Morning Moments

II. THE AMAZEMENT OF ALLUREMENT 1:6-24
The phone rang at 1:00 a.m. and the deputy on the other end informed me that my son had just wrecked his pick up truck. He was sixteen and a terrific son who never gave us any trouble, but he had spent the night with a friend and they had drunk a "couple of beers" so he let his friend drive the pick up truck that had belonged to his grandfather who had recently died of cancer. The truck meant so much to our son. He knew better, but was enticed, allured, influenced to do something out of character for him and it cost him far more than he wished to pay. That was Paul's fear for the Galatians.

A. The Time was so Soon 1:6
Paul had taught them well and they had joyfully received the teaching of the truth. They had faced and would face persecution for there faith, but that is normal for Christians. The Jews, it seemed would not leave them alone but some had crept in to spy our their freedom in Christ and began to undermine the ministry of the Apostle Paul. It was as if they said, "Sure, Christ is the Jewish Messiah, so to be a Christian one must also observe Jewish custom." It sounds logical but it is NOT Scriptural, not then and not today. Salvation for the Gentile is JESUS plus or minus NOTHING!

B. The Truth was severely Subverted 1:7-8
Anytime anyone adds or subtracts anything to or from the simple truth that salvation comes by grace through faith, he/she has perverted the gospel and has presented "another gospel" and Paul says those who do that should be "accursed by God" even if it was an angel. This was serious business! Don't mess with the simplicity of the Gospel. Don't add baptism! Don't add works! Don't add ANYTHING of you are under the sentence of being ACCURSED by God!

C. The Trust was seriously Supplanted 1:9-24
Satan not only seeks to distort the message and discredit the messenger, but to create a distrust for the messenger.

1. His Teaching 1:9-12
The Judiazers were steeped in tradition and ceremony and were not about to change. Paul's message was one of freedom from all those entanglements. His message was one of freedom in Christ: Freedom from sin, freedom from legalism, freedom from ceremonialism, freedom from liturgy, freedom from entanglements of "religion". So, his teaching was a rub against all that these Jews had known all their lives and they did not like it. Some would creep into congregations of Gentiles and begin to draw them into Jewish teaching, which to many made sense, after all, Jesus was a Jew, and He did keep the law. BUT HE FULFILLED IT AND NAILED IT TO THE TREE!

2. His Testimony 1:13-21
Truth is OBJECTIVE. Testimony if SUBJECTIVE. Testimony must always be tested by truth, not vice versa. For example, if someone tells me they had a vision and have seen God, I know it was either psychological or demonic, because Jesus said, "NO MAN has seen God at ANY TIME." So the subjective (the experience) must always be examined by the objective (the truth).

a. Paul's Past 1:13
In no uncertain terms Paul states that he was now a part of what he had once fought against. He had consented to the death of Stephen, he had persecuted Christians hunting them like animals. Now he is not only a Christian but a leader among them as well. How convincing a testimony is that? And it was the TRUTH!

b. Paul's Profiting 1:14
Paul had it all! Why would he throw it all away to become a Christian and not only become a threat to his own people the Jews, but to Rome as well? He had been a star among his people; a pharisee of pharisees. Who in his right mind would give up all that any man would die for to live for this man Jesus? PAUL!

c. Paul's Purpose 1:15-16
We don't know how old Saul was when he was converted, but we do know that he then discovered the purpose for which he was given birth. All those previous years he strove for mastery of life in service for his people, the Jews. He believed in what he did and he did what he believed in, but all that had changed and he realized he had been chasing an illusion all those years and that from the very beginning, from his birth, he had been chosen by God, separated to preach this Good News about Jesus.

d. Paul's Preparation 1:17-22
Someone told me the other day that one of our leading TV Bible teachers said that no one should pastor who does not have a seminary degree. That would leave out the Apostle Paul, the greatest theologian to ever live. Why do we make stupid statements like that? We all do from time to time, but they are stupid. Many a man of God has been God taught as opposed to man taught. One can educate himself today with tools that are available without one day of seminary, but what church would accept them? Let's face it we have bought into lots of things that are socially acceptable rather than Biblical. God taught Paul! The other apostles didn't do it! I am an educated man with undergrad, grad, and post grad degrees, but what I am saying is true regardless. You may have an education, but you are in trouble when your education has you. The anointing of God is far more important than the "laying on of hands" of the presbytery.

e. Paul's Preaching 1:23-24
Paul's ministry did not merely consist of decisions. He didn't meet with the other "preachers" on Monday morning to advertise the number of baptisms he had on Sunday. That silliness probably makes God sick anyway. But Paul made DISCIPLES! That is what is not happening in today's churches. "THAT YOUR FRUIT SHOULD REMAIN!" That is what it is all about, not whipping out some "faith" booklet and going through the motions with someone. Paul was preaching what he once opposed and God was blessing. He was planting churches and growing people who "glorified God."

BLESSINGS!