Part L on Galatians Study

But now beginning with Paul's Gospel it's faith + Nothing. Most people are with the question "Faith + Nothing?" Hey 95% of Christendom doesn't hear that. And 98% of Christianity says, "It's Faith + something." But Paul says it's faith + nothing for salvation. Now we're not talking about the Christian experience as we go on down the road. Or the beginnings of our first estate into which God places us when first we are converted and receive redemption through the receipt of the Holy Spirit's first deposit. We're talking about salvation here, it's faith + nothing. If it isn't then Christ died for nothing, and that's what Paul says, when he said then He died in vain. What the true mystery is is that at the time of conversion, when we first accept the fact that we've been born a sinner. Then repented of the works of our flesh from our natural birth to that moment, we become converted, saved or redeemed. When this is an action of our acknowledging (usually with our mind first) that Jesus took upon Him my nature as received from fallen Adam. At that moment God places me in the first estate from which the nation of Israel was to have passed or come out of but has not, that being under the Law of Moses. At that same moment we receive the Holy Spirit which the nation of Israel never had and it is He how begins the process of training and teaching us in the ways of God to bring us to Christ, the day star, just as Israel had to the point of crisis. This we've called the first blessing as we're given the gift of the Holy Spirit as our helper and comforter while in the tutor or corral of the first blessing. Now verse 2.


Galatians 3:2
"This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit (The Holy Spirit, again the evidence of their conversion into redemption the fruit of Grace in their hearts) by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?"  Speaking of the hearing of faith, come back to Romans chapter 10 for a moment because we've got to keep comparing scripture with scripture. Now this is just simple little verse. 


Romans 10:17
"So then faith (saving faith) cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."  Now saving faith comes by works? No. By what? Hearing. Now there's no work in hearing, and that's how trusting and believing faith comes. By Hearing! We contemplated it. We recognize that Christ died for me and rose from the dead, and that's all we need. And we believe it, and by believing it then we are receiving the benefit and begin listening to the Word of God. Remember all faith is is taking God at His Word. God said it and I believe it, by my believing I receive its benefits and God recognizes it, and on the basis of that He moves in and does everything that needs to be done. That which only He can do as we take our hand from the plows handle and trust Him to teach and to guide us through. Now that's simplification, and many people can't buy salvation being that easy, but we can't help that. The scriptures says, "That it's by faith and not the works of the Law." And those who remain in the works of the Law are still under the curse even though the Lord Christ took the curse to the cross and nailed it there. The curse is anathema because their placing themselves above God and His revealed Will. Now back to Galatians 3. In verse 3 it's the same thing only in a little different wording. And why would God repeat this? Repetition. Repetition is the mother of learning. 


Galatians 3:3
"Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, (the work of the Holy Spirit which generates salvation because of their faith) are ye now made perfect (or made right with God) by the flesh?"  Or the letter of the Law which we've found out only kills. Now what's the flesh a reference to? The Law. The Law was fleshly, it was weak, it was beggarly it only dealt with the external or material world throughout the priesthood of Aaron's sons of Levy. Let's look at that in Romans chapter 7.

Part XLIX on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:21a
"I do not frustrate the grace of God:..."   Many people have the idea that God is something up there that is just waiting for them to goof up so He can zap them. No, that's not God's attitude. God attitude is one of total Love, goodness, Truth, Light and mercy and Grace. Allow us take us back to a verse, come back to I Corinthians and always remember the setting of these various letters of Paul. The Corinthian Church, as we showed was a carnal, earthy and practical Church. They had a lot of problems, so they were not the epitome of strong trusting believers, they were carnal, they were fleshly, but in spite of all that, look what Paul writes to them in chapter 1. 

 
1 Corinthians 1:6-8
"Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you; (their testimony was confirmed, sealed, and settled) 7. So that ye come behind in no gift (they had received the Holy Spirit) ; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: (in other words they were potentially able to accomplish great things as anybody could be. Now verse 8) Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ."  Now that's mind boggling isn't it? People like these Corinthians with all of their failures and their weaknesses, that if the Lord would have come within a day or two after having received this letter, would they have stood before God shaking in their boots because of all their failures? No. Paul says, "If the Lord should come they would stand before Him blameless." We know from this record they weren't blameless. So on what basis could God do that? His goodness and Grace. 


So remember we stand before God blameless because of the goodness and Grace of God found in Christ Jesus (John1:14, 17). That benefit of the benefactor, Grace, the one who gave Himself unto death in our place. Now we say that's not license. That doesn't say that the believer should go out and do as he pleases. No way. But when the believer is under the power of the Holy Spirit and is doing his best in the Light of Scripture to walk pleasing in God's sight, first through God's Will, then death of self and to the spirit of the world and he fails does God kick him out? No. Anyone who has been a parent can relate to this. The little one has just began to take those first faltering steps, and we're all proud of them. In fact we've got a little grandson that just started to walk this past week, and we're all just tickled to see that little fellow walk clear across the room, but when he falls does everybody get upset and give him a boot in his little seat? No, we pick them up and get them on their little wobbly feet and get them going. Well that's what God does. God doesn't expect us never to fall, when we do He's right there ready to pick us up and put us on our way. But that's not the concept that most people have of the Grace of God, but that's what it is. Now looking at verse 21 again.


Galatians 2:21a
"I do not frustrate..."  Paul says, "I'm not going to fly in the face of the Grace of God and say, "But I have to do this because this is what the Law says." We today are not under the Law, but where are we? We are under Grace. Oh, what a difference that makes. Grace is that attribute of God that's capable of giving out the benefit of His working and mercy on and in sinners like us, as sons of Adam. All because of the Love that was nailed to the Cross. That was Love epitomized. That was as great an act of Love as has ever been done, and all because He Loves us as sinners, completely undeserving. In fact it was this Love which was lost and is the turn around of that action in reverse.


Galatians 2:21
"I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, (legalism, religion and all the things tied to it) then Christ is dead in vain."  If we could be righteous by legalism then Christ was the biggest fool that ever walked to have gone to that kind of a death if indeed it didn't accomplish that for which He went. But He did accomplish it, it's finished, its done and He did not die in vain. This little Book of Galatians is constantly showing the difference between Law ( external, mans working) and Grace (internal God's working) - and how Paul is confronting these little congregations up there in Galatia who were being submarined by the Judaizers who were saying that you can't be saved by Grace alone -  but rather you have to keep the Law, and especially its ordinances and statutes, and you have to keep circumcision. Not only to these people but also those to whom the Epistle of Hebrews is addressed as the language is similar in both of them. 


We might think that this is something in the past that took place, and we're not up against anything like this today. Well we're up against circumcision, we've got a couple dozen other things that we add that are just as insidious. They creep into the life of believers and they begin to doubt, and begin to wonder, have I really believed enough? And just as soon as we begin to doubt what does old Satan pop into our mind? Well maybe I do have to do this or do that. Now that's the way old Satan works, so we have to constantly stay in prayer and the Word, believe that it's True, and it is by Grace and Faith + NOTHING! Now to chapter 3. We're to over come by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, we're to remain clothed in the Lord Christ Jesus and dressed in the full armor of God.


Galatians 3:1
"O foolish Galatians, (now why does Paul use the word foolish? Because they were being hoodwinked into thinking they had to add to his Gospel.) who hath bewitched you, (who has been fooling with your thinking?) that ye should not obey the truth, (and what was this truth? Jesus Christ crucified, buried, and risen from the dead, that we're counted as having been IN Him + nothing) before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?   Here these Judaizers were saying it had to be + something else. And that's the way it had always been with the exception of Abraham. It was always + something. Many people would say the Old Testament saints were saved by faith. Yes, they were saved by faith, but not faith alone. It was faith + and even in Christ's earthly ministry they weren't saved by just believing that He was the Messiah. They had to repent and be baptized, they still had to keep the Law, they were still under Temple worship so it was faith + something. Paul reveals that to be in this condition is to make the work of the cross and the Blood of Christ null and void of its power and true purpose. Its like telling God that His work was not enough that we've got to add more to it because it was not complete, it was not finished to our liking or satisfaction.


