start by asking this question. Is Christ enough? Is the blood of Christ enough
to put away our sins, to wash us clean? Is His righteousness
enough without adding anything to it? Is He enough? Are we complete, as the Word
of God teaches us and we're in Colossians, are we complete in
the Lord Jesus Christ without having to do something on our
part to make it complete or to make it effectual? Now, Paul
is having to deal with this here in Galatians. Christ is enough. without adding anything to Him,
without keeping any law, without doing any ceremony, Christ is
enough. He's all I need. Jesus Christ
is made to me all I need. That's good news to a sinner. That's good news to someone who
can't do it, who cannot do it. Now in chapter 2, we finished
up chapter 1 last week, so we start here in chapter 2. And
Paul writes this in verse 1. Then 14 years afterwards, I went
up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas and took Titus with me also.
Now, why did he go to Jerusalem? What's the purpose of this trip? Well, I'm going to do some extensive
reading in Acts chapter 15. Let the Word of God speak. And
I wanted to read from Acts 15. I'm going to read the first 31
verses. And we will find out why he went up to Jerusalem and
what he had to deal with. And he's dealing with it here
in Galatians. It says, and certain men, which
came down from Judea, taught the brethren, and they said,
except you be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you cannot
be saved. They came down and taught the
brethren that Christ is not enough, that you have to keep the law
of Moses. You've got to bring these two
together. You Gentiles need to be circumcised
and come up to our level, basically. That's what they're saying. You've
got to come up to our level. So you've got to keep the law. You
can believe on Christ. That's okay. But you've got to
also do this. You also have to do this. Be
circumcised. When therefore Paul and Barnabas
had no small dissension and disputation with them, They determined that
Paul of Barnabas and certain of other men should go up to
Jerusalem, because these men came down from Judea, and find
out what's going on here. Why are these Judaizers, why
are these men coming down here and teaching this? And they're
going to settle this matter. And so they go up to Jerusalem
unto the apostles and elders about this question. And being
brought on their way by the church, they pass through and Samaria
declaring the conversion of the Gentiles, and they caused great
joy unto all their brethren. And when they were come to Jerusalem,
they were received of the church and of the apostles and elders,
and they declared all things that God had done with them.
But there arose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which
believed. They claimed to believe. There's
a lot of people who claim to believe the gospel. There's a
lot of people who claim to believe on Jesus Christ who do not believe
on Christ at all. And these Pharisees here, they
claimed to believe they made a profession. They believed a story, but they
didn't believe Him. So they came down here, or they were teaching
and saying that it was needful to circumcise them and to command
them to keep. You see, it wasn't just circumcise
them, but to also keep the law of Moses, the whole And the apostles and elders came
together for to consider of this matter. And when there had been
much disputing, Peter rose up and said unto them, Men and brethren,
ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us
that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel
and believe, and God which knoweth the hearts bear them witness,
giving them the Holy Ghost, even as He did unto us." He made no
difference between us and the Gentiles. There's no difference
between the Jews and the Greeks in God's sight. In His children,
they're all one. We're all one in Christ. And
He put no difference between us and them, purifying their
hearts by faith, not by works, not by merit, by faith. believing on the Lord Jesus Christ.
He purified their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why tempt ye
God to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither
our fathers nor we were able to bear it?" We haven't kept
it. What makes you think they're
going to keep it? He said, we weren't able to bear
it. Our fathers weren't able to bear this. I like the way the Holy Spirit
moved him to write this, but we believe that through the grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be saved even as they. You see, they're looking at them
as inferior, those Pharisees who had claimed to believe and
was causing all this dissension. They were looking at the Gentiles
as inferior. They're still dogs to them. They
look at them as, they're still dogs. We'll let them in the house
if they'll be circumcised, if they'll keep the law of Moses.
We'll let them in, but they're still dogs. But Peter says here,
he said, no, no, we believe that through the grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ, we shall be saved just as they are by grace through
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, by his blood and his righteousness. There's only one way of salvation.
And that's Christ himself. Then all the multitude kept silence.
They finally shut that crowd up. And they gave audience to Barnabas
and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among
the Gentiles by them through the preaching of the gospel.
Not the keeping of a law or a commandment, but through the preaching of
the Lord Jesus Christ. After they had held their peace,
James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken to me," and
you notice how all these apostles, they stand up and all of them
are in full agreement over the gospel. They are in full agreement
how God saves sinners, all of them, all the apostles. Simon
hath declared how God at the first had visited the Gentiles
to take out of them a people for his name. And to this agree
the words of the prophets, as it is written, After this I will
return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which
is fallen down, and I will build again the ruins thereof, and
I will set it up, that the residue of men might seek after the Lord,
and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the
Lord, who doeth all these things. Known unto God are all his works
from the beginning of the world. My sentence is that we trouble
not them which from among the Gentiles are turned to God. Let's
trouble them not with do's and don'ts and ceremonies and keeping
this and doing that. Let's don't trouble them. Let's
don't put that burden on them. God removes that. Christ has
removed that from us. Let's not try to bring it back.
