Now turn again, as I said, Galatians
chapter 2, Galatians chapter 2, and we see in these verses
what Paul, God's servant, God's apostle, says to Peter, what
he says to Peter. Here in Galatians 2, notice verse
14, But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according
to the truth of the gospel, The truth of the gospel is that we're
set free in Christ Jesus. We have liberty in Christ Jesus.
We're free from the curse of the law. But when I saw that
they said one thing and acted contrary to what they said, and
what Peter said, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou
being a Jew, a believing Jew and you live after the manner
or liberty like the Gentile believers have in Christ Jesus and not
as do the Jews? Why do you compel us or force
thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?" Now, this is what
Paul says to Peter in these following, following verses. Remember, Peter
had said in Acts chapter 15 that God justified all sinners exactly
the same way. You remember Acts 15 verse 11. Peter stood up when they had
that conference and confrontation over whether salvation is by
grace or combination of grace and circumcision. And Peter stood
up and made that bold statement. We believe through the grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ that we shall be saved even as God
saved others. God's going to save the Jew the
same way he saved the Gentile by grace and grace alone. But when Peter came to Antioch,
he enjoyed this liberty and freedom of the gospel, having fellowship
with those believers, those Gentile believers. When he came, he had
that sweet, sweet fellowship around the gospel. But when those
self-righteous Jews came to town, those Judaizers came to town,
came to Antioch, and the others who were with him backed off
and separated from those Gentiles." Now, that caused great confusion.
You remember in this same chapter, chapter 2 of Galatians, it says
of those people in verse 4, they came in to spy out our liberty
which we have in Christ Jesus that they might bring us again
into bondage, into bondage. Now, why did they do such a thing?
Notice if you will over here in chapter 5 or chapter 6 of
Galatians. He said they, here's their motive,
they want to make a fair show in the flesh. Galatians 6 verse
12, 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. For neither they themselves
who are circumcised keep the law. They don't keep the law.
They desire to have you circumcised that they may glory in your flesh."
Now that's the bottom line. Self-righteousness and self-glory. Paul viewed this, Peter's action. Now he said one thing and then
he did something else. Sometimes Actions speak louder
than words, and that's what happened right here. Paul viewed this
as a compromise to the gospel, indicating that we're still seeking
God's favor, or at least maintaining our salvation by the deeds of
the law, instead of grace alone, Christ alone. Remember the scriptures
teach us in Acts 13 that we're justified through the Lord Jesus
Christ. and justified by Christ alone,
not by the deeds of the law. Clearly, he states this in verse
16 of Galatians 2. Paul, by God-given inspiration,
clearly, boldly declares that salvation is through the faithful
obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not my obedience. The faith of
Christ. Notice verse 16, knowing that
a sinner is not justified by the works of the law, but by
the faithful obedience, the faithful righteous obedience of another,
my substitute, my surety, my mediator, the Lord Jesus Christ. But we are justified by the faithful
obedience of Christ. Even we have believed in Him,
by Him all that believe are justified from all things, which you could
not be justified by the law of Moses, that we might be justified
by the faith of Christ." Now, don't make that read differently.
Don't make that read, our faith in Christ. Now, faith in Christ
is the fruit of justification, it's never the cause. The cause
is Christ alone, grace alone. Now this religious world has
turned that upside down to make salvation conditioned upon the
sinner, not upon the substitute, Jesus Christ. For by the works
of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight. Believers look to Christ for
all of our acceptance, all of it. His obedience, not mine. Find Philippians chapter 2. Philippians
chapter 2. Now look what he says here in
Philippians 2, let this mind be in you, verse 5. Let this
mind be in you, this thinking, this thought, which was also
in Christ Jesus. Philippians 2, 6, who being in
the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God,
but made himself of no reputation, took upon him the form of a servant,
and was made in the likeness of man, and being found in fashion
as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross." You remember he said when they
came to arrest him, no man takes my life from me. I have power
to lay it down. I have power to take it again.
