July 31, 2022 - The Boast of the Flesh
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Today we come to the last section of text in this book of Galatians...
A section that will take us a couple of weeks to walk through...
We’ve seen a clear theme play out in this book - from start to finish...
IN CONTEXT - we know the issues that plagued the churches in Galatia...
The MAIN issue being the infiltration of FALSE TEACHERS into the churches!
The FALSE TEACHING - BEING - that the Gentile believers would need to be physically circumcised in order to GET to God...
And so PAUL - KNOWING the seriousness of that CLAIM (false teaching) - he closes out this letter with his own STRONG CLAIM...
11 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.
12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
I love the apostle Paul - BECAUSE - at least in SOME ways i feel like I’m LIKE HIM...
Depending on the situation - I don’t mind RUFFLING some feathers...
DOING or SAYING something that keeps people - OFF BALANCE...
How does Paul start this closing section?
11 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.
Why would Paul SAY this?
Well - based on other statements made by Paul in his other letters, it was common place for Paul to have ORALLY dictated his letters to a scribe (or someone else) - who THEN WOULD HAVE written his words down...
We see these comments in...
1 Cor 16:21
2 Cor 10:1
2 Thess 3:17
and Col 4:18
And so most commentators believe THIS VERSE HERE is where Paul took the PEN into his OWN HAND - and began writing...
And i think he DID this because he wanted to EMPHASIZE how important his last words would be to the Galatians!
English Standard Version Chapter 6
See with what large letters I am writing to you jwith my own hand.
What I’m about to say - is VITALLY important to your eternity!
What we will see from Paul here is one last SHOWDOWN between...
The Spirit and the Flesh!
And here’s what Paul knows....
He KNOWS that THE FLESH - WARS against the SPIRIT!
Now we’ve HEARD this before - even in this book
17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
And Paul KNEW - maybe MORE THAN anybody - that this WAR - was a REAL - war...
Just look over in Russia and Ukraine right now - No different!
See - I think when you grow up in American Christianity - you get used to embracing cliches - while ignoring reality
Here in the U.S - as Christians - we’ll hear - HEY, Christianity is a life Spiritual warfare.... (that’s true)
....and we respond by saying - No problem - I’m IN! (smile)
But once you hear - Hey, Christianity is a life of potential physical WARFARE...
Our response is - NOPE - didn’t sign up for that!!
Spiritual Warfare - No problem!
Physical Warfare - Uhhh…no thanks!!
Paul KNEW - that the TRUTH of God - PREACHED in 1st Century Jerusalem, Rome, Galatia...
Would lead to - - PAIN (physical.pain)
But he was - IN! All in!
Were the False Teachers ALL IN?
12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
We just mentioned it - Paul KNEW (because he experienced it) ....
SLIDE: Point 1
The flesh values man’s religion over God’s revelation
Let’s go back to the text...
12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
*How many of you would spend $100 for this pen?
$50?
$20?
$10?
$1.00?
Why not?
The reason is because you don’t - VALUE this pen.
Ok so maybe you wouldn’t spend money for it...
BUT...
*How many of you would spend your life proclaiming the greatness of this pen?
How many of you would go OVERSEAS - to Afghanistan...
…and tell the Taliban that they need to WORSHIP this pen?
How do you think THAT would turn out?*
Another way to ask the question would be: Who is willing to SUFFER for this pen?
Anyone?
NO - why?
Because NO ONE VALUES the pen…ENOUGH to suffer for it...
We typically won’t suffer for things we value at less than $1...
*How many of you would DIE for this pen?
*How many of you would DIE for your kids?
What’s the difference? - - What’s the base level difference??
VALUE!
Would I sell my kids to $100M?
That’s EASY to answer!
Why?
VALUE
My kids - to ME - are INFINITELY valuable…there IS NO AMOUNT of money that SUPERSEDES their VALUE in my heart!
THEREFORE - i WOULD SUFFER for my kids....UNTO death!
What did Paul just SAY in this verse?
Read it again...
12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order [that] they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
Do you see this idea of VALUE being played out here?
Paul says - the REASON that the false teachers PUSHED physical circumcision - was SO THAT they wouldn’t be persecuted - for PREACHING OTHERWISE - (the cross of Christ)...
See - the cross of Christ - IS OFFENSIVE to - THE FLESH
The cross of Christ - annihilates ALL WORKS-BASED religion…!
And BECAUSE that’s TRUE - the cross of Christ EXPOSES the PRIDE of the FLESH!!
