Epistles of Paul 19

Well, good evening, brethren. We have been covering the areas of Paul's episodes, and we've been covering the Book of Galatians. And we saw in the previous study that there was a false brethren that came from Judea trying to turn away from the truth. So let's just pick up a few verses there in Galatians that we covered. First is in verse 6, where Paul says, a marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you, him being God the Father who calls us, in the grace of Christ. In other words, in Christ's grace, which is his beloved Son and our Lord and Master, to a different gospel.

And so we see that we have been called by the Father in the grace of Christ. In other words, through Christ's act, but also with the gospel of Christ, which is, as it says here, the grace of Christ, what Christ has done for us. It is an amazing act of submission, of love, of outgoing concern, and of supreme authority from God the Father and Christ himself, because this act of submission shows his authority and his power over everything. It just is amazing. So then we go on here and say this to a different gospel, which is not another.

So people are being turned at this time, that's what Paul is referring to, to another gospel, which is not another, which basically looks the same. That's a deception. In other words, it looks the same. It's perverting the gospel. But there are some that trouble you and want to pervert, to twist, to change, to distort the gospel, the gospel of Christ, of what he's doing for us.

And then he says, whoever does that, even if it is a spiritual world or whatever it is, let him be accursed. And he gives a double curse there, a double curse. And so we mentioned that the first line of attack of these false brethren, the first line of attack was to undermine Paul's authority, was to do everything they could to say, well, Paul's authority really does not have authority.

And Galatians chapter 1 and halfway through Galatians chapter 2, that's Paul defending his apostolic authority. Then in verse 10, he says, for I do now, for do I now persuade men or God? Am I trying to convince men or God? I am not seeking to please men. If I pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ. I am a servant of Christ, Paul says. So I'm not trying to please myself. And then on verse 11 and 12, Paul talks about his conversion through Christ's direct intervention. So look at EI in verse 11, for I may know to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.

I was not one of the apostles going out with Christ. I did not learn from him while he was on earth physically. He very probably, of course, he knew Christ, he knew he was, because Christ was well known amongst all people. But then in verse 12, he says, for I neither received it from man, so he did not receive this instruction from human beings, nor was I taught it by man. But it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ, came through Christ's own teaching.

Christ personally taught me Christ's direct intervention. And then he says in verse 13, for you know of my former conduct in Judaism. In other words, he's not talking about his conduct, as let's call a true follower of God's laws of the Old Testament, he has a conduct in Judaism, which was a different pharacycho approach of God's law. Because he says, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure, and I tried to destroy it.

So we went through that last time that he did try to destroy the church. We went through in Acts how he was a witness to Stephen's martyrdom. And also, he persecuted the church until God called him. And now we stop in verse 14, at the previous lesson. And he says, I advanced in Judaism. Amazing how he uses the word Judaism. It basically is an approach, which is not necessarily biblical. It had a lot of traditions, human traditions, as he calls it, traditions of my fathers. So let's read this. For I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries.

He advanced in these Judaico approaches beyond his contemporaries, beyond those that lived at the same time as he did in his own nation, being more exceeding zealous for the traditions of my fathers. More exceeding zealous for the traditions of my fathers. Not saying more exceeding zealous for God's commandments and God's principles, brought out in the Old Testament, but for the traditions of my fathers. This was the Judaico environment from which he was brought up as a Pharisee, as a strong Pharisee. So let's just talk a little bit about traditions. Let's look at 1 Corinthians chapter 11. 1 Corinthians chapter 11. 1 Corinthians chapter 11, verse 1 and 2. It may take me just as I may take Christ. Now I praise you brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I deliver them to you. There's nothing wrong with traditions. Provided those traditions are following what God tells us to do. We've got to have traditions that follow what God tells us to do. That's what we've got to do. God's traditions, those are good.

So there's nothing wrong with traditions, provided they're good traditions, provided they back up the principles in the Bible. That's why it says follow the law and the testimony. The testimony is the witness of Christ and of the apostles. Basically, they conduct their traditions, their example. That's why it says imitate me as I imitate Christ.

That's why quite often we need to say, don't follow me, but follow Christ. Or follow me as long as I'm following Christ. But if I deviate from the truth, don't follow me. That is a very important point. Now continuing, what were some of the traditions of the Jews?

I'm going to look at two.

I'm going to look at two. There are many others, but let's look at Matthew chapter 15. Matthew chapter 15.

Verse two and three.

Why do your disciples transgress the traditions of the elders? It's the same thing Paul will say, the traditions of my fathers.

Why do Christ's disