was removed forever. Galatians 3 verse 13, God 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 when Adam fell, the whole
earth was put under the curse of sin. Man lives under a curse. After a life of sweating during
our bread, we die. But in Christ, that curse is
removed. In Christ, there's no more earning
anything. Christ has earned it all for
his people, and he freely gives it to them. In Christ, there's
no more death, because Christ died for us, that we might live
in him. Now a believer can glory in that.
The curse is removed. Fourthly, we glory in the cross,
because in the cross, Satan was defeated. The cross is the fulfillment
of God's promise to Adam. When God kicked Adam out of the
garden, God left him with this promise. Adam the Savior is coming. The seed of woman is coming.
The serpent is going to bruise his heel, but he's going to crush
the serpent's head. Look back at John chapter 12.
And at the cross, God fulfilled that promise, that prophecy to
Adam. John 12 verse 31. Now is the judgment of this world. Now shall the prince of this
world be cast out. That old lion, he can roar, but
his power's been crushed. All he can do is roar. His power's
been crushed. I can glory in that. Fifth, we
glory in the cross because in the cross, God's elect are drawn
to Christ. Irresistibly drawn to Christ. What draws you to Christ? What
is it? Well, if you're truly drawn to
Christ, you're drawn to Christ because God showed you, you need
a Savior. You're drawn to Christ because
you know you're a sinner and you desperately need a sacrifice
to put your sin away. That's what draws you to Christ.
What draws you to Christ? If you're truly drawn to Christ,
and I'm not talking about being drawn to religion. I'm not talking
about being drawn to people who know Christ. Of course you're
drawn to people who know Christ. They're kind, they're generous,
they're loving. Of course you like them. But if you're drawn
to Christ, what draws you to Christ is that by faith you see
him suffering for you. Not just for sinners in general. But you see him suffering for
you to put away your sin. That's what draws you to Christ.
If you're still there in John 12, look at verse 32. And I,
if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all unto me. All my
elect will be drawn unto me. This, he said, signifying what
death he should die. Our Lord said it's in my death.
That's what will draw my people to me. The cross of Christ saves
and draws even the chief of sinners to him. You think about this. Both the thief who died on one
of those other crosses and Saul of Tarsus were both drawn to
the same person. They were both drawn to the cross
of Christ. That thief and Saul of Tarsus
could not have had more opposite backgrounds. That thief didn't
have a single advantage. Saul of Tarsus did. I bet you
he was uneducated. He was illiterate. He wasn't
taught the law. And what part of it he was taught
he didn't care anything about. He made no pretense of keeping
it outwardly. Saul did. But both of them, with
those opposite backgrounds, would both say, I'm the chief of sinners. And they were both saved by the
same Savior, by the cross of Christ. I can glory in being
drawn to Christ. Whatever it is that draws a sinner
like me to Him, I'll glory in that. Six, we glory in the cross
because in the cross there's freedom from the law and the
ceremonies because the death of Christ fulfilled them all.
What did our Lord cry when His time on the cross was over? It
is finished. And when our Lord said it's finished,
the law was finished. There's no more keeping the law. The believer has no relationship
to the law whatsoever. Christ is our obedience. Christ
is our righteousness. The law is finished. All the
ceremonies were finished because Christ is our high priest. We
don't need that high priest anymore. Christ is our high priest. We
don't need that burnt offering in that altar to slay an animal
and roast its body on the fire and offer that burnt offering
to God because Christ is our burnt offering. We don't need
the Day of Atonement anymore. The blood being taken into the
Holy of Holies and sprinkled on the mercy seat. Christ's blood
has been offered before the Father on the mercy seat and there's
his redemption. Sin's put away. They had to have
the Day of Atonement every year because sin was never put away.