 

Part XLVIII on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:20a
"I am crucified with Christ;..."   That is the very function of the Gospel of Grace. That Christ died for the sins of the world, and was buried, and that He arose from the dead in the power of an Endless Life. And the secret which God held within Himself, that being. That we as sons of Adam, seen as if we were in the second Adam, sinless and crucified in Him, buried,, raised and ascended all "in Him." We always like to make the point and we've been making it more strongly than ever that when we come under that forgiveness, we are forgiven everything, past, present, and future. By inspiration of illumination we were seen in Christ throughout His ordeal. It was as if it was our ordeal in God's mind and Christ's, this is to have the mind of Christ, to have a mind set on the things above. We will never, never come into the presence of God with sin on our back so to speak, because it has all been paid for. Now we know this is a stumbling-block to most human comprehension or intellectualism. We don't have to understand it, we're to just believe it and receive it because that's what the Book teaches. We've been forgiven all our trespasses, not because of anything we have done, but all because of what Christ has accomplished on our behalf. He's our completion and we're His completion, as a bride is the husbands completion of law. That's what makes the Gospel so simple and yet so complex we'll never understand it fully this side of glory, this is the crisis which produces His faith in us. Paul goes on to say in verse 20 that even though he and us are crucified by identification with Christ's death:


Galatians 2:20
"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith (faithfulness) of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."  Now what do we mean by the faithfulness? Someone asked, "How do you get people to sit there all afternoon in those uncomfortable chairs?" Well, they've never complained, and that proves we don't have to have upholstery to get people to come in if we're feeding them from the Word, with the Spirit of Truth. But anyway when our people came in today they picked a chair to sit on, we'll bet there wasn't a person in this room that analyzed or inspected that chair to see if it would hold them, did they? Not a one of them did that. Why didn't they examine their chair? Our faith in that chair was enough. Now if we're placing our faith in that chair in turn what does that chair have to be? Faithful. If the chair isn't faithful, then we would go to the floor. But Jesus first had to trust what the word told Him and then as the son of man He had to know and trust the Father,  when the word revealed that He would not see corruption (Psalm 49:9 and then Isaiah 38:17, 53 and then Jonah 2:6). So as the son of man even Jesus had to trust someone first the Holy Spirit and then His Father how? by taking them at their word. Just as we're to do in like fashion or to do likewise.



Now it's the same way with Christ. He has claimed to have done everything that's necessary, and we've put our trusting in His faith. Now someday when we get to the eternal abode is God going to say, "Well I'm sorry William, but it wasn't what it seemed to be?" No way, but rather He's going to say, "The Blood of Christ is faithful, He is faithful." And that's why we can trust completely in Him. So this is what we're sure that Paul is driving at in verse 20. That it's through the faithfulness, his trusting the one who is faithful to keep us, because He loves us and gave Himself for us. The other day my 5 year old grandson asked me, "Grampa, do I love God enough? Do I have enough faith that if he should come tonight that I won't be left behind?" Now that's a pretty good question from a 5 year old isn't it? But the question isn't how much we love Him, but rather how much He has loved us? You see that is pointed out so clearly in John chapter 11 in the account of Lazarus. All through that chapter it isn't how much Mary and Martha loved Jesus, but how much He loved them.  


John 11:3
"Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, `Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.'"

John 11:5
"Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus."

Then when we come down to the shortest verse John 11:35 "Jesus wept."  What did the Hebrews in that area say?


John 11:36
"Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!"  So it wasn't how much they loved Him, but the other way around. So we must remember that it's not how much we love Him but how much He loves us, and has saved us, and is even now keeping us. Now let's go on to Galatians 2:21 where Paul says:

Part XLVII on Galatians Study

Romans 7:7
"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. (is the Law something evil or wicked?) Nay, I had not known sin, (the old sin nature) but by the law (the whole purpose of the law was to reveal mans utter sinfulness and his need of a savior for man was and is totally incapable of complying in his own merit), for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet."  See how simple that is? So it was the Law that condemned this religious Hebrew, and he thought he was keeping it. The Law as said was meant to show or reveal mans true condition in each area where it demanded total obedience. Where one fond himself guilty in one he was judged guilty of all and therefore he was under penalty of death. There is no grace and no love given or revealed just stone cold your guilty of trespass and you must die.



Romans 7:8-9
"But sin, (the old sin nature) taking occasion by the commandments, (the Law) wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. (it got his mind just broiling) For without the law sin was dead. (it was inoperative, some one not hearing or know of the Law was not in subjection to it) 9. For I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died."   Old Adam woke up and old Adam in Saul's makeup said, "Hey that's me, because I'm covetous." And then what did he do? I died.  Now what does he mean? Well he had to die in the realm of that old Adam life or nature which is a Law breaker, and with the death of old Adam life or nature, what happened? New Life completeness or union with God in Christ and intimacy with the Spirit of the risen LORD. Now that's what we talk about all the time, that's salvation. When our old Adam life and nature is put to death (by way of a contrite and humble heart acknowledging that in and of ourselves we can not keep the requires of the Law), because it was the Law breaker and we become a believer who receives by trusting in the finished work of the Cross, which is our Gospel then we're a New Creation, we're made alive, we're given Eternal Life and Paul is constantly referring to that. Peter also said that salvation was all Paul talks about in all his Epistles. Now back to Galatians chapter 2 verse 20 which is a classic. It's a verse that we think most kids in daily vacation Bible school should memorize. Here Paul now gives his own personal testimony under inspiration of the awaken, quickened spirit within him (that seed of woman which all mankind has but remains as it were dead unless it receives the Light of creation Genesis 1:3 and John 12:24) and it becomes the Word of God. 



Galatians 2:20
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”  We'll look at this section by section as the LORD the Spirit leads.



Galatians 2:20a
"I am crucified with Christ:..."   Now Paul didn't die on a Roman cross. If he died a martyr's death, we believe it was by beheading. So what's he's talking about? Oh that day on the road to Damascus when the Lord spoke to him, and literally knocked him to the ground, and in a moment Saul of Tarsus recognized that he was dealing with the ascended Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified One, what happened? Oh Saul died that very moment, he was crucified in the old Adam life and nature, and immediately he became a New man, a New Creation, he was united as a bride is the completion of her husband. He received the power of an Endless Life within him but as of yet he don't know it for that came. When did it come? while in the wilderness. Where the Lord revealed the mysteries or secret things of God to him, the very things which are hidden from view in the scriptures which requires a re-rebirthing or an entry into the second blessing to see clearly. This re-rebirth is like a fetus being birth and passing through the birth canal, in this case its the death of all self will and the destroying of the spirit of the world within the person. When this is accomplished we can say with Paul, "it is no longer I that live but Christ lives in me."



Galatians 2:20
"I am crucified with Christ: (when Christ died that's when we died) nevertheless I live; (physically) yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh (here and now, day by day and moment by moment, in completeness) I live by the faith (the faithfulness, He is faithful, He will never let us down) of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."  Remember Peter in the Book of Acts to the Nation of Israel said, "You killed Him." But Paul to the Body of Christ says, "He loves you and gave Himself for you."

Part XLVI on Galatians Study

Romans 7:7
"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. (is the Law something evil or wicked?) Nay, I had not known sin, (the old sin nature) but by the law (the whole purpose of the law was to reveal mans utter sinfulness and his need of a savior for man was and is totally incapable of complying in his own merit), for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet."  See how simple that is? So it was the Law that condemned this religious Hebrew, and he thought he was keeping it. The Law as said was meant to show or reveal mans true condition in each area where it demanded total obedience. Where one fond himself guilty in one he was judged guilty of all and therefore he was under penalty of death. There is no grace and no love given or revealed just stone cold your guilty of trespass and you must die.


Romans 7:8-9
"But sin, (the old sin nature) taking occasion by the commandments, (the Law) wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. (it got his mind just broiling) For without the law sin was dead. (it was inoperative, some one not hearing or know of the Law was not in subjection to it) 9. For I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died."   Old Adam woke up and old Adam in Saul's makeup said, "Hey that's me, because I'm covetous." And then what did he do? I died.  Now what does he mean? Well he had to die in the realm of that old Adam life or nature which is a Law breaker, and with the death of old Adam life or nature, what happened? New Life completeness or union with God in Christ and intimacy with the Spirit of the risen LORD. Now that's what we talk about all the time, that's salvation. When our old Adam life and nature is put to death (by way of a contrite and humble heart acknowledging that in and of ourselves we can not keep the requires of the Law), because it was the Law breaker and we become a believer who receives by trusting in the finished work of the Cross, which is our Gospel then we're a New Creation, we're made alive, we're given Eternal Life and Paul is constantly referring to that. Peter also said that salvation was all Paul talks about in all his Epistles. Now back to Galatians chapter 2 verse 20 which is a classic. It's a verse that we think most kids in daily vacation Bible school should memorize. Here Paul now gives his own personal testimony under inspiration of the awaken, quickened spirit within him (that seed of woman which all mankind has but remains as it were dead unless it receives the Light of creation Genesis 1:3 and John 12:24) and it becomes the Word of God. 


Galatians 2:20
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”  We'll look at this section by section as the LORD the Spirit leads.

 
Galatians 2:20a
"I am crucified with Christ:..."   Now Paul didn't die on a Roman cross. If he died a martyr's death, we believe it was by beheading. So what's he's talking about? Oh that day on the road to Damascus when the Lord spoke to him, and literally knocked him to the ground, and in a moment Saul of Tarsus recognized that he was dealing with the ascended Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified One, what happened? Oh Saul died that very moment, he was crucified in the old Adam life and nature, and immediately he became a New man, a New Creation, he was united as a bride is the completion of her husband. He received the power of an Endless Life within him but as of yet he don't know it for that came. When did it come? while in the wilderness. Where the Lord revealed the mysteries or secret things of God to him, the very things which are hidden from view in the scriptures which requires a re-rebirthing or an entry into the second blessing to see clearly. This re-rebirth is like a fetus being birth and passing through the birth canal, in this case its the death of all self will and the destroying of the spirit of the world within the person. When this is accomplished we can say with Paul, "it is no longer I that live but Christ lives in me."


So this is Paul's whole thrust of teaching, that now as believers we have these two forces working within us. From conversion up through to the second blessing. God reckons the old Adam life and nature as absolutely dead, but in experience, oh he's still there in our flesh. We've always told people that we don't mind the attacks of Satan half as much as we do the attacks of our old Adam nature. Now think about that. As we go through a week of life right here and now where do we run into most of our difficulties? Not Satanic as much as old Adam nature, he's the one that pops those thoughts, and imaginations in our mind, he's the one that catches us in those moments of weakness, and of course don't take away from Satan's power either as the prince of the power of the air, the spirit of this worlds order. But it's our old Adam nature that just constantly confronts us to still go the direction of the old Adamic life and nature. But opposite it we now have that New Nature which is energized by the Holy Spirit and the secret of its destruction. Our brokenness and deep humility before God. Now verse 20 again.


Galatians 2:20
"I am crucified with Christ: (when Christ died that's when we died) nevertheless I live; (physically) yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh (here and now, day by day and moment by moment, in completeness) I live by the faith (the faithfulness, He is faithful, He will never let us down) of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."  Remember Peter in the Book of Acts to the Nation of Israel said, "You killed Him." But Paul to the Body of Christ says, "He loves you and gave Himself for you."

Part XLV on Galatians Study

Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world through one man, and death as the result of sin; so death spread upon all men, ( no one being able to stop it or to escape its power) for that all have sinned: 13 (To be sure) sin was in the world before ever the Law was given, but sin is not imputed (charged) when there is no law (to transgress). Nevertheless death reigned (held sway) from Adam to Moses (the Lawgiver), even over them that had not sinned (transgressed) after the similitude (a positive command) of Adam's transgression, who is the figure (type or prefigure) of him that was to come (the promised seed of woman, not coming about by the usual and normal way). 14 But not as the offense (held sway), so also is the free gift (the Holy Spirit). For if through the offense of one many be dead (through one mans falling away), much more (profusely did) the grace of God (His Grace is out of proportion to the fall of man, Graces power utterly destroys sin) , and the gift by grace (that comes), which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded (overflows the benefit) unto many.” (Amp) (1 Corinthians 15:56)


Now back to Galatians chapter 2. 


Galatians 2:17
"But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, (not by the Laws requirements but only through Christ) we ourselves also are found sinners (remember we're children of Adam) is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid." And here's the basic reasoning in verse 18. Now this takes a little thinking we know it does. But think it through, and remember Paul's past no one else could ever come close to, but look what he says.


Galatians 2:18
"For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor,"  Now what's he saying? Here he's been a Law keeping Hebrew (within the corral of the statutes and ordinances), a great practitioner of Judaism. He thought the Law and the Temple and the Old Testament were the epitome of everything. But once he saw the Truth of the power of Grace and the Gospel of Christ how that He died, shed His blood, and rose from the dead then he could literally destroy everything of the old account. Now he says, "if I go back and put my converts back under the Law and command them to keep circumcision then I am rebuilding what I've torn down." Do we get that? Let's look at Colossians chapter 2 and nobody understood this better than the Apostle Paul (in Romans chapters 6 and 7 where he struggles within himself degrading the work of the cross, his flesh, the Law and sin as revealed in the statutes and ordinances and the Holy Spirits working). This is a graphic statement. Here he is speaking of the work of the Cross and the revealed power that Grace has to nullify all that had gone on before, before Grace was inaugurated.


Colossians 2:14
"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, (the law of commandment, and especially the Mosaic Law's exercising that was being practiced at the time of Christ which was a degenerated 613 rules and regulations, all of it was blotted out) which was contrary to us, and (the Law was absolutely contrary to human nature. Everything in the Law, human nature says do it. So He) took it out of the way, nailing it to the cross;"
 

Now what does John reveal about the person of Jesus? In chapter 1 verses 14 and 17...


John 1:14 
"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."   and then verse 17


John 1:17
" For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ."   So then John by the Holy Spirit reveals to us the person of Christ Jesus and the nature of God that He personifies, not only God's tremendous Love but and His Grace and Truth. Jesus brought forward or made known God's image and likeness His every essence of all goodness and that goodness is revealed by His Love, Grace and Truth.


Now that's what Paul means then as we come back to Galatians chapter 2 that once he helped believing Hebrews like himself to see that that old economy had been totally done away with. It was nailed to our Savior's Cross! Now Paul says, if I come back and tell these converts that I was wrong, and now I've got to put them back under the Law then he says, "I'm building again that which I have destroyed." Isn't that beautiful, but Paul says, he couldn't do that. Paul could not go back on the revelations, the Light that the Lord had given him. Now let's move on to verse 19, and this is his whole reason for pressing on constantly throughout the Roman Empire with the Gospel of the Grace of God. Now we'll stop and look at Isaiah chapter 44 in verse 22:


Isaiah 44:22
“I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.” And now to Lamentations chapter 3 verse 44 to find the veil or cloud which separated man of sin from God's presence:


Lamentations 3:44
“Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud, that our prayer should not pass through.”


Now to Psalm chapter 97 and verse 2:


Psalm 97:2
“Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.”   So clouds and darkness surround the throne of God which is the smoke of sin and sins sacrifice as a stench in God's nostrils to God. For God took no pleasure in the offering of sacrifices nor the blood of animals in the place of mans sin, Hebrews chapter 10; Psalm 40:6. Now we have not touched Isaiah chapter 53, because the Hebrews don't know what to do with this chapter, it totally blows their rebellious spirit out of the water. Why? Because when understood in the Light of Truth and Grace, Grace is revealed. Back to Galatians chapter 2 and verse 19:

Part XLIV on Galatians Study

Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  Not just Gentiles like the Hebrews perhaps thought, but everybody, Hebrews and Gentiles all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And its not anything we have done, that's not what makes us sinners but rather we're sinners because of who we are. We're sons of Adam. Now verse 24 has the remedy. Remember God is no respecter of persons as all are in the same boat all are guilty as all have the nature of Satan in the flesh of man or S.E.L.F (Satan Elevating Life Falsely).


Romans 3:24-26
"Being justified freely (to render righteous, without a cause) by his grace (His, is the benefit as our benefactor, Love given out on us) through the redemption (or the buying back process) that is in Christ Jesus: 25. Whom God (this same Christ Jesus) hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, (remember we looked at the ramifications of the blood. Going all the way back to Genesis 9, Leviticus 17, this blood is something very special it has great intrinsic value in God's sight because in this blood is the power of the first Light, an Endless Life, Light and Eternal Love of all men) to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins (Satan's In Nature) that are past (destroyed in death that which caused death's first entering) , through the forbearance of God; 26. To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness (the righteousness of Christ); that he (Christ) might be just, and the justifier of him which (repents and is baptized? No way, but) believeth in Jesus (puts his hope and whole-hearted trust in Him)."   We can put anything in there that we want to including keeping the Ten Commandments but it just doesn't say that, but only He will be the Justifier to him who believe by way of receptivity. We have to be willing to receive the benefit of His action, in likeness of manor, the completion of the finished work of the cross. Now verse 27.


Romans 3:27
"Where is boasting then? (who can brag?) It is excluded. (Why? Because the law of faith excludes it as we see in the remains of the verse.) By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith."   And the law of faith is? Trust, Believe, and Receive into yourself the Love of Christ, the Grace of God as revealed in the Gospel for our salvation (the eating of His flesh (the meat on our alter) and the drinking in of His blood poured out on our alter). All we want people to realize is that not one of the salvation scriptures say anything about what we can do except "BELIEVE." All of these verses say basically the same thing, and that is "When we believe that Christ died and rose from the dead thou shall be saved." Now it says it in various and different ways, and they have all came from Paul's various epistles and they all make no mention of repentance and baptism. Or even doing the required works of the Levitical Law as the means of receiving salvation's benefit. Every one of them makes no mention of any kind of works or doings or keeping, but rather they all say basically the same thing – Receive and Believe!


Ephesians 2:8
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and not of yourselves; it is the gift of God:"  All we want people to see is that all of the basic salvation verses are just like the one in Romans 3, that it's through faith in His Blood, through His death, burial, and resurrection, and that if we believe it within our heart then God does all the rest. We don't have to do anything because He does it and has already done it all first in Christ, as are second Adam, the all in all. The Lord is opening peoples heart eyes and ears that it isn't what we do, but that we believe by His faith. Now turn to Romans chapter 5 and verse 10.


Romans 5:10
“For if while, we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by (through) the death of His Son, it is much more (certain), now that we are reconciled, that we shall be saved (daily delivered from sins dominion) by (through) His (resurrection, power of an Endless Life and Love) Life.” (Amp) Now we'll look at verse 13 before we return to Galatians 2, oops we'll continue here in Romans 5 with verses 12 through 15.

Part XLIII on Galatians Study

Now this verse 16 of Galatians is a good example of that. It's kind of hard to sort out, but here it is in Romans chapter 3.


Romans 3:19
"Now we know that what things soever the law saith, (now that's the Ten Commandments but there's one given by command which when it was broken it became law for all were under its governing, we're referring to Genesis 2:17) it saith to them who are under the law: (in other words both the command and then the Ten Commandments which were directly given to the Nation of Israel, not to the Gentile world. But since there both the Law of the Sovereign Creator God, how far does their influence of Law go? To the ends of the earth, and look what the rest of the verse says) that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God."  Now we need to look at the command given to Adam not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As this is a command or rule producing a state or condition approved by God which carries a penalty or in this case a curse of sin and death on all, a law. No man can say, "from birth I've been innocent, I've never sinned". Now in the moral code of the Ten Commandments we find that, even a Gentile can't come up after having stolen something and say, "Well I never did anything wrong." Yes, we did because the moral code or Law of God says, "That it's against His will, against His Law to steal." So every mouth is stopped, and all the world becomes guilty before God. Now just here we need to come to an understanding of the Mosaic or Levitical Law they are statutes or a ordinances to guide or form a corral for Israel come in compliance with the Commandment or Law. These were to be enforce until God's Love came, the promised seed of woman, which is Jesus because His Love is the fulfillment of the Ten Commandments and the Law, Paul say's until the Love of God be received in our hearts. How? By the Holy Spirit's infilling. No, but by God's indwelling as found in John's gospel account in chapter 17. Now that being the case:


Romans 3:20a
"Therefore by the deeds of the law (in other words by Law-keeping, by works of mans own sufficiency) there shall no flesh (Hebrew or Gentile) be justified in his sight:..."   Why? Because the Law only has one function - You know we have people all over this part of the world that think by keeping the Mosaic or Levitical Law, the statutes and ordinances by keeping of these, that they are making brownie points and someday God will just let them slip in under the door, but it's not going to work that way. The Levitical Law wasn't given for that reason. That Law and the Ten Commandments had one function and that was to show mankind (and the Hebrews in particular, as a called out peoples) how utterly sinful sin is (without Love), they really are. Every human being has been by commandment and Law-breaker, though we're ( Gentiles) not under the rule or penalty (curse) of the Levitical Law or Mosaic Law the statutes and ordinances, that we're sinners by nature or because of our fallen nature. We can't change what is in our flesh makeup, we can through God's doing put it to death. Now this is not in any way a physical death but a death none the less and whats are bases of example? Well Israel is of course, they were called out from where? Egypt of course, just as Noah was called out from the world before the flood came and Abram was called out from his fathers home to wonder in the wilderness, until God. So the nation of Israel though set up by God to be in Egypt about 230 years and with that added to Abrams wanderings comes to the prophesied 430 years in exile and bondage. Remember that they were a called out or called into being, a nation who were to be holy onto God as His particular treasure and set apart for one reason and purpose to bring Christ through them into the world. So therefore the law came into being to reveal to them their total undoneness and their propensity to sin and then the exceeding sinfulness of sin by condemnation and the required penalty of death. To which the offering of blood was their atonement for that guilt and knowledge of sin which is the knowledge of the tree of good (God alone is all goodness) and evil (the devil is all evil, pride-fulness) of mans flesh.


Romans 3:20b
"...for by the law is the knowledge of sin."  This reaches all the way back to Genesis 2: 16-17. Now let's come on down to verse 23.

Part XLII on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:15-16
"We who are Jews by nature, (by birth) and not sinners of the Gentiles, (we're not after those pagan Gentiles, who were looked down upon by the Hebrews of that day) 16. Knowing that a man is not justified  (innocent) by the works of the law (do you see it? the works of the law, notice the law here is in small letters, this means by way of command, requires does not justify), but by the faith of Jesus Christ (what does it do? makes one innocent or justifies one), even we 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 (the only work the law did was to condemn or to show man his utter sinfulness and the need of a death because of its guilt burden)."


We need to go back to Romans chapter 3 where it makes it a little plainer than this. One earlier Bible scholar that we've read in days gone by, puts it like this. The little letter to the Galatians is sort of like an artist who had the picture in his mind and he drew it first in pencil. And after he saw the whole picture in pencil he then put it on canvas with oil, and that's the Book of Romans. And you know we kind of like that. Galatians is just sort of an introduction, it covers all the bases, but we don't get the graphic detail until we get into Romans. 


But first we'll reveal a secret not known and its found in John chapter 20, this is quoted from William Law an is found in his “Letters to the Clergy” pages 7-11, address's 23-27:  “The truth and perfection of the gospel state could not show itself, till it became solely a ministration of the Spirit, or a kingdom in which the Holy Spirit of God had the doing of all that is done in it. The apostles, while Christ was with them in the flesh, were instructed in heavenly Truths from His mouth, and enabled to work miracles in His Name, yet not qualified to know and teach the mysteries of His kingdom. After His resurrection, He conversed with them forty days, speaking to them of things pertaining to the kingdom of God; nay though He breathed on them, and said, "receive the Holy Ghost," yet this also would not do, they were still unable to preach, or bear witness to the Truth, as it is only in Jesus. And the reason is, there was still a higher dispensation to come, which stood in such an opening of the divine Life in their hearts, as could not be effected from an outward instruction of Christ Himself. For though He had sufficiently told His disciples the necessity of being born again of the Spirit, yet He left them unborn of it, till He came again in the power of the Spirit. He breathed on them, and said, "Receive the Holy Ghost," yet that which was said and done was not the thing itself, but only a type or outward signification of what they should receive, when He, being glorified, should come again in the fullness and power of the Spirit, breaking open the deadness and darkness of their hearts with Light and Life from heaven, which Light did, and alone could, open and verify in their souls, all that He had said and promised to them while He was with them in the flesh. All this is expressly declared by Christ Himself, saying to them, "I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go away"; therefore Christ taught them to believe the want, and joyfully to expect the coming of a higher and more blessed state, than that of His bodily presence with them. For He adds, "if I go not away, the comforter will not come"; therefore the comfort and blessing of Christ to His followers could not be had, till something more was done to them, and they were brought into a higher state than they could be by His verbal instruction of them. "But if I go away," says He, "I will send Him to you, and when the comforter, the Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you into all Truth; He shall glorify Me" (that is, shall set up my kingdom in its glory, in the power of the Spirit) "for He shall receive of mine, and shall show it to you: I said of mine, because all things that the Father has are mine," John 16.”