This commandment have I received in my Father. Wherefore God also
hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above
every name, that at the name of Jesus, the Lord Jesus Christ,
every knee should bow in heaven, earth, and hell, and confess
He is Lord, that salvation is all of Him. Salvation is of the
Lord in its origination, in its execution, in its application,
its sustaining power, and its ultimate perfection. It's all
of God in Christ Jesus. And believers look to Him. You
see, we're accepted in what? My doing? Accepted in my faith? No. Accepted in the Beloved,
the Lord Jesus Christ. No wonder Paul said in that Philippians
epistle in the third chapter, he counted all things, dung,
loss, ruin, that I might win Christ and be found in Him. Salvation's in Him, in the Lord
Jesus. Now, notice if you will, in our
text, Galatians 2, 17, but while we seek to be justified by Christ,
and we do, that's our desire. Our desire, as He justified the
ungodly, our desire is to be justified by the Lord Jesus Christ
alone. What does it mean to be justified,
cleared of all guilt, and declared righteous? Now, I'm interested
in that because I'm guilty before God. I confess, God knows, I've
sinned against God, I've come short of the glory of God, but
I do, by His grace, I do seek to be justified before God Almighty
only by the merit, deed, blood and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. No wonder His blood is called
precious. But while we seek to be justified
by Christ, we ourselves, Peter, we, Paul, Peter, Barnabas, we
ourselves also are still yet sinners in ourselves. We confess
that in our flesh dwelleth no good thing. For all but we seek
to be justified only by Christ, not by works of righteousness
which we have done, but according to God's mercy He saved us."
Now the question is asked here in verse 17. Is therefore Christ
the minister of sin? Or does He contribute to my sin? Is the Lord Jesus Christ because
He justifies the ungodly? Does He contribute to my sinfulness,
my depravity at all? Absolutely not! God forbid. He is the Savior. He is the Savior
of my sin. He is the Redeemer of my sin. He put away sin by the sacrifice
of Himself, but He doesn't contribute to my sinfulness. He is my refuge
and my righteousness before God. Is therefore Christ the servant
of sin? God forbid. He is the servant
of God. He is called in Scripture the
righteous servant of God. God forbid! God forbid! Now,
look at verse 18. Verse 18. For if I build again,
if I return back to what I have said was no longer any hope of
salvation, if I return back to that, if I build again the thing
which I destroy, I make myself a transgressor of the gospel
of Christ. No believer, verse 18, if we
retreat from the gospel back to the law for any part of salvation,
for any part of salvation, I make myself a violator of the gospel. If righteousness comes by the
law, Christ is dead and vain. I dishonor Christ. To add anything
to salvation in Christ by grace is to set aside the gospel altogether. That's what it is. If righteousness is by the law,
Christ is dead in vain. You remember chapter 5, turn
over there, Galatians 5. To add anything to salvation
in Christ Jesus by grace alone is to set aside the gospel altogether. Altogether. Galatians 5, look
at verse 1. Stand fast, therefore, in the
liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free. Be not entangled
again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I, Paul, say unto you
that if you be circumcised, if you be circumcised, Christ shall
profit you nothing. Nothing. That's powerful, isn't
it? For I testify again to every man that circumcised, if you're
going to go that way, he's a debtor to do the whole law. You better
get in the livestock business, and you better find somebody
of the tribe of Judah, and you better find you a high priest,
and you better get some lambs and bullocks and goats and these
different things, and start observing the Day of Atonement. And if
you're going to go the law way, you better go the whole way.
You're a debtor to do all of it. Look at verse 4. Christ is
become of no effect unto you. If you think you're justified
by the law, you've completely departed from the grace of God."
Now, that's not teaching there the man can be saved and lost
again if you keep in contact what he's saying here. If you're
justified by the law, you don't need the grace of God. Not at
all. You don't need the grace of God
if you think you're justified by the law. Now, you see what
he's saying there in verse 18? For if I build again the things
which I've destroyed, I make myself a transgressor of God's
grace. Now, look at verse 19, for I
through the law, I through the law am dead to the law that I
might live unto God. Now, if anybody ever asked you,
preacher or friend, what's your position on the law? If anybody
ever asked you that, here's the answer, dead. I'm dead. That's my position.