But when Christ was offered, there's never been another day
of atonement. Oh, the Jews may have observed
it for a day or two or a year or two, but not anymore. Why? The blood of Christ accomplished
that forever. We're free from the ceremony. We don't have to
do that anymore. I'm thankful. I wouldn't want to be that high
priest crawling under the veil full of fear. And, you know,
I got these bells on the bottom of my garments. I'm afraid I'm
going to die and people are going to drag me out by my heels. There's
no fear in Christ. There's no fear of those ceremonies
anymore. Christ has fulfilled them all. When he cried, it's
finished. God showed us in no uncertain
terms the ceremonies are done. God ripped that veil in the temple
from top to bottom. Now anybody can see the mercy
seat in our heart. Now anybody can go at any time
and stroll right up to that mercy seat, the throne of God. Because
now the way to God is wide open for any sinner in Christ. We don't have to wait until once
a year to come before the throne. We can come boldly at all times
in Christ. Now I can glory in that. I can
boast in that in Christ my Redeemer. Seventh, we glory in the cross
because in the cross we're free from the law of death and sin.
We're free from the law of death and sin Just like an astronaut
in space is free from the law of gravity. Gravity doesn't have
any effect on an astronaut when he's in space. Why? Because he's
not in the world. He's in space. And by the same
way, a believer is free from the law of sin and death. How? Because you're not in the world
anymore. You're not under the law anymore. You're in Christ. In Christ, you're just as free
from the law of sin and death, as that astronaut is free from
gravity when he's in space. Look at Romans chapter 8. Romans 8 verse 1. There is therefore now no condemnation
to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh,
but after the For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ
hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the
law could not do, and that it was weak through the flesh, God
sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,
for a sacrifice for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness
of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the
flesh, but after the Spirit. Now, that's what Paul means when
he talked about the world being crucified to him and he being
crucified to the world. If the world's crucified to you,
the world has no controlling power over you anymore because
you're in Christ, just like that astronaut's free from the law
of gravity when he's in space. And if you're dead to the world,
nothing the world does has any effect on you. Now, illustrate
that this way. When Israel crossed the Red Sea,
leaving Egypt, they crossed the Red Sea on dry ground. They got
to the other side, they turned around and looked, and they watched
that Egyptian army, the most mighty army in the world, chasing
them. And they watched that entire
army drown in the Red Sea. And they waited a little while.
The next morning, dead bodies washed up on the shore. I can
imagine there's an Israelite, he walked up, he's looking on
the shore, and there he saw the face. of an Egyptian, maybe a
few days ago, that Egyptian had total control over that Israelite. Whatever he said, that Israelite
had to do. If he wanted to beat him, he
beat him. There are no consequences. If he wanted to tell him to go
make 100 bricks without straw, he could do it. If he wanted
to tell him to move that pile of bricks over to here and then
move it from there back to there, it made no sense. It was just
mean. It was just cruel. But he could do it if he wanted
to. Not anymore. Why? That Egyptian is dead to
that Israelite. He's dead. All his orders and
all the orders of his ancestors over the past 400 years are totally
irrelevant to that Israelite now. Why? Because that Egyptian
is dead to that Israelite. The world is crucified to a believer
and a believer is crucified to the world because Christ died
on the cross. And we dive in him. So nothing
the world says has any effect on you. If the world wants to
just blast you, just say all kinds of cruel, mean, awful things
about you, it's got no effect on you. If the world wants to
brag on you and puff you up and try to bribe you with all the
things of the world, it has no effect on you. No more effect
does the world have on you than that Egyptian corpse had on that
Israelite because you're crucified to the world and the world's
crucified to you. It's just like the bodies of
our loved ones. Before we bury them, there's the casket. We
have a visitation, a memorial service, and we often talk to
that body. You can do it if you want to.
I understand that's the body of the person that you love.
You can talk to him if you want to. It might make you feel better,
but you know what? You'll not get a response. You
will not get a response. That loved one's dead to you.
They're not in the world anymore. They're not in the world. You're
not either if you're a believer. You're not in the world. You're
in Christ. You're dead to the world, and
the world is crucified to you. Now, we speak of the cross. We
don't mean just that isolated act of Christ being crucified
on the cross. The cross is all of the work
of Christ in redemption, from what we call eternity to eternity.
