GALATIANS 5:1-152005 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Galatians 5:1-15

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2005. Yesterday I was driving home from church and

On my way, I came to a stoplight and I was waiting for the light to turn green and just kind of, you know, looking around, seeing what was going on. And of course, like everywhere now, they have a couple of guys on each corner and they're, you know, they're doing the sign shaking thing. And there's this one guy that catches my attention because he does something that just blows my mind. As I'm sitting there, I'm watching and I see this guy and

Some of them really get into it, you know, some of them are really good. And this guy, he was really into it. And I don't know what he was listening to, but it didn't look very pleasant and loving. I mean, he was, you know, it looked like he was doing some violent movements there. But as he's shaking the sign and dancing, all of a sudden I see him, he takes off his hat and he puts it on his foot. And maybe you've seen this guy, just around the corner, just down the street. There on the corner, he's shaking the sign, he stops, he takes off his hat, he puts it on his foot.

And then he kicks it into the air. And while he's shaking the sign and doing his moves, he catches his hat on top of his head just like it was whenever he took it off. And he just, boom, perfectly lands on it. And I saw that and I was blown away. I was like, I can't even believe it. But as I continued to watch...

He did that every couple of seconds. So I'm there at the light just a few moments. I see him do it half a dozen times. And I realize, well, that's pretty cool, but it's the only trick he's got. It's the only thing he can do. Just, you know, a little hat trick, boom, shake a little bit. Okay, next hat trick, boom, okay, shake a little bit. Same thing over and over and over again. And I can imagine for the last couple months as you've been coming here, you're saying, Jerry, you've got the same message everywhere.

Every week, it's the same hat, same thing. Every week, it's the same thing. It's all about grace and faith and not about works and not about the law and over and over and over again. Yes. Yes.

The Apostle Paul has been driving this point home with us over and over again, that we cannot be justified, we cannot have right standing with God any other way. It's only by our faith and trust in Jesus Christ, in his work at the cross. We cannot accomplish it on our own, we cannot add to it. Over and over, Paul has demonstrated, illustrated, demonstrated,

We cannot. It's by faith. It's through grace that we are saved. And so this morning is no different. As Paul continues on now applying those things that he's been teaching us, he starts out in verse 1 and he says, As he's telling them more about grace and faith and not about the law and not about works,

He starts out chapter 5 and he tells them, stand fast. It's a command. And it's not just a command, but it's a command to do and then to keep on doing it. Stand fast and keep on standing fast and keep on standing fast. Of

Of course, the context we saw last week, Paul was sharing with us with the illustration of Abraham and his two sons that we are not children of the bond woman or children of bondage or meant to be in bondage, but we are children of the free woman, Abraham's wife, Sarah.

Her son Isaac, who was the son of promise, we are like Isaac. We're children of promise, meant to be free, not meant to be in bondage. And so Paul says, so since we are children of promise,

The free woman and meant to be free and not in bondage. She tells us stand fast then in that liberty by which Christ has made us free. We are free in Christ. And so he says, keep standing in that freedom. It's like a command that's given to a soldier.

As they're going into battle, the commander might tell the soldier to stand fast. This line must hold. You've got to stand fast and hold your ground no matter what, no matter how intense the battle gets, no matter how hot things might seem or how difficult or dangerous. This is your spot. Hold this line. You need to stand fast. Do not give up or turn around or run back.

Hold this line. In fact, even to the point of death, if you die, you better be in this spot. You better be standing fast here. This is the line. This is where you need to be. No matter how aggressive Paul would tell the Galatians, no matter how impressive people might be or arguments might sound, stand fast in the liberty of faith.

The liberty of faith. No matter if they mock you, if they condemn you, you need to stand fast. If they're intimidating or any other type of thing, if they're coming against you, stand fast. Do not stray from, do not leave the liberty that comes by faith in Jesus Christ. Because if you leave that liberty, Paul says, you will be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

So stand fast. Don't be entangled again. Now, notice he uses the word again. They were in bondage before, but it was not to the law. As Paul is talking about circumcision, obviously if they were in bondage to the law before, they would have already been circumcised. That's not the issue. They were in bondage before, but it was not to the law. What were they in bondage to? Jesus tells us in John chapter 8, verse 34, he says,

He says, What were they in bondage to?

