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“DEATH TO THE OLD”In Paul's defense of Grace he almost sounds like a broken record. He speaks over and over again that Grace and Law are opposed to one another. Law- for our purposes here today is - rules, regulations or rituals that folks think make them right with God. Joining the church, not drinking, not smoking, or not going to questionable movies – all may be good things, but if you believe that those things are earning you favor with God, well, that's Paul entire point in Galatians is that you are sadly mistaken. Be it legalism or liberalism, both extremes take us away from Grace. Legalism is what Paul was fighting with the Galatians when the Judizers came along and told people they need to follow the Jewish customs to be right with God. But liberalism is just as bad, the attitude that Jesus died for all so there is no personal responsibility for your behaviors. God is love -so don't sweat it because “love covers a multitude of sins.” In the text we will consider this morning, Paul continues his personal testimony and his defense of Grace. Proving that a man/ a woman is justified by faith in Jesus Christ apart from keeping of the law. The law – was put in place to point us to our need for a savior. In continuing his arguments, Paul tells us of a time he needed to be bold about the Gospel – as he needed to get in the face of Peter. Peter was one of Jesus closest men, he not only was one of the twelve Apostles, he was part of the elite group of 3 that Jesus took to special places and reveled special things. He was with the Lord as he raised the Synagogue Rules daughter back to life, he along with James and John were on the mountain as Jesus was Transfigured and conferred with Moses and Elijah. Then Peter became the spokesman for the Apostles on the day of Pentecost as the church was birthed with power. And Peter is the one that God revealed in a dream that the Gospel was to go to everyone. God told Peter concerning the Gentiles / or non-Jewish peoples. Acts 10:15 ..."Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." Jesus Christ, the Gospel of Grace was to go to all the world. Not just the Jews, and God revealed that truth to Peter. But years later Peter began to act in Hypocrisy. It seems he came to Antioch, where Paul was ministering and he rejoiced at what God was doing with the Gentiles but when some of his Jewish friends came, he suddenly stopped fellowshipping with them. He began to separate himself from them and became a slave again to the law. So Paul opposed Peter to his face and boldly defends the Gospel of Grace. Grace is the only Gospel, and the Gospel that says, when Jesus cried out from the Cross “It is finished.” That meant that all the requirements of the law were completed. That Jesus Christ makes men and women “justified”, or “right before God”, by the faith they confess in his name and not by going to confession, lighting a candle and not by what they do. Lets consider a few thoughts as we read the last part of Galatians chapter 2. READ THE TEXT GALATIANS 2:11-21 DEATH TO THE OLD.
There are those who exalt Peter, some say he was the first Pope and that all Popes are “infallible”, well here we see Peter was a very fallible guy. And certainly Peter, like any man, although he is used mightily for the Lord, he is not to be deified. He is a man, and Paul another godly man had to get in his face because his actions were opposed to the truth. What about us? Sure we do not face these exact same situation but we too must stand for - and stand on the truth. If you confess Jesus Christ as Lord, if your life is under the his Lordship, then you must stand for truth. Truth in what you share / and truth in what you live. First truth in what you share. Do you understand the Gospel? Can you articulate what it is all about? Do you know how to share the truth? Just share a few thoughts with you. First when giving the truth of the Gospel, always put God first. If you were here last week we saw where Paul shared his personal testimony and it was about what God had done, and what God was continuing to do in his life. If you are going to share with people your experiences with God, make sure that you point them to God and not to yourself. “I was hooked on drugs and now I'm not.” That is not your testimony! Your testimony is that you were lost and now your found, and God showed you that you did not need to be a slave to drugs. Or to lust, or to anger, bitterness, malice, rage, alcohol, or any number of ways that sin manifests itself. The difference is huge, one points to your life, the other points to faith and your hope, as we point to God. When sharing your faith with others - use scriptures. All have sinned - Non righteous - Unless you are born again - If you confess with your mouth. Use the commandments.... Use scripture because it is powerful. 