Let us open our Bibles tonight
to the letter of Galatians, the last chapter, Galatians chapter
six. Beginning with verse number 11,
You see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own
hand. As many as desire to make a fair
show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised, only less
they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. For
neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law, but
desire to have you circumcised that they may glory in your flesh. But 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. For in Christ
Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision,
but a new creature. And as many as walk according
to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy. and upon the Israel
of God. From henceforth, let not man
trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. Brethren, the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ be with your spirit. I brought a message a couple
of weeks ago on the name of Jehovah, those compound names. There was
two. We saw Jehovah Jireh that was
given to Abraham when he took Isaac, his son, up on the mountain
as God had commanded him to offer him, which means the Lord will
see to it or the Lord will provide. And then we looked at another
one the next week, Jehovah Rapha, which is the Lord our healer. Now, God willing, I'd like to
continue in the weeks to come going through those seven compound
names of Jehovah that are given in the Old Testament. But this
past week in praying about a message for us this evening, I could
not get away from the Apostle Paul's words in verse 14, but
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. Paul, he says in that first verse
that we read, verse 11, you see how large a letter I have written
unto you with mine own hand. Now we have it divided into six
chapters, but this was a long letter, the apostle Paul tells
us. And he had made it ever so clear
in this letter that salvation is by grace through faith. and not of works, lest any man
should boast." Because these Judaizers, that is, Jews who
were still trying to keep the law of Moses, they had come among
these believers in the churches of Galatia. And they were teaching
that unless a man came under the law, he could not be saved. And of course, he tells us in
this first A verse, I believe it is, of this chapter, if a
man submits to circumcision, then he is required to keep the
whole law. And that just reminds us of the
Lord Jesus Christ. When he was born in this world
at eight days as the law commanded, he was circumcised. He came under
the law. He came under the law that he
might redeem us, his people, from the curse of the law. Now,
as I read this over and over this past week, it just seemed
to me that Paul had gone to great lengths in this letter to show
how that by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified
in God's sight. And that salvation is purely
by grace through Christ, the work of Christ alone. And he comes here to the end
and he says, God forbid, and I thought of it like he was saying,
as for me, after everything I've written and all I've showed you,
I want you to know my testimony. I want you to know what I believe. God forbid that I should glory
save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. He had all those
credentials. If you look over a few pages
into the letter of Philippians, he had all of those credentials
in which these Judaizers wanted to trust. In chapter 3 of Philippians,
in verse 4, he said, though I might also have confidence in the flesh,
if any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust
in the flesh, I more. circumcised the eighth day of
the stock of Israel of the tribe of Benjamin and Hebrew of the
Hebrews as touching the law of Pharisee. He had all of those
credentials that these Judaizers were telling the believers in
the churches of Galatia that they needed to attain to. They
needed to submit to the law, come under the law. Yes, faith
in Christ, that's good. That's the beginning. but also
you need to submit to the law of Moses and began to keep the
law. And so he said, if any of you
are circumcised for that reason, that religious reason, then you're
now under the law and you must keep the law perfectly. And he says, circumcision, it
doesn't avail anything. Uncircumcision makes no difference
one way or the other but what does make a difference is a new
creature in Christ Jesus. That does make all the difference
in the world. A person must be born again. One of the old writers translated
the verse like this, as for me, as for me, God forbid that I
should boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of the cross, my interest
in this world died long ago. And the world's interest in me
is also long dead. Now you know the word which is
here translated glory. God forbid that I should glory. is also translated by these other
words. It's translated by the word boast. God forbid that I should boast,
brag, boast, save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's
translated by the word rejoice. God forbid that I should rejoice. except in the cross of Jesus
Christ. And one time it's translated
by the word joy. I'm talking about the King James
translation. God forbid that I should joy
in anything but the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now I
have two parts to the message, very simple. First of all, I
want us to remember that the word cross, it has three meanings
in the scripture. As you read through the New Testament,
you run across the word cross. Doesn't always mean the same
thing. Has three meanings. It signifies first that wooden
structure to which the Lord Jesus Christ was nailed and eventually
died. And these scriptures tell us
that. And he bearing his cross, in
other words, carrying his cross, There was something you could
see, an object, a cross, and he bore that cross into a place
called a skull. And then Pilate wrote a title
and nailed it up there on this wooden structure of the cross,
the King of the Jews. And the writer of Hebrews tells
us he endured the cross. He endured the suffering of being
fixed to that cross. He endured the cross, despising
the shame. Now, I'm sure some of you, at
least, you have read and may debate on what kind of cross
it was. I think most of us think we know
what kind of cross it was, but they come up with all kinds of
suggestions. The cross was a Roman invention. It didn't come from the Jews.
It was a Roman invention to execute, and only slaves and notorious
criminals were executed or crucified on a cross. And I thought about
that, slaves, only slaves, a free citizen like Paul. Paul, remember,
was a Roman citizen. They could never have put him
on a cross. The cross was reserved for slaves
and notorious criminals. We know that there were two crucified
alongside the Lord Jesus Christ, and they were notorious criminals. They were guilty. But the fact
that only slaves, I thought about the fact that When Judas betrayed
the Lord Jesus Christ, do you remember how many pieces of silver
the Pharisees paid him? 30 pieces of silver. And isn't it amazing that that
was the price of a slave under the law? If an ox, if a man's
ox gored and killed a manservant or a maiden servant, a slave
in other words, What was he to pay? 30 pieces of silver. That's what they valued. That's
what the religious rulers valued the Lord Jesus Christ at, the
price of a slave. But we know this wooden structure,
it was laid on the ground. And then the criminal, he was
placed, or he laid upon the cross and His arms were stretched out
and nails were driven through both of his hands and through
his feet. And we know in the book of Psalms, this is the only
place I believe that we read this, that his feet, that is
the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ, were pierced. He was nailed to
that wooden structure. And then after he had laid on
it and he was nailed to it, then they picked the thing up and
stuck it down. in a hole, jolting the body that
was attached to it. Can you imagine the agony and
the pain that was experienced by anyone who was crucified,
but especially the Lord Jesus Christ, who was so tender, who
was so tender being sinless. How amazing, right? How amazing
to think that God would send his son into this world to suffer
on a cross to redeem you and I. Amazing love. Amazing love. Well, that's one
way the word cross is used. It stands for that structure. A second way, it signifies, and
by the way, in the two hymns that David led us in, we see
both of the ways the cross is used there in those hymns. A
second way that it's used, and we saw this, I believe, in the
last hymn we sang, it signifies the sufferings, the sufferings
that his disciples may endure or do endure by following Christ. He said, if any man will come
after me, any man, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and
follow me. That's the second way the word
cross is used. It stands for the sufferings
that a disciple of Christ may experience by following Christ. And then, of course, the third
way. It signifies the way of salvation through Christ and
Him crucified. I want you to turn back to 1
Corinthians with me just a moment. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Chapter 1 and verse 18. The apostle wrote, for the preaching
of the cross. Now, we know what that means,
don't we? It's not preaching about that
wooden structure, and it's not preaching about what a believer
or disciple may suffer, but it is preaching what took, excuse
me, what took place there on the cross. The preaching of the
cross is to them that perish foolishness. It is foolish to this world.
It's foolish to believe that by one man's suffering that the
many may be forgiven. It's foolish to the natural man. How is it possible that one man,
the sufferings of one man could avail for the many? Who is that man? That's where
it comes in. Who is that man? If it was the
sufferings of this man or you men out here tonight, wouldn't
avail for much of anything. But when we're talking about
the God man, the eternal son of God made flesh, his suffering,
it's not foolishness. The preaching of the cross is
to them that perish foolishness. But unto us which are saved,
it is the power of God. I'm going to ask Jonathan if
you'd get me some water. And then look down in that same
chapter to verse 21, 1 Corinthians 1. For after that in the wisdom
of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. You know the Apostle
Paul in Romans chapter one, he shows how depraved man is in
his searching after God and how he eventually becomes a worshiper
of not only animals, insects, and other men, the depravity
of man. foolishness, the wisdom, rather,
the wisdom of this world. And you take all of the Greek
philosophers that men still study. Men still study, men like Plato,
Aristotle. The wisdom that they came up
with is foolishness. Thank you. A person can study
those men, They were looking for something, but they never
found it. They were looking for peace with
God, a utopia, a place where there
was nothing but peace and tranquility. But they didn't find it, the
wisdom. Paul says the wisdom of this world is foolishness. It pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching, but what are we preaching? What is he calling
the foolishness of preaching? To save them that believe. For
the Jews require sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom, but
we preach Christ crucified. We preach the cross, in other
words. We preach Christ crucified. Because of foolishness, but unto
them which are called. We preach Christ crucified under
the Jews, a stumbling block. And under the Greeks, those are
the men of wisdom. Foolishness. Foolishness to think
that the death of a criminal, as far as they were concerned,
because only criminals were crucified, that the death of a criminal,
a man crucified outside the gates of Jerusalem, that through his
crucifixion that men might be saved. But unto them which are
called, them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ,
the power of God, and the wisdom of God. That was this meaning of the
cross. that the apostle has in mind when he says, but God forbid
that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. What happened there? What took
place there? That's what Paul gloried in.
Now that God sent his son into this world and he, by his sacrifice,
satisfied God. He satisfied God. And through
him, he has put away our sins. So there's the first part of
the message, the three meanings of the cross in the scriptures.
But second, the saints of God, we glory in the cross. We glory
in the cross, like Paul here said, but God forbid that I should
glory save in the cross. Yes, I will glory and I will
boast, but not in myself. In the cross, in Christ and Him
crucified. How boast in that, how glory
in that. Because it is through Christ
and Him crucified that every blessing, every blessing that
we receive flows to us. And I want to mention a few of
them. The first is, it is through the cross that we have the forgiveness
of our sins. Isn't that a wonderful thought? that your sins are forgiven.
And it's only through the cross. It's only through Christ and
Him crucified that anyone is ever forgiven any sin. Look back
to Acts chapter 13. In Acts chapter 13, the apostle
Paul and Barnabas were in a synagogue in Antioch, and they were given
permission to speak, and this is kind of closing the message
that Paul brought in verse 38. He said, Be it known unto you,
therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached
unto you the forgiveness of sins. The forgiveness of sins flows
to us from the cross. It was obtained there at the
cross, the forgiveness of our sins, our original sin that we
inherited from our father Adam, and yes, the sins which we are
guilty of committing since we came into this world. All the
forgiveness that we have tonight, and we have complete and perfect
forgiveness, It all flows to us, it all comes to us from the
cross. A second thing, it is through
the cross that we are justified, reconciled, and clothed in the
righteousness, in his perfect robe of righteousness. Look in
Romans chapter five. Romans chapter five and verses
10 and 11. For if, verse 10, Romans 5, for
if or since, could be translated like that, since when we were
enemies, we were reconciled to God. How? By the cross, by the
death of his son. Much more being reconciled, we
shall be saved by his life. And that's an important statement
there also, isn't it? Be saved by his life. What life
are we talking about? His life of intercession. He
continues tonight to intercede for us. Yes, we're saved by,
we're reconciled unto God by his death, but we're saved by
his life. He ever lives to make intercession
for us. Just as soon as a person, a believer,
a child of God, just as soon as a person sins, we know the
Lord Jesus Christ is ever living there at God's hand to make intercession
for us. We have an advocate with the
Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous. He doesn't deny that we've sinned
when he intercedes for us. but he just presents himself
as a sacrifice, as a propitiation for that sin that we have committed
and we're forgiven. Then that robe of righteousness.
Philip Doddridge, he wrote this, that righteousness to which on
believing on him, that righteousness to which on believing on him,
you will be entitled shall not only break those chains by which
sin is, as it were, dragging you at its chariot wheels with
a furious pace to eternal ruin, but it shall clothe you with
robes of salvation, shall fix you on a throne of glory where
you shall live and reign forever among the princes of heaven.
shall reign in immortal beauty and joy, without one remaining
scar of divine displeasure upon you, without any single mark
by which it could be known that you had been obnoxious to the
wrath and a curse, unless," he said, except, it be an anthem
of praise to the lamb that was slain and has washed you from
your sins in his own blood. That robe of righteousness. The
third thing, first forgiveness of sin, second reconciliation,
that is justification, reconciliation enclosed with the righteousness
of Christ. But it is through The cross that
we're delivered from this present evil world. Again, if you turn
back to Galatians chapter one, this is what he wrote in the
beginning of this letter. Galatians one and verse four. Let's read verse three first.
Grace be to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus
Christ. who gave himself for our sins. Gave himself. Where did he give
himself? On the cross, at the cross. He gave himself for us. You know,
if it had read, he gave a million dollars for you, that'd be something,
wouldn't it? Gave a billion dollars for you.
No, He gave Himself. He gave Himself for you. Paul's writing to the believers,
of course. He gave Himself for our sins
that He might deliver us from this present evil world according
to the will of God and our Father. The Christian looks beyond this
dying world. to our eternal home, eternal
home in glory. I read a message last evening
by a man who lived, I believe, in the 1500s or maybe 1700s about
heaven. How often do we think about heaven?
How beautiful is heaven? Our Lord said, let not your hearts
be troubled. You believe in God, believe also
in me. In my Father's house are many
mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you. And I go to prepare a place for
you, that where I am, there you may be also. Heaven is a place. And after I read that message,
I looked at something on TV, the 50 most beautiful places
in the world. And there are some beautiful
places in this world. I mean, the scenery is so beautiful,
so tranquil, scenes that they showed. And I had to remind myself,
we put all of these things together and none can compare with heaven. a beautiful place that He has
prepared for us, for His people. And it all comes to us through
the cross, through the cross. Apart from the cross, we would
never enter there. We'd never have any right or
privilege to live in our Father's house, in those many mansions. And number four, from the cross,
It is through the cross that the victory over death and the
grave is ours. Again, in 1 Corinthians chapter
15, the apostle mentions this in this chapter on the resurrection,
1 Corinthians 15, and beginning with verse 55, he was able to
write, O death, where is thy sting? O grave, Where is our
victory? The sting of death is sin, and
the strength of sin is the law, but thanks be unto God which
giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. And that
victory over sin and death and hell and the grave, it all flows
to us. It all comes to us from the cross. From the cross. God forbid! Paul
said that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ. And the last thing, it is through
the cross that heaven's doors open to us. It's only through
the cross that we shall be admitted into the holy presence of God. The holy presence of God. We used to have a different hymn
book that we used here. I always refer to it as a red
book. It was colored red. But there
was a hymn in that book that's not in our book that we use now. And the title of the hymn was
The Way of the Cross Leads Home. The Way of the Cross Leads Home. And the words are, I must needs
go home by the way of the cross. There's no other way but this. I shall ne'er get sight of the
gates of light if the way of the cross I miss. I must needs
go in the blood-sprinkled way, the path that the Savior trod,
if I ever climb to the heights sublime where the soul is at
home with God. Then I bid farewell to the way
of the world, to walk in it nevermore. For my Lord says, come. And one
of these days, he's gonna say, come. Come. Enter into the kingdom prepared
for you from before the foundation of the world. Come. For my Lord
says, come, and I seek my home. where he waits at the open door. The way of the cross leads home,
the way of the cross leads home. It is sweet to know as I onward
go. The way of the cross leads home. And no other way is it. God forbid,
Paul said, that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ. I trust the Lord will bless this
message to those of us here.