They were in bondage to sin, the flesh. They were in bondage to their own sinful nature. Paul says something very similar in Romans 6 verse 16. He says, Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one slave whom you obey, whether sin leading to death or obedience leading to righteousness? Whoever you present yourself to, that's sin.

Whose slave you are. And outside of Christ, before Christ, Galatians, you were slaves. You were in bondage. You had a yoke of bondage, not to the law, but it was to sin. And you and I remember that. The time when we were outside of Christ. The time when we did not have faith in Christ and how miserable we were in bondage. That word bondage means

describes the state of a man in which he is prevented from freely possessing and enjoying his life. If someone is in bondage, in slavery, he is not free to possess his life and do whatever he wants to do. He is not free to enjoy his life. No, he's bound to do his master's bidding. He's bound to do whatever he's allowed to do, but he cannot do anything beyond that.

Paul says, don't be in a state of bondage. That's how we were before. Miserable, bound to our sinful nature, bound to sin, bound to ways that are destructive to ourselves. God means for us to enjoy life, but you cannot enjoy life in bondage to sin or in bondage to the law. Sure, in sin there's a temporary thrill, there's temporary pleasure, but it brings destruction.

And that's not what God has for us. In John 10, 10, Jesus said that the thief comes to steal, to kill and destroy. But I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. Not just abundantly, but he comes to give us life more abundantly, overflowing, abounding. He comes to give us blessed life, joyous life. Sure, things will be difficult. There will be hard times.

But we will have the joy of having a relationship with God. The greatest thing that we could ever have and experience. Relationship with God. When you live life God's way, you will find it to be a hundred times better than your own way. Than the best that you can do, the best that you have to offer. So Paul tells them to stand fast in that liberty. Stand fast in God's way. Not going back to a yoke.

And where they find themselves in bondage, not able to enjoy life, stripped of really all the blessings that God has for them as they find themselves in bondage again. Verse 2, Paul says, Now, Paul's been writing this letter this whole time. The Galatians know who it is that's writing to them.

But notice he says, I, Paul. Why does he put his name here?

He wants to make it very clear to us. He wants to make sure that we know this is Paul speaking. He's not quoting someone else. He's not exaggerating. This is what he means to say. This is the point of what he is saying. It's something very clear and something he wants us to understand because he's about to say some difficult things, some things that might be hard for us to swallow. And he wants us to know this is what I'm telling you.

This is what you need to know. And this is what is true. He says, I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. If you become circumcised, he will profit you nothing. Now, whatever your physical state happens to be does not matter. That's not Paul's point. He's not talking about our physical bodies. But when he says circumcised,

If you become circumcised, the key word there is become. And here's Paul's point. You are not currently, but you are seeking to be circumcised. And so you're in trouble, not because of the physical effect, but by being circumcised, you are saying this. I want to, I need to, I must follow the law.

That's the statement that you're making, Galatians, when you take that step to be circumcised. I want to, I need to, I must follow the law. And so they were willing to be circumcised. Think about for a moment the type of people that Paul is writing to. These guys, they really wanted to be right with God. They had a desire. They were yearning. They were not just casual seekers.

But they were on fire. They were intense. They wanted to have a relationship with God, even to the point that they were willing to be circumcised. They were sincere. They were devoted. They wanted to go all out for God. But Paul is telling them, that's not the way to do it. That's very good that you're that passionate and willing to endure that type of pain, but that is not the way to have a relationship with God. If you do that,

You're relying upon the law. You're saying that you need to, must fulfill the law. And he says at that point, Christ will profit you nothing. If you seek relationship with God by the law or by good works or by anything else, then to you, Paul says, it's as if Christ never died. He might as well not have died if you're going to go follow the law.

Because now you're not looking and trusting and relying upon him, but now you're looking and trusting and relying upon what you can do, what you can accomplish and how well you keep the law. He will profit you nothing. You will not profit from his work on the cross. What profit do we have to receive from Christ?

Well, Ephesians 1.7, Paul tells us, in him, in Christ, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sin, according to the riches of his grace. What prophet do we have? Oh, wonderful, awesome, incredible prophet. Redemption, forgiveness, the riches of his grace. If it's prophet you're looking for, find it by trusting in God and putting your faith in Christ.

And experiencing the riches of his grace. That's where you find profit. And that's how you receive profit. Now, the Galatians, we could, if we took a moment, put ourselves in their shoes and understand their intent and their motives. We could understand maybe some of the things that were going through their heart.

Some might be saying, well, I believe in Jesus. I'm not saying I don't believe in Jesus. And I thank God for Jesus and his work there on the cross. But, you know, just in case I need to do this just in case, because, man, these guys sound convincing. And, you know, I'm a new believer. I don't know that much. And it doesn't necessarily make sense to me. But that's what they say. It's there in the Bible. And so I guess it must be true.

I have to be circumcised. And just in case, you know, that's not what Paul said, but just in case. I can still believe in Jesus and do this just in case I really need to do that to be saved. No, you can't. Paul says you can't rely upon the law and Jesus Christ. It's one or the other. Oh, I believe in Jesus, but, you know, I just think that and whatever else we could insert into there and try to make sense in our heads and justify relying upon the law, looking to the works that we can do.

Paul says you cannot do both. You can't have the law and Christ. It's one or the other. Your faith is entirely in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, or it is not at all. It's not one or the other. It's entirely in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, or not at all. Some might say, well, Christ's death is good for my past sins, but now I believe, now I know better, now I've got the Holy Spirit, so now I must believe.

And we start the list of things that we must do. No. It's either completely in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross or not at all. There's only one way to have right standing with God. It's by faith in Christ. And the moment we place any burden upon ourselves to be pleasing to God, to have right standing with God, any attempt by ourselves or on our own part to fulfill the law,

Or to do good works in order to have right standing with God. Now it's not a faith. It's not faith in the cross anymore. Now I'm not looking to him. I'm looking now to my works and my life and how spiritual I am.

And we might say, no, I'm still trusting in Jesus. But no, Paul says it can't be that way. It's one or the other. It's all or nothing. In verse 3, he says, I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. So you might say, well, what's the big deal? Why can't I just believe in Jesus and try to do these things that people say that I'm supposed to do? What's the big deal? I mean, it would seem like they have good motives in doing this, and it's not really...

hurting anybody else. It's just themselves. I mean, why can't they do this? Well, legalism always has good motives in the beginning. Yeah, it's because we want to deal with the flesh and to walk with God and be close with God and experience relationship with God. But the problem is, Paul tells us here in verse 3, if you hold on to one part of the law, what you are doing is binding yourself

To do all of the law. You can't just pick and choose. Well, I want to keep this part and I'm not so concerned about that part. Paul says, no, if you do one part or hold on to one part, if you become circumcised, then now you are a debtor. Now you owe it to God to do the rest of the law. Because now you're looking to the law to have right standing before God.

You cannot say that you need to be circumcised without also saying that you need to perform the sacrifices, you need to be obedient to the rest of the law and keep the Sabbath and all the other things. You can't just do one part and pick and choose. We talked about this back in Galatians 3. In verse 10 where it said, For as many as are the works of the law are under a curse, for it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

Cursed is the one who does not continue in all things. See, if you do one part of it and you hold to the law, well, the law says that you're cursed unless you do all of it. So now you're looking to the law, but just in this one part. And Paul says, no, if you're looking to the law, the law says you are cursed if you cannot complete all of it.

You can't just choose to obey one part. Again, it's all or nothing. That is why we cannot be justified by the law and we can't be right standing before God by keeping the law. We can only do it by dying to the law and putting our faith in Jesus Christ. Where we're included with him at his death, his burial and resurrection. That's the only way that we can have right standing with God.

Now you can imagine that some of the Galatians would be intimidated. As these Judaizers come in, they claim to have authority from Jerusalem and they know the word inside and out. They're very impressive. And some would be intimidated. And some might say, well, maybe I'll just be circumcised just in case.

You know, just in case I need to do it, and just in case they're right, it doesn't sound so bad. You know, they're just being cautious. They're wanting to please God. But the problem is, Hebrews 11, 6, without faith, it's impossible to please God. Paul said in the Galatians, if you go back to be circumcised, now it's not faith. And now it's impossible to please God because you're looking to your own self, looking to your works, your accomplishments, and not the work of Christ on the cross.

See, he gave us the way and he told us so. He gave us Christ on the cross. He told us that was the way. He proved it with miracles. He proved it by fulfilling prophecy. He proved it by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is no other way, no middle ground. You have to put all of your faith in the finished work of the cross. And that is how you have right standing with God. By receiving the gift that he gives, his son, the sacrifice himself.

That offers to us redemption, forgiveness of sins, the riches of his grace. It's by faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 4. He says, you have become estranged from Christ. You who attempt to be justified by law, you have fallen from grace. Paul makes his warning very clear. Listen, if you go forward with this, if you try to have right standing with God by the law, here's the result. You will be estranged from

from Christ, which means alienated or separated. Literally, it means to be rendered useless. Again, he's saying, if you go through with this, Christ will profit you nothing. You'll be separated, alienated from Christ. He goes on to say, you who attempt to be justified by the law or by law, you have fallen from grace. You have fallen from grace. What is Paul saying? Is he saying that you can fall from grace? Does that mean that

He's saying that you'll no longer be saved. You need to know that there's good teachers that disagree on this verse and many others similar to it. Or the Bible talks about dangers and warnings. Now, some would say, yes, it means you better be warned. If you become circumcised, then you fall from grace, then you are not saved because you're relying upon the works of the law, the works of your own self and not faith in Jesus Christ. Others might say, no.

It just means that you fall out of the sphere of God's grace, and it's not actually talking about salvation. I don't know what they mean by that, and so we'll just move on to another group of people. What do they say? They say, well, no, it doesn't mean that you're no longer saved. It just means that you were never actually saved to begin with. But what does the Bible say? What does it say? He says, you have been estranged from Christ. You who attempt to be justified by law, you have fallen from grace. Now, verse 1 says,

If you take note for a moment, he says, do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. Very clearly, they were entangled. They've been set free. Christ has done a work. He's talking to believers. What does he mean by saying that if they do this, they have fallen from grace? In Revelation chapter 2, Jesus writes a letter to the church at Ephesus. And he tells the church at Ephesus, hey, I know your works. You do a lot of good things.

But I have one thing against you, and that is that you've left your first love. And he tells them in Revelation chapter 2, verse 5, he tells them, Here to the church of Ephesus that has a lot of good works is legalistic, using the terminology that we're learning here from Paul.

They have a lot of good things on the outward, but Jesus says, that's not enough. That's not what I'm looking for. I have one thing against you, though. You've left your first love. See, the relationship that I had with you, it's no longer there. There's no communication. There's no relationship between us. It's just a lot of good works that we have or that you have. But you've left me. There's not a loving relationship between us.

And so he says in verse 5, remember therefore from where you have fallen. Guess what? It's the same word that Paul uses here in Galatians 5.4. You've fallen from that relationship with Christ. You've lost that communication. Again, you've been alienated, separated from Christ. To use the words that Paul said. There's a problem. You've fallen. So what does Jesus tell us to do? He says, listen, if that's you, here's what you need to do. Repent.

And do the first works. Repent and do the first works. What are the first works? Not good deeds and legalism, but what were they missing? The loving relationship with God. That's what they were missing. Repent and go back to a loving relationship with me, to intimacy with me, to communion with me. That's what you need. And he says, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent. Repent.

Crystal clear for us, guys. If we rely upon anything else, look to anything else, Jesus says to us, repent. Go back to a loving relationship with me. Don't fall from grace. Now, how do you get grace? Well, you simply receive it. You don't merit it. You don't attain it. You don't work for it. It's given to you. You simply receive it and accept it. And that's what Christ did. He died on the cross to extend to us grace. And we simply receive it by faith.

but our faith must be in Jesus Christ alone. Verse 5, For we, through the Spirit, eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. Now, righteousness by the law is what they were seeking, and there is a righteousness that comes by the law, but only if you're able to keep the entire law. And so obviously we know that we can't, and so we cannot accomplish our own righteousness by the law. So Paul says,

We, through the Spirit, eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness, not by law, but

but by faith. We cannot attain righteousness on our own, but there is a righteousness that God has revealed that is by faith. Romans chapter 3, Paul talks in detail about it. He says in verse 21, but now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Even the righteousness of God, notice, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.

Paul says we're all in the same place. We're all sinners. We've all fallen short. We've all blown it. We all cannot have righteousness by the law. So we're in the same place. But there's a righteousness apart from the law that's revealed, that's also talked about by the law and the prophets. It's in the Old Testament. It's there. It's in the New Testament.

And it's by faith, by faith in Jesus Christ, that we receive this righteousness. In verse 26 of Romans 3, he says, Over and over again, we learn this through the scriptures.

How do we have right standing with God? He did it this way so that he might prove himself or demonstrate that he's just and he is the one that gives us right standing with God by our faith in Jesus Christ. It's faith. Believing God at his word, he said, whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. It's a righteousness that comes by faith.

not by the works, not by the law, not by good deeds, but by faith in him. Verse 6, For in Christ neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything but faith working through love. So again, we see Paul's subject here, faith. Circumcision, uncircumcision, the law, good works, none of these things can accomplish anything at all.

The only thing that is worthwhile or meaningful is faith. And he tells us here that the result of true faith is

is love. Faith working through love. The result of my believing that Jesus died on the cross for me, that I couldn't do it on my own, I couldn't be righteous on my own, but by putting my faith in him, I can be righteous. The result of that faith, of that trust, of that decision to believe in Jesus Christ and believe God at his word, the result of that, what that produces in my life is love.

It's a love not like the world knows or can give, but it's God's love, agape love, perfect love, selfless love, unconditional love for God and for people around me. The result is love. In John 13, 35, Jesus told us that the world will know that we are his disciples if we have love for one another. That's the mark. That's the result. That's how you can tell. If you want to know if you have saving faith, if you have a righteousness by faith,

You can simply look to your life and see if the love of God is demonstrated in your life. Is the love of God being manifested in your life? Selfless love. He goes on in verse 7 and he says, You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? So it's about faith and the result of that faith is love. Galatians, you were doing well. You were walking in faith and walking in love.

But now who has hindered you from obeying this truth? You ran so well. Paul often described the Christian walk as a race. There in 1 Corinthians 9, we also see the author of Hebrews and Hebrews 12. It's a race. It's a run, not against each other, but against ourselves. To run with the Lord, to walk with the Lord, to make it to the end. Have faith in Jesus Christ.

Now, he uses the term hindered or literally it's the idea of if you're looking at a racetrack and, you know, they have the lanes for each runner. And he's saying someone has cut in to your lane and cut you off and held you back and hindered you, kept you from going forward or being where you should be in that race, in that run. Who has hindered you from obeying the truth? Then in verse 8, he says this persuasion does not come from him who calls you.

He says, whoever it is that's cut in on you, that's hindered you, the persuasion, the thing that they're trying to persuade you about, the doctrine that they're teaching you about the law and circumcision and relying upon your good works. He says, this does not come from God. They didn't receive this from him who called you. They didn't study the word and say, this is what God wants to speak to you. No, they didn't.

Came up with it some other way. It's from some other source. They did not get that teaching from God. So Paul says, watch out. Who is it that hindered you? Remember, it's by faith. Someone's holding you back and this persuasion that they're using to hold you back. It's not from God. In verse 10 or verse 9, he says, a little leaven leavens the whole lump.

Now, leaven, you know, it speaks to us of yeast is what we call it today. But just a little bit of it affects the whole batch of dough. And that's what Paul says. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. If you've ever been to a place where they make sourdough bread.

We went on a tour of one of those places. I think it was at Disneyland. But they talk about how they use a batch of dough and they take a piece of that batch of dough and they put that aside. They cook the rest, but they use that batch of dough that they set aside to make the next batch. And they put it in the next batch of dough because that yeast, that leaven that's in that batch, will affect the whole big batch that they put the little piece of dough in.

And so generation after generation, they were saying, you know, this batch of dough, it's carried on from generation to generation. Each batch, they take out a little bit, cook the rest, and then make a new batch, put the little bit in, and take a new batch out of that, and a little bit out of that, cook the rest, and on and on and on and on. Because a little bit of that dough from the previous batch affects the whole new batch of dough.

And what Paul is saying here, a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Listen, if you allow just this one point of legalism, if you allow just this one little point of the law, or relying upon good deeds or good works, it won't just be a little chink in your armor or a little dark spot on your character or whatever the case may be. It's going to affect you entirely.

It's not just a little thing, a little leaven. Leaven is the whole love. It's all or nothing. You need to be all out for Jesus Christ, completely consumed by faith in him. You can't just have a little part of the law. For one hand, on one hand, because the law tells you that if you don't do all of it, then you're condemned. But on the other hand, he says, if you have that little piece, then it will affect all of you.

It will not just be a little piece in your history. You can't just have a pinch of this, a pinch of that. Your faith needs to be entirely, completely, wholly in Jesus Christ. His finished work at the cross. That's how you have right standing with God, relationship with God. That's how you're able to walk with God. And so do it. Walk with God by faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 10.

Finally, a word of comfort. He says, I have confidence in you and the Lord that you will have no other mind. But he who troubles you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is. Paul's confident. He says, I'm confident in you. But notice he also says, adds the clause, in the Lord. He's not confident in the Galatians themselves. He's confident that in them, in the Lord, that they will have no other mind.

That they'll be convinced. He's confident that the Lord will work this out in them. He's confident that he is being used by the Lord to correct them. The persuasion that these guys had was not from the Lord, but Paul's persuasion was from the Lord. And he's confident that the Lord was using him to convince them and correct them.

That they would get back to a faith in Jesus Christ and not relying upon anything else. He's also confident, not only that they would be convinced that they would have the same mind, but that whoever it is that's troubling them, that's bringing this doctrine to them, this confusion into their midst, they will receive the judgment that is due them. He will bear his judgment, Paul says, whoever he is. It's important for us, for you.

Because in James, James 3 tells us to be careful, you who desire to be teachers, because those who are teachers are judged more strictly. These Judaizers, these guys who are coming in, they were turning people away from faith in Christ and teaching them to rely upon something else. And Paul says they're going to get what they deserve. They're going to get what they deserve. So we need to watch out. The Bible is very clear.

And it's warnings to those who teach, to those who share. Listen, when you speak to others, when you share with others and teach others and encourage others, you better make sure that it's the word of God that you are speaking and nothing else. If it contradicts what this book teaches, it's not the truth. And he says, you will bear the judgment that you deserve. We need to speak the truth. We need to make sure that

As we give advice, as we encourage, as we teach, that it's the word of God that we're sharing with those around us. Verse 11, And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased. Paul is saying this, if I were to teach circumcision or if I were to teach the keeping of the law, then I would not be persecuted.

Right now he's being persecuted. The Judaizers and everybody else are coming against him. And we saw that in the book of Acts as we were reading through the Bible in a year together. Man, everywhere Paul went, he had trouble. Driven out of city, out of city, out of city, out of city. Stoned and beaten. All kinds of other things happened to him. He was persecuted. But he says, if I teach the law, if I teach circumcision, I won't be persecuted. No one will be offended by my message. And so no one will persecute me if I teach.

preach the law in addition to Jesus Christ, even if I preach Jesus and talk about Jesus on the cross. But I also preach that you must do these things and add on to these things. And if I do that, then guess what? I'll be accepted by the world if I say that you must do these things and you must do those things because there will not be an offense in my message at that point. Now, that word offense, it's an interesting word.

If you could picture a mousetrap, you know, the ones that, the old-fashioned ones that just come over and, you know, smack it on the head. Well, that trap has a little piece on it that you put the bait on. You put a little piece of cheese on there, and that's what triggers it. So when the mouse goes to get that cheese, then snap, and that's what causes the trap to go off. Well, this word offense, it's the word that talks about that trigger that causes a trap to be activated, that trigger where the bait is placed.

And Paul is saying this, the message of the cross, the gospel message, it's that trigger. It causes something to take place. It activates something. For those who are believing, it activates faith. But for those who reject the work of the cross, it activates something else. They're offended by it, and that's why it is persecuted. The message of the cross is a trigger. As soon as it's shared or taught, there is going to be a response.

By the world and those who don't have faith, they're going to be offended. They're going to be offended. Just like this world that we live in. You teach any religion, you'll be tolerated. But if you teach the message of the cross, people will be offended.

We can respect one another when it's, okay, well, here's you and this is your list of things that you have to do in your religion. And here's me and here's a list of things that I have to do in my religion. And we'll just kind of agree to disagree and we'll get along. We'll be okay. But you teach the message of the cross that you don't have to do anything. You simply believe in Jesus Christ. Now, the offense is.

Not the believing in Jesus Christ. The offense is you can't do anything. You're depraved. You have a sinful nature and you cannot be righteous before God on your own. And so you must have complete faith and trust in Jesus Christ. And they say, oh, no, no, no, that won't do. We can't tolerate that. Get that out of the schools, out of the courtrooms, out of everywhere, because that is that's offensive. I'm offended that you tell me that I'm offended that you would say that. But tell me a list of things that you do and I'll be OK with that.

Paul says it's an offense. If I preach circumcision, Paul says, if I preach the law, then I won't be an offense to anybody. I won't be persecuted because I'll be tolerated. He spells it out for us in 1 Corinthians 1, verses 22 through 24. You can check it out on your own time. But he says that we preach Christ crucified. To the Jews, that's a stumbling block. And guess what? It's the same word offense. It's an offense to them. And to the Greeks, it's foolishness.

