The Unshakeable Evidence

Transcription

1 The following sermon was preached at Redemption Baptist Church on Sunday, 7 May We encourage you to look up the Scriptures that are referenced. May the Lord speak to your heart as you study His Word. The Unshakeable Evidence Galatians 3:10-18 In last week s message, we examined the first nine verses of Galatians 3. In those verses, the Apostle Paul made his case for the true Gospel; and, just as a defence lawyer would do in a court of law, Paul produced witnesses. First, he examined the Galatian Christians. Now, the Galatians were not exactly willing witnesses. They had been fooled by false teachers, who had taught them a false gospel, which was totally contrary to the Gospel that Paul had preached to them years earlier. Nonetheless, Paul forced them to remember, and confess, that they had been saved by faith alone, and not by their good works. Paul then examined the testimony of the Apostles and prophets; and then he examined the testimony of Abraham. All these witnesses testified that salvation is received (and kept) by faith in Christ alone. Paul has finished the cross-examination of witnesses ; and now, he is ready to present the evidence for his case. As we will see, this evidence is not circumstantial. It is rock-solid, unshakable evidence, based on the authority of Scripture. Now, Paul s opponents (the false teachers) were the prosecutor, so to speak. They were accusing Paul of being the false teacher. They were teaching the Galatian Christians that salvation is received not by simple faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, but by faith in Christ plus keeping the Law. Their gospel was diametrically the opposite of the true Gospel. So, in defence of the true Gospel, Paul now presents three pieces of evidence. In our passage this morning, we will examine these three exhibits. The title of this message is The Unshakable Evidence. Read Galatians 3:10-18 I. Exhibit A: The evidence of the Law (Galatians 3:10-12) The first piece of evidence that Paul presents is the Law itself. That s a good place to start, isn t it? When a case is brought before a court of law, you need to know exactly what the offence is, and exactly what the penalty for the offence is. Otherwise, you re talking about nothing. The court needs to know whether the accused did, in fact, break the law or not. Secondly, the court needs to know what the penalty is. How is this information known? By the law. Everything is measured by the law. So it is in your court case with God. When I go door-knocking, I constantly ask people this question: Have you kept God s Law? I find that most people answer this question with a confident-sounding Yes. But then I show them, from the Scriptures, how God defines keeping the Law. Read James 2:10 After reading this verse to people, I then ask them, Do you still think that you have kept the Law? Some people realise the implications of this verse, and answer No. Incredibly, though, some people still answer, Yes. But to say Yes, they must deny what they just read in James 2:10! You see, it doesn t matter how you define keeping the Law. God is the

2 Lawgiver. He is the one who defines keeping the Law. And how does He define it? God s standard of keeping the Law is that you must keep it perfectly, entirely, and continuously! Consider our civil laws. When you are caught speeding, the Garda does not ask you, Were you going the correct speed during the other 99% of your journey, before I clocked you going over the speed limit? No, the question is, Were you speeding? If you were speeding, then you were breaking the law. (And a penalty will follow.) What about your feelings? Do they count for anything? Many people think so. Many people say, Well, I feel bad about my sin, so I m o.k. But that s not the question. The question is not, Do you feel guilty about breaking God s Law? : the question is, Did you break God s law? In an earthly court of law, would a man who ran over and killed someone while he was drunk get off the hook because he felt bad about his crime? Of course not. Why, then, do you think that God should overlook your crimes against Him, because you feel bad about it? But, that s not a fair comparison! you may say. I ve never killed anyone! Is it really fair to compare a terrible sin like drink driving and manslaughter to my little sins? Well, what does the Scripture say? Let s look again at verse 10. (Read verse 10 again.) Does God make any distinction in regard to how large or how small your sins happen to be? No. He says, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. You see, God doesn t look at sin the way we do. Sin is sin. Now, God will certainly judge men with differing degrees of punishment, according to the sins they committed. The Bible says, again and again, that God will judge men according to their works. But the minimum sentence for any and all sin is eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire. Every sin is mortal (causing death). Romans 6:23 says, For the wages of sin is death (separation from God). The Lord said in Revelation 21:21, And there shall in no wise enter into it (the city of heaven) any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb s book of life. The question is not, Are you worthy of death? We have all broken God s Law: and the penalty is eternal death. The question is, what are you trusting in to have your guilt removed? In what are you trusting to have your sins blotted out, and your name ensured a place in the Lamb s Book of Life? Well, there are two choices; and Paul examines the conditions for each. First of all, there is the Law. Most people in this world who call themselves Christians are trusting in their keeping of the Law, or in their continuance in good works, to get them to heaven. If this be what you are trusting in to get you to heaven, you need to know what the conditions for this option are. God says that if you choose to be justified by your keeping of the Law, then you must keep the Law perfectly. (Read verses 10 and 12 again.) By the way, this is a quote from the Old Testament. Let s look at the Scripture that Paul is quoting. Read Deuteronomy 27:26 Read Deuteronomy 28:1-6, God says that if you choose to be of the works of the law in other words, if you try to earn your salvation by keeping the Law then you must do all things that are written in the Law. Not some of them, but all of them. God means what He says. There are no exceptions! He says that in order to live (have spiritual life), you must do the Law. Lest you flatter yourself that you have done the Law, please realise that God s definition of doing the Law is doing it perfectly, and continuously. (If you didn t do it continuously, you wouldn t be

