Paul wrote, Christ in you, the
hope of glory, the one and only hope of glory, a good hope, a
sure hope, a living hope, and a blessed hope. My hope is in
thee. Galatians 3 verse 1, O foolish
Galatians! Why would the Apostle Paul, writing
to the churches of Galatia, call some of their preachers and members
foolish, foolish Galatians? Well, one reason is because any
person who would lead the gospel of the free grace of God and
preach and seek salvation by the works of the law foolish. That's the reason he calls them
foolish. That's what they would do. Any person who would leave
the liberty, free from the law, free from the ceremonies, and
freedom of Christ and return to the bondage, and that's what
Paul called it, a bondage, return to the bondage of the ceremonial
law, who would leave the freedom of Christ, the liberty of Christ,
and return to the bondage of the law, foolish. Any person who thinks or teaches
others that the deeds and works of this flesh in obedience to
laws will make him accepted before God, he's foolish. Because the scripture says, no
man is justified by the deeds of the law. For by the law is
the knowledge of sin, not the remission of sin, not the forgiveness
of sin. By the law, the law serves one
purpose, two-fold, to show you who you are, what you are, and
shut you up to Christ's mercy. That's why the law was given.
By the law is the knowledge of sin. And he says foolish Galatians. You've been bewitched. Who has
bewitched you? What does that word mean, fascinated?
Cast a spell over you. That's what it is. Who's cast
a spell over you? Who has come to you and sold
you a bill of goods and fascinated you and bewitched you? What religious
con artist with persuasive words and enticing manners has come
to you and turned you away from the truth, that you should not
obey or acknowledge the truth. The truth is summed up in three
things. Have you forgotten this, he says?
Have you been taken away from this? Number one, what happened
in the Garden of Eden? What happened in the Garden of
Eden? Do you remember what happened in the Garden of Eden? He said,
Adam sinned and man died. By one man, sin entered this
world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men.
In Adam we die. Before God, spiritually dead,
depraved, incapable. of pleasing God in any way in
this flesh, dead in trespasses and sin. That's what happened.
That's what we are, that's who we are. That's the condition
in which we are right now, by nature, dead in sin, separated
from God. Secondly, what happened on the
cross? Who is that hanging on the cross? That's the second
Adam. That's the Lord from heaven. He came down here to restore
what was lost in the first Adam. In Adam we die, in Christ we
live. By the disobedience of one, we were made sinners. By the obedience of the other,
we were made righteous. Christ is the second Adam. He
is the federal head. As Adam, the first Adam, was
the federal head of a whole natural human race, and in him they died. Christ is the head. He's the
head of the Church. He's the head with the body.
God gave him a people to redeem, entered with him into a covenant
of mercy before the world began, and gave him a people, a multitude
which no man can number out of every tribe, kindred, nation,
tongue unto heaven, that by his obedience they might be made
righteous, and by his death they might be made holy, justified,
sanctified, by his work and his work alone. Not his and yours,
but his. Christ alone, Christ alone. The third thing, what happens
in a sinner's heart when God is pleased to call him and justify
him? He's declared righteous. He's
declared holy. That's what the scripture says.
He who knew no sin was made sin for us. that by him we might
be made the righteousness of God in him. That's our life story. That's the whole gospel message.
What happened in the garden? We were plunged into darkness
and death, depravity. What happened on the cross? Christ
restored us. Christ bought us. Christ redeemed
us. Christ came into this world and
died on that cross to put away our sins, cleanse us from all
sin. And God remembers them no more.