The FLESH - CANNOT STAND the reality of FAITH ALONE in CHRIST ALONE...
And so WHEN faith alone in Christ alone is PREACHED - the FLESH FIGHTS BACK!!
It’s CALLED - Persecution!!
The Flesh - SEES NO VALUE in the Cross of Jesus Christ!
Why do you think these verses EXIST? (ask why)
23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.
24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;
26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers;
27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.
WHY?
Because the FLESH FIGHTS - AGAINST the Cross of Christ...
The Flesh finds NO VALUE in the Cross of Christ!
The FLESH is NOT GOING TO - SUFFER for the SAKE of the Cross…!
The FLESH WARS AGAINST the cross...
12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
The Cross of Christ is the ENEMY of the FLESH!
And in the Flesh’s MIND - we don’t SUFFER on BEHALF of our enemy!
And so PAUL - looking out at the landscape of the Galatian churches - and seeing the BATTLE going on for the SOULS of the people...
Paul let’s the churches KNOW that the REASON physical circumcision is being PUSHED...
…is so that those PUSHING IT - won’t be PERSECUTED for ELEVATING the cross of Christ - OVER physical circumcision!
Do you see how - the MASSES can control people’s ACTIONS?
The Flesh PERSECUTES the things of the Spirit....
The Flesh of man finds NO VALUE in the cross of Jesus Christ....yet
Paul wasn’t AFRAID of persecution because - - he VALUED the cross of Christ!
He knew TRUTH is what was needed - AT ANY COST!
**Can we say the same?
Do we find ourselves - LIVING on MISSION…?
OR - Do we care TOO MUCH what the world thinks?
I HOPE we’re willing to suffer for our KIDS… I think we all would...
But will we CHOOSE to suffer for Christ?
And so Paul - he pressed on!!
Next verse…(half verse)
13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
What we see here is this...
SLIDE: Point 2
The flesh values a glorified self over a glorified Christ
We see this kind of thing ALL THE TIME now - in Sports...
More than EVER BEFORE…we see athletes… SEEKING to be GLORIFIED!
LOOK at ME!!
A guy making Millions of Dollars to put a ball in a basket - puts the ball in the basket - and ACTS LIKE he just cured CANCER!!
A guy making MILLIONS of dollars to score touchdowns - scores a touchdown - and ACTS LIKE he was just crowned KING of the WORLD!
Imagine being at your place of employment - and you turn in your financial report and after you put that report on your bosses desk - you DO A LITTLE SHIMMY…a little SHAKE and a - LOOK AT ME!!
Weird right?
BUT - we can’t just scoff at athletes -
We do this same thing in other ways!
The flesh values a glorified self - OVER a glorified Christ!
If we just go back to our verse, we’ll see this...
Half-verse
13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
What does this SAY - about the flesh?
It says...
The flesh - is MORE INTERESTED…in displaying ITSELF to the world (physical circumcision) - than displaying Christ to the world (by keeping the law)
The FLESH desires to GLORIFY itself - RATHER than Glorify Christ
And Christ Himself spoke to this...
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness.
DO you see it?
These men were simply HYPOCRITES...
They VALUED displaying the PHYSICAL -
They VALUED a GLORIFIED SELF....
Putting themselves on DISPLAY...
NOT putting Christ on Display…in their hearts
3 Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?”
Again - these men VALUED Glorifying THEMSELVES - while they DISHONORED God by rejecting His law...
And what we need to know is this...
All RELIGIONS outside of Christianity - operate this same way!
They seek to GLORIFY SELF - over Jesus Christ!!
All religions outside of Christianity - tell you the same thing!
DO BETTER - so that God will ACCEPT you!
But this is where PRIDE comes in...
When we seek to GET TO GOD by our own works - we then have something to BOAST IN....
…And the FLESH - LOVES this!
Our flesh SEEKS GLORY for itself!
It seeks to SATISFY the pride it CULTIVATES!
This is why Jesus had the conversations He had with the Pharisees....
46 “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts,
47 who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
Hear all the PHYSICALITY in these verses?
long robes
greetings in the marketplace
best seats in the synagogues
places of honor
long prayers
Remember last week - we talked about - SOWING to the FLESH!
1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,
2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat,
3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.
4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.
5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,
6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues
7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.
These prideful men made their PHYLACTERIES BROAD - and their fringes LONG...
SLIDE: Phylactery
A phylactery was - essentially a PRAYER BOX - that they would use to help them carry out their devotional times of Prayer...