You know what I mean? Eternity is one long, never-ending
eternity. And we see eternity broken up
by man's time on this earth. The cross is all of Christ's
work from eternity to eternity in redemption. The cross is all
the work of Christ that the gospel declares. As a matter of fact,
the cross is the person and work of Christ. The cross is the purpose
of the Father in redemption that the Son agreed to before creation.
The cross is Christ standing as our surety. How did He stand
as our surety? As the Lamb slain from the foundation
of the world. That related to the cross, to
His sacrifice. before the creation. The cross
is Christ coming incarnate. If the Son of God is going to
die as a substitute for men, He must become a man. Christ
becoming incarnate, that's the cross. The cross is all the work
of Christ as a man. His perfect righteousness, His
perfect obedience that He'll impute to His elect. The cross
is all the glorious work of Christ since the cross, his resurrection. You can't preach the cross without
preaching Christ's resurrection. The cross has no power to save
Christ when raised. It's his resurrection. It's his
ascension back on high. It's there as he sits on his
throne, calling out his people. It's his intercession before
the Father. And it's his return for his people. That's the cross.
And that brings me to my eighth point. We glory in the cross
of the Lord Jesus Christ Because the new birth is the result of
Christ's death on the cross. Look at verse 15, our text, Galatians
chapter 6. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision
availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. I told you
this earlier. Salvation is not an outward show.
The new birth is not the reformation or the improvement of the old
man. Salvation is inward life. Salvation is a righteous nature
that's born from above in a believer. Paul says the new man is a new
creation. And he's created by the same
power that created this world in six days. Now the new birth,
because it's just like creation. It happens by the will of God
and by the power of God. We have as much to do with our
new birth, helping out our new birth, As we did, helping God
create the world in six days. Who helped God create the world?
Nobody. It happened by the will of God
and by the power of God. God said, let it be, and it was. That's God's will and God's power.
The new birth happens the exact same way. By the will of God
and by the power of God. God says, let my child be born. Brother, he born. And the new
birth. We glory in this because the
new birth is just as necessary for salvation as the death of
Christ on the cross. Someone told me one time, that's
not so. No, it's only the death of Christ. I said, you try awakening
in Christ likeness and glory without being born again. Can't
do it. Cannot do it. The new birth must happen. If Christ died for you. The death
of Christ demands the new birth for His elect. It demands a life
for His elect. And the message of the cross,
the preaching of Christ crucified is all it takes to give the new
birth. And when I say to preach the
cross, I don't mean just to state the historical fact that Jesus
died on the cross. To preach the cross is to preach
that Christ is our only hope of life. He's our only hope of
salvation. And if we don't preach the cross,
every time God gives us the opportunity to stand up and do what we call
preaching, we've wasted our time. And we've wasted the time of
anybody who comes listen to us. And nobody will be born again.
Because the new birth is given when the cross is preached. That's
the message God uses. And we can glory in that. Now
these Judaizers, Paul's written to deal with these Judaizers. Now they wanted to give us the
law as the rule of life, didn't they? People today want the same
thing. They want to give you the law as your believer's rule
of life. No. The believer's dead to the
law. How can the law be your rule
of life? You're dead to the law. You have no relationship with
the law. If you have no relationship with the law, the law can't be
your rule of life. Well, do you want a rule of life?
I can give you one if you want one. Here's the ninth thing. We glory in the cross of Christ
because Christ is our rule of life. Verse 16. As many as walk
according to this rule, peace beyond them and mercy upon the
Israel of God. Now look back at chapter 6 here,
verse 9. I mentioned this last week. about
this well-doing has to do with the right sacrifice, with worshipping
through the right sacrifice. Galatians 6 verse 9, let us not
be weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap if we
faint not. I look back at Genesis chapter
4, well-doing has to do with constantly worshipping through
the right sacrifice. That's well-doing. Genesis chapter
4, this is the first time Well-doing, doing well, is mentioned in scripture,
and it has to do with the sacrifice. Genesis 4, verse 3. And in the
process of time it came to pass that Cain brought the fruit of
the ground an offering unto the Lord. He brought the fruit of
the cursed ground as a sacrifice to God. And Abel, he also brought
a sacrifice. He brought the firstlings of
his flock, and of the fat thereof, and the Lord had respect unto
Abel. And here's the key, and to his
offering, to the blood sacrifice. But unto Cain and his offering,
he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and
his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain,
Cain, why are you wroth? And why is thy countenance falling?