“Now when Christ had told them of the necessity of an higher state than that they were in, and the necessity of such a comforting illuminating guide, as they could not have till His outward teaching in human language was changed into the inspiration, and operation of His Spirit in their souls, He commands them, not to begin to bear witness of Him to the world, from what they did and could in any human way know of Him, His birth His life, doctrines, death, sufferings, resurrection, but to tarry at Jerusalem, till they were endued with power from on high; saying to them, "You shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. And then shall you bear witness unto Me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and unto the utmost part of the earth."

 
“Here are two most important and fundamental truths fully demonstrated, First, that the Truth and perfection of the Gospel state could not take place, till Christ was glorified, and His kingdom among men made wholly and solely a continual immediate ministration of the Spirit: everything before this was but subservient for a time, and preparatory to this last dispensation, Church Age or the Age of Grace as mans titled it, which could not have been the last, had it not carried man above types, figures and shadows, into the real possession and enjoyment of that which is the Spirit and Truth of a divine Life. For the end is not come till it has found the beginning; that is, the last dispensation of God to fallen man cannot be come, till putting an end to the "bondage of weak and beggarly elements," Galatians 4:9, it brings man to that dwelling in God, and God in him, which he had at the beginning Genesis 1:26-27, 2:7.”


“Secondly, that as the apostles could not, so no man, from their time to the end of the world, can have any true and real knowledge of the spiritual blessings of Christ's redemption, or have a divine call, capacity, or fitness to preach, and bear witness of them to the world, but solely by that same divine Spirit opening all the mysteries of a redeeming Christ in their inward parts, as it did in the apostles, evangelists, and first ministers of the Gospel.”


“For why could not the apostles, who had been eye witnesses to all the whole process of Christ, why could they not with their human apprehension declare and testify the Truth of such things, till they "were baptized with fire, and born again of the Spirit"? It is because the Truth of such things, or the mysteries of Christ's process, as knowable by man, are nothing else in themselves, but those very things which are done by this heavenly fire and Spirit of God in our souls. Therefore to know the mysteries of Christ's redemption, and to know the redeeming work of God in our own souls, is the same thing; the one cannot be before, or without the other. Therefore every man, be he who he will, however able in all kinds of human literature, must be an entire stranger to all the mysteries of Gospel redemption, and can only talk about them as of any other tale he has been told, till they are brought forth, verified, fulfilled, and witnessed to by that, which is found, felt and enjoyed of the whole process of Christ in his own soul. For as redemption is in its whole nature an inward spiritual work, that works only in the altering, changing, and regenerating the life of the soul, so it must be true, that nothing but the inward state of the soul can bear true witness to the redeeming power of Christ. For as it wholly consists in altering that which is the most radical in the soul, bringing forth a new spiritual death, and a new spiritual Life, it must be true, that no one can know or believe the mysteries of Christ's redeeming power, by historically knowing, or rationally consenting to that which is said of Him and them in written or spoken words, but only and solely by an inward experimental finding, and feeling the operation of them, in that new death, and new Life, both of which must be effected in the soul of man, or Christ is not, cannot be found, and known by the soul as its salvation. It must also be equally true, that the redeemed state of the soul, being in itself nothing else but the resurrection of a divine and holy Life in it, must as necessarily from first to last be the sole work of the breathing creating Spirit of God, as the first holy created state of the soul was. And all this, because the mysteries of Christ's redeeming power, which work and bring forth the renewed state of the soul, are not creaturely, finite, outward things, that may be found and enjoyed by verbal descriptions, or formed ideas of them, but are a birth and Life, and spiritual operation, which as solely belongs to God alone, as His creating power. For nothing can redeem, but that same power which created the soul. Nothing can bring forth a good thought in it, but that which brought forth the power of thinking. And of every tendency towards goodness, be it ever so small, that same may be truly affirmed of it, which Paul affirmed of his highest state, "yet not I, but Christ that lives in me." As we'll find shortly in verse 20 and he affirms elsewhere to this fact and once more we can also affirm to it as well. Or as Peter reveals in 2 Peter chapter 1:19 “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.”

Part XLI on Galatians Study

Leviticus 18:3-4
"After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, (that is in the slavery and their paganism religion) shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, (when they came in after Joshua not to flow their paganism religion) whither I bring you, shall ye not do; neither shall ye walk in their ordinances (to abide by its legalism or oaths of false religion but this was not the case Israel did that which they were just told not to do). 4. Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God."  For those who choose to become one with Him through death to self-will and the spirit of the world this is still in effect. To have come out from among them and be holy as "I Am" Holy is in part the Law of God written within us and impressed on our minds. It's not a burden because there is no penalty tied with it because it comes as an willing obedience to do from Genesis chapter 12 verses 1- 4a.


Then beginning in verse 6 God stipulates graphically all the immoral sins of the Canaanites and the Egyptians, and that believers are to have nothing to do with these sins even today. Just because we're under Grace doesn't mean that we are now free to eat blood, and practice immorality, or worship idols. Absolutely not! They're forbidden! Now come back to Galatians chapter 2. 


Now we're going to come to an interesting situation, and we always have to clarify ourselves lest we be accused of not having a warm place in our heart for the Apostle Peter. Yes we do, because we understand Peter's position. Peter was still steeped in legalism, Peter still had not had his eyes totally opened to these Pauline Truths and so Peter was in perfect accord with his Lord as far as it went. We're not taking anything way from the man's spiritual aspect whatsoever, but Peter could not comprehend what it was to be totally out from under the bondage to Judaism of Law. So sometime after the Jerusalem counsel, and this had all been supposedly settled that these Gentiles, under Paul's ministry who had been saved like you and I by the Gospel of Grace, are free to eat whatever they wanted to eat. They we're not under any dietary law whatsoever, and Peter comes up to visit the Antioch Church and now look what happens.


Galatians 2:11a
"But when Peter was come to Antioch, (sometime after the Jerusalem counsel) I withstood him to the face,..." Paul may have had to have gotten on a soap box to look Peter in the face because we think Peter was a tall Galilean, and Paul a typical Hebrew. We're almost positive that he was much smaller in statue than Peter. So Paul withstood him to the face publicly. My that must have been an embarrassing thing for Peter and now look what goes on.


Galatians 2:11b-12
"...because he was to be blamed. (Peter was at fault. Now this isn't the first time that old Peter stumbled, nor do we get to the place where we don't stumble. Peter was just as human as all of us, and here he stumbled, and Paul called him on it. Now here is the whole reason.) 12. For before (in time-wise) that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision."   James is now the head man in Jerusalem and when emissaries came from James' congregation, before they arrived Peter ate with Paul and the Gentile believers regardless what the meal was. But after these Jewish people arrived what does Peter do? Hey he's scared of them, he's afraid of them. And so to continue on and maintain the testimony of Paul's Gospel of Grace that he could prove to these Hebrews from Jerusalem, "Hey fellows we are free to eat whatever we want to, we are no longer under the dietary laws, we've been set free from all that." But instead of standing his ground for these Gentile believers, Peter gives in to his Law-keeping background. Isn't that something? Peter gave in and refused to go in and eat with Paul's Gentile converts. 