Same thing happens today...
The bigger the house....
The bigger the boat
The bigger the plot of land
The bigger the SUV
The bigger the salary
The bigger the wheels
The bigger the diamond
The bigger the party
The bigger the.........CHURCH
It happens today....we’re not EXEMPT...
Our FLESH - is alive and WELL....
And OUR flesh - elevates SELF over Christ!
At EVERY turn!
Questions to think about:
How much PRIDE is in - the Modern Worship Music Scene…? And that includes - the church at large
How much pride do we see within the celebrity Pastor arena?
We see glimpses of this thing called PRIDE - and it should cause us to PAUSE and take inventory...
What have we seen so far?
The Flesh Values Man’s Religion Over God’s Revelation
The Flesh Seeks a Glorified Self Over a Glorified Christ
And if we go back to our text....
13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
We see here...
SLIDE:
The flesh boasts in the seen (flesh) while reality rests in the unseen (Spiritual)
What does this mean?
Back to our text....
13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
Why did the false teachers PUSH physical circumcision?
It says - because they desired to BOAST in YOUR flesh!
They viewed those they CONVINCED to get circumcised as - Another NOTCH in the BELT!
The false teachers JOY -
RESTED in the Gentiles CONFORMITY to outside pressure...
NOT TRANSFORMATION of their hearts!
Speaking plainly....their goal - was foreskins.
How many could we get...
They were merely about the - NUMBERS...
And what was playing out in the Galatian churches was eerily similar to an Old Testament story from 1st Samuel...
In 1st Samuel we read of David, wanting to marry Saul’s daughter - Michal
But Saul had a proposition...
There was a PRICE on his daughter’s head...
AND - Saul had a HIDDEN agenda to do David harm...
But what Saul did was tell David - if you want to marry my daughter - it will require 100 foreskins of the Philistines...
David agreed - but in typical David fashion...
27 David arose and went, along with his men, and killed two hundred of the Philistines. And David brought their foreskins, which were given in full number to the king, that he might become the king’s son-in-law. And Saul gave him his daughter Michal for a wife.
WOW - I’m glad that marriage customs have changed over the years...
But what we see here is a reflection of how the False Teachers were handling the Gentiles...
The False teachers wanted to BOAST in the FLESH of the Gentiles!
Each foreskin - a notch in their belt!
Each one - a MARK (in their minds) of their success!
- And so - in understanding the ISSUES here - we need to really understand what TRUE SUCCESS is.
The Gentiles - in the minds of the False Teachers - were PAWNS in their earthly competition.
And how RELEVANT this is - for us today....
*How often do we make the PHYSICAL - our success gauge?
How often do pastors make - NUMBERS the goal...
so much so that their joy RESTS in the numbers
How often do pastors make - water baptisms the goal...
So much so that their joy RESTS in the numbers
How often do pastors make altar calls the goal...
so much so that their joy rests in the numbers
How often do church goers make “GOING TO CHURCH” the goal....
so much so that their joy RESTS in the number or frequency of times
How often do church goers make READING their Bible the goal...
so much so that their joy RESTS in the number of times or frequency of times
How often do church goers make...
teaching a class
a % of giving
....the GOAL....
Where their JOY - rests in the act itself!
DO you see how RELEVANT - MOTIVES are in the church…in our walks of faith??
Do we see how RELEVANT - where our JOY rests - IS to our walks of faith?
Paul is writing today - with BIG LETTERS - as he said...
If we just look back to our points for today - we see the MISSION of our FLESH...
SUMMARY
The flesh values man’s religion over God’s revelation
In Galatia - the false teachers SO valued physical circumcision that they - MADE it a REQUIREMENT to get to God!
The flesh values a glorified self over a glorified Christ
In Galatia - the False teachers WARRED AGAINST the idea of displaying Christ to the world - by the weightier matters of the LAW...
Justice / Mercy / Faith
They sought to GLORIFY THEMSELVES - over and above Christ
The flesh boasts in the seen (flesh) while reality rests in the unseen (Spiritual)
The False teachers were ALL about the physical!
They BOASTED in how many CONVERTS they had!
They were the modern day pastors whose joy RESTS in the number of butts in the seats...
The modern day church goer whose joy RESTS in their church attendance or their church engagement...
Today we’ve seen THE BOAST of the FLESH!
May we be a people who war against the flesh - seeking to boast ONLY in the one who saved us FROM our flesh...
Let’s pray