And the Spirit of God comes with the Word of God, that glorious
gospel of God's free grace in Christ Jesus, and tells us what
happened on that cross. And God Almighty quickens it
to our hearts. We believe, and he says they're
righteous without sin. They're sins I remember no more. Now, you foolish Galatians. who think that you have to do
something, circumcision or Sabbath keeping or tithing or some of
these deeds of the law. You have to do these things in
order for his work to be acceptable. Who told you that? Who told you,
who bewitched you that you should not obey the truth? Especially,
now watch this next line, especially you before whose eyes The Lord
Jesus Christ has been evidently set forth, crucified among you. Some of you were living when
he died, he says to this church. Evidently set forth, Christ crucified
among you. Who he is? The Son of God. What
he did redeemed us from our sins. Why he did it? That God may be
just and justify. Where is he now? at the right
hand of God. O foolish Galatians, who have
bewitched you, that you should forget and not obey the truth,
before whose eyes Jesus Christ has been evidently set forth,
crucified among you. Now, verse 2, this only would
I ask you, this only would I learn of you. Paul could ask many questions,
and he'll ask some more. as to why you've rejected his
holy, perfect robe of righteousness and reached for your fig-leaf
aprons of self-righteousness again, I want to ask you a question.
And one question will expose your folly and put an end to
the controversy. One question, and here it is.
Did you receive the Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of
regeneration, the Spirit of life the spirit of conviction, the
spirit of truth, the spirit of wisdom, the spirit of adoption. He has given us his spirit, whereby
we cry, Abba, Father. This spirit that quickens, gives
life, begets, convicts, converts, regenerates, gives us the spirit
of truth and the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Tell me, did you receive this spirit while you were reading
the law? While you were studying the law? While you were going
about trying to keep the law? While you were circumcising?
While you were in your processionals? While you were keeping your Sabbath?
Is that when the Spirit of God came to you? Or by the hearing
of faith? Or did the Spirit of God's grace
and mercy and peace come to you when you heard the gospel of
Christ? Oh, that's a good question, isn't
it? Any man that wants to go back to the Lord, who is saved,
who knows God, this is a good question. When were you set free? When did God speak peace to your
heart? When did you learn about redemption? forgiveness of sins,
under the law, or when the gospel was preached to you? The gospel
of God's redeeming grace. Tell me, when did you begin to
live spiritually? How and when did God speak peace
to your hearts? By law or grace? Turn to 2 Thessalonians. Paul
answers that question in 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2, verse 13. But we are bound to give thanks,
just bound to give thanks, 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 13, always, to God for
you, brethren. Beloved of the Lord, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification
of the Spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto he called you,
not by the law, not by the ceremony, but by the gospel to the obtaining
of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Grace taught my soul
to pray, heartening love to know. Grace kept me to this day, and
grace will not let me go. Now, verse 3. Are you so foolish then, having
begun in the Spirit? And that's when we began. We
were dead, he quickened us. We were lost, he found us. We
were lifeless, he made us to live. We were rebels, he broke
our hearts. We didn't know Christ, he revealed
him. We didn't love him, he shed abroad
his love in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. That's when it all
began. Now, are you so foolish, having
begun in the Spirit, You're made perfect by what you do. You begin
in the Spirit and you're made perfect by being baptized. You
begin living in the Spirit and then you're made perfect by paying
a tithe. You live in the Spirit and you're
made perfect by being circumcised, by keeping a day, by wearing
certain clothes, by letting your hair grow so long. or doing this
or that, is that the way you grow, that's the way you're sanctified
before God, that's the way you're made perfect? Having been chosen
in Christ by God's sovereign grace, are you kept by your works? The same power that chose us,
keeps us. Look at 1 Peter 1. Listen to
the Apostle Peter here. Chapter 1, verse 4 and 5, I believe
it is. Listen. Verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us. He gave us life. He begat us. That's where we
started. Where did I start my physical
life? I told you in the bulletin. Seventy-four years ago, in Fathie,
Alabama, at Lord Nolan Hospital, when my doctor said, you've got
a boy. Well, she said, call him Henry, after his granddaddy,
Mahan, and call him Thomas, after his granddaddy, Jones. Henry
Thomas. That's when I started. And when
I started spiritual life, it was back yonder at the Potter
Baptist Church. in 1950 when I heard the gospel of God's grace
in Christ Jesus, and I lived. That's when I began. God begat
me. He begat you. You may not be
able to go to a day or an hour, but you know he did it. He did
it. He has begotten us unto a living
hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, not by
something we did, but by what Christ did, to an inheritance
incorruptible Undefiled, it fadeth not away, reserved in heaven
for you, every one of you. Look, there's no period there,
there's a comma. This inheritance is reserved
in heaven for you, who are kept by the same power that gave you
life, by the same power that chose you, by the same power
that sent Christ to die for you, by the same power that raised
him from the dead. You are kept by the power of
God, not without faith. Not apart from faith, through
faith unto salvation. I walked this road the same way
I started, in Christ, looking to Christ, believing in Christ,
resting in Christ, kept by Christ. And I winded up to God be the
glory for all things. You will too. Had you been accepted
in the Beloved? Yes, sir. But you're not sanctified
and made perfect by the works of the flesh, then. You're accepted
in the Beloved. If you're accepted in the Beloved,
you're sanctified in the Beloved. If you're accepted in the Beloved,
you're righteous in the Beloved. If you're accepted in the Beloved,
it's because of what he did and is doing, interceding for you. Are you so foolish, having been
given spiritual life in Christ, that you must finish this journey
to glory? depending on your works. I'm confident of this one thing,
Paul said, that he which hath begun a good work in you will
perfect it in the day of Jesus Christ. And then he asks this
question in verse 4. Have you suffered so many things
in vain? if it be yet in vain." What's
he talking about? Well, when Paul came to these
people, you see, Galatia is made up mainly of Jews. The Galatian
church is made up mainly of Jews. And before Paul came to them,
they were under the Mosaic law. They were depending upon the
priest, the sacrifices, the circumcision, the Sabbath days, the feast days,
the keeping of all these things. They hadn't heard the gospel.
They hadn't heard of the grace of God. They hadn't heard of
the death of Christ for sinners. He came and preached it. When
Paul came to these people, they were trying to find favor with
God by their works, by keeping the law, by Moses' law. And when they heard the gospel,
God set them free. What was the gospel they heard?
Turn to 2 Corinthians, chapter 5. Here's the gospel they heard. in 2 Corinthians 5, and I can
relate to them. I wasn't a Jew and I wasn't trying
to keep Moses' law, but I was trying to keep the law of the
Baptists until I was 24 years of age. Grew up in the church. I was taught that there were
certain things you do. Christ did all he can do, now it's up
to you. God Almighty's done all he can do, now it's up to you.
You take the first step and he'll meet you. And I tried to do that,
some of you were, in religion. And I heard the gospel. And this
is the gospel I heard in 2 Corinthians 5, verse 18. All things are of
God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and
hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit, that
is to say, namely, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world
to himself. Not imputing, not charging their
trespasses unto them, but laying them on Christ. And he hath committed
unto us this word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors
for Christ. As though God did beseech you
by us, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he, the Father, hath made
him, the Son, to be sin for us, his people. He knew no sin. might be made the righteousness
of God in him. That's what they heard, and I
believed it. And these Galatians believed
it, these people to whom he preached. Now, in Galatians 3, verse 4, he asked them, have you suffered
so many things in vain? What was the suffering? Well,
they believed the gospel, they rejoiced in the gospel, and they
renounced their old They renounced like Paul did. Paul said, the
things that were gained to me. What was gained to him? I was
a Hebrew of Hebrews. I was a Jew. Considering the
law, I was blameless. I went about to establish my
own righteousness. I was seeking to find favor with
God by what I did, by my works. And these things were gained
to me. But I counted them lost for Christ. Yea, I count all
things but loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ my
Lord." Paul denied that salvation was in his works and confessed
that it was only in Christ. He was persecuted and he was
hated, and these people were. They suffered many things from
religious leaders, they suffered many things from people who despised
the grace of God. They suffered harassment and
persecution. They were separated from their
families because they believed Christ. They believed Christ. Salvation was by grace and grace
alone, not in our works. That we are redeemed, listen
to me, we are redeemed exactly like that thief on the cross.