But that we write unto them that they abstain from pollutions
of idols, from fornication, and from the same strangle, and from
blood. For Moses of old time hath in every city then depreached
him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day. Then pleased
did the apostles and elders with the whole church to send chosen
men of their own company to Antioch, with Paul and Barnabas, namely
Judas, surname Barsabbas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren. And they wrote letters by them
after this manner. The apostles and elders and brethren
send greetings unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles and
Antioch and Syria and Cilicia. For as much as we have heard
that certain went out from us," we did not send them, we did
not send these men, these Judaizers, these law-keepers. We did not
sin, forasmuch as we have heard that certain which went out from
us have troubled you with words, subverting your soul, saying
you must be circumcised and keep the law, to whom we gave no such
commandment." That did not come from us. That did not come from
the servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. It did not come from
the apostles. It did not come from the church
there in Jerusalem. from some false prophets who
slithered in and started creating dissension, trouble. It seemed
good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen
men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men that have
hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We have sent, therefore, Judas and Silas, who shall also tell
you the same things by mouth. For it seemed good to the Holy
Ghost and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these
necessary things, that ye abstain from meats offered to idols,
and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication,
from which, if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well, and fare ye
well." So when they were dismissed, they came to Antioch, and when
they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the
epistle, which when they had read, they rejoiced for the consolation. They rejoice for the good news. Salvation is to be had in Christ
and Christ alone. We don't have to keep a law.
We don't have to keep a ceremony. We do not have to do any of these
things in order to be accepted of God. We do not add anything
to Christ. Christ is enough. Christ is enough. Boy, if we could just get a hold
of that. Because it's surprising how much stuff's still left in
us. How much stuff creeps in. Christ is enough. He's all we
need. All right. Now back to Galatians. In fourteen years after, I went
up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas and took Titus with me also.
And I went up by revelation. They didn't send for him. His
trip there was directed by God. God moved Paul to go up to Jerusalem
and communicate, to speak to Peter and the other apostles,
to communicate unto them that gospel which I preached among
the Gentiles. He sat down and he had a private
meeting with some of the other apostles and probably some elders
about this matter of these men coming down from Judea. What's
going on? And Paul spoke to them about the gospel, and they spoke
to him about the gospel. They sat there and they communicated
with each other over the gospel. And they were in full agreement.
They were in full agreement on how God saves sinners. And this
issue of keeping the law, trying to mix works and grace. He said he met with them privately,
to them which were of reputation, unless by any means I should
run or had run in vain. But neither Titus, who was with
me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. This shows
here the agreement, the total agreement, that he had with the
other apostles in his meeting at Jerusalem. Titus was a Gentile,
but they did not require him to be circumcised in order to
accept him into the fellowship. Not at all. So he says here, but neither
Titus, who was with me being a Greek, was compelled to be
circumcised. And that because of false brethren unaware brought
in. These false brethren came in, and I just read that to you,
said there was a sect of the Pharisees that believed. These
were the ones causing all the trouble. And they were the ones
who came in, they crept in unawares and were brought in. Somebody
no doubt had some maybe influence there. brought these men in. And they came in to spy out our
liberty. They had ulterior motives for
being there. Why are you here this morning? Why am I here this
morning? To hear from God and to worship the Lord Jesus Christ,
to worship God in Christ. We are not here to spy out anything,
are we? We have nothing to hide. You know, this is not a secret,
closed meeting. We're not doing anything underhanded.
We're not handling the Word of God deceitfully. It's open. We preach the gospel
openly. I wish that God, everyone around
here knew what we preached, knew who we preached. I wish everyone
in the tri-state area could listen to the radio program and come
to understand this church right here preaches Christ and Him
crucified. We don't spy on anything, are
we? They came to spy on our liberty
which we have in Christ Jesus, and here's the whole purpose
they came in. This is their whole purpose for coming, that they
might bring us into bondage, that they might bring the Gentiles
who believed in the gospel. They couldn't stand the fact
that those Gentiles were not having to keep the law. It's like that, you know, member
of the Prodigal Son that left and then came back after he'd
wasted all of his living and all of his inheritance. He'd
wasted it all. The Father saw him coming and ran and kissed
him and he killed the fatted calf and rejoiced. Rejoiced that
he'd come home. And that one son, the eldest
son who stayed home, he said, I haven't done any of this stuff. I haven't gone out here and crowded
around and carried on. I've stayed home. And you didn't
kill me a fatty calf. You didn't do anything for me.
He was angry. He wasn't happy at all that his
brother came back. He was upset that dad loved his
brother. That's what he was upset about.
And that he gave a feast and killed a fatty calf for him. He said, I stayed home and I've
been obedient. I've kept the law. And you mean to tell me my brother's
going to get to come back here, right to this house? Going to
get to come back to this house? And he said, that just upsets
me. And it upset them. They were upset that the Gentiles
did not have to keep the law, the ceremonies, and all those
rituals, They didn't like it. They didn't
like it. So they wanted to bring them
back and bring them into bondage. And that's what the law is. It's
bondage. It's bondage. Now Paul says,
to whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour. We didn't
submit to them, not even for an hour, not even a second. Not for an hour. that the truth
of the gospel might continue with you. But of these who seem
to be somewhat, the other apostles, they were somewhat. They were
held in high esteem. The church there held them in
high esteem, as they ought. But Paul says they didn't add
anything to him whatsoever they were. It makes no matter to me.
God accepts no man's person. They added nothing to my gospel
because I'm preaching the same gospel they're preaching. And when Paul went up to Jerusalem, he didn't get some additives
to his message. He didn't go up there and it
was like, Paul, you're missing this point. Paul said here, he
said, of these who seem to be somewhat, whatever they were,
it makes no matter to me. God accepts no man's person.
For they who seem to be somewhat in conference added nothing to
me. They added nothing to my message. They added nothing to
my gospel because Paul didn't get his gospel from them. He
got it from the Lord himself. He got the gospel straight from
the Lord. As he said earlier, I didn't receive it from men,
neither was I taught it. It was not of man, neither was
I taught it by men. The Lord Jesus Christ taught
him. But contrarywise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision
was committed unto me, as the gospel was unto Peter, when they
recognized this, and that's why he's come to Galatians, he went
up to the church of Jerusalem and the other apostles there,
and they recognized his apostleship. Because it was in question here.
They recognize it. As the gospel of circumcision
was unto Peter, for he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship
of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles. The same was mighty in me. The same one who worked in Peter worked also in me. The same gospel
Peter preached. I preach. I preach. It's not a different gospel.
There's only one gospel by which God saves sinners. There's not
many gospels. Now, there might be many so-called gospels that
men tag. You know, they preach and they
call it a gospel, because there's only one. And it's a God that's
concerning His Son. It's concerning His redemption
of the people. And when James, and Cephas, and
John, who seem to be pillars there in verse 9, They were highly
esteemed in the church there. They seemed to be the chief spokesmen.
They perceived the grace that was given unto me. They gave
to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship." The blessings
upon them. They received them as brethren.
They received Paul as an apostle. That we should go to the heathen
and they into the circumcision. Only that they would that we
should remember the poor. Which Paul said we always did
that. We always remembered the poor.
But I'm going to close with these last few verses. We'll pick back
up here next week. But when Peter was come to Antioch,
I tell you what, it takes a long time to get the grave clothes
off. And I don't know whether you ever get all of them off
or not. You know, sin has sent us to the grave. We never get
it all off. We never take it all off. Peter
is in this conference with Paul over this matter of circumcision,
over keeping of the law. And he's in full agreement with
Paul. He puts his blessing upon Paul. You know, I mean, they
just sit down and they just have fellowship over the gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ. But when Peter was come to Antioch,
I withstood him to the faith because he was to be blamed.
This is Peter. For before that certain came
from James, he did eat with the Gentiles. He sat down and ate
with the Gentiles. Fellowship with them. He's talking
about believers. Gentile believers. Peter sat
down and he fellowshiped with them. He ate with them. He communed
with them. But peer pressure got him. His upbringing got him. It was
still hanging on. But when they were come, he withdrew
and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision." He feared man. The scripture
says, the fear of man, what? Bringeth a snare. It brings a
snare. And here it brought a snare on
Peter. Peter sat down there and fellowshipped with him. It would
be like he came in here and he's talking to us and fellowshiping
with us. And then some of these other men come down and there
are other Jews come down and he sees them coming and he gets
up and quietly walks out of the room. This separates himself
from us. Well, before that certain came
from James, he did eat with the Gentiles. When they were come,
he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the
circumcision." And here's the problem. Here's a real problem
with this, especially when it happens to a leader. And the
other Jews dissembled likewise with him. Somebody's following you. Somebody's
watching you. Someone's watching you. And so when he got up and dissembled
himself from those men, other Jews did also, even Barnabas,
who knew better. Barnabas went up there to that
meeting with them, who was carried away with their dissimulation.
And I wrote out from that, carried away with their hypocrisy. Well, we'll pick up there next
week. This last few verses here shows us how weak we are at best. We're still men. We're still
sinners saved by grace. You know, I made a profession
a long time ago. When I was 20 years old, I made a profession.
And someone said to me, you're a sinner saved by grace. And
I remember this distinctly. I said, no, I used to be. I used
to be a sinner. I'm not anymore. Oh, yes, you
are. Oh, yes, you are. At best, we're still just men,
saved by the grace of God. This also shows how tradition
is deeply ingrained in us, how these things hang on a whole
lot more than we think they do. You know, Peter, no doubt, he
was in full agreement with Paul. Peter's an apostle. He preached
the gospel. There's still that old man, that
old nature, that old sinful nature hanging on. And those things are still ingrained
in us. And it shows us here the great need to watch, to constantly
watch and pray, and to stand fast in the Lord
Jesus Christ. Constantly going to Him. Constantly
looking to Him. Looking unto Jesus, the author
and finisher of our faith. There is never a time when we
don't need Him. No, we need Him. In Him you are
complete. Is He sufficient? Is Christ enough? He is if you know Him. He is
if you know Him. Well, he's a nerf whether you
know him or not. He's a nerf. Christ is a nerf.