Gospel—R. Thonney
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I have asked maybe some of you have done the same to different persons and say how can you get to heaven?
Now usually the answer is by keeping the 10 commandments.
And then I would say, do you know them?
And very few know them. I wonder if you all know them. But I'm going to read them just to show how virtually impossible it is for us to keep the 10 commandments. There's been a lot of ado in our country over the 10 commandments being taken down in certain places.
Nice for myself I would rather than the 10 commandments being put up, John 316 being put up that for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. That's the gospel, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. But the 10 commandments is not good news.
Unless you keep it.
Perfectly.
And God spake all these words. I'm reading Exodus 20 if you want to look it up, verse one. God spake all these words saying I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the House of *******. Now here's the first commandment. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Well, that will, that would out, that would rule out.
The large majority of the people who who planet Earth.
They have other gods they worship in India and in Muslim lands and that they have other gods. But this one who says me, he's the true God. He's the one that gave this to Moses and he will not tolerate, he will not stand.
Any that worship another God but himself, for He alone is the true God. That's the first commandment. And then he says in verse in verse 4, the second commandment. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them.
Nor serve them, for I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God.
Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and 4th generation of them that hate me and showing mercy under thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. There are 1,000,000 on planet earth that have false gods. Some churches, quite a few of them have images that they have made and they break the second commandment.
File bow down to A to an image that's made by human hands.
You cannot make an image of the true God.
Verse 7 gives us the third commandment.
I wonder if there's anyone in this room that hasn't violated this commandment. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Have you ever done that? I have done that many times before I was saved.
And maybe even sometimes after, I don't know. For the Lord will not hold him guiltless.
That taketh his name in vain. First 3 commandments condemns us all, and then the 4th commandment.
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
Six days thou shalt labor and do all thy work, but the 7th day is the Sabbath, That's Saturday.
And the Lord and I God in it, thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor any stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord may, heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is and rest the 7th day. Therefore the Lord bless that day, the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
4th commandment is keep the Sabbath.
How many Americans have kept the Sabbath?
Very few have you? You kept the Sabbath. Have you refrained from doing any work on Saturday?
I can't. I can't say I've kept that, but I because I'm not under the law. I just want to show you the folly of saying that you're going to get to heaven by keeping the 10 commandments. These first four have all been broken.
How about the fifth one? Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the earth. It's the only commandment that has a promise to it. If you honor your father and the mother, you'll have long days. You'll live long that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. That's the 5th commandment.
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How many have done that? Anyone here can raise your hand if you've always honored your father and mother.
You know you haven't. I know I haven't.
Now the 6th commandment.
Thou shalt not kill. Ah, I I can raise my hand on that. I haven't killed anyone. So you've passed one of the six.
And then thou shalt not commit adultery.
I hope there isn't anyone in this room that has done that. It's possible you might be guilty of that.
How about this one? Thou shalt not steal. I'll never forget when I was a boy, not raised as a Christian at all. I wasn't saved till I was 19 in college.
And but I had a conscience and I remember there was a toy on the on the shelf in the gift shop and I wanted that so much. I took it. I stole it.
Should not steal, but it bothered me so much that I brought it back. It only cost me 1/4 back then. That might have been several dollars today, but it bothered me. How many of you have never stolen?
Be honest about it. You've never stolen anything.
All right.
Now how about this one?
The next command is Thou shalt not bear false witness. That means you should not to lie.
You ever lied?
You maybe have just lied when you said I never stole anything. I would have. Shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor. And the last one slaves us all, no question about it. Thou shalt not covet.
What does that mean? Desire something that is not yours? You. You're at home and you see this boy come up with a brand new bicycle or the neighbor come up with a brand new car. Oh, I'd love to have that. That's coveting.
That's coveting.
I shall not covet thy neighbor's house, a neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, or his *** or anything.
That is thy neighbors 10 commandments. I wouldn't want to post that one out.
And as though I kept it 10 commandments.
No, but this is the law.
This is the law, and it slays every single one of us. Doesn't matter what religion one is of or what part of the world one lives in, but it condemns us all.
But we were singing about something that puts our sins away.
Precious blood of Jesus. Now turn to Galatians chapter 1.
Galatians, chapter 1.
Wonderful epistle.
Because the answer that I'm often given most of the time, how do you get to heaven? By keeping the law. I just read you the law.
They don't even know what the law is. But I just read it to you now you know what it is. If you want to check it up, Exodus 20.
But the Epistle to the Galatians is an epistle that was written to show the serious error of putting early Christians under law.
Very serious. The reason why people like the law, I've just read them is because it gives us something to do, which if I do it, I obey it, then I I have that to put put to my account and that will help me get into heaven.
But what if I don't obey it and we saw that we don't?
And it's really impossible for the natural man to keep those commands as good as they were. Nothing wrong with the law, the law is perfect, just the holy. But man is sinful.
He's not capable of keeping that holy.
Law. So God sent his Son.
Into a world of sin. Before I go into that, I want to quote again.
The scripture that reads just before the flood came.
God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
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And God said I will destroy man from off the face of the earth. And he did it with the exception of seven souls, Noah, his wife to death, his three sons and their three wives, 7 souls. He built an ark by the command of God and that was that which rescued them. Just think this whole planet earth was reduced. It started out with two people, Adam and Eve, man and woman.
And then?
They had children and so on, and people the earth. But then at the time of Noah, things had gotten so bad. Man was so wicked. God looked down from heaven to see him, quoting the Psalm 14. God would run from heaven to see if there were any that understood that did.
Walk after God, keep his commandments, and he said there was none.
Not one so on the ground of keeping the law. Remember talking to my Catholic instructor in college and we got into this discussion. I was explaining to him, grace. Grace is the goodness of God forgiving man when he accepts the provision that God has made to put his sins away, and that's the sending of his beloved Son.
Who shed his precious blood to put all our sins away?
That's grace. Wonderful grace, but it doesn't give us a thing to do, simply something to believe.
And I explained Grace to him and he said I don't like that. I want to do my part.
And that's why people don't like grace, because it gives them nothing to do except to own that they're sinners, and it's impossible for them to gain the favor of God based upon their works.
The law is works. The law is the opposite of grace, and works is the opposite of faith.
Grace and faith go together, and works and law go together. You can't have both Works in law condemn us.
Grace and faith save us when we believe that simple gospel.
God has put man under the test for 4000 years.
And then he sent his son.
And now it's been almost 6000. The last two has been the Day of Grace.
When God is spreading forth the wonderful gospel good news, it means that He has made provision for man house, no matter how sinful he was.
Read a little bit farther in Exodus 20.
Would have read. The people were terrified when they heard the law, and there was Thunder and lightnings and God was in thick darkness. And that's what see. God had not revealed himself then. The law doesn't reveal God. The law tells man what he ought to do or not do if he's going to get to heaven by works.
But he doesn't pass that test. Not even close.
I think above 10. I read maybe one of them Thou shalt not kill. You can say I never kill anyone. He might pass that. That's about the only one.
But on that ground, we're condemned, everyone of us.
Is there although all the false religions that don't have Jesus and his shed blood on the cross?
The provision that the true and living God has made by sending his beloved Son into this world. They don't have him. They won't even speak of him. He's condemned and cast out. Their religion denies him. They're all lost.
They have a kind of a law, something that they do in their religious activities, but it's not grace.
Galatians is grace, not law.
And the only way we can be saved is by accepting God's way. There's two ways to get to heaven. 1 is by keeping the law. And we all fail. We can't get there that way. The others by grace.
Now let's read Epistle to the Galatians, chapter 1.
Paul an apostle. Paul an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead.
And all the brethren which are with me unto the churches of Galatia, I should mention this. I think just about everyone in this room knows this, that Paul was the greatest opponent to Christianity ever. He was Saul of Tarsus and the Lord Jesus. On the road to Damascus, he, he revealed himself to Saul.
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And he became the greatest defender of the faith. He become a became an apostle not of man, neither by man. Man had nothing to do with Pauls apostleship that came directly from the Lord Jesus. He was an apostle by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead.
And all the brethren which are with me under the churches of Galatia, grace be to you. Oh, that's a wonderful word if you understand it. Grace is God good, God's goodness flowing out to us when we deserve none of it. We haven't done anything to earn it. We can't earn it by our own works.
The proof of it is the 10 commandments. That's the perfect measure that man has to follow and to to obey in order to gain God's favor. And we saw that that condemns us all.
So the only alternative to that is Greece, and there's not a religion in the world outside of Christianity that knows what grace is.
They're all under some kind of a law.
I was raised in Wilmette. The by High Temple is there in the harbor and there's nine sides to it. They all they Rep were those nine sides represent all the religions of the world.
One of them is Christianity, one of them is Judaism, one of them is Islam and and by high and all these different.
Religions.
But Christianity is not a religion, really. Christianity is the revelation of a person, not something to do. Religion is something to do.
Christianity is something that has been done by another who was perfect, the Lord Jesus Christ, and He shed His precious blood to cleanse our sins away and make us fit for heaven.
Grace has done that, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich. He took our place on that cross.
And paid what we could never pay.
Be to you and peace from God the Father the only way you can have peace before God, the eternal God. That first God in the first commandment said thou shalt have no other gods but me. He's a jealous God. He won't tolerate any rivals.
And he's the one that sent his son.
The true God.
Grace be to you in peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ.
Father and the Son who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God and our Father.
To whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Now that's the introduction.
To this epistle.
And notice the change in verse six, he says. I marvel.
That ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.
Which is not another.
There would be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
Another gospel. Another gospel is something for man to do. It denies the true character of man, denies his sinfulness proven by the law.
He said, I marvel that you are so soon removed. You see these legalizers had come amongst them. These were Gentiles and the and the legalizers were the Jews and they came amongst them and tried to put these Gentile believers under law.
There the Jews who were under law in the Old Testament. I just read the law to you. They had to realize that.
That will only kill condemn me.
And they were trying to.
Put the Gentiles under law. I marvel that year so soon removed from him that calls you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel which is not another or not a different one.
A different gospel, but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. That's what the legalizers, the Jews and and this this floods christened them today.
Principle of law, principle of works, principle of doing something in order to gain God's favor. That's the principle of law.
But though we now listen how strongly the apostle Paul condemns it, I can't use words stronger than these to condemn what they had fallen into by allowing these legalizers to put them under law and take them off the ground of grace.
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Though we, he says, or an Angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, that we as the apostles, let him be accursed.
Read that again though. We are an Angel from heaven.
Preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you. Let him be a curse. So anyone who preaches a so-called gospel, which is a different thing, not the real gospel. There is no real gospel outside of the grace of God.
He says let him be accursed. What does that mean? Let him be damned.
To put it in stronger words, let him go to hell.
You can't read stronger words. Let him be a curse then, he says.
Even an Angel from heaven.
Come and preach a different gospel than he had preached to them by which they had gotten saved. And now they're listening to this other voice. And that other voice says you have to do something. You have to get circumcised. You have to keep the law in some way.
As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach under preach any other gospel unto you, then that ye have received, let him be accursed. He had preached to them, and they listened to it and they heard it. And the way they got to be Christians was they received it by faith. They received that gospel that he had preached. He says, I'm a my marvel that you're so soon removed.
From that false different gospel. It's not a gospel at all.
For I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of Maine is not after man. He did not receive that gospel. In fact, he was the one that was the most opposed to the gospel of the grace of God before he got saved on the road to Damascus.
He was the greatest opponent.
To the true gospel.
But he got saved. I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me.
The good news, that's what gospel means. The glad tidings, the good news, the news that God and his goodness has provided a way for man and his sinfulness to get rid of all his sins and be cleansed of them and to be saved. And then he's in a state by which I will bring him to heaven.
I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. He didn't hear it from any man. He didn't hear it from another apostle. Who did he hear it from? For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it. He didn't go to some theological seminary and get taught that. They would never teach that truth. They would always teach that you have to do something in order to merit heaven.
Either was I taught it. But how did he get it By the revelation?
Of Jesus Christ, the Lord Jesus revealed to the to Saul of Tarsus, who was the greatest opponent and destroyer of the gospel message, that that that could be found. He received a revelation from God.