Dead. You understand what that means?
Dead. Dead to the law that I might live unto God. Live unto God. That's what he's saying. No believer can be looking to
the law and Christ together for life and salvation. If you're
alive in Christ like Paul, you're dead to the law. Dead to the
law. Now turn to Romans 6. Isn't that
what he says over here in Romans 6? Romans chapter 6. Look what he says here in Romans
6, beginning at verse 11. Verse 7, let's start there. Well,
verse 6, Romans 6, 6. Knowing this, that our old man
is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed,
that henceforth we should not seek salvation by our deeds,
that we should not serve sin. He that is dead, and notice in
verse 7, he that is dead, that word freed, he that is dead is
justified from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ,
we believe that we should also live with him. Knowing that Christ
being raised from the dead, he dieth no more. Death has no more
dominion over him. Does it? No, he's alive. He said, I'm he that liveth and
was dead. Behold, I'm alive forevermore, and I have the keys of hell and
death, Revelation 1, 18. Knowing that Christ being raised
from the dead doth no more death, hath no more dominion over him.
For in that he died, he died unto sin once, in that he liveth,
he liveth unto God. Now look at verse 11, likewise
reckon. you also yourselves to be dead
indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our
Lord." Now that's, my friend, what it means there when it says,
I through the law am dead to the law that I might live unto
God. Now find another scripture there
back in Romans, and let's look at Romans 8. Romans 8, verse
1. Romans 8, verse 1. The holy law
of God being fulfilled and satisfied in the Lord Jesus Christ, He's
my substitute, He's my Redeemer. The law took the full, He bore
in His own body my sin and the full weight of the penalty of
that law that says the guilty must die and I am in Him and
crucified with Christ Jesus. Therefore the law of God has
no claim on Him nor on me. being satisfied. It's been honored.
It's been honored. Now look at Romans 8, 1. Romans
8, 1. Redeemed, redeemed. Oh, how I
love to proclaim it, redeemed. Redeemed by the blood of the
Lamb. Romans 8, 1. There is therefore now, right
now, no judgment, no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus.
who walk not after the flesh, were no longer seeking salvation
by the deeds of the flesh, no longer walk after the flesh,
but after the Spirit. As many as be led by the Spirit
of God, they are the sons of God." Now look at verse 2, "...for
the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, the principle
of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, hath made me free." Free! from the law of sin and death."
That's good news. Look at verse 3, "...for what
the law could not do, the law could not do, in that it was
weak through the flesh." Nothing wrong with God's law. The problem
is my flesh. God sending His own Son in the
likeness of sinful flesh And for sin condemns 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, there's
nothing wrong with God's law. What was wrong? What was the
problem? Our flesh. Our flesh. Now, you ladies will
appreciate this illustration. And you're going to remember
this. There's nothing wrong with God's law. It's holy, it's just,
it's good. But the problem is, the flesh
is weak. Now, here you go down to meat
market and you buy a nice roast. And you select that roast and
you take it home and you slow cook it. You slow cook it. You know what I'm talking about.
You slow cook it. So much so that when it's done
cooking on slow cooking and you've got it all wrapped up and you
go to the utility drawer, and you're going to lift it out of
that pan. You open up that oven door, and
you bring it out, set it up on top, and you go get the best
fork you've got. And you stick it in there, and
you try to lift that flesh. And what happens? Well, you just
get a piece here, and a piece there. You can't lift it out.
What's wrong? Nothing wrong with the fork.
