ï» back t title page SERIES: THE GREATNESS OF GRACE: EXPOSITION OF GALATIANS TITLE: THE GRACE OF SALVATION TEXT: 1:1-5 INTRO: Cmputer Viruses: Jhn Nrstad, a Nrthwestern University systems engineer and cmputer guru wh invented Disinfect, a ppular cmputer anti-virus prgram frm the late 80 s and early 90 s, answered the questin, What kind f sick mind wuld intentinally mess up the cmputer data f thers? (In an interview with Peter Grner f the Chicag Tribune) I went t a cnf. in Eurpe in 1992 and met mst f my cunterparts in the PC anti-virus cmmunity. One fellw was a Bulgarian wh tld us abut the Bulgarian virus-writing factry. Evidently, during the Cmmunist heyday, the KGB trained and paid PC prgrammers t break western cpy-prtectin schemes. It was an fficial piracy prgram. Then, when the gvernment fell in Bulgaria, all these peple were ut f wrk and bitter. S they frmed virus-writing clubs and set abut infecting the PC cmmunity wrldwide. A significant percentage f the PC viruses came ut f a grup f disaffected hackers wh had frmerly wrked fr the Cmmunists. We see sme similarities here in Galatians with cmputer hackers and the Judiazers wh were trying t intrduce wrks int the grace f salvatin. Judiazers were Jewish Christians wh did nt accept the Acts 15 cuncil and cntinued insisting that Christian Gentiles must keep the Jewish Law, beginning with circumcisin. Remember, Christianity was spreading at this time frm a Jewish base t a wrld-wide base. Acts 15:1-2 - Paul was the apstle t the Gentiles 15:12,19,24, 28 Paul hears this and immediately writes this letter t all the churches in the regin f Galatia. Pauline r Church Epistle. All Scripture, frm Gen-Rev. is written fr us and is prfitable t us in many ways but nt all Scripture is written abut us r directly t us as Christian believers in this dispensatin f the Church Age. S many Christians talk abut the kingdm and getting back t the Gspels and the wrds and teachings f Jesus.
And while that sunds nble, the issues and teachings f the kingdm deal primarily with Israel. We shuld be fcused n ur age tday which the church, and Paul s writings deal directly with us where we are at tday. This is where we learn dctrine and enhances ur understanding f Jesus and what He wants frm us. We read the theme f his letter in 1:6, which is where ur series title THE GREATNESS OF GRACE cmes frm. We will divide the bk int 3 parts: The Prcess f Salvatin in ch. 1 & 2 The Prf f Salvatin in ch. 3-4 The Practicality f Salvatin in ch. 5-6 Tday we are ging t be getting an intrductin t the churches and the letter written t them and hw it relates t us tday. I. THE BACKGROUND OF THE SCRIPTURE a. Authr is Paul. b. Written after many years frm the Jerusalem cuncil f Acts 15. i. The cmmnly accepted traditinal date f the writing is arund 57 AD at the clse f Paul s 3 rd missinary jurney. c. It was written t the churches f Galatia. i. Regin f Asia Minr (Turkey). (France). They were a Celtic peple wh migrated t that regin frm Gaul i Churches in area started by Paul in Acts 13-14: 1. Pisidia Antich 2. Icnium 3. Lystra 4. Derbe d. Why write this letter? i. Paul was nt nly calling ut the false teachers f anther
gspel, and t instruct the church and build upn the Gspel s and faith. but t change a behavir. Paul uses language thrughut the letter t nt argue a pint, i Smetime after Paul had left, sme Jewish teachers had cme alng insisting that Gentiles culd nt be Christians withut keeping the Law/circumcisin. iv. Yu have t remember that Christianity was spreading at this time frm a Jewish base t a wrld-wide base. e. We ften are befuddled as t why s many churches tday, but this is nt a new phenmenn. f. This is why this letter, and all the Pauline Epistles, is s imprtant grund us in dctrine. II. THE BATTLE OVER THE SOURCE 1:1-2 Spurgen: N man can be a Christian in these days withut being a cntrversialist. It was true in Spurgen s day; it is true in ur day; and it was true in Paul s day as this letter shws. It is impssible fr a man t pssess a vivid persnality and a strng character like Paul and nt encunter ppsitin. The Judiazers attacked Paul n 3 different frnts: a. Psitin Why He Taught i. The main way they tried t discredit Paul was t attack his apstleship and say that he was nt qualified t be an apstle. Himself. His calling was nt frm a man r a church, but frm Christ i Apstle nt nly refers t the 12 wh Gd used in the Gspels t begin t build the NT church, but mre imprtantly the name means sent ne. iv. There are nt certain ceremnies r certain vws a Christians fllws t knw that they are called f Gd. Yu just knw. face f the basis accusatins. v. He was called f Gd, and because f this he persevered in the b. Preparedness Wh Taught Him apstles and church leaders. i. Paul was accused f deriving his teachings frm the early men, but he learned frm Christ directly. As we will see in the cming weeks, Paul did nt learn frm ther
i Peple tday are nt willing t study n their wn just will spew ut whatever they hear withut checking the truth. c. Preaching What He Taught i. These Judiazers were teaching a mixture f grace and wrks. There will always be thse wh questin. 1. It is gd t be inquisitive, but nt critical. i iv. What we see arund us tday is nt new, Paul dealt with it. And if he did, we shuld expect it tday. d. They battled ver the surce they questined the messenger, message, and his mtive. e. Even thugh they slandered Paul, he cntinued n. f. Hw d yu respnd t thse wh wrngfully criticize yu? III. THE BASIS OF SALVATION 1:3-5 a. The Grace f Gd 1:3 i. This is Paul s frmal greeting used in mst f his letters. true peace. i Grace always cmes befre peace. The wrld is searching fr peace Jesus is the nly ne that brings iv. Php 4:7 And the peace f Gd, which passeth all understanding, shall keep yur hearts and minds thrugh Christ Jesus. b. The Gift f Gd 1:4 the value f His sacrifice. i. Gave himself fr ur sins There is nthing that we can add t This is Gd s gift (Jhn 3:16) Gd giving, nt smene else r smething else but Himself and all f Himself. TODAY. i iv. And He did it nt nly fr ur ETERNAL salvatin but fr us There is evil all arund us but we d nt have t give in. v. When yu say, I can t help myself, what yu really are saying is that yu dn t believe that Jesus sacrifice was nt sufficient fr yu tday.
vi. We will trust Jesus eternally, but nt tday? v Whatever sin yu are fighting, realize that Jesus wn the victry ver that sin fr yu n the Crss f Calvary. vi Gd has given us the gift f an abundant life tday. c. The Glry f Gd 1:5 i. We dn t praise Gd as much as we shuld tday. We cmplain lng fr dwell n but nt praise. 1. EX: snw cmplain (shve) dwell (it s t cld can t g utside when will it get spring) praise (fills the lakes reminds me f the bld f Christ). i Frever and ever begins right nw! CLOSE: Imprtant letter grace, nt wrks. Grace that saves us keeps us and blesses us tday. Have yu received that grace tday? Christian Have yu been wrnged? Hw did yu cntinue n? Are yu giving Gd the glry due t His name?