And that's how he got saved. He got it from the Lord Jesus, the one who bore his sins on the cross.
And put them away. I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.
For you heard of my conversation, my manner of life and time passed in the Jews religion. That's what he was. He was a Jew and he was an Abbott defender of Judaism and the law of 10 commandments. How that beyond measure I persecuted the Church of God and wasted it.
It was his purpose to destroy this new religion.
So they called it, and I profit in the in profited in the Jews religion above many my equals.
In my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my father's, he was the greatest opponent and destroyer of the gospel of God's grace of any.
But when it pleased God.
Who separated me from my mother's womb and called me by His grace?
To reveal his son in me.
That I might preach him among the heathen.
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Immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood.
Neither went I up to Jerusalem, to them which were apostles before me. He didn't get this message.
From any man on earth.
But I went into Arabia and returned again into Damascus.
And after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter and abode with him 15 days. He was an apostle.
But other of the apostles will sign none, save James the Lords brother. Now the things which I write unto you, behold before God I lie not. Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, and was unknown by face under the churches of Judea, which were in Christ.
But they had heard only that He which persecuted us in times past, now preacheth the faith which once He destroyed.
And they glorified God in me.
The greatest destroyer of Christianity was the greatest defender of it after he'd gotten converted, when he went from law to grace. And he's the one that says, I marvel that you heard my gospel, God's gospel, and believed it and became Christians because of it. Now you've turned your ear to a different gospel, another gospel.
One which even an Angel from heaven, if he proclaimed it, let him be accursed, he says.
And that which you believed, let the one that caused you to believe a false gospel be accursed.
Then 14 years after, I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas and took Titus with me. Also, just quickly let me go over Paul's conversion a little.
Acts 9.
He was on his way to Damascus with letters from the priest to bind all that called upon the name of Jesus and destroy them, or to jail them whatever. And on the way, a light brighter than the noonday sunshine, and a voice from heaven. Saul, Saul, why persecutest now me? Who art thou, Lord? I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest.
Think of what it took. Think of the change that took place in Saul's soul when he realized I've been fighting against the true God. God revealed himself to Saul of Tarsus. He revealed himself to me as a as a freshman in college.
He revealed Himself to you someplace, sometime in your life. He reveals Himself to us to know that He's the God of all grace, the God who provided a Savior in his beloved Son.
Well, Saul of Tarsus was blind for three days, and they had to lead him the boat.
And then Scales fell off, and he was used vitally of God.
You can read the account in Acts 20 Acts of earlier than that.
Not 20.
Verse 20. Verse 2, Chapter 2. I went up by Revelation.
And I communicated unto them that got the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, which by any means should I run, or have run in vain, Those that later became his friends were.
Very much questioning.
This it seemed to them different gospel. Gospel of grace, not law.
But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. When Paul went to Jerusalem, he had Titus, but he didn't make him circumcised. They were trying to get these Gentiles circumcised.
So that that would raise them to their level. They thought that the Jewish level was higher than that of the Gentiles. And actually the Jewish religion was the greatest opponent to the truth still is.
It still is. They have not repented.
The Jew has not repented.
What it did to God's Son.
Neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised, and that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus. Isn't it wonderful?
Gospel of God's grace is a gospel of liberty, sets us free from our sins, makes us acceptable to God without any works of our own, but only by the work of Christ and the cross.
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And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spout our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, they that they might bring us into ******* by putting us under law, the Gentiles under law.
To whom we gave place by subjection, No, not for an hour, that the truth of the Gospel might continue with you.
But of these, Paul says, who seem to be somewhat those that were high up in the ladder of Judaism, whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me. God accepteth no man's person. He was one of them before, but now he'd been delivered from that. For they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me.
But contrary wise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter. For he that wrought effectually, and Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles. And when James, Cephas, and John, three of the chief apostles, who seemed to be somewhat perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave to me in Barnabas. That was his fellow worker, the right hands of fellowship, that we should go to the heathen, to the Gentiles.
They unto the circumcision to the Jews only they would that we should remember the poor.
The same which I also was forward to do. Now notice this verse 11, but when Peter was come to Antioch.