2 Tim 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. The scriptures are from the breath of God they are powerful, they can teach, rebuke, correct, train and equip. Let the Word of God penetrate people's hearts. Don't be shy. Don't worry about what people will think of you, you have the truth, and if you don't share it with your friends and family who will? Be like Paul bold and take a stand on the truth of the Gospel. Here he corrects a brother who is acting in Hypocrisy. Do you know folks who are being hypocrites? Are you being a hypocrite? Hypocrisy is defined as “Pretending to be what one is not.” The New Testament meaning of a hypocrite comes from a Greek actor. In the Greek theater, a hypocrite was one who wore a mask and played a part on the stage. Many older theaters have the thespian masks on the walls, one smiling, the other frowning. That is the Greek word the bible uses for hypocrite, someone who puts on a mask. Hypocrisy in the church is far too prevalent. Here Peter was one way to the Gentiles and another to the Jews. Some people today are one way at church, and another on the job, one way in the fellowship and another at home. That is hypocrisy. Matt 6:1-2 (Jesus taught) "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. Don't do things to look better then you are. That's hypocrisy. Rom 10:3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. It is also hypocrisy to live under rules that make you look righteous- while your heart is living in rebellion to God. Rom 12:9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Literally as the (NASV) says “Love must be without Hypocrisy.” Hate evil, the evil in the world, and the evil that rears it head in your life. Cling to what is good. Cling to the Lord, and all he has done, cling to his grace and to his truth. First we see, the defense of the truth, not just with words but with the testimony of your life lived for God. Poem by Gilbert. Your writing a gospel, a chapter a day, by the things that you do and the words that you say, men read what you've written whether faithless or true. So what is the gospel according to you?
Rom 3:22-24 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus In Christ, there is no difference between the races, there is no difference between the sexes, there is one church, that consists of nether Baptist, nor Presbyterian, nor any other title except - Believer. The church of Jesus Christ is one. Peter by his actions was not denying that the Gentiles were accepted by God - but he was saying they were second class. The laws of separation were never created to bring segregation. Separation is what you see in the life of Jesus Christ, segregation is found here in Peter's behavior. Both Israel and the Church are told to be Separate from the world, like our Lord who ate with people of questionable character, he conversed with Gentiles, he spoke to Samaritans, he touched the lepers. Yet he was not moved by them – rather he influenced them and spoke to them boldly of their need for God, and he touched them. But here we see Peter like some people today think that separation - is segregation. The church is color blind, there are no racial differences, the church is age blind, a place where young an old can come together under the unity of the bonds of love. The church is blind to position, wealth and power. James 2:1-4 NLT My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim that you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people more than others? For instance, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in shabby clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, "You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor" — well, doesn't this discrimination show that you are guided by wrong motives? Discrimination, verse separation, Israel was told to “be separate from the world” and they took it to the extremes of thinking they were “better then the world.” Yes they were set apart, yes they were chosen by God, but they forgot they were chosen to represent God and be the light to the nations. Paul says, lets bring death to those old ways of hypocrisy and live under the new way of faith.
When people speak of "dead churches," they usually mean something derogatory. They're referring to the church services that's not as lively as they might like, or to a body of believers that is not reaching out to the lost. But in our text as we speak of a "dead church," we find Paul speaking of something totally different. Paul speaking about himself and all believers as a "dead church" meaning those who have died to the law, died to the world, and died to sin. Dead to those things, but alive unto God! Lets consider some ways we are to die. 1. Die thought the law to the law. The law, the commands of God, are there as a “schoolmaster” to remind us that we are far from God, and show us that we need grace. For when you consider the law - “Have no other God's before you”, and you know we have not always loved the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, you see that the law says, -- Guilty. When we consider the law -- “Do not commit adultery”, and take the words of Jesus to heart, that to look with lust at another is to commit adultery in your heart -- Guilty. When we consider the command that “You shall not covet”, and you understand that covetousness is not an action but a heart attitude and you know you have desired things over God. -- Guilty. So how do we handle that guilt? Through the law we die to the law. The law condemns us, it tells us that if your going to live by law, you must be perfect or you transgress all the law. So the law turns us to grace and we recognize we are accepted by God, not on the basis of our performance, but on the basis of Jesus complete work. That all, by Grace, through faith, through the law -- we die to the law. Then we live for God.