3 doing it perfectly, would you?) God said, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. He didn t say, From the day you get saved, you must keep the Law continuously. (Even if this were what God meant, it would still be impossible to keep the Law perfectly from the day of your salvation onward!) My friends, continuously means from the day you enter into this life to the day you die. If you break even one of God s laws anywhere along the way, you are under God s curse! This is what you must do in order to have life. If you choose to be justified by the Law, then you must keep the Law perfectly and continuously. If you fail even once in your entire life, you re doomed. The fact is, you re doomed from the start. Why? Because you were born a sinner. (See Psalm 51:5.) My friend, if you fancy that you will get to heaven by living a good life, and by trying to keep the Law, then you are signing your own death warrant! According to the Law, you have sinned already: and the wages of sin is death. But there is good news. There is a second option. The other option is faith in Jesus Christ, and in His sacrifice for sins. (Read verse 11 again.) If you choose to be justified by faith, then the sole requirement is this: You must trust in Christ s perfect performance of the Law on your behalf, and in His payment of your sin penalty on your behalf! If you choose this option, then you cannot be condemned again, because Christ performs all righteousness perfectly and continuously! That is why Paul said in Romans 8:1, There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. If you be in Christ, then God the Father sees you as though you had the perfect righteousness of His Son. Placing your trust in Christ and His righteousness is the only option that brings life. Trying to be justified by keeping the Law cannot bring spiritual life. Paul clearly said, there in verse 11, that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God. Salvation always has been, and always will be, by faith in Christ alone. This isn t Paul s plan of salvation: it is God s plan of salvation. It has always been His plan. In every age of history, God s people have been saved by faith. Paul points out this fact in verse 11 when he says, The just shall live by faith. This is a quote from the Old Testament. Let s look at it. Read Habakkuk 2:4 By quoting this Old Testament verse, Paul is making the point that salvation, in Old Testament times, was by faith just as it is today. The just (those who are saved) have always lived (received spiritual life) by faith in God. In light of all this, I ask once again: What are you trusting? Are you trusting in your own keeping of the Law, or in the Lord Jesus Christ? II. Exhibit B: The evidence of Christ s work (v. 13) Paul has presented the evidence of the Law. Now he presents the evidence of Christ s work on the cross. (Read verse 13 again.) God s plan of salvation is so simple. Because Christ paid your sin debt on the cross, and rose again, it means that you have been redeemed (purchased, or bought). Look again at verse 13. (Read verse 13 again.) You don t have to be a Bible scholar to understand this verse. Paul says that Christ has redeemed, or purchased, us. Think about that statement. Think about what it means to be redeemed. Can you say that something is redeemed if the whole price hasn t been paid? No. (Try taking something out the store without paying for it in full, and see whether the law considers you to be the owner of that item!) What s my point? The point is: We were not half-way redeemed. If we were half purchased, we wouldn t be

