Good News for Bad People

The Gospel is a Surprising Message...

I have never been one to love surprises…in fact…you might say that I hate surprises...

I hate surprises because when I am surprised I have to let go of control when Im surprised.

The definition of a surprise is an unexpected event that brings us astonishment…surprises are supposed to be a break in the mundaneness of life.

And this is what we find this morning in Galatians 1:11-24.

We find that the gospel is different …it is a surprising message.

—There are three surprising truths about the gospel that we see in this passage—

#1-- The Gospel is a Unique Story

v. 11-For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel.

Paul wants the Galatians to understand that the message that he preached to them previously wasn't man’s gospel.

Paul’s gospel was given to him by Jesus himself.

v. 12—For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

Paul’s gospel message wasn't like man’s gospel because the gospel that he preached was divinely inspired by Jesus.

So what does Paul mean by “Man’s Gospel”?

Man’s Gospel is anything that puts man at the center of life.

Man’s gospel is described in many different ways:

In every world religion, the message of Man’s Gospel is on full display: “Humanity isnt that bad…we just need to do better and try harder”

For Muslims…its the teachings of Muhammad

For Judaism…its the traditions and rituals of the Old Covenant

For Hinduism and Buddhism…its the achievement of internal zen through meditation.

In secular humanism: its more education and social welfare.

THERE’S NOTHING SURPRISING ABOUT MAN’S GOSPEL

All of these messages preach the same thing…as the great philosopher Stephen Tyler once said, “it’s the same old song and dance.” They all have the same motto and preach the same message… “You can do it…just try a little bit harder…be a little bit better...”

Man’s Gospel agrees with William Earnst Hemley, “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul”

But the Gospel that was reveal to Paul…GOD’S GOSPEL is totally counter cultural to man’s gospel.

GOD’S GOSPEL IS DIFFERENT....It’s unique

And PRAISE GOD that GOD’S GOSPEL is different from Man’s Gospel…because Man’s Gospel doesnt work…It just doesnt work...

Ask any honest person and they will tell you that they aren't the master of their fate or the commander of their soul.

RIGHT NOW IN MINE AND BETSY’S LIFE WE ARE COMING TO GRIPS WITH THE FACT THAT WE ARENT NEARLY AS IN CONTROL AS WE THINK…Caroline needs to be potty trained…but the girl just has no interest in it…Ive tried every trick in the book. I even offered to buy the girl a horse yall…a real live horse…and she just told me no… Here’s what that reminds me… “Im not in control...”

Go into a hospital and ask a cancer patient how in control of their own body and life they are…ask anyone who has just lost a spouse or a loved one how in control they are...

The truth is…we are lucky if we have the self control to keep a donut out of our mouths when we are trying to diet…much less the self control to consistently abide by the rules and regulations of a Holy and Righteous God.

Man’s Gospel is “Do better…try harder...”

God’s Gospel is “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

#2— The Gospel is Good News for Bad People

One of the amazing truths of the gospel is that it isnt a message that is reserved for people that deserve it.

This is how the world thinks isn’t it?

But it isnt just how the world thinks…its sometimes how Christians think as well.

We think that good news—or the gospel—is only for those that have earned it.

But that is precisely the opposite of what we find in the scripture…the surprising truth of the gospel is that it is good news for people that do not deserve it.

Look at Paul’s own words about his own conversion story...

v. 13 “For you have heard about my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it...”

Before God met Paul on the road to Damascus, Paul was not a good person.

In his own words he was a persecutor of the church.

He was violent.

He sought to destroy the Christian church, Christian families, He sought to destroy Christ.

In Acts chapter 8 we see Paul applauding the first ever martyrdom.

In Philippians 2 we read about Paul’s longing to see Christians imprisoned for their faith.

If you want to get an idea of how we would have thought about Paul if we were alive back then I think the best model of comparison is to think about groups like ISIS or the Proud Boys…terrorists groups.

That was what Paul says he was like...

As a result Paul says in 1 Cor. 15:9

“For I am the least deserving of the apostles because I persecuted the church of God.”

Paul did not deserve the gospel…he knew that...

And neither do we…and this is the pleasant surprise of the gospel for us...

v. 15 “BUT…when he who had set me apart...before I was born…and who called me by his grace…was pleased to reveal his son to me...”

Here is what Paul is saying… “Even though I didn't deserve it…even though I was a bad man…God looked past all my wrongs...”