There's a response. The Greeks say, that's foolish, that's nonsense, whatever. The Jews say, that's offensive. We're going to hurt you because you said that.

But he says in verse 24 of 1 Corinthians 1, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God. The message of the cross for those who believe, for those who are called, whether you're Jew or Greek, it doesn't matter. That message is the power of God, and it's the wisdom of God. It's the trigger that activates faith, that yes, I put my trust, my faith, completely in his work there at the cross. In verse 12.

He says, I could wish that those who trouble you would even cut themselves off. Now what is Paul saying? In short, he's wishing that those who trouble them would stop. But what does he mean by cut themselves off? And you could look at it and say that Paul was saying that he was wishing that they would excommunicate themselves and stop communication with the church and causing this trouble. And obviously that's something that Paul would wish. But more than likely, he's exaggerating. He's illustrating his point. He's

saying exactly what it sounds like. In fact, the New International Version translates it a little bit different to sound like this. Listen, the guys, these guys, they're pressuring you to be circumcised, but I wish that they would just go all the way and emasculate themselves. Circumcision is not enough. Just go the whole way. Now, why would Paul say that? Well, there was gods that were worshipped in the Greek culture where they would understand and

And the priests who worship that God, to demonstrate their devotion to that God, that's what they would do. They would emasculate themselves. And so Paul is saying, if you're going to be part of circumcision, you might as well just go the whole way. Because you're not worshiping Jesus Christ. You're not trusting in Jesus Christ. Your faith is not there. It's not a pretty picture, we know. But we get Paul's point. We understand what he's saying.

salvation, relationship with God, right standing with God. It's by faith in Jesus Christ alone. There's nothing that we can do physically by our works, by our flesh, by keeping the law to improve that standing with God. Verse 13, for you, brethren, have been called to liberty. Only do not use your liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love, serve one another.

Paul started out saying, stand fast in the liberty by which Christ has made us free. Here he tells us that liberty, it's not a liberty to sin, to indulge the flesh.

It's not a liberty to live a lifestyle of sin. And if it's that liberty that you practice, you're practicing the wrong liberty. That's not what the Bible teaches. We have been set free, Paul says, to serve one another, to love one another. And if we try to use liberty to live in sin, we have a big problem. Paul will go into it in more detail in the next portion in the rest of Galatians 5 and even in Galatians 6.

But where he says that those who practice sin will not inherit the kingdom of God. He says it very clearly, very plainly. We understand if you practice sin, you will not inherit the kingdom of God. And so liberty to sin? No. That's not what liberty is for. That is not the liberty that comes from faith. Faith manifests itself in love and serving one another, not in living in sin. So we need to be careful when we say liberty.

Our liberty and we have liberty to do this or that. No, the liberty that comes by faith is a liberty to love one another, which manifests itself and shows itself by us serving one another. In verse 14, for all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And Jesus said essentially the same thing in Matthew 7, 12. The law is fulfilled in love.

If you follow Paul's train of thought, liberty comes from faith in Christ, which produces love, which manifests itself in serving one another. And guess what? When you have the liberty that comes from faith that produces love, that manifests itself in serving one another, then you are fulfilling the law. The thing that they were trying to do on one side here, trying to complete the law and fulfill the law, Paul says, no, no, have faith in Christ,

He'll do the work from the inside out, producing you love that will show itself by you serving one another. And the result will be you'll be fulfilling the law because that is the fulfillment of the law. Love is the fulfillment of the law. Faith in Christ, what does it produce? The end result, love. Serving one another and fulfilling the law. They were being lured into legalism, bondage to the flesh.

And what does that produce? Well, he tells us in verse 15. But if you bite and devour one another, beware, lest you be consumed by one another. Do you know what the result of legalism is? Do you know what the result of bondage is? It's this. Biting, devouring, consuming one another. We talked about this a few weeks ago, probably a month or so ago. You and I, we relate to others the same way that we believe God relates to us.

