Galatians 6:12-18 October 23,2022
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Galatians 6:12-18
Galatians 6:12-18
12 As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.
13 For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.
14 But God forbid 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.
15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.
17 From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.
18 Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
So today we will attempt to finish out this great book of Galatians. I pray that you have enjoyed this study and that it has enriched your life and has helped you in your walk.
Paul tries one more time here to drive his point home that the Judiazers were not preaching the truth of the cross.
“As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh”
This phrase refers to the Judiazers who desired to display their zeal for outward religious ceremonies. They claimed them to be necessary to Salvation, but their real object was to please self and escape persecution. (Lest we forget to not follow the Jewish law in the Jewish community to was to basically excommunicate your self. You stood to lose your entire lively hood and home. They reveled in these ceremonies that applied to men’s bodies.
Outward physical sacraments and ceremonies are unimportant. Paul was standing on that ground. By this time in history the line in the sand had been drawn. You were either following the True Message of Jesus Christ and Him Crucified or not. Adding anything to that message or taking anything from that message was and is wrong. The attempt to compromise the Message of Jesus Christ and Him crucified here with Jewish customs was wrong. Remember if James had taken a more firm stance on this subject three might not have been such a controversy. Remember James, the brother of Jesus was sitting as the defacto head of the Early Church in Jerusalem. He, when approached with how to deal with Gentiles that were accepting Christ, laid out a different path for them, than the Jewish people accepting Christ. He agreed that the Gentiles did not have to follow the Mosaic law and be circumcised. But He did not address the fact that neither did the Jewish Christians. Had he come out and said that there was one way for all people, then this might not have been an issue. Satan found a door here and would use it to his fullest extent. Paul would battle this his entire ministry. Now in all fairness to James, I am sure that he did not mean for this to be the case. But nevertheless Satan would pounce upon what he did not say.
No some might come to the aid of the Judiazers and saying that they were just walking in the light that they had and were earnestly concerned for the salvation of Galatians and wanted them to be fully justified. That they were just teaching what they knew to be the right way. Well that is not the case here. And it is no the case with most today that do the exact same thing. These Judiazers were not saved. They were not following the teachings of Christ. They had not accepted Him and Him crucified into their own hearts and lives. How can you say that? Well, they were more wrapped up in ceremony than in who Jesus was and what He did for them. They were more concerned with numbers than they were in seeing lives changed for the kingdom. If faith is divided between Christ and ceremonies, or Faith in Jesus but not properly in His Vicarious, atoning work, then that person is not truly saved.
A church that claims that Water Baptism is necessary for Salvation or that being Spirit Filled, is necessary for salvation, their Faith is not properly placed in the cross, but rather on an ordinance. Now as scriptural as the ordinance may be it is not the Cross of Christ. There are many denominations around the world that claim such things. Many different Faith based groups claim that you have to do certain things to be saved, or part of the church. Case in point, my First cousin had a baby that died when he was just 6 months old. They were waiting to have him dedicated, which came with a christening of sorts. They were waiting till a cousin would be born and they would be dedicated together. Because of the teachings of the necessity of water baptism in their church, my cousin actually questioned if the baby was in heaven. Of course that baby was in heaven. He had not yet reached the age where he could make that decision for himself and was a child of God Almighty. Now I don’t believe anyone in her church claimed anything different, but the question was there because of the error in teaching that she had received. Now the greater error is not in thinking that a baby is not saved but that in thinking that because you were christened as a baby that you are actually saved and going to heaved as an adult no matter how you choose to live your life. Or that by being dunked in water that this automatically makes you a Christian and you can live how ever you want and still expect to make it into the portals of glory. That gross error has led many into the portals of Hell. Well Stacy that is such a little point to be making such a big deal out of. Why did it really matter that James didn’t come right out and say that no one needed to be circumcised anymore? What is really wrong with saying that you need to be baptized to be saved? After all it is an important thing we can do. There is no harm in that little stray off course. Well let me give you a scientific principal that is true. When something deviates off course even a part of a degree, it will never get more right. It always gets more off course. The line will eventually cause you to go far off course. Take this in terms of a flight pattern. You get one degree off course and you cold have a potential collision on your hands. Or say that you deviate from your flight pattern for a few minutes and you could have gone several miles off course. In terms of search and rescue it is a nightmare. If a direction is embarked upon which is not quite right, it will not get more right as it goes further, but rather more wrong. This is what Paul meant when he said that a little leaven would corrupt the whole lump earlier on in this epistle.
“they constrain you to be circumcised”
This was just their means of diversion. It again could be anything other than the cross of christ and it is wrong. The name may change but the purpose is identical. To draw you away from the cross of christ. You mean to say that all these people out here that are promoting water baptism are purposely trying to get people to turn their hearts away from the cross and cause them to be defeated and ultimately lose their salvation? No what I am saying is that Satan is so cunning and he will make people to believe his lie and that this is the result. he will take well meaning people and make them think a lie and that is all he needs to do.
“only lest they should suffer persecution for the Cross of Christ”
This is another reason why the Cross was being rejected. Persecution. To reject the Jewish way was to commit socitial suicide in those days. And gentiles were already outcast. But to make them think that they could be accepted by Jewish society by becoming circumcised was actually foolish. They would not be accepted anyway. But the real reason that the Judiazers were preaching circumcision was so that they would not suffer persecution. Lets take this to today. What is the church doing today that makes them more acceptable to society? You fill in the blank. Anything that you try to add to the cross or take away from the cross is error in doctrine. I don’t care how good it sounds or how scriptural it is , if it is not jesus christ and Him crucified as a was of salvation and a way of victory over sin then it is error. The judiazers were appealing to man. That is always a red flag.
Paul knew first hand the persecution that would come from the cross of Christ. he know firsthand what the judiazers were attempting to avoid.
13 For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.
This was the rub. The Judiazers nor any of the whole of Israel was able to keep the law. Not a one of them could keep the whole of the law. So why pick this one tiny part to try and uphold? If you are going to earn salvation by the Law you have to keep the whole of the law. Not just part of it. These judiazers were so ignorant of the actual law that they didn’t even realize their own gross error. that was was death. They were not fully accepting Christianity and they were not fully accepting judiasm. They were making their own way. Sound familiar?
But “glory in your flesh” meant that they were in it for the numbers. It was about them getting converts for their own pride and satisfaction, so that they could boast about their accomplishments. Not what they should truly be about.
14 But God forbid 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.
Of anyone to accuse the Judiazers and be able to do it with full conviction it was Paul. Paul knew full well what they were about because he one was just like them. He knew intimately their motivations and their end. He was the perfect vessel for the Holy Spirit to use to combat this evil.
He know the grace that he had been afforded and the Grade that he currently relied upon to live a victorious life.
But for Paul to even mention the Cross as much as he did was a true offence to Gentiles and Jews alike. To even speak of the cross in polite Roman society of that time was unthinkable. the cross in that culture was the symbol of the greatest indignity and disgrace. It was normally used only as the form of execution for slaves in the lower levels of society. It was considered such a horrible, unthinkable form of execution that no cartoonist would even think of doing a cartoon of crucifixion. and no drawing of crucifixion dating back to the first century has ever been found.
But Paul had many reasons to love the cross. The commentary lists them this way:
Galatians Why Did Paul Glory in the Cross?
The Cross is a subject of glorying for many reasons. A few of them are named here:
1. Because of the Love of Him Who suffered there.
2. Of the purity and holiness of His Character, for the innocent died there for the guilty.
3. Of the honor there put on the Law of God by His dying to maintain its veracity. In other words, He fulfilled the Law of God in every respect.
4. Of the reconciliation there made for sin, accomplishing what could be done by no other means, and by no power of man.
5. Of the pardon there procured for the guilty.
6. Of the fact that through it we become dead to the world, and are made alive to God.
7. Of the support and consolation which goes from that Cross to sustain us in trial.
8. Of the fact that it procured for us admission into Heaven, a title to the world of glory. All is glory around the Cross. It was a Glorious Saviour Who died there; it was Glorious Love that led Him to die; it was a glorious object to redeem a world; and it is unspeakable glory to which He will raise lost and ruined sinners by His Death. Oh, who would not glory in such a Saviour!
“by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.“
The only way we can live a victorious life in Christ is this way. Paul knew that. He had already died to the world. What world are you speaking of. Well the world that Paul previously knew before he was saved. The world of Philippians 3:4–6, his Israelite ancestry, his Pharisaic traditions, his zeal for the Law, in short, the world in which he had lived. To all this he was now dead. He had been separated from it by the Cross of the Lord Jesus. It had no more appeal to him nor influence upon him.
4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:
5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
2. It also speaks of the world’s system, the system in other words guided and instructed by the “god of this world (who) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the Light of the Glorious Gospel of Christ, Who is the Image of God, should shine unto them” (II Cor. 4:4). This is the world of sin, iniquity, transgression, and the Powers of Darkness.
He had left this world and found a new one in the Cross of Christ.
Jesus even prepared His disciples for this in Matthew 10:37-39
37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
This week I saw a post on Facebook by one of my favorite young preachers and he put it this way.
Jesus was preparing to send his disciples into a mission field where they would be like sheep in the midst of wolves. They will be threatened by their families, threatened by the religious establishment, and threatened by the civil authorities for the gospel that they would preach. Their reputations will be taken, their finances will be taken, their family and friends will be lost for the stand they will take for the gospel. This isn't an easy life that Jesus is calling them to. Jesus tells them that they, like him, must take up their Cross every day losing their lives to find true life and follow him. They must consider themselves to be dead to follow him. There are a few things you can't do to a dead man:
(1) you can't take a dead man's family from him.
(2) you can't pressure a dead man by his reputation
(3) you can't steal a dead man's status in society
(4) you can't take a dead man's wealth from him
(5) you can't take a dead man's health from him.
(6) you can't take a dead man's life from him.
You can't take anything from the believer because they have already lost everything to follow Jesus. Anything lost in this life cannot compare to what will be gained in the life to come.
I just love how he put that. I just love this young man’s ministry. I love how the Lord is using him. I love how the Lord speaks through Him. His messages challenge me and uplift me. I wanted to share it with you today for the same reason.
I am going to stop here for today. we will finish the last three verses next week lord willing.