The Revelation of Faith

Public Confession

I have been used to delivering what most called messages of the expository form. It has been this way, because of my complete dependence of the Word of God as the most efficient means by which man can be transformed and exposed to the absolute truth of God.

As of recently, I must confess, my preaching has swayed from the form of preaching I am most used to. Why? I am not sure. However, I confess my recognition of this change, which has proven useful to many, but is of no use to me.

It is not that I have not been preaching the message of God. However, I have not been preaching it as efficiently as I once have and perhaps as efficiently as I can and will.

I say this without shame, I am an expositor. My conviction is the Word of God. My aim is to help others understand the book and only the book. Come what may… I must preach from my conviction that the most important portion of any gathering is the exposition of the message of Christ, which grants mankind the opportunity to be transformed by the power of the Word of God.

So then, my practice will be, again, the exposition of the Word of God. Irregardless of the more prominent styles and attractive fads…I must preach the Word, in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2).

May our times in the word, from this day forward, be ever rooted in the depths of God’s knowledge and not the shallowness of man’s thoughts, opinions, and rhetoric. For it is not the words of man that grants power unto salvation. It is the gospel that grants power unto salvation. This is what Paul meant when he wrote,

Romans 1:16–17 CSB

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.

Now, in order to appropriately understand this passage, we must understand a few things about the words in this passage.

The gospel (εὐαγγέλιον) is the “good message.” It literally means good news or glad tidings.

Contextually speaking, it is the message about Jesus’ divine dominion and the salvation by His death and resurrection. This means, the gospel is concerned about two things: Christ’s reign and man’s salvation.

We should be careful not to switch the order of this concern around or remove any variable of it as to say, the gospel is about salvation and then Christ’s reign or the gospel is about salvation, without the mentioning of Christ’s reign. No, it is about the reign of Christ by which we find a means for salvation. That is, without Christ’s reign, we have no opportunity to be saved. Quite frankly, if Christ is not our King, we are not saved!

So then, our message must proclaim Christ is king! Therefore, we are saved!

Understanding the Qualifier in Romans 1:16

Now, we must go on to our main text. For, we shall never completely explain this text; neither is it our intentions to do so at this time. However, we must not go on until we recognize the qualifier of this good news.

The gospel is good news and therefore power unto salvation to those that are believers. This means that the gospel is bad news to non-believers. For, to be a non-believer is to deny Christ’s reign and therefore our salvation.

When one suggests that the gospel is good news for everyone is what we might call a universalist—denying the justice of God to bring consequence upon the one that refuses to believe.

Now to believe means to trust in Jesus as prescribed by the message. Therefore we have a formula:

The Message is preached concerning God’s rule and man’s salvation.

The believer hears and trusts in the declaration of God’s message.

Belief happens.

So then, belief is an important matter to the hearers of the message. This brings us to our text for tonight—faith. Faith is the subject for tonight, in keeping with your theme for the year.

The Difference Between the Verb and the Noun: Romans 1:16 & Galatians 3:23

As we enter into our study, it is important to understand that the word πίστις is sometimes used as a verb and other times used as a noun.

In the case of Romans 1:16, it is used as a participle verb and might be translated as “believing.” However, Galatians 3:23 is not using the verb form, but rather the noun form, which changes the meaning of the word. For, it shall make no sense to be referring to the revelation of one’s trust in the message. Rather, the noun form refers to the very message itself.

Faith in the noun form means the content of what is believed about the good news of Jesus’ way of salvation.

This is why tonight we must talk about the revelation of faith, because Paul is describing an unveiling of message that was once kept secret.

ἀποκαλύπτω means to be or become made known to the public; especially information that was previously known only to a few people or that was meant to be kept a secret.

Understanding the Galatian Problem

Chapter 1

Galatians 1:3 -4 is a wonderful and simple explanation of Jesus’ power to save. There are two things that we learn from these verses: 1) Jesus rescues us from the age (αἰών- a period of time by which certain values and morals exist). 2) This was all in the will of God.

Here, God has the will--an attitude of mind--that is more favorable than the alternative. This will is to rescue us from the evil age. Notice, the deliverance is not from God’s wrath, in this instance, or from hell. Rather, the deliverance is from the present age.

How many of us need to be rescued from the present age? The present age is the enemy of our souls and the means by which Satan grasps us and destines us for eternal punishment. Many churches and pastors will not find any opportunity to warn individuals of the present age, because it is by the present age that they find their success. They are so captivated by and intertwined in the age that they have no room to stand against it.

Galatians 1:6-9 demonstrates that the gospel is the centerpiece of the entire relationship one shares with Christ. That is, by the gospel, we discover a truth that is given to us by Jesus Christ. It is from this point that we begin to see Paul’s position on the revelation of faith being introduced. The gospel is the means to the veiled message that is unveiled through Jesus Christ.

Paul reveals that the message was not given by some human source or self-study. Rather, it was given by a revelation of Jesus Christ. Paul claims a personal experience that granted him special revelation that others may not have gathered. Yet, the revelation was consistent with everything else that was received as to not violate or tear down the preceding revelations.

