Lenten Midweek 2

Galatians 2:7-21

My Brothers and Sisters we continue this night after hearing last week that there is no other Gospel by which men must be saved. You may notice that we jump a bit here, and I would encourage you to read the verses between last week and this week for it is all the Word of God and worth knowing and learning. We have chosen these passages to focus in on key points throughout the Letter to the Galatians and show this brilliant and comforting proclamation of the the Gospel, that we must never change.

For as we hear tonight, two of the Apostle’s face off in a debate, Peter, who was also known as Κηφᾶς, chief of the apostles, the one whom had received this name from Jesus for his confession that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the Living God, and the messiah. Then we have Paul who was the apostle to the Gentiles, but both received their calling to the ministry through the same person, Jesus Christ.

In fact, Paul had met with them after preaching the message of the Gospel for some time, and those in Jerusalem had nothing more to add to Paul’s message, they found that he lacked nothing in confession and faith, and so extended to them the right hand of fellowship, a Greek word there, κοινωνία which is what we get communion from that they had equal share, participation, and fellowship in the Kingdom of God which they proclaimed.

This went well until Antioch, where the same people that were bothering the Galatians came and put pressure on Peter, and he caved to them. Now to us this seems an odd thing for them to fixate on. What is the purpose of the circumcision party, and why were they so influential that they could sway peter? This has to do with that other gospel, which is no gospel at all.

What human works, ceremonies, rituals are necessary for the salvation of man? For there Jewish Christians that claimed for you to be a good christian, that everyone, gentiles especially, must first be good jews and adhere to the jewish customs, festivals, and rituals, which is to say they must rely on the works of the law in order to be justified.

Paul confronts Peter publicly, and chastises him, for they are Jews by birth, and not like the pagans who chased after foreign gods, and yet God saved both, not by works of the Law, but rather through faith in the work of Christ. Look at how many times, he says that we will not be justified by works of the law? 3 Times in one verse!

Why is this? Luther illuminates this beautifully when he speaks about the Christian faith. Now the true meaning of Christianity is this: that a man first acknowledge, through the Law, that he is a sinner, for whom it is impossible to perform any good work. For the Law says: “You are an evil tree. Therefore everything you think, speak, or do is opposed to God. Hence you cannot deserve grace by your works. But if you try to do so, you make the bad even worse; for since you are an evil tree, you cannot produce anything except evil fruits, that is, sins. ‘For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin’

All that will happen is you appear before God’s throne in heaven bearing fruits that are rotten, evil, and unfit for paradise. This is why the Law teaches us to despair of ourselves, but these men who were tormenting the galatians and leading them away were bringing a “gospel” that would have them using the Law, the works of their hands, their diets, their observance of festivals, even making marks on their flesh in order to be certain of their salvation. This is no Gospel, and the Law demands more than you or I could ever do.

Aren’t there numerous passage which promise if you keep the law you will have salvation. Yes there are, if you can do it. For God demands not just your hands be perfect, that you love with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Why would God make such strict demands? Why say this if He knew we couldn’t keep it? It was because we were too stubborn, foolish, bullheaded, or we might say too german to listen, and were convinced that we could do it on our own. So God made it impossible so you would finally give up trying to earn heaven, and instead bring us to the point that we give up and get out of Christ’s way and receive salvation as a gift.

This is why those who were sinners flocked to Christ, for they knew already that they could not attain heaven, but the self-righteous, those who trusted in themselves, and their works, scorned and rejected him. Sinners realized they had nothing, but the self-righteous pharisees would have to forsake everything they had built their life upon and realize that despite all their efforts, that even though they had lived strict and Law-centered lives, it hadn’t brought them one inch closer towards heaven, and in fact if they did not let go of their accomplishments, works, and achievements, all of those things would drag them to hell.

Now what Paul says here in v17 is important. That if we are declared righteous by faith through Jesus Christ, then why does sin remain? Some think this must mean that justification by faith is not enough, therefore we need the Law to remove sin in this life and be a true Christian, and claim this teaching of faith turns Jesus into an agent of sin because it is not enough to save, therefore you the Law is needed.

This belief is alive still in many churches today, the roman catholic church, the evangelicals, baptists, assembly of god and many others. It is because while this is easy to discern the difference between Law and Gospel on paper it is harder to put into practice. For as soon as they proclaim the good news, they put try to put restrictions on it fearing that people will think gospel sounds too good to be true. That Christ forgives sinners before they’ve amended their lives? That even though we are poor miserable sinners, he won’t count our sins against you, be they ever so numerous, or grievous? It’s true.

Because this is the teaching of justification, that is how we are declared righteous or innocent in God’s sight. See here how the Scriptures are clear that Works are not be dragged into your salvation, your innocence, rather Christ is here working for you. We will get to the good works you are called to do later in galatians, but they are not done to save you.

Now some will remember when Jesus said, to the young man, do this and you will live. Indeed if he could keep the Law, it would have saved him, but He could not. This is why by works of the law no one will be justified in his sight. Rather through the Law comes knowledge of sin.

Through that Gospel that saves we hear that my sins have been paid for, for I have been crucified with Christ, which means all of us can say you sins have been been punished and full atonement made, for when Christ hung upon that Cross he, hung there for you. He died for you, and so it is no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you, and the life you now live is by faith in the Son of God who loved you and gave himself for you. That is a verse worth memorizing, it is that Good news that saves.

This last verse is also worth memorizing and keeping with us whenever someone would have us trust in ourselves and not in Christ. For if righteousness, that is innocence in God’s sight, were through the law, then what does that say about the death of Jesus?

You make his death meaningless, it has no worth, no purpose, you treat his sacrifice as worthless. The son of God threw his life away if we could be justified by the law.

If you wonder why is it that Paul was so strong in the last chapter that there was no other gospel, why he condemned Peter to his face, why Luther stood up against Rome, and why Lutherans in the centuries that followed were sticks in the mud and refused to join fellowship with any Churches who corrupted this teaching. It is because if you turn to the works of the law to assure yourself of your salvation, you nullify, that is declare invalid, the cross of Christ, and say that Good Friday and Easter Sunday is meaningless. We will not forsake Him who has loved us while we were yet still sinners.

Justification is the doctrine by which the Church stands or falls. This is why there is no other Gospel, you cannot mix works and faith for salvation, it is only one or the other. Paul puts this so bluntly because Paul loves the church in Galatia and sees wolves sneaking in to lead the flock away from Christ.

My Brothers and Sisters this is why the distinction between Law and Gospel is so important, for if we mix the Law in with the Gospel, there is no more gospel, it all falls apart to depend on works, and if that is the case then Christ died for nothing. This error has tried to infect the church for centuries, but we must be on our guard. Lest we lose that beautiful teaching, that the Son of God, loved me, and gave himself for me, that is the faith by which I live and will enter heaven. In Jesus name. Amen.