I was stood into the face.
Now let me back up a minute to Acts Chapter 15.
To show that Peter should have known better, in Acts chapter 15, Peter says when there had been much disputing, 15 seven Peter rose up and said unto their men. And brethren, you see, these Judaizers were trying to put the Gentiles under law, and he rose up and said unto their men. And brethren, we know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth, that was back in the 2nd chapter of Acts, should hear the gospel word of the gospel.
Believe and God, which knoweth the hearts, bear them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as He did unto us a tremendous gift. God the Holy Ghost takes up His abode in every one of us who believe the Gospel. It's his, and every one of us dwells in your body.
Think of that. How often do we think of that as we go through the day that the Spirit of God dwells within me?
God which knoweth the hearts, bear them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as He did unto us, us Jews in Acts 2, and these Gentiles in Acts 10.
Now therefore, why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear. They could never keep the law. That was a that was a *******. But we believe. Now notice how he puts it. No Jew would put it this way, but he's speaking as a Gentile, as as a Christian here we believe, we Christians believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We shall be saved. We Jews shall be saved even as they as a Jew, he never would have said it that way. He would have said they shall be saved even as weed, because they always put the Jews on top of the latter of importance in religion.
But he says.
We do shall be saved, even as they amazing the Gentiles were saved simply by keeping by not keeping anything, but by believing the gospel. Now let's go back to Galatians 2.
Verse 12. Before that certain came from James.
He did it with the Gentiles. Peter ate with the Gentiles.
But when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. That's the Jews. His Jews came up from Jerusalem.
To that place where Peter was, and up to that point Peter it with the Gentiles.
He would never do that as a Jew, but as a Christian, yes.
And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him.
No, no, let me go back to verse 12. He did eat with the Gentiles, but when they were calm, that is, these Judaizers from Jerusalem, these lawkeepers, he withdrew and separated himself. Peter did.
Fearing them which were of the circumcision, the fear of man bringeth a snare, and the fear of man brought Peter to separate himself from these Gentiles that he was eating with, and just to go back to the Jewish table.
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And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him, insomuch that Barnabas, even Barnabas also, who was carried away, was with their dissimulation.
But when I saw that they walked out uprightly, according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter, Here you have one apostle, the apostle Paul, rebuking publicly, the apostle Peter, public rebuke.
I said to Peter before them all public, not a private thing. If thou being a Jew list after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compel us, thou, the Gentiles, to let us do the Jews? You see, by him leaving the Gentile table and going to the kosher table, the Jewish table, he was, he was saying that this is, this is a table of a higher character, and if they want to be on that ground, these Gentiles have to come over here.
Totally denying but what he was doing.
The truth of the gospel of God's grace.
Whether you're a Jew or a Gentile doesn't make you one wit better.
Gentiles aren't better than the Jews. The Jews aren't better than the Gentiles. When I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, If thou being a Jew, move a step to the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compel us, thou, the Gentiles who live as do the Jews, we who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law.
But by the faith of Jesus Christ, you're not justified, made righteous by doing anything.
Keeping the law. The law is perfect. Nothing wrong with it. But that's not the way you get justified because you don't keep it any way you break it.
But how do you get justified by the faith of Jesus Christ? Even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we, we Jews, have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ and not by the works of the law.
For by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. So any, any religious group, even today, that says in any way that you have to keep the law.
Does not justify condemns you because that puts the the onus of responsibility on you. You have to do something. As my college confessors professor said when I explained grace, you don't do anything. God does it all. He said I don't like that. I want to do my part and why does what he want to do his part because of the greatest sin that man commits and that's pride.
Pride is the greatest thing we'll ever commit because that makes something of us.
And so we're better by works of the law, shall no flesh be justified? Verse 17 But if while we seek to be justified by Christ, that's these Jews.
We ourselves also are found sinners. If they put sinners, they put themselves under law, they'll come out as a Sinner.
One or many of those laws they break.
That brands them as sinners, as lost. Is therefore Christ the minister of sin? Are you going to put law keeping and Christ together as though He is the one that is ministering this, that condemns you? No.
God forbid.
