How to Be Accepted by God

Kent Pletcher

Galatians • Sermon • Submitted 2 years ago

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Galatians 2:17–21 (ESV)

17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.

Opening Prayer

Recap: The Battle to Not Rebuild

Galatians 2:17–18 (ESV)

17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not!

Why not?

18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor.

And, here we have the reason that we looked at a couple of weeks ago.

The reason, Paul says, is because you’re not actually pursuing your justification in Christ alone...

And trusting in His work on your behalf.

Rather, Paul is saying, you’re pursuing to be justified in your own person and works...

With the hopes that Jesus’ name just kind of makes the product of your works look better.

Kind of like marketing.

The product isn’t any better because of who is starring in the commercial...

But, the company is hoping you’ll think it is better because of the star they have promoting their product.

So, again, v.18 exposes the error in a person’s pursuit of justification...

When they’re pursuing Christ + anything.

Paul is saying, you’ve gone back to a hope in yourself keeping the law on your own...

And, hence, declaring that you don’t need Christ’s atoning blood, nor His righteousness imputed to your account.

Now, I want us to dive into v.19-20 because we see a beautiful verbal expression of the fulness of the gospel...

What Paul lays out here is how to be right with God...

Galatians 2:19-20 (ESV)

19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

What is our faith in?

Here we have the gospel worded beautifully...

And, I want to break down each truth here.

v.19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.

Paul is telling us here that the gospel tore down the Law for us.

How was the Law torn down to us?

Is it no longer important?

No, the Law of God is holy, it’s important.

Do we avoid Law/Commands?

No, God’s commands are good and holy.

Do we purposefully disobey God’s Laws so God’s grace in our redemption looks better?

No, disobedience to God is sin, and the redeemed have been given a distaste for sin.

Here’s the element of the Law that was torn down for us by the gospel...

The Demands of the Law have been torn down.

–Obey and Live…Disobey and Die–

The reward for obeying the Law...

And, the penalty for breaking the Law have been torn down...

Because Jesus fulfilled it on behalf of His people.

v.20a I have been crucified with Christ.

So, our sin, our death for breaking God’s Law so horrifically...

Our living a blasphemous life towards God...

Seeking to suppress every truth of His existence and worthiness of our worship.

The sentence of death that we deserve.

Was nailed to the cross and the penalty was bore by Jesus Christ...

On behalf of all who look to Him, alone.

So, much so that it is as if you were the one nailed to the Cross.

That is a glorious truth of the gospel.

But, it gets better.

v.20b It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

For the redeemed, not only is it as if we were nailed to the cross...

But it is as if we lived the perfect life that Christ lived.

So much so, that when God looks at us He sees the perfect life of Christ.

That’s what Paul means when he says...

It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.

A Christian’s life is reckoned as perfect...

Because our faith is in Christ’s sinless life, not our sinful life.

This is what Paul is getting at when he says...

And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

This is such an important statement because it has everything to do with justification...

And, everything to do with sanctification, as well.

Here’s how...

Not only are we trusting in Christ to make our past righteous...

We are trusting Christ has already made our present and future righteous, as well.

So, the life that we live today...

Is by faith in Him because He already made our today blameless.

Why?

Because my faith is not in how my day went...

It is in how Christ’s life went.

Do you see that?

the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Every day we live is not for the purpose of looking to the excellence of it performed by us or the lack of excellence.

Every day we live is meant for us to look at, hope in, find our security, trust in, find our joy and value in...

The perfect life of Christ, reckoned to us by faith.

When you truly understand these beautiful, glorious truths of the gospel...

You cannot fathom why anyone would want to abandon them.

Christ’s work on our behalf is so full and beautiful.

Once you truly see it, truly experience it...

You can only delight in it.

You may stray, but you won’t truly delight in your straying.

A person who has truly come to terms with the gospel...

And embraced the sweetness of the Savior...

Can only truly find happiness in Jesus.

So, beware of walking away from the gospel.

Beware of replacing the gospel with some false way of hope.

The Blasphemy of a False Gospel

Galatians 2:21 (ESV)

21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.

This is a sobering statement made here by the Apostle Paul.

There’s no way that the eternal Son of God would do what He did for no purpose.

He wouldn’t go through what He went through for no purpose.

But, when we look to anything or anyone other than Jesus...

For security, to make us beautiful, presentable to God...

We are trampling underfoot the Savior, Jesus Christ.

Looking to anything or anyone else denies:

the Person of Christ.

the Efficacy of Christ.

the Mission of Christ.

our Need of Christ.

And, since the Father loves the Son infinitely and eternally...

And poured out wrath on His Son for the sake of the elect...

And, the Son willingly offered Himself for the mission...

I don’t think He looks kindly on those who blaspheme His Son.

It is a serious offense to reject the gospel...

Because in rejecting the gospel, you reject Jesus.

God beckons us, repeatedly to see the beauty of the gospel...

To see the beauty of His Son.

And calls us back, repeatedly to faith in Jesus.

Notice How Paul takes the Galatians Back to the Gospel.

There’s an issue with the Churches of Galatia.

They’re not believing the gospel, wholeheartedly.

They’re being led astray to live differently than the gospel calls us to live.

They’re being led away from grace.

And, Paul’s response is to take them back to the gospel.

The cure for not living inline for the gospel is...the gospel.

The cure for not being right with God is not...do better.

The way to be right with God is not…try harder.

The way to make yourself presentable to God is not…hide your sins.

You can’t hide them from God.

The way to be right with God is believing God’s promises in the gospel.

And, the gospel says all the promises of God are yes and amen in Jesus Christ.

Put your faith in Jesus Christ, alone.

Even in our sanctification, when we find ourselves rebuilding what the gospel tore down...

It is a problem with our believing the biblical doctrine of justification.

And, so what we need is to be taken back to the gospel...

So that we can be reminded of the biblical doctrine of justification.

So, we can remember that we are completely righteous in Christ.

Nothing needs to be added.

We don’t need something else to cleanse us.

Nothing cleanse like the blood of Jesus.

Nothing needs to be added to the blood of Jesus.

Sanctification is not works…it is gospel.

Believing God produces the fruit of sanctification.

Works do not produce the fruit of sanctification.

Good Works are the fruit.

How many denominations and churches have established themselves by saying something like this...

Ah, yeah, you understand the gospel, you’re a Christian...

But, are you ready for the big secrets?

Are you ready for the advanced Christian stuff?

Are you ready to be brought into the inner sanctum of God?

If you are it will be the key to to the Christian life.

And, people buy into it because they remember the gospel having a huge impact in their life.

They remember turning from sin.

They remember joy.

They remember victory.

But, they’re struggling now.

And, they’re told, take hold of this and you’ll overcome.

But, listen what are you going to take hold of?

Something other than the gospel?

Something other than Jesus?

No.

The gospel is all you need.

Jesus is all you need.

Outside of Him, you can do nothing.

The problem in our sanctification.

The problem with our struggling.

The problem with our joylessness...

Is not that we need more than the gospel...

Our problem is...we’ve forgotten the gospel.

And the gospel is meant to permeate through every aspect of your life.

And, so sanctification is not something other than the gospel.

Sanctification is allowing the gospel to correct all areas of your life.

Sanctification is taking the truths of the gospel...

The truths of what Jesus has done on your behalf...

And believing and applying it in every aspect of your life.

Waking up, praying and begging God to help me die to self...

And, apply the gospel in every area of my life...

So that my faith will produce the fruits of the Spirit in my life.

Closing Prayer

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