The Gospel Is a Divine Confrontation

Read

Galatians 1:10-16 (ESV)

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 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. 13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. 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,

Opening Prayer

Foundational Statement by the Apostle Paul

Galatians 1:10–12 (ESV)

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Paul is taking the accusations of the false teachers...

And turning it on them by asking questions of the Galatians...

And this morning we will start with the proof he lays out for his argument that he is not a man pleaser...

But a servant of Christ, and Apostle of Christ...

And the gospel he preaches is divine in origin…not man-made.

It appears that the False Teachers were saying that he was not a true apostle of the Lord Jesus...

Because he had not been a follower of the Lord when the Lord was on the earth.

Therefore, what he was teaching was a man-made gospel taught by mistaken and misguided men.

Paul responds...

Gospel of Divine Origin

Galatians 1:11–12 (ESV)

11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 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 calls their attention to the seriousness of what he is about to declare by saying..

Because I would have you know

This is a strong declaration that prepares the reader to know information of crucial importance will follow.

Paul says, I’m not a man-pleaser and here’s a reason why...

The gospel I preach is not man’s.

We’ve already discussed the litmus test of the gospel...

God receives all the glory in the biblical gospel...

Which is the gospel preached by the Apostle Paul.

Paul says I did not receive it from man...

Nor was I taught it by man, but I received it directly from Christ, Himself.

The gospel he preached was not a message...

handed down to him like tradition.

learned by him from an educational institution.

taught to him by men.

The biblical gospel is not only different in character and content...

But it is different in its origin.

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.

In the same manner as the other Apostles, Paul received the gospel...

By a direct revelation of Jesus Christ to Paul, in person.

This was an in-person visitation of the risen Lord...

Confronting the Apostle Paul of his misinformed and sinful zeal.

Speaking the gospel to Paul...

Most likely a personal conversation much like the Road to Emmaus conversation…

Where we are told that Jesus taught them in this way...

Luke 24:27 (ESV)

27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

Did Paul see the risen Lord?

1 Corinthians 9:1–2 (ESV)

1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? 2 If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

Acts 9:17 (ESV)

17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

This personal encounter that Paul had with the risen Christ...

Was also where he was converted in dramatic form...

Taught the gospel by Jesus Himself...

And made an Apostle of Christ, as well.

Paul was no longer a servant of man...

Nor was he a man-pleaser.

He was, at that point and forevermore, a servant of the risen Lord.

Empirical Proof in the Apostle Paul’s Life

Galatians 1:13–14 (ESV)

13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.

Paul was in a Man Pleasing System

In Paul’s old system of belief, he did not understand the substitutionary atonement (3:13), which teaches that Christ died in our place.

He believed instead that Jesus’ crucifixion proved that he could not be the Messiah.

Paul also grasped as an unbeliever that the Christian faith threatened the centrality of the law, but he understood only after his conversion how the end of the law did not threaten OT teaching but actually fulfilled what the OT taught.

Paul’s old system of belief was this...

Romans 10:2–4 (ESV)

2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

Establishing your own righteousness is a system that reserves glory for oneself.

Paul used to be in a Man-pleaser system.

But he was delivered from such by the power of God...

And delivered from self-serving to serving the risen Lord.

Paul’s Life was Filled with Self-Righteousness

Galatians 1:13–14 (ESV)

13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.

If we dig a little more into this system of Paul’s, which was Judaism...

Philippians 3:3–6 (ESV)

3 For we [Christians] are the [true] circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. [here it is] If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

Do you see it?

What is the system that Paul was enslaved to all about?

Me.

Me, me, me, me.

My resume. My glory. My praise.

But something happened to Paul on that road to Damascus.

Something changed him drastically.

We’ll keep reading...

Philippians 3:7–8 (ESV)

7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

Whatever ground Paul thought he was gaining in the eyes of men...

Whatever people-pleasing Paul was pursuing...

Whatever glory Paul thought he was gaining...

His thoughts on that system changed at his confrontation with the risen Lord...

And, it taught him something...

The gospel taught him something...

And it is this...

If you want Christ.

If you want to truly serve the Lord.

You must abandon your resume.

Your hopes for self-glory.

Your hopes for peer praise.

Your record of Law keeping.

Your hope for a righteousness of your own.

If you want to be righteous in God’s eyes...

Christ is the end of the Law...

And you must cling to Christ’s resume...

You must hope in Christ, alone.

And, His glory, alone.

This was Paul’s new zeal.

This was Paul’s hope.

This was Paul’s new message.

This was the message given to Paul from Christ, Himself.

God confronted Paul and called him to Christ...

Galatians 1:15–16 (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,

Let’s Ponder Upon A Couple of Truths From this Passage

One critical truth to understand and gain discernment towards is...

The Foundational Difference between being a God-pleaser & a Man-pleaser

A God-pleaser is interested in doing that very thing...

Pleasing Christ by serving Christ:

Pursuing Christ’s purposes for life and happiness.

Pursuing Christ’s will for your life.

Christ’s name being glorified through your life.

Christ being given the credit for your good works.

A Man-pleaser is interested in this...

Pleasing himself by God serving him:

Living life for your own happiness at the expense of Christ’s purposes for life and true happiness.

Living your out your will for your life without concern for Christ’s will for your life.

Living life so your name is glorified.

Giving God little to no credit for the good that you do.

A man-pleaser is ultimately concerned with their own glory.

They want to be the Director of their life and the star of the show...

And they want God back in the shadows of backstage ready to hand them whatever they need to gain the applause of the crowd.

Another truth to ponder is...

God’s Perfect Timing

Why did God wait until Paul was on the road to persecute?

Why does God wait to save us when he does?

Why not save us at birth?

Maybe you’ve wonder...

Why did God allow me to do what I’ve done or allow me to go through what I’ve gone through?

Why did God allow me to do such horrible things before saving me?

or Maybe, God has withheld something you want desperately.

We don’t just trust God for justification, but every component of our life.

Listen, just like the Apostle Paul, God is molding you into the person He wants you to be for the specific purposes He has for you to carry out.

Listen to what Paul says elsewhere...

2 Corinthians 1:3–4 (ESV)

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

Because of what we’ve experienced...

We can minister to others the gospel, hence:

Comfort

Encouragement

Hope

Compassion

We, the clay, are called upon to trust the Potter...

And, desire to be used for His glory...

And, the rewards for such a life will be given in eternity for eternity.

Another truth to ponder is that we are all...

Prone to Wander

Just like our study in the book of Haggai, I want us to feel the Galatians.

I want us to be able to sympathize with the Galatians.

Not in order to justify their wanderings...

But to be humble and compassionate...

As Christ is to us.

We are all glory seekers.

Although, if we are saved, we are renewed in the image of God...

The HS is working within us to transform us into the image of Christ...

We still wrestle with fallen, flesh and blood...

Our sinful bodies.

And, so we must be extremely attentive to our hearts...

And, recognize quickly when we are being drawn away from a pursuit of a life loved for the glory of God.

We need to be keenly aware when we are trying to take the Director’s chair in the screenplay of our lives.

And, when we do recognize it...

We go to God in prayer, to confess, repent, and rejoice in Christ...

Who is our salvation.

An effective antidote against false teaching is both a head and heart knowledge of the gospel.

When we truly understand that our righteousness is only in Christ...

We will not be deceived by any other gospel.

One of the practical ways to ensure that we stay true to the gospel...

Is to join and become involved in a church that proclaims the gospel.

Thereby we are accountable to other believers...

And do not try to live the Christian life on our own.

Closing Prayer