Can you imagine what this did to the Apostle Paul? Now we know Paul had that little short temper side of him. He had to apologize for it. We think Paul just got real upset with Peter. "Now Peter you're being two faced." That's what we'd say today. "When there wasn't anybody from Jerusalem here, you didn't have any problem eating with my Gentile converts, but as soon as those people came from Jerusalem then you say, `No I'm a good Hebrew, I can't do that.'" So Paul calls him on it. Looking at verse 12 again.


Galatians 2:12
"For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles; but when they were come, (these Hebrews from James congregation) he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision."(the men from Jerusalem) We've always given Peter credit, and we still do. Remember, leading up to Christ's crucifixion and suddenly when Peter saw Christ arrested and when he denied he knew the Lord those 3 times. He even swore, and do you know why? He was afraid of the powers that were. But we've always made this point. After Peter witnessed the resurrection and the power of it, what happened to him? Peter was a different person. He was no longer afraid of anybody. He stood up to the Jewish religious leaders, he stood up to the Romans, and no doubt took a martyr's death because of it. But here in this situation as an ordinary practicing Hebrew in a moment of weakness among these Gentile believers he blows his testimony again, and Paul has to call him on it. Now verse 13.


Galatians 2:13-14a
"And the other Jews (because of what Peter did) dissembled (or withdrew) likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas (Barnabas that had seen everything that Paul had accomplished with the Gentiles) also was carried away with their dissimulation. (or hypocrisy that they couldn't eat with these Gentiles.) 14. But when I saw that they walked not uprightly (Peter not walking uprightly? Not here he wasn't. He was failing miserably) according to the truth of the gospel...."   What Gospel? Paul's Gospel of Grace which sets us free from these dietary rules and regulations. There is now no difference between Hebrew and Gentile, and Peter was not yet ready to recognize that. Let me show what we're talking about in II Peter, and we think this is such an enlightening verse, what a verse. Now remember this is just shortly before he and Paul were martyred. This isn't at the beginning of his ministry this was clear at the end. He's had all of these years of being in contact with Paul and Paul's message and still he writes by inspiration the following.


II Peter 3:15-16
"And account (or understand, to consider) that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation: even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; 16. As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; (What things? salvation up in verse 15, The Gospel of Grace and the New Covenant) in which (these epistles) are some things hard to be understood,..."   Now it's hard for us to imagine that Peter could say anything like that isn't it? After all these years Peter still can't quite comprehend what Paul is driving home. We tell you why he couldn't. Peter was so steeped in Judaism that it just didn't come through for he remained under the curse from which all the Hebrews had been released or redeemed from. Peter wasn't the only one that didn't understand for as many as choose to come under the curses of the Law to them the revelations are hidden. My look at the multitude that is encompassed in the last part of this verse. (Romans 11:25, 7-8; 2 Corinthians 3:14-16)


II Peter 3:16b
"...which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest (or twist, what's Peter talking about? Paul's epistles. So the ignorant and unstable, the ones who don't comprehend the Scriptures are still twisting them) as they do also the other scriptures (And what's the conclusion? They're doing it but, it's ) unto their own destruction."   So when preachers and teachers ignore or delete the writings of the Apostle Paul they are, according to Peter, setting or signing themselves up for their own destruction. And that's exactly why Paul wrote such strong language in the first chapter of Galatians and the Epistle to the Hebrews which has five warnings in it, that if someone is going to preach any other Gospel for salvation than his Gospel let them be accursed. Now that's strong language, we didn't put it in there, the Book says it and we have to stand on what the Book says. Now back to Galatians chapter 2, and looking at verse 14 again.


Galatians 2:14
"But when I saw that they (Peter, and Barnabas, and these other Hebrews) walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel. I said unto Peter before them all, (this was a public rebuke) If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, (if you're going to admit that the Grace of God has set you free from the Law and its penalty of death) and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?"   Do you see what he's saying? Listen, it's no different today. Oh we know the rhetoric is a little different, but the concept is the same. People are adding things that do not belong to the Gospel of Grace and then they wonder why people have a hard time comprehending it. For just as in Genesis 1:1-2 to do so is to mix Light with darkness but the Light there spoken gave life to the world and nature, it caused color to become and the seed to become and then produce and caused order to come to the chaos. Its this same Light which causes us to be born again even after passing through conversion into redemption which brings us to this Light and the Light brings us to the point of the second blessing and our having to pass through a re-re-birthing if you will, to where God is restored to His Temple our heart. No religion of mans design where it be of faith or of works will cause the Light of Life to come into its proper place unless there be a change of heart condition first, a death of pride and the spirit of the world which is in mans fallen nature. For natural man after birth is in a state of being until the body dies and his soul and spirit passes either to hell or to heaven the choice is ours. This we'll see shortly.

Part XL on Galatians Study

Acts 15:13-16
"And after they (the Hebrews) had held their peace, James (the half brother of Jesus) answered, (you would think that Peter was the moderator, but it looks like James was) saying Men and brethren, hearken unto me: 14. Simon (Peter) hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. 15. And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, 16. After this (after calling out a people for His name) I will return, and will build, again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:"   Referring to His second physical coming after the tribulation period. And now let's skip all the way down to verse 19.


Acts 15:19-21
"Wherefore (in light of all that has just taken place) my sentence (or decision as the moderator) is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: 20 But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollution of idols (this is a true bone of contention as many don't understand just what this means and is all things not acceptable to God are idols as it is put above the knowledge of God), and from fornication and from things strangled, (things not killed properly) and from blood."  Now we see in a way it's amazing that these things were repeated and in another way it isn't because we see these things still hold true today. God still has never given the human race permission to do any of these things. Idols are those things which replace in any degree the true knowledge of God and are held as true and exceptionable by Him. They are contrivances of mans mind or intellect or are of the imagination of fallen man. These things are still anathema to Him, and we'll show you why. Verse 21 gives the reason.


Acts 15:21
"For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day."   In other words James is saying, "Now look, if you're going to go out into the Gentile world and preach this Gospel of Grace that's well and good but for the sake of the Hebrews who are in those pagan communities at least make your converts understand that some of these things are still fundamental going all the way back to the Law of Moses." And that of course Paul agreed with, and we're sure that he taught it as such. But within the limits which the Holy Spirit required because we see this in Romans chapters 5 through 8 and here in Galatians and in the Epistle to the Hebrews. The release of the believing Hebrews from the corral or yoke of bondage under the Levitical Law with its statutes, and the 613 ordinances imposed by man. Those written by the scribes, Pharisees and Sadducee as additions just as our Constitutions has been added to and the Laws of the land have been and continue to be added too. Now verse 22.


Acts 15:22-23
"Then pleased it the apostles and elders with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas and Silas, chief men among the brethren: 23. and they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greetings unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:"  Now go to verse 29 and the Holy Spirit has seen fit to repeat it. This is part of that written agreement that went to from the Jerusalem church up to Antioch.


Acts 15:29
"That ye abstain from meats offered to idols (now meats are not necessarily that which is eaten but may be a figure of speech used for the practice of simply doing a thing), and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well."   Now for a moment let's go back to the Old Testament and see what they were referring to. That would be in Leviticus chapter 17 and 18. Even though this was part of the Law yet it was such that God could sanction it's going right on through the Gospel of Grace. And as you know we firmly believe that we're not under Law but rather Grace, but God is still holding us accountable for not doing any of these things in a ritualistic practice or continuation of an old from of religion by way of ignorance of God's intended purpose. Now it's interesting that for those who get involved in Satan's worship this is where they begin. This is usually part of their initiation process, that they drink blood and become immoral and all the rest of it and here's the reason in this chapter. 


Leviticus 17:10-11
"And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. (now this is God speaking) 11. For the life of the flesh is in the blood: (this is why the Blood had to be sacrificed for the remission of sin. It was death for life.) and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."   Now we're going to make a point. What had to happen to the blood in the Old Testament sacrifices, as well as Christ's Blood for the atonement of sin? It had to be applied. It had to be sprinkled on the altar, it had to be sprinkled on the Ark of the Covenant's mercy seat, and Christ also had to present His Blood remember where? The Holy of Holiest in heaven. So it follows all the way through and for this reason God still demands that even under Grace we do not partake of these things. For the shedding and sprinkling of Christ Blood is the total satisfaction of all requirements and put an end to them. Now the other point was not to practice fornication or immorality. Now we know we have to read it carefully because it's rather graphic, but when we get into chapter 18 and God explicitly lays down these various immoral sins that believers are to have nothing to do with. Why? Because as we'll see in verse 3.