It's a good fork. What's wrong? The flesh is weak. So what do you do? Here's what
you do. You go back to the utility drawer
and you get a spatula. And you get a spatula and you
put it under that roast and you lift it out. That's exactly what
the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us. He is that one who has
lifted from sinking sand. We sang a moment ago. He lifted
me. He lifted me. I could not lift
myself. And the law could not lift me,
but, oh, He's that spatula." Now, you remember that, won't
you? Next time you ladies fix a roast, you remember that illustration. Christ is that spatula, and He
lifts us out of the miry clay by His almighty grace. Now, back to the text. Galatians
chapter 2, verse 20. Oh, this is good news. Dead to
the law that I might live, might live, might live unto God. Look at verse 20. I am, I am,
remember again, this is Paul reminding Peter, Peter, we're
justified by Christ. I'm crucified with Christ. I'm crucified with Him. You see,
He came not as a private man, He came as a public head, just
as Adam. You see, God's going to deal
with all men in these two men. The first man, Adam, the second
man, the Lord Jesus Christ from heaven. In Adam, what happened?
All died. All died. Death and sin passed
upon all men in Adam. Even so, in Christ, shall all
be made alive." I read this years ago. I can't remember what book
I read it in. It may have been Pink or one of those old timers. But it says this, that which
is true of the head is true of the body. You see, I'm crucified
with Christ. He's my representative man. The
old timers called that federal headship. Federal headship. And Adam all died. He was a federal
head of his race. And him all died. Even so in
Christ shall all be made alive. Through his death I have life. He put away sin by the sacrifice
of himself." You see what he's saying there? I'm crucified with
Christ nevertheless. Nevertheless, I live. I have
life. I have salvation. You see, he
didn't stay dead. He said, because I live, you're
going to live. When He died, I died. When He
was buried in that tomb, I was buried with Him. He was delivered
for our offenses and raised again, says in Romans 4, 25, delivered
for our offenses and raised again because He justified us. Therefore,
being justified by Christ, we have peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ. I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless,
oh, nevertheless, oh, I live, I live, I have life, liberty.
Yet not I, I'm not the cause, I'm not the reason that I live,
have life, pardon, unjustify and righteousness. Yet not I,
but Christ, Christ, the exalted One. the victorious one, the
conquering one, the one who Isaiah writes about, who cannot fail. Behold my servant, my elect,
in whom my soul delighteth. God said, this is my beloved
Son in whom I am well pleased. But Christ, the living, victorious
Christ, in Him we live and move and have our being. When He by
Himself purged our sin, sat down on the right hand of God, but
Christ liveth in me." He has been exalted, seated, and you
know what? He's been enthroned in the heart
of the believer under new management. We're under new management. He
rules and reigns in us. Christ in you is the hope of
glory. Christ in you. Yet not I, Look,
what it says, Christ liveth in me. Oh, I tell you, Christ liveth
in me. Every believer can testify to
this amazing gospel truth. Christ living in us. This is that vital union with
Christ so that when He died for sin, I died in Him. We become dead to sin. His death
is a fountain spring of our life. Crucified with Christ, nevertheless
I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which
I now live in the flesh, I still have this flesh to contend with.
This old rotten nature. I have that old Adam sin nature,
but thank God by His grace, the believer has a new spiritual
nature. And that's why Paul says over
here in Galatians chapter 5, Are you familiar with verse 17?
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against
the flesh. These are contrary one to another,
so that you cannot do the things that you would. I would worship
God perfectly, but I'm hindered by this flesh. Oh, I tell you,
I live, this life in the flesh, I live, look what it says in
verse 20, I live by the faith by the faithful obedience of
the Son of God." I have life, pardon, salvation by the faithful
obedience. You see, the Lord Jesus Christ,
as the God-man mediator, was working out a perfect righteousness,
not for Himself. He is righteous, but as the man,
the only real man. No sin dwelt in Him. He was working out a perfect
righteousness, honoring God's law, fulfilling God's law in
precept and in penalty for His covenant people. And bless God,
that obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ has been reckoned to me.