This should be a lesson to the those in the modern world that wish to establish some special revelation that does not align with previous revelations. The ultimate goal of revelation is to clarify and not add or take away. If our revelation takes away from existing revelation, we shall question the validity of that new revelation and perhaps mark it as an opponent of the message of God. This is why Paul wrote,

Galatians 1:9 CSB

9 As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!

Galatians 1:15-16 reveals how Paul was chosen. For, this revelation that he received was not granted at random as is known of the revelation God gives. Any revelation or unique gift that one may inherit was destined for them from the very beginning. It was appointed from the time they were in their mother’s womb. Yet, there is a principle from these passages that grants clarity to how calling and revelation must work.

Calling without revelation is simply incomplete. And unfortunately, so many act on the basis of their calling alone, abiding with no revelation to give them power. Those that have experienced the revelation of Jesus Christ are able to discern the difference between one that is simply existing on the basis of their calling. For, there is a noticeable difference in the one that operates through both calling and revelation, and those that operate on calling alone.

Paul recognizes that the calling was there all along. However, he was not able to preach unto Christ was revealed. Oh that Christ might be revealed to those that are called. For, until Christ is revealed in us, our preaching is done in vain. All of our good deeds and the things that we do without the revelation of Christ are simply works of filth before God. It is the live that is lived out of revelation of Jesus that makes the gift acceptable.

Chapter 2

Obviously there was some existing tension between the traditional Jewish Christians and Paul. Though this tension is obvious and very important to the text, it is not necessary that we explore those tensions tonight, since we have had an extensive amount of discussions around this subject. However, there’s room for slight mentioning of this “feud” that existed between Paul and his contemporaries.

Paul’s concern was not simply against false prophets, but against false “brothers.” His speech is so critical and specific as to no generalize. Rather, he makes it clear that the gospel’s oppression comes from individuals that make up the community of the believer, most notably the apostle Peter (Galatians 2:11-21).

The most significant point we might consider for tonight is the fact that there comes a time where we must confront the brethren. Never mind the fight against false prophets that exist outside the community. There will come a time when we will need to address those that are in the community and address the discrepancies and hindrances to the gospel.

There has been such an interest in defending the gospel from those outside. Yet, Paul seemed to concentrate just as much, if not more, on the opposition within the brotherhood. And, oh, how entrenched this false doctrine was within the brotherhood that it could reach one of the most forefront apostles of the day, Peter.

This goes to show that we are all prone to error, and thankfully, this error may not always jeopardize our ability to testify of Christ. Yet, in some instances they do, which is the worse instance of them all. It is by this that we find the immediate need to protect the flock from the harmful influence of traditional justification by encouraging others into a liberated life in Christ.

Chapter 3

Galatians 3:1-14 In the rest of Paul’s writings (Romans 1:14), intelligence does not matter. That is, the intelligence of the world. However, when a person gains wisdom by the revelation of Jesus Christ, intelligence becomes an expectation.

Foolish (ἀνόητος) means unintelligent and senseless. YLT translates this word as “thoughtless.”

Knowing Jesus should provide such a perspective that one becomes intelligent—not in a way that satisfies human standards. Rather, the believer should become intelligent and learned in the revelation of Christ as to not commit themselves to anything that disrupts or frustrates the gospel of Christ. There are three reasons, by simply thinking, why a person should not be persuaded by the legalistic society: 1) Reception of the Spirit, 2) Began by the Spirit, 3) Miracles by the Spirit.

It is practically impossible to discuss the work of faith without discussing the work of the Spirit. Where faith is present, the Spirit is moving.

Furthermore, Paul does an amazing thing in this verse. He juxtapose their failure to think in verse 1 to their responsibility to hear in verse 5. For, hearing is a manner of expressing an ability to understand, that is by hearing. So literally, hearing faith (noun- strong confidence, trust) is supposed to place one in the position to receive the working of the Spirit.

Now, the accrediting of righteousness by believing (verb) God. There are two different things being accomplished two different ways. By hearing the message of faith, I can live a life of faith.

Galatians 3:15-22, Paul argues from a practical example. He wants the readers to understand just how simple (yet powerful) the principle of faith is. The entire argument rests on the fact that God’s promises are irrevocable.

Many would suggest that the law had somehow negated or annulled the promise God gave to Abraham. This is not so. Yet, the reader would have asked, “Well, what’s the purpose for the law?” Paul states very clearly, “It was given to show people sins.” (Galatians 3:19)

The problem with the argument made by Paul’s opponents is that they suggest that they are receiving something that others cannot receive due to their sins. However, Paul concludes that all are sinners in need of salvation through Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:22).

Galatians 3:23-29 describes the purpose of the law as a schoolmaster and the designated time of faith. Faith, that is, the content that is believed, had to be revealed. Faith has arrived and we no longer need a guardian. From faith we receive the following things:

Unity through baptism

New Christ identity, no longer Jew/Gentile; male/ female; slave/ free

Heirs of the promise given to Abraham.