Part XXXIX on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:9-10
"And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars perceived (understood) the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, (Gentiles) and they unto the circumcision. (Jews) 10. Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do."   Now, come back to Acts 15 and we'll see that they also added a couple of other little strings to the whole deal. It's kind of interesting that Peter had finally come to Paul's rescue. And if he hadn't, then Paul's Gospel would have died right then and there, but of course God is Sovereign. He had Peter ready to defend Paul, and we maintain that the biggest reason that he had sent him up to Cornelius' house 12 years before, was not only for the house of Cornelius, but that Peter would be in a mental position to come to Paul's defense at this conference in Jerusalem these 12 years later. Under the old system God spoke through His prophets and then through His Son in the person of an angle or as with Abraham in the form of a man and warned the Hebrews of what was to come. In many of these prophetic sayings were also a stipulation of warning or penalty for not doing or obeying the prophecy.


We know, that we see the near term, but God always sees the big picture, and we're going to see a graphic illustration of that a little later in the Book of Galatians. Peter suddenly realized that, yes, he'd gone to the house of pagan Gentiles and he hadn't brought them under the Law, he hadn't introduced circumcision or any of the other rites, ceremonies, customs or traditions, and while he was yet speaking what happened? They believed and receives as they're own what was the Word of God spoken through him. And of course they didn't believe Paul's Gospel, that hadn't been revealed to them yet, but they believed that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel, and God saved them under those terms and conditions. They were simply Gentiles who with an open yield heart received God through what ever revelation He had revealed to them by Peter. Now looking at verse 12.


Acts 15:12
"Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them."   Now there's another point we need to make. Remember what I Corinthians 1:22 says? Let's go back for a moment and look at it. There is no way that we can escape this. It just constantly comes up in front of us. And we suppose that most people just casually read over these verses, but what a graphic statement.


I Corinthians 1:22a
"For the Jews require a sign..."   Now God knew that and He put up with that all the way up through their history. We all know that. Remember when Moses was first confronted? He was a typical Hebrew and he said, "God they're not going to believe me. How do I know?" And what did God have to do? Showed him a sign by having him throw his rod on the ground. And when Moses got to Pharaoh, and the only way that he could convince the children of Israel that he was legitimate was by signs and miracles. Why have we said that Christ performed all those signs and miracles during His earthly ministry? To prove to the Nation of Israel Who He was. We know that He so graphically showed the difference in the mindset of the Hebrews and Gentiles because back in His earthly ministry He told the citizens of Capernaum:


Matthew 11:23-24
"And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted into heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, and been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day, 24. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, then for thee."   They wouldn't have had to say, "Well show us a sign." They were Gentiles they were ready to believe just by being able to hear it, but the Hebrews required a sign. They had the external or material mindset because of the works they were required to do to prove obedience to the Law. The Gentiles were and are outside the corral of the Levitical Laws, the only thing they come under was the command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the code of moral conduct, the ten commandments and the Beatitudes of Matthew chapters 5 and 6 as these enlarge the ten commandments. And God takes it all upon Himself to write these on our inwards parts and in our mind which brings us through the keeping of them without effort of self sufficiency on our part. Now here's the key to this secret, Adam was created (Genesis 1:27) in the image and likeness of God, God is Spirit therefore Adam was an angel and in chapter 2 verse 7 God placed that angelic angel in and earthen body unlike His heavenly angles. When Adam fall from grace into utter darkness, sin and death-spiritually dead separated from his Father he took on the nature of an earthly beast, he became bestial in his nature. Sense Christ's crucifixion and ascension the process has been reversed which caused mans fallen nature. Man when he willfully accepts the terms with a broken and contrite heart (spirit), soul and mind can through a death of self will, pride (the nature of the beast) and by that death is separated from the spirit of the world which held him in chains, can receive the second blessing. Now we'll look at John chapter 20:


John 20:30-31
"And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written this book: 31. But these are written, that ye (Hebrews) might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name."  Now we hear by this the spiritual understanding which John has because of his being with Paul on his missionary trips. All the way through this message of John are clues to his true spiritual condition of New Life being in him, unlike the other gospels.



Well now back to Acts chapter 15. So again we're sure that if Paul and Barnabas could not have rehearsed some miraculous signs and miracles in their ministry these Hebrews at this conference would have never bought it. But since they could according to verses 11 and 12 they were convinced because this got the Hebrews attention. Verse 13.


 

Part XXXVIII on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:9a
"And when James, Cephas, and John..."  Now the casual reader won't catch that. So what's happened? Peter has lost something. Do you remember what we said back in Acts chapter 15 when the counsel was raging in Jerusalem with arguing over whether these Gentile converts of Paul's had to keep the Jewish Law? Remember after there had been much disputing Peter rose up, and what did Peter tell them. "Hey wait a minute I remember a long time ago God used me to speak to a group of Gentiles." Peter was referring to the house of Cornelius, but how long it had been since he witnessed to those Gentiles? 12 years. 


We would have thought that when he saw the amazing conversion of those pagan Romans with the evidence that they had been saved without any of the attending ramifications of Judaism, we would have thought that Peter would have gone right back to Jerusalem and said, "Hey fellows let's get out of this place, the Gentiles are beginning to wake up." But does he? No. He goes back to Jerusalem and gets called on the carpet for having gone to a Gentiles in Acts 11:1-3, and there the disciples stay. Why? God had not yet permitted them to move any further in their ministry than what it says here, as Apostles to the Nation of Israel. So, again we find Peter in second place in the order of the disciples. 


Galatians 2:9
"And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, (Gentiles) and they unto the circumcision." (Hebrews)  Do we see that? It's in our Bible. They shook hands on the whole deal and said, "All right Paul, you and Barnabas go on back to your Gentile field and we will stay here among the Hebrews." Now verse 10, but there's going to be some strings attached which is all right. They're going to say, "OK Paul we'll agree that you can continue to preach to your Gentile converts, and they won't have to keep the Law of Moses or practice circumcision, or any of the rest of our lot, but we're going to add some strings, and here's one of them.


Galatians 2:10
"Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do."  Remember, they had a bunch of poor Hebrews there in Jerusalem who had sold all their property. The kitty had run out after 20 years and now they're destitute, they're poor. But God isn't going to abandon them. So God, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit inspired Paul and Barnabas that, as they circulated among the Gentile Churches, they would take  collections and offerings for those poor Hebrews in Jerusalem. Remember to that it was God's original plan (the true religion of God) to take care of the pour, widows and orphans. Now we always have to qualify that with Scripture so come back to Romans chapter 15 verse 25. 


Romans 15:25-26
"But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saint. 26, For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia (northern and southern Greece) to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem."  That was the whole idea that when they got the permission from the Twelve to go ahead and preach this Gospel, but remember these poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem. All right come on over to I Corinthians chapter 16 and we might as well start with verse 1.


I Corinthians 16:1-3
"Now concerning the collection (the offering) for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. 2. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him (increased above his usual income), that there be no gatherings when I come. 3. And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality  (increase of Grace) unto Jerusalem."  Paul and Barnabas have finally gotten the okay from the leadership at Jerusalem that they can continue their ministry to the Gentiles and Peter and the leadership there would continue their ministry to the Hebrews. But the Jewish leadership is going to put some stipulations on it. Number 1 they wanted Paul to remember the poor saints in Jerusalem who were destitute as we saw earlier. So God is now providing for them providentially with the offerings from Paul's Gentile converts. Before we return to Galatians we'll look at what James says about religion.