And if we have a legalistic relationship with God, we will in turn be legalistic towards those around us. But if we have a relationship with God by faith in Jesus Christ, the finished work at the cross, receiving His grace, the riches of His grace, we will have gracious relationships with those around us. We will be serving one another in love. But if not, if we're in bondage, in legalism, then we'll begin to bite and devour one another, even to the point of consuming one

Paul says, watch out. The road that you're heading down of legalism, of bondage, of relying upon your good works, your good deeds, of fulfilling the law, Christ will profit you nothing. You fall from grace. You will bite and devour one another and consume, destroy one another. But if by faith you receive the work of Jesus Christ, you receive liberty, it produces love.

It demonstrates itself by your serving one another and you fulfill the law because God has done the work from the inside out because you put your faith completely in Him and not in your own flesh, not in what you can do, how well you do or how well you perform.

So Paul says, Do not try to gain God's approval by your works, trying to add to what he did.

He did it all. Completely, totally, there's nothing more that we can do. Do not rely upon anything else. But instead, put your faith, your trust, your hope completely in Jesus Christ. You are righteous, have right standing with God because he promised that you would be if you believed in him. So believe God at his word.

And do not be sucked into good works or legalism. No matter how impressive, no matter how persuasive, stand fast in that liberty by which Christ has made us free. How? How do we stand fast? How do we do that? By keeping our focus on the cross, like we will do this morning as we partake in communion. Keeping our focus on the cross. I'm a wretched sinner. I can't be made righteous. I can't have right standing with God on my own.

I can only do it by faith in what he accomplished at the cross, which is what we symbolize, which is what we demonstrate when we partake together of the bread and the cup. His body that was broken, his blood that was shed for us. Keep our focus, keep your focus on the cross. Keep your faith, your trust, your reliance for relationship with God there totally. And that's what we want to do this morning. And so the worship team is going to come up and the guys are going to get ready and

We're going to do communion a little bit different this morning. Instead of us passing around the trays for you to receive the bread and the cup, the ushers will be dismissing you row by row. And you can come and receive the bread and the cup. And you can partake of it up here or take it back to your seat and partake when you're ready. But we want you to come and let it be an act of faith. How do you get grace? You receive it. How do you get grace?

the gift of salvation and relationship with God, you receive it. How do you get the working of the Spirit in your life? You receive it. It's all by faith and what Jesus did at the cross. And so as the worship team plays, I would ask that you spend a few moments, let God speak to your heart. If there's areas of sin in your life where you are practicing sin or living in sin, repent. And there's no great work that you have to do or something that you have to penalize yourself for.

In some way, you simply receive the work that Jesus did at the cross. Receive the gift of forgiveness or redemption of sins. Receive His great gift, eternal life, relationship with God. Receive it by faith in what He did at the cross. If you're here this morning and you are not born again, you have never placed your faith in Jesus Christ. You can do that this morning. There's no better time right now. Today is the day of salvation.

And you simply say that in your heart, Lord, I know I can't do it on my own, but I receive your work at the cross. And then as they dismiss you, come forward. Take the cup and the bread. Recognition is a step of faith. Saying, yes, Lord, I receive your work for me. I receive your blood that was shed for me. Wash me, cleanse me, bring me in right relationship with you because I put my faith, my trust, my hope in you.

It's either completely in Jesus Christ, His work at the cross, or not at all. So let's put our faith in Jesus Christ this morning. Let me pray for you and we'll worship. You can come and partake as you're dismissed. Lord Jesus, we do thank you for your work at the cross. Lord, and that you make it so easy. Lord, it's not difficult, it's not physically painful, but Lord, sometimes it is hard for our pride, hard for us emotionally to believe that you make it so easy for us.

Lord, even though we fall short and we cannot be righteous, we stumble, we fall, we turn against you. Lord, you desire to forgive us and bring us in right relationship with you by our faith and our trust. That's what's pleasing to you, Lord. Not some work that we can accomplish or how well we can perform some task. But Lord, how much we trust you and your work. That's what's pleasing to you. So Lord, we want to be pleasing to you this morning. Incline our hearts towards you.

If there's any here that have fallen, that have left their first love, God, I ask that you would help them to repent. Turn us back to you, God, to do the first works in the loving relationship that we once had with you. God, as we receive and remember what you did for us on the cross, I pray that you would stir up in our hearts, as we put our faith in you, that you would stir up within our hearts your love, an overwhelming, all-consuming love for you, for those around us.

We want to serve them, God. We want to serve you. So we put our faith and our trust in you and ask you to do the work from the inside out. Thank you, Jesus. It's in your name we pray. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of his word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.