Where if I build again the things which I destroy and make myself a transgressor?
For I through the long dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
Verse 20 is such a precious verse. Many of us know it by heart. I am crucified with Christ.
All that I was and all my sins and wretchedness, I am crucified with Him when he was crucified, when he went to the cross, when he bare my sins and, and and and got the punishment that my sins deserved.
He says I'm crucified with Christ. The end of me is ended.
Nevertheless, I live.
Yet not I but Christ live within me. So every Christian has Christ living in him.
He's not come into God's favor by keeping the law.
And the life which I now live in the flesh.
I live by the faith of the Son of God, the faith which rests upon him.
The Son of God.
The faith which has the Son of God is its object.
Nothing for me to do for you to do, simply to believe on the Son of God.
That faith which unites you with him, the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
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Can you look away from wretched self if you've been trying to do something to climb some ladder?
We had before us this afternoon. The just shall live by faith.
I'm not positive that this story is is a fully true one, but I think it is. Martin Luther was a Roman Catholic priest, and he was under law as that system puts everyone under law, and he was climbing a ladder, trying to get to heaven. He was doing it on his sleeve, climbing some stairs, doing it on his knees. That was some works. You got to do some works, got to do something in order to make yourself acceptable to God.
And as he was climbing it, the Spirit of God said to him, the just.
Shall live by faith.
And the Spirit of God brought that truth home to his soul.
And he was a changed man. He got up off his knees, walked down, and he was a saved man. The just shall live by faith, not by works, not by law keeping, but by faith.
The grace of God comes in and says us when we do nothing but accept Him. The hardest thing for man to do is to admit that he's lost, that he's wretched, undone. God looked down from heaven upon men to see if there were any that that obeyed Him, not one.
At 1:00.
Man doesn't like to admit that.
Pride is the last thing to die in man.
Pride is something that is filled with self.
When we come to the end of ourselves and Christ is there.
To pick up what's ever left of that poor wretched man and make a new creature out of him, forgive him all his sins, and set him on the way to heaven.
That's Grace.
And you get, you get a hold of that by faith.
The just shall live by faith.
Romans It's the just.
The one that's counted, accounted righteous before God, lives by faith in the Galatians 3.
Verse 11 But that no man is justified by the law on the sight of God, it is evident, for the just shall live by.
Faith. Faith in contrast with works.
So in Galatians it's faith that should be emphasized. In Romans it was just now faith. And then we saw in Hebrews it's the life of faith just shall live.
By faith, we get saved by faith, and then we live by faith.
Everything that we do is is faith is relating everything to the one that saved us.
What is Thy will? The blessed Lord would be the greatest example of a life of faith. He did everything in dependence, and in obedience too, as the perfect servant to His Father.
My meat, he said, is to do the will of him that sent me to finish his work. Perfect obedience. He's the only man that ever did that. He's the only man that ever, always obeyed.
Now he wants us to be like him. He wants us to receive that new life. That's why Paul says, I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, another gospel which is not a different one.
Wicked gospel and work gospel of works. That's not the gospel. That's not good news. Terrible ******* which can only condemn us. I'm going to read that again, verse 20. So beautiful. I'm crucified with Christ. That is all the evil that I was in all my wretchedness. Nevertheless, I live crucified with Christ, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.
The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, Faith which.
Which has the Son of God as its object. I have a new faith now, a new object before my soul.
Son of God who loved me.
He gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God.
Or if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. He didn't, wouldn't have to die if you can do it on your own, by your own works, if you can make yourself fit for heaven. Christ didn't have to come. He didn't have to die. He didn't have to suffer. His precious blood didn't have to be applied to you. You did it yourself. That's impossible. We went through the 10 commandments and saw how impossible it was for men on that ground.
To become acceptable to God. Well these Judaizers, they all they wanted to do was to get the Gentiles to get circumcised. That would that would make them as as good as the Jews. They looked upon themselves as a notch above.
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If you look at the 5th chapter for a moment, turn to the 5th chapter if you have your Bible open.
We asked the question he says in verse 19. He says chapter 4, excuse me, chapter 419 my little children, of whom I travail in birth again, until Christ be formed in you. I desire to be present with you now and to change my mind, for I stand in doubt of you. Tell me you the desire to be under the law. Do you not hear the law?