4 purchased at all. No, we have been redeemed. How so? Because Christ became a curse for us. He became our Substitute. As Peter said in 1 Peter 3:18, Jesus is the Just One, who died for the unjust (us)! The purchase that Christ made on the cross has complete, final, and infinite value. You see, in order for Christ s sacrifice to have had any power to redeem, it had to cover all sins one time forever. It was either all, or nothing. Either Christ s work on the cross is powerful enough to save us completely, effectually, and eternally, or it was completely worthless. If Christ left even one sin unpaid for, then He died in vain! My friends, does God ever lie? Does He ever go back on His word? No? Well, if you really believe that, then take a good look at what Paul says in Colossians 2. Read Colossians 2:13-14 According to these verses, Jesus Christ forgives you of all trespasses the moment you put your trust in Him. Well, guess what? That means that Christ paid for all your trespasses. If He had not paid for all your trespasses, He could not forgive you of all your trespasses! So, if Christ paid for all our trespasses, what would it mean if a Christian could commit a sin that is so bad, that he could lose his salvation? It might mean one of two things. On the one hand, it might mean that God lied from the very beginning. It would mean that Christ said that He paid for every sin on the cross, when, in fact, He didn t. Or, it might mean that at some point, God changed his mind, and went back on His Word. It would mean that God decided to take back His forgiveness. It would mean that God decided to dishonour His own purchase. It would mean that He paid for all your sins on the cross 2,000 years ago, and He forgave you of all your sins when you believed on Him; but when the time came that you actually committed that sin, He said, You know...i realise that I ve paid for that sin already; but now that I actually see that sin being committed, I just don t think I can forgive it after all. You ll have to call me a liar on this one, because I m going to take back my forgiveness. My friends, nothing could be more contrary to the character of a holy God than to make a promise, and go back on it. Nothing could be more contrary to God s character than to do anything half-way. According to this verse, Christ became a curse for you. He bore the full curse for every sin you ve ever committed, or that you ever will commit. He did not become a partial curse for you! He didn t become a curse only for the sins that we commit up until the time we are saved. No, He took the full curse! He didn t become a curse only for the less serious sins, but leave you on your own for the really bad sins. No, He took the full curse. If a Christian could, at some time in the future, ever be condemned again for some particularly bad sin that he commits, it would mean that Christ did not ever pay for that sin! And if Christ did not pay for that one sin, it would mean that that person couldn t have been saved in the first place. Why? Because it takes only one sin to be under God s curse, and separated from God. (Consider Adam and Eve. They found out the hard way that it takes only one sin to be cut off from God!) Remember, God cannot overlook even one sin. He cannot allow anyone into heaven with sin on his moral account. If you could lose your salvation for even one sin that you commit, then that one sin would be a sin for which Christ did not die: and no matter how much you may try to repent of that sin with bitter tears, you still could not possibly be saved, because Christ did not pay for that one sin. You d be doomed, no matter what!

5 Two thousand years ago, Christ purchased our redemption. He did it completely, one time forever. All our sins were paid for in full. Do you believe this? You may say that you believe it; but if you think that salvation is through Christ plus keeping the Law, then you cannot possibly believe that Christ paid for all your sins. Will you accept the evidence that Paul is presenting here? Salvation is done! Christ paid for your salvation in full. III. Exhibit C: The evidence of God s covenant with Abraham (vv ) Paul is about to present one more piece of evidence to prove that the Gospel he preached was from God. He is now presenting to the court a ruling from an ancient case: the case of the Abrahamic Covenant, which was made 20 centuries earlier. (Read verses ) Why did Paul bring up this ancient case? Wasn t the evidence of Christ s becoming a curse proof enough? Of course it was. But, you see, Paul knew how his opposition thought. He knew their deceitful arguments. Those who were trying to add works to faith for salvation were making this argument: Well, yes, Jesus did die for your sins; but the Law was written long before Christ came to earth. You can t negate the Law, because the Law came before Christ. Therefore, salvation must be partly by the Law and partly by Christ s sacrifice. My friends, this argument cannot stand; and Paul is about to prove it. Let s look again at verse 14. (Read verse 14 again.) What, exactly, is the blessing of Abraham, which was to come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ? Well, in order to answer this question, we need to examine the covenant that God made with Abraham. There are several blessings that were part of this covenant. One of these blessings was the promise that Abraham s descendants, the Jews, would possess the land of Canaan for an inheritance forever. Read Genesis 15:18-21 The land of Canaan was an important part of the blessing that God promised to Abraham. However, this wasn t the only blessing that God promised. There was another blessing that God promised to extend to people who were not Abraham s physical descendants. Read Genesis 12:1-3 The blessing which God promised to extend to all the families of the earth is the blessing that Paul is talking about here in Galatians 3:14. It is the spiritual blessing of salvation. It is the promise that all who put their faith in Christ would be indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God. Now, let s develop his further. (Read verse 15 again.) In this verse, Paul is laying more groundwork for this truth. He points out that even in a covenant (or contract ) between men, there is obligation to keep one s word. Once the terms of the contract are laid out, and the contract is agreed upon by both parties, no later contract can negate or disannul it. The terms of the covenant must stand. So, what does this mean? The point Paul is making is that if even sinful men make binding covenants with each other, and nothing can negate that covenant once the terms are signed and sealed, how much more so will a covenant that God makes stand especially when God has called it an everlasting covenant? That is exactly how God described His covenant with Abraham. Let s take a look at that description. Read Genesis 17:19 God says that His covenant with Abraham is everlasting : and since it is everlasting, it cannot be reversed or disannulled. So, in light of all this, let s look closely at the spiritual part