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? Doing well has
to do with worshipping God through the right sacrifice, through
the blood sacrifice. Now, if you do not well, you
bring the fruit of the ground. Well, stand alight at the door,
and unto thee shall it be his desire, and thou shalt rule over
him. Doing well has to do with constantly
bringing the right sacrifice. Now, look at 2 Peter 2. Doing
well has to do with constantly believing, constantly preaching,
constantly clinging to the gospel. of the cross of Christ. 2 Peter
1, verse 19. Peter had been talking about seeing all
the things that transpired that evening of the night of our Lord
was transfigured on the Mount of Transfiguration. And he says,
verse 19, 2 Peter 1, we have also a more sure word of prophecy. Here's something that's more
sure, more valuable than that vision. Where unto you do well? Here is well doing that you take
heed, that you believe as unto a light that shineth in a dark
place until the day dawn and the day star arising in your
hearts. Knowing this first, that no prophecy
of the scripture is of any private interpretation. What's Peter
saying there? What's the more sure word of
prophecy? Believing the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's
his sacrifice. And if we walk under that rule
of life, if this is my rule of life, I'm nothing and Christ
is everything. I'm nothing and Christ is all
of my salvation. Nothing I've done has anything
to it. If this is my rule of life, Christ
is all of my salvation. He's all my hope and I have no
hope in anything that I've ever done. If that's your rule of
life, you will walk in peace with God. Because where do we
have peace? Through the blood of the Lord
Jesus Christ. The blood of his sacrifice. If
that's your rule of life, you'll walk under the mercy of God upon
your soul. Now, when we talk about the cross,
it's all of the gospel. It's salvation in Christ alone. And that's what believers glory
in. What are we glorying in? The work of Christ in our redemption. 1 Corinthians 1.31 ends this
way. Paul says, He that glorieth,
let him glory in the Lord. He means the same thing he's
saying here in Galatians. We're glorying in the cross. The cross of Christ. It's everything
that Christ has done for His people. Now quickly, verse 17. From henceforth, let no man trouble
me. For I bear my body the marks
of the Lord Jesus. Now I'll tell you what Paul's
telling us here. The matter's settled. He practically
commands the Galatians, don't trouble me again with this. Don't
trouble me again with accusations about my ministry. And don't
trouble me again with these errors about salvation being found in
the law. It's in Christ. Paul felt like
he laid the gospel out so plainly, there can't be any debate. And there won't be from believers.
Believers hear that and say, yep, that's my salvation. It's
all in Christ. And just to be sure, one more
time, to be sure, remember these Galatians, the false prophets
came into these Galatians, now Paul preached the same message
we do. We learned this from Paul, you know, a mixture of grace
and works. Just to be sure they understood, Paul was not preaching
the same message to these Judaizers. He pointed out he bore the marks
of the hatred of the gospel of Christ in his body. Paul had
been beaten with a cat of nine tails. He'd been beaten with
rods. He'd been stoned. Who beat him? Who stoned him? These Judaizers. Why did they do that if he's
preaching the same gospels they did? Because he wasn't. Paul
would not have suffered like that if he preached a mixture
of grace and works. He'd only suffer like that if
he preached Christ alone. Paul's like an old war veteran.
He's showing off his battle scars. Not to boast in what he'd done,
but to give a demonstration. This is the message that I preached.
I gave myself to preach it. That's how important it is to
me. It's Christ alone. So he said in verse 18, Brethren,
the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be
with you. Not what you did for God, but
grace. What God has done for you in
the cross of Christ. All right. I hope that'll be
a blessing to you.