For it is written the Abraham. Abraham had two sons, one by a bond made the other by a free woman.
And so on. But that's not what I wanted to read. I wanted to read in the 5th chapter.
Verse 12, chapter 5, As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, That's the Judaizers. They constrain you, you Gentiles, to be circumcised. All they wanted them to do. Just get circumcised that will, and you'll have something you can boast of. You're different from your other Gentiles. You're circumcised Gentile.
As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised only, lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. The Jews persecuted the Christians mercilessly, because they were not circumcised as the Jews were who were above them, so to speak.
For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law. We had our brother Speaking of that, who applies something to others and condemns them for it. And they're condemned by the very thing that they're using to condemn the others. They neither, they themselves who are circumcised as the Jew keep the law. They didn't keep the law any better than the Gentiles. They ignored that, but it condemned them, didn't condemn the Gentiles because they weren't under it. Gentiles were never put under the law. But now.
Judaizers are trying to but to put the early Christians under law because they figured that their religion, Judaism, which was a system of works under law.
Was the right thing. It wasn't.
Neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law, but desire to have you circumcised. Why, that they make glory in your flesh. You have that circumcision mark in your body. Now you're like us. Now you're cut above the rest. You're better than the rest. You're like us that's making something that man does.
That he can boast in, but God forbid that I should glory, Paul says. He was one that was just like that.
Saul of Tarsus before he got saved, he was a avid supporter of Judaism. But God forbid he says that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, whether you are circumcised or not.
Nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. New creation renew creatures in Christ.
Wonderful. Are you a new creature in Christ? Have you given up trying to make yourself acceptable to God?
So many do that you ask them where they where they are. And I used to do that. I used to go to the County Hospital in Chicago every week.
As young men had just gotten saved.
And.
Brought the gospel to these patients and so many were under law, so many were under law, so many imprisoned them are under law. They still think they have to do something. They don't understand grace, the free, wonderful, bountiful grace of God. He did it all when he cried out, it is finished on the cross. All the work was done.
The only way you'll ever get to heaven is by receiving Him not do anything to yourself.
One of the.
Dreadful things I see it on more and more young people is.
Just tattoo these tattoo marks. The Bible says I shall not do that.
Positive. Forbidding.
To do that to your body.
The way that God has made you, made you, you should be thankful for that. That's all that's got all the law principle behind it, Something I've done for myself makes me look different, makes me look better, jump ahead of others and so on. That's that's the principle of law.
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But the principle of grace is to come just as you are.
Just as you are. And he'll receive you. He knows what you are. He knows all about you. You can't fool him. You can fool your fellows who make and make them think that you're better.
The Jews have been going on that way for years.
I still haven't repented the awful.
Thing they did to the Lord.
But they're going to be changed, just as he's changed us.
Just as he's changed us.
He changed this poor wretched sinners.
Into a Saint of God. He can do the same for you. I think he's done it with most of you. I don't know you all.
I think I mentioned this in the conference. I mentioned it again. I talked at the wedding. I talked to a young, young girl.
And she was taking up in college psychology. And we got talking. I said that's the religion of man.
God has his truth in the Bible, the word of God.
What's the Bible? What?
Do you have one? Oh, I think I might.
When I said to her, I tell you what, when you get home, be sure you have one and if not, buy one.
And read the first four books in the Old Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. There's many others I could have recommended but didn't know where to start exactly. She knew nothing, she said. What are they?
Matthew, Mark, Luke and Chuck. She didn't know. I don't know. There might be someone that ignorant in this audience. I don't know.
You don't know.
What God has stored up in this book?
I I was not a reader when I was in school. I was not a reader. Didn't like to do a lot of reading until I got saved.
When I got saved in college as a freshman.
Then I had something to read that was worthwhile reading.
And I just read it and read it and read it and read it. Read it when you're young people, read it, read it, read it, make it your own, make it form your life. Make it such that you know exactly God's thoughts about this or that or the other thing, and you can act in accordance with that by the word of God.
By the precious word of God, time is up. May God bless his word.