That man was saved, redeemed, sanctified, righteous in Christ. by faith in Christ through faith
in Christ by the work of Christ. And he went straight to glory
from the cross with Christ. And we're saved the same way,
not by any works we do before God saves us or afterwards. We
make no contribution to the redemption of our souls. And when you teach
that and preach that and believe that and stand for that, you're
going to be despised and persecuted by religious people who feel
that God owes them rewards for what they do. and heaven for
what they do, and they merit God's favor and God's blessings. And that'll cost you. Now, he
said, that's what happened when you learned the gospel. Now,
are you going back to where you were? Have you suffered these
things in vain? Was this all in vain? Are you
saying that this gospel of grace is not so? If the gospel of works
and law and deeds is truth, your gospel is not truth. It can't
be both. Turn to Romans 11. It can't be
both. Have you suffered in vain? Have you suffered in vain? Some
of you know what I'm talking about. I know. I know what I'm talking about. I know that The people who love
God, who love his word, who love grace, who love redemption in
Christ, they love my message. The people who believe that salvation
is partly of God and partly of our works, that God's done all
he can do and that's up to you, people who believe that Christ
made an effort to save but didn't get the job quite done, it has
to be completed by what you'll do, they don't like my message. And they're pretty vehement in
their objections, too. They're pretty cruel. It's been
going on for 49 years now. Has it been in vain? If their gospel works and deeds
is the gospel, mine is not the gospel. But if mine is the gospel,
this gospel is great, but theirs is not. Listen to Romans 11. That's how serious it is, verse
5. Even so, then at this present
time, also there's a remnant according to the election of
grace. If it's by grace, it is no more works, not in any shape,
form, or fashion. Otherwise, grace is not grace.
Grace is not grace unless it's sovereign grace, free grace,
keeping grace, saving grace. Effectual grace is not grace
unless it's all grace. But if salvation be of works,
any work, any work, I tell you, any work, if when Christ said
it's finished, it's not finished, and it requires something else,
anything else, even walking down this aisle, even joining a church, even giving
a gift, even being baptized, if I have to do anything in this
world, to make what he did effectual for my cleansing of my soul.
It's not grace. If it be of works, it's not grace. It's no more grace. It can't
be grace. You can't mix it, believe me.
Honest, I'm telling you the truth. I'm not lying. I'm telling you
the truth. It can't be grace. It's all grace. Or it's all works. Because otherwise
work is not work. Was it in vain? I know it wasn't. I know whom I have believed,
and I am persuaded beyond a shadow of a doubt he's able to keep
that which I've committed, lock, stock and barrel, 100 percent,
to him and to his grace and his mercy and his blood and his righteousness
and his intercession. It's out of my hands, it's in
his hands. Christ is made unto us, wisdom,
righteousness, sanctification and redemption, that no flesh
should grow in his presence. But don't people work? Sure they
do, not in order to be saved, but because they are. These are
the most giving people in the world. They are the most faithful
people in the world. Look, here they are. Not in order to be saved, not
in order to keep saved. in order not to lose their salvation,
because they love him who saved them. Anything that's done for
Christ that's not out of love is unacceptable. Anything that's
done for Christ in order to win his favor is unacceptable. Anything
done for Christ that's not perfect is unacceptable. So in my flesh, I can't please
God. I couldn't back before he saved
me, and I haven't been able to since he saved me. But I know
who can. He said, This is my beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased. And if I'm in him, he's pleased
with me. Here's another question, verse
5. He therefore that ministered
to you the Spirit, the God that gave you the Holy Spirit, works
miracles among you. What were his miracles? He made
the blind to see. He made the deaf to hear. He
made the lame to walk. He set the captive free. Why
did he do all that? Those people got blind again.
They died. The same people he healed got
sick and died. He was showing his greater miracles. He makes the spiritually blind
to see. That's the miracle. And they never, ever are blind
again. He makes the spiritually dead
to live. And they never, ever die again. He makes the spiritual
lame to walk, and they're ever, ever lame again. That's the miracles
he works among you, by that Spirit. Well, he, God Almighty, that
gave you the Spirit and works these miracles among you, how
does he do it? By the law, by the hearing of
faith. How did you come to see? Keeping
a Sabbath day? No, hearing the gospel. How did
you come to hear it when God said, let there be light, and
I saw." What was I doing? I was hearing the gospel. That's
right, I was hearing the gospel, like you're sitting right there
this morning, and you're hearing the gospel. And if God the Holy
Spirit makes that gospel effectual, you'll hear it. You'll really
hear it. And a man may have come in here
with blind eyes and couldn't see the grace of God, but he
heard this gospel and said, I see what you're saying! I had a dear friend say that
to me going out that door right there years ago, twenty-five
years, thirty years ago. He said, I see what you're saying.
I said, thank you, Lord, that's a miracle. He couldn't see it
yesterday. He couldn't see it last week.
Now he sees it. Who made him to see it? That's
what he's asking here. Did he do it by the works of
the law? When you tell people, come and be baptized, you reckon
anybody is going to get in this water and see Christ? Or hear
Christ? Or be given faith? Doing this? No. If he didn't have faith before
he got in, it won't do him any good. Or anybody else. That's
right. In whom you trusted after you
heard. The gospel of your salvation.
In whom you believed. after you heard the gospel of
your salvation. God has chosen by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that hear, them that believe. That's right. Now listen, even
as Abraham believed God, it was counted to him for righteousness.
When was Abraham justified? When he was circumcised? The law wasn't even given when
Abraham was justified. Circumcision wasn't even given.
Abraham was called of God. He said, get out of your father's
house and your father's land. Go to the land and I'll show
thee. And he did. And he believed God. And he was 75 years old
when he was justified. The scripture says he believed
God and was counting to him for righteousness. Seventy-five years
old. He wasn't circumcised until he
was 99. That's when the law of circumcision was given. These
Jews, the fellows came to Galatia and told them, now it's all right,
Christ died, that's fine. You believe on him, that's fine.
But you've got to be circumcised to be saved. You've got to be
baptized to be saved. You've got to do this to be saved.
When was Abraham saved? When was he justified? When he
was 75 years old. When was he baptized or circumcised?
In 99. After Ishmael was born and left,
after Isaac was born, then he was circumcised. Abraham was a righteous man,
friend of God. Abraham was the first Jew, father
of Israel. Abraham was one to whom circumcision
was given. And the first one circumcised,
and everybody after that did it in imitation of Abraham by
God's command. But when was Abraham saved? When
he was 75 years old. By age 99, that's when he was
circumcised. It didn't add one thing to him. It just was a token of God's
covenant. That's it. And this ought to be known to
everybody. Look at verse 7, "...know ye therefore that they which
are of faith, the same are children of Abraham." All believers have
the same faith as Abraham. That's right. He's Old Testament,
that's right, but he's had the same faith you have. He saw the
day of Christ before he came. We see the day of Christ after
he came. He saw my day, Christ said, and
rejoiced. He was glad. His faith was in
Christ, ours is too. His faith was in Christ's righteousness,
mine is too. In Christ's blood, mine is too.
It was wrought by the same Spirit, the Holy Spirit. He looked to
Christ, he trusted Christ, he rested in Christ, he hoped in
Christ. We have the same faith. And the same are children of
Abraham, Jews. And the scripture foreseeing
that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before
the gospel unto Abraham, saying, And thee shall all nations be
blessed. I want to read one scripture
to you. Romans chapter 2. How then can a Gentile be a Jew
and a Jew be a heathen? How can a heathen be a Jew and
a Jew be a heathen? Well, that's what it is. Listen
to Romans 2, verse 28. He's not a Jew which is one outwardly. Circumcision is not outward in
the flesh. He's a Jew which is one inwardly.
I'm a son of Abraham, a son of Abraham. And the nation of Israel
is full of sons of Abraham that are not sons of Abraham. I'm
a Jew. They're not. He's not a Jew which
is one outwardly, he's a Jew which is one inwardly, by faith,
by the same faith as Abraham. He that is of faith is a child
of Abraham. That's the reason God said back
yonder when Abraham was looking up at the stars, he said, that's
how many seeds you're going to have, of every nation. Circumcision is of the heart,
in the spirit, not in the letter, whose praise is of God, not of
men. Verse 9 is my last. So then they
which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. We are blessed with the same
faith, we are blessed with the same justification, the same
righteousness, and our blessing is through Christ, just like
Abraham. He's called faithful, not because
of his uprightness or his integrity or his works, but because of
his faith in Christ. Faithful to him they call him.