6 of the covenant. The spiritual part of the covenant is the promise that in thy seed shall all nations of the earth be blessed. Now, the question is: Who is the seed? Paul says that the Seed is Christ! (Read Galatians 3:16 again.) If God had been talking about the whole nation of Israel, He would have said seeds. But He didn t. God promised Abraham that in thy seed (one particular Descendant of his) shall all the nations of earth be blessed. Read Genesis 22:15-18 The Seed through whom God promised to bring blessing to all families of earth is the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, guess what? According to Scripture, all who have put their faith in Jesus Christ have been placed in Him. This means that if you have believed on Christ, you are as saved as you can possibly be. Christ is Salvation; and you are in Him. You are blessed with faithful Abraham, because you have been placed in the Seed of Jesus Christ! So, let s review. We ve seen that the Abrahamic Covenant has a physical aspect (the promise of the land of Canaan for the Jews). However, it also has a spiritual aspect. The spiritual aspect of the covenant is the promise of salvation. God promised that the blessing of salvation would extend to all people who would place their faith in the Seed of Abraham (who is the Lord Jesus Christ). This promise cannot be reversed, changed, or disannulled. With all this in mind, let s look again at verses 17 and 18. (Read verses 17 and 18 again.) What is Paul s point? His point is that the covenant that God made with Abraham was made 430 years before the Law was given to Moses on Mount Sinai. This means that the Covenant of the Law cannot disannul (overturn, or change) the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant! The false teachers who argued that The Law came long before Christ: therefore, you must keep the Law in order to be saved, didn t have a leg to stand on! Paul is saying, Hey, guess what? God made an everlasting covenant with Abraham, and with all his spiritual descendants (those who believe on Christ); and that covenant was made 430 years before the Law came! The Law of Moses cannot disannul or overturn the Covenant that God made with Abraham. Now, we will return to that thought. In the mean time, there is something else that you need to know about the Abrahamic Covenant. Let s look one more time at Genesis 15. Read Genesis 15:5-21 There are two extremely important truths in these verses. First of all, God saved (justified) Abraham on one condition. The condition was that he believe in (trust, put his complete confidence in) the LORD! Verse 6 says that Abraham believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness. Faith was the basis upon which God saved Abraham, and made this covenant with him. This is the exact same basis upon which all spiritual descendants of Abraham receive the blessing of salvation. It is through faith! If you are saved, you were saved on the basis of faith in Christ alone. Salvation through faith alone was promised in the Abrahamic covenant, hundreds of years before the Law was even written! The second important truth is this: When God made this covenant with Abraham, it was entirely one-sided! What do I mean by one-sided? Well, in the culture in which Abraham lived, there was a very solemn way in which two people would make a covenant with each other. They would take the carcasses of animals, cut them in half, and lay their severed parts out on the ground in two parallel rows, and thus form a little pathway. The first person would walk between the rows of carcasses; and then the second person would walk between the carcasses. This was their way of saying, I am going to keep my promise in this covenant.

7 Woe be unto me if I do not keep my end of the bargain! With this in mind, look at the passage again. (Read Genesis 15:17 again.) Now, here s a question for you: Did Abraham walk between the carcasses? No. In verse 17, we see only God walking through the carcasses. So, what does this mean? This means that God put the burden of this covenant entirely upon Himself. God was the only One who had an end of the bargain to uphold. If Abraham had had an end of the bargain to uphold (i.e., keeping God s laws), he would have failed, because he was a sinful, fallible man: and God demands perfection! But because God put the burden of the covenant on Himself, the covenant cannot fail. This means that salvation is eternal. Once salvation is received by faith, it cannot be lost. Why? Because God Himself upholds the covenant by His own righteousness and faithfulness! Upon which covenant are you relying for your salvation? The Abrahamic Covenant, in which God puts the burden of your salvation entirely upon Himself? Or the Mosaic Covenant (the Law) in which you have an end to uphold? You see, in the Law of Moses, there were two ends of the bargain God s end, and Israel s end. But guess what? Israel couldn t keep their end of the bargain. They broke it. As a result, God cast them out of their land. Likewise, those who try to keep the Law in order to get to heaven cannot do it! If you persist in trying to get to heaven by your own efforts, and reject God s gift of salvation, you will, one day, be cast away from God s presence for eternity, in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone! God made His covenant with Abraham on the basis of his faith. All who put their faith in Christ receive salvation in the same way that Abraham received it by faith in Christ alone. Unlike the Covenant of the Law, which rested upon man s faithfulness, the Abrahamic Covenant rests entirely upon God s faithfulness. Aren t you glad that God is faithful? Conclusion: We ve seen Paul s three evidences for the Gospel. First, there is the Law. The Law says, If you fail even once, you re doomed! You are cursed already. Therefore, you need Christ! We ve also seen the evidence of Christ s work on the cross. Christ became a curse for us. He did not pay for part of your sins: He paid for all of them. Finally, we ve seen the evidence of the covenant that God made with Abraham. This covenant pointed to a salvation that God would provide by Himself, and uphold by Himself. It is a salvation that can be received by faith alone; and it cannot be disannulled. It is a salvation that rests entirely upon God s own faithfulness, and not upon your efforts. My friend, have you received this wonderful gift of salvation? If not, you can receive it today, by simply repenting (turning your mind, heart, and will from sin to God), and placing your complete trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. (See Mark 1:15.) Christ will save you today, if you will simply come to Him for forgiveness.