imputed to me." No wonder David said, oh, blessed is that man
to whom God would impute righteousness without your works. I'm interested in that. I live
by the faith of the Son of God. You see, he's saying exactly
the same thing, what he said in verse 16. Now you check me
out on this. You go check those other revised
versions and authorized versions, all them other versions. They
want to take the obedience of Christ out of the gospel and
put it all on you. And you know what that is? That's
another gospel. That's another gospel. And Paul
calls this gospel, that's another gospel, even though we or an
angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that
which we have preached, let him be damned. That's what he says. And then he repeats it. Just
in case you missed it, he repeats it. See what he's saying here. Now look what it says in the
last part of verse 20. Who loved me? He loved the unlovely. He justified the ungodly. It says in Romans 5 that he commended
his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us. It's Him who loved me. You see,
I didn't love Him, not first. He first loved us. Here is love,
not that we love God. He loved us. And He sent His
Son to be the propitiation. What is that propitiation? Simply
put, it's the satisfaction for my sin. He's the mercy seat where
satisfaction is made unto God. The blood, the blood on that
Mercy seat. How many of those Israelites
saw the blood on the mercy seat? Be careful now. How many of those
Israelites saw when the high priest went in on the Day of
Atonement and offered and sprinkled that blood on the mercy seat?
How many of those Israelites? None! Other than that priest
that sprinkled the blood. And my friend, The atonement
of the Lord Jesus Christ is not offered unto men. It's offered
unto God. This is God's sacrifice for sin. Therefore, it's not dependent
upon the sinner to make it effectual or ineffectual. It's not offered
unto men. I don't mean to be yelling at
you, but it's offered unto God. It's offered unto God. It's His
sacrifice for sin. He said, Behold the Lamb of God. It's His sacrifice for sin. You
see, it's Him who loved me and gave Himself for me. What did
He give? Oh, He gave Himself. He gave Him. He gave His life. And it's just not that He shed
blood. He gave His life. His life. We started this way
in this study in Galatians chapter 1. Look what it says in verse
4. when he describes this gospel in Galatians 1-4, "...who gave
Himself for our sins." What did He give? He gave Himself. He gave His life. And He gave
it willingly. He gave Himself for our sins
to deliver us from this present evil age. And it's all according
to the will of God, our Father, to whom be glory forever and
ever. What do you say to that? What
says right there, Amen. Amen. Amen. Aren't you glad that salvation
is by the grace of God alone who loved me and gave himself
for me? Turn and mark this in your Bible.
Have you ever read this before? Revelation chapter 1. Revelation
chapter 1 verse 5. Jesus Christ who is the faithful
witness first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings
of the earth, unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins
in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God
his Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever."
And again we say, Amen. Amen. Oh, you see verse 20 there? Back to the text. Galatians 2.20,
I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, oh, I live. I have life. I live in Him. Yet not I, but Christ liveth
in me. And the life which I now live
in this flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved
me and gave Himself for me. Now, verse 21. Verse 21, I do not, and I will not, I cannot
set aside the grace of God. I refuse by His grace. And that's what Paul is saying
here to Peter. I will not, Peter, I will not
set aside the grace of God to satisfy anybody, whether they're
from Jerusalem or whether they're from somewhere else, I'm not
going to set aside, frustrate, distort, confuse the grace of
God. For if, and here's the final
conclusion, if righteousness comes by my doing, if I can be
saved, righteousness, if I can be justified by the law, my efforts,
my obedience, my deeds, then Christ died, He came for a useless
reason. We impede the very wisdom of
God by trying to seek a justifying righteousness by the deeds of
our hand. If righteousness comes by the
law, then Christ is dead in vain. If I can be justified by my obedience,
now listen to me, if I can be sanctified by my obedience, Now,
a lot of folks think, well, we're justified at Calvary, then we
run to Sinai to be sanctified. Uh-uh. One verse will help us on that.
1 Corinthians 1.30, "...but of him are you in Christ Jesus,
who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption, that according as it is written, he that with
glory let him glory in the Lord." In him. You see, it's only in
Christ that God can be a just God and Savior. And that's the
mystery of the Gospel. How God can be just and holy
and justify the ungodly and not compromise His holy character. God's not going to compromise.
So then how can God be just? That's the question that Job
kept asking. How can God be just and justify
the ungodly? only in Christ Jesus. You see,
the law has to be satisfied, and that's exactly what the Lord
Jesus Christ did for His covenant people. Okay, we'll end right
there.