So here we stand today…do you feel like you're too bad for God? Do you feel like your past is so compromised that God could never love you?

IF YOU WILL just believe…here’s what is true for you...

You can experience the transformation that Paul did in this passage...

If you will just surrender your life to Jesus this morning…these words can be true for you...

#3—The Gospel Means that God has a Plan to Use You

Paul was the least likely person on the planet for God to call to be an evangelist for the gentiles.

His past should have totally disqualified him from any type of ministry…but it should have especially disqualified him from being a church planter to the Gentiles.

Paul was a guy who had grown up his entire life believing that God’s blessings and favor were only reserved for people who were ethnically and culturally pure...

But when Jesus met Paul on the road to Damascus he showed Paul that his past wasn't going to be what defined his future…Look at what Paul wrote...

Galatians 1:15–24 ESV

15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!) 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” 24 And they glorified God because of me.

Here’s what is happening in this passage...

Paul meets Jesus…or rather Jesus meets Paul…Paul is saved....and in that process Paul is told by God that he is to preach the gospel to the Gentiles…Paul doesnt ask any questions…he doesnt go consult with anyone…he knows what has just happened and he immediately just gets to work. He goes to Arabia…and he preaches the gospel there…he gets run out of Arabia for preaching the gospel—then he goes to Jerusalem—>And everyone starts praising God because they see that God saved and was using the least likely person to accomplish his mission.

Paul could have used every excuse in the book:

—Well I havent been a Chrisitian long enough…

—Well, I havent been to seminary...

—Well, everyone knows my past…everyone will think that Im a fraud.

—People are scared of me…they’ll never listen

God was glorified through Paul…how? Because God took the very thing that Paul was infamous for—persecuting the church, terrorizing Christians, trying to destroy the name of Christ— and he used Him for his glory...

Isnt that like God? To take the area of our greatest weakness and display his strength?

We have our excuses too...

Im not smart enough

Im not good enough

Ive made too many mistakes

Everyone knows my failures too well

I dont have the right gifts...

And if that’s where you are…I want you to hear this clearly.

Christ is better than your intellect

Christ is better than your moral performance

Christ is better than your mistakes

Christ is better than your failures

Christ is better than your abilities…\

All we have and all we need church is Christ...

Christ in us…the hope of glory

Christ is us…the strength in our weakness

So Christian…God can use you…If he can use a violent religious zealot like Paul…certainly he can use you...

The question is…will we trust him enough to get to work like Paul God to work...

2 Appeals:

To Unbelievers—will you believe in God’s Gospel this morning? Will you see the surprising truth that the gospel is Good News for Bad people?

To Believers—will you just go for it this morning? Knowing that the Gospel means that God has a plan to use your life, will you just go out this week and live for his glory…may it be said of us.... “And they praised God because of me with how we live this week.”

Lets Pray...

Times haven’t changed very much in the nearly 2,000 years since Paul wrote to the church in Galatia.

We live in a day and age where the gospel message is being opposed from both sides.

As followers of Jesus we can expect opposition to the message of the gospel.

On the one hand, there are always groups of people that insist that this idea that salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone is too simplistic. Surely God requires something that we have to do in order to be saved right?

And this isnt new Paul dealt with this same thing in his lifetime

1 Corinthians 1:23 ESV

23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,

If you claim to follow a 1st century middle easter Jewish peasant that rose from the dead…If you believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God…if you think that Jesus was crucified for the forgiveness of sins…if you think that God raised Him from the dead…to humanistic and secular people, that’s crazy. People dont come back to life after they die…in the natural world atleast.

On the other hand, if you believe the gospel religious people will push back on you as well. When we say that we believe that people can do nothing to earn their salvation, religious people will think that we are preaching a message of license. “So you mean that it doesn’t matter what you do there is nothing that you can do to be saved?” And the answer that the Christian gives is…yes. That’s what we believe.

As followers of Jesus…like Paul…we will face opposition to the gospel message that we proclaim.

So here’s the question for us...

What is the anchor that will hold us to the truth of the gospel when opposition comes?

This is where the passage that we are studying this morning helps us...

In Galatians 1:11-24 we see what it was the anchored Paul to the truth of the gospel…and we will see the truths that anchor us to the truth of the gospel in the midst of opposition.

The Objective Truth of the Gospel

As Ive said many times before, Paul’s opponents were saying that Paul was misinformed. Paul’s gospel