James 1:27
“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”  (Psalm 68:5, 119:1; Job 29:12-13, 31:15-20)


Now back to Galatians chapter 2 and let's read verse 9:

Part XXXVII on Galatians Study

Philippians 1:9-10
"And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; (or discernment) 10. That ye may approve things that are excellent; (in the Greek that is translated different. So read it in that light.) that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;"   How different? As different as night and day. Oh it's the same God, but now a whole new body of Truth and Light is being revealed that had never been revealed before. Just think, was there anything in Christ's earthly ministry that spoke of a Gentile Body of Christ? Not a word. Or a mixed Body made up of people of all nations, tongues, from across the earth, why of course there are many within the Old Testament writings. Or of our salvation by believing Paul's Gospel that we must believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins, was buried, rose again, and ascended. That in God's eyes when we willingly surrender our will to His Will as a young child we are counted as being One within Him through it all, this is found only in Paul's writings. Was there ever a word that the Holy Spirit would indwell individual believers? Not a word. Was there anything in Scripture that the Blood of Christ had atoned for all the sins of the whole world? Not a word. Oh it was all back there in latent language, but to just come right out and say it, we can't find it until we get to Paul. Or have surrendered all to the work of the Holy Spirit, the very purpose for which He is given us.


It's the same way with the doctrine of the Departure of the Church, and we know this throws a curve at people. We won't find this happening anywhere but in Paul's writings, because it is uniquely a Church phenomena, and Israel knew nothing of such a thing for we see it was revealed only to this Apostle, because all these items within this body of Truth are so totally different than anything that had ever been revealed before. For example, the word Justification just came to mind. Can we see a place in Scripture where it says, "and you can be justified from all things by just simple trust or faith in this Gospel." No it's not in there. We know in Amos that it says the just shall live by faith, and it was on that premise that Martin Luther made his move. But to take Justification in the context that Paul teaches it was unheard of. It was a secret held in the mind of God. Now back to Galatians chapter 2 verse 7.


Galatians 2:7
"But contrariwise, (on the other hand) when they (the Twelve and the Jerusalem leaders) saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision (Gentiles) was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision (Hebrew) was (committed) unto Peter; "  This is when they suddenly realize that we have a fork in the road. Here we've been coming down through Scripture Hebrew only, Hebrew only, with a few exceptions. But it had been Hebrew only since Abraham back in Genesis chapter 12. Now all of a sudden back in Acts chapter 9, God says, "I'm going to do something different." It's just like a fork in the road, and of course we teach that the Book of Acts is transitional, not a complete break from Judaism and the Jewish believers, but nevertheless there's that bridging over now then from God's dealing with the Hebrews only to His dealing with the Gentiles, and those Hebrews who by free will choice receive this Gospel of Grace and its attached New Covenant of an Endless Life. Both of which are of promise and Israel assumed that it was all theirs and theirs alone. That's where pride came in and puffed up Israel chest so to speak to the point that they refused to hear God's voice again and are still in that very condition, with no humility or contrition of heart.


So this is what these Hebrews are finally seeing. That the Gospel of the Gentiles was committed unto Paul, as the Gospel of the Hebrews was committed to Peter and the others. You can never tell us that it was the same Gospel. There is no way that you can show us the Gospel of the Grace of God was ever in Christ's earthly ministry or as Peter preaches in the Book of Acts. It's just not in there. Now Christ did allude to it but He could not teach or reveal it because its time had not yet come. All was hinged on the finished work of the cross and on the nation of Israel's acceptance of the their kingdom message. Which we've shown they rejected no less than three times and possibly four, as there are no less than three times in Acts alone recorded.


We can't find where we're to believe only for salvation the Gospel of Grace that Jesus died for us, was buried, and rose again and that in God's eyes we were IN Him through it all, except in Paul's writings. That's why so many denominations use works for salvation, they refuse to use Paul's Gospel of simple trust and faith + nothing. But anyway it's just not in the Scriptures except in Paul's teaching. So here they're recognizing this great difference of operations. By their so doing proves that its not subject to ones personal opinion but rather the Light of illumination. And the enter into the New Covenant from the schoolmaster of the old which we enter by way of conversion and or redemption first, then comes the second. How do we know this to be true, through Israel's history. They first had to "come out" of Egypt. Then "IF" all went well with them in seventeen days they'd have been in Canaan But and that's a big But they did not believe. They had to cross the sea and came to the Mountain where God was waiting for them. They ran into problems almost at once which delayed them longer than they wanted to stay and cost them more than they wanted to pay. But then after forty years of wondering in the harsh wilderness of sin they reached a second crisis the sea again. This time they crossed it and went into the promised land but there were more trials and teaching ahead of them, until the day of Christ's birth. This in short is the pattern for all who through conversion come into redemption and receive the Holy Spirit who then in effect takes us all through the learning curve to Christ. The point of great crisis for He asks all to learn of Him, His meekness, His humility, His obedience, His acceptance of death and His passage through it into the second blessing. The remainder of the story which was given to the Apostle Paul and those who are become willing and ready to obey, death. Where spiritual meats carnal again and the Spiritual wins over and defeats pride, the spirit of the power of the world in the flesh of man and brings man to the place of God's dwelling in him again as He is now our all in All. He then is able to do as He desired all along to be God both to us but also in us. Where we're totally dependent on Him for all things. Back to our lesson...


Galatians 2:8
"(For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, (Hebrews only) the same (God) was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)"  See the difference? Now verse 9 (this is 20 years after Pentecost). We don't like to put a lot of emphasis on the order of names, but there is a certain degree of it. In verse 9 who's listed first? James is.

Part XXXVI on Galatians Study

Galatians 2:5-6a
"To whom (that is the leaders in Jerusalem) we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; (for what purpose?) that the truth of the gospel (Paul's Gospel, the Gospel of Grace) might continue with you." (Gentiles) 6. But of these who seemed to be somewhat,..."  Why did they seem to be somewhat? Well at one time they were somewhat. They were the leaders and remember we went back and showed in the Book of Acts that all of those Jewish believers in that Jerusalem congregation had land and houses and CD's and stocks and whatever else they may have had and they turned it into cash, and what did they do with that cash? Laid it at the Apostles feet. Why would they do that? Because, first they were looking for the troubles of Jacob or the tribulation to start shortly and then they were in charge. But now we see some 22 years after Pentecost Paul is writing by inspiration, and says, "But of these who seemed to be somewhat,"  But they weren't because their power base was slipping away. God had turned away from the Hebrews and He was now going out into the Gentile world and so this is why he says what he says.


Galatians 2:6
"But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me; God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference (when they sat down and laid the plumb line with line upon line, and precept upon precept) added nothing to me:"  Now who was above and who was beneath? Paul took the ascendancy and the Twelve in Jerusalem had to finally admit, "OK Paul you're right, evidently the Lord is doing something different." Now we're not taking anything away from the Twelve's spiritual relationship with God. It was just that God had revealed to those Jewish believers at Jerusalem that He was doing something different but they did not see it nor did they understand it, it was a mystery to them. We know we're always going back to Deuteronomy 29:29.


Deuteronomy 29:29
"The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: (now what does that mean? God can keep in His mind whatever He wants to keep, and He will reveal it whenever He's good and ready and not until. So He kept all these things secret and they are still secret to most people because they can't see it even to this day. Because their still under the reigns of the tutor and trapped inside the corral of the first covenant and the externalism or material world and religious legalism. Why? Because of hardness of heart, they have not a broken and contrite heart nor have they become humbled before God. But then that verse goes on to say that once it's revealed then we are to believe it) but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law."


Now Peter and the eleven were in that position as are the Hebrews and the churches to-day that God has not revealed it to them. There remains a veil over their eyes and ears because of pride and the twisting and blending of scriptures to mean and say what they are not saying. God hadn't told them that, but through Paul, He was doing something that had never been done. So we're not blaming them for being out of step with God or less spiritual. It was just that God had not yet revealed to those Jewish believers nor the people who claim to be what they are not, that now He's doing something totally different. In fact let us show this in the Book of Philippians chapter 1. This is an interesting little verse, and we suppose most people miss it completely. And again remember that the letter to the Philippians was to a Gentile congregation.


Philippians 1:9-10
"And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; (or discernment) 10. That ye may approve things that are excellent; (in the Greek that is translated different. So read it in that light.) that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;"