We crucify or die to the thinking that we (Jewish or not) can be made right with God by what we do – going to church, doing good things, or keeping rules for holy living. How does this death thing work out? Our Daily Bread had this devotion a while back. A young man approached an older Christian with this question: “What does it mean as far as this life is concerned to be ‘crucified with Christ’?” The wise believer replied, “It means three things: (1) A man on a cross is facing in only one direction; (2) He is not going back; (3) He has no further plans of his own.” First: What direction are you facing? The bible says. James 1:8 ...A double-minded man, unstable in all he does. Jesus said, “put your hands to the plow of faith and do not look back” – don't turn to the left or to the right, but have your hearts and faith fixed on Jesus. Look one way, God's way - and live for him. A crucified man/ a crucified woman is facing in only one direction. Second: Where are you going? A crucified person is not going back. After Jesus had risen from the dead and this same Peter had denied the Lord, and had yet to be restored, so he was somewhat lost in his direction. We read about how he tried to go back. John 21:2-3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Not only did Peter try to go back to his old life, he started to take others with him. But they were unsuccessful. Have you ever tried to go back from this place God has brought you? Have you found that you were miserable? A truly crucified person can not go back to the old ways, not the sin that enslaved us, not the things that displease our Lord. Thirdly: A crucified person has no plans of his own. Oh, it's wise to plan for your future, but as believers we should always first consider the Lord's will? To pray about what to do, where to go, and when to move out. James 4:13-17 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow . What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. The crucified life is bringing to death any plans of my own, I desire the Lord's will in my family, I want the Lord direction in my life, I heed to the Lord's revealed will from his word, and his finite will for me as he guides through prayer and revelation. Matt 16:24-25 (Jesus said)..."If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. If you want to follow Jesus you take up your cross, and lay down your life. You take up your cross and like Paul, be crucified to the law. Recognizing that it is not things we do that make us right with God, but what Christ has done. Then be crucified to sin. Gal 5:24-25 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Put to death the things that lead to sin, put to death your sinful nature that will lead you away from holiness. Repent and put to death, crucify, mortify - all that is not of God. Then live by the Spirit as you follow the cadence of the Holy Spirit. T. S. Rendall wrote, “Too many Christians are trying to face in two directions at the same time. They are divided in heart. They want Heaven, but they also love the world. They are like Lot’s wife: running one way, but facing another. Remember, a crucified man is not coming back. The cross was finished for him; he is not going to return to his old life. Also, a crucified man has no plans of this own. He is through with the vain-glory of this life. Its chains are broken and its charms are gone.” 3. Finally, (death to the old) Grace rules my life. Paul says in V20, “I'm dead but I live”, “I live by faith.” Never set aside the grace of God, if law rules you you will end up like Peter having to learn a lesson and having to face your own hypocrisy. But for Peter we know it all turns out right. I believe he received Paul's rebuke, because as you read the Epistles of 1 and 2nd Peter you find they are filled with Grace, and not legalism. Rom 8:13-14 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Can we say with Paul we are acting like a “crucified” Christian? The very next verse. Gal 3:1 You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified . When Jesus was crucified, he died physically: His hands and feet were pierced, his whole body hung on the cross, and he gave up his will for our sin. That's a good picture of how being “crucified yet alive.”
Like Jesus died completely, so the crucified man / the crucified woman - is dead to the law, dead to sin and dead to this world. Phil 2:5-8 Your attitude (Mind) should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross! Having the mind of Jesus Christ we are obedient to live for him by our death to him. INVITE, (SALVATION/ HOLINESS) PRAYER, BENEDICTION, SING Series: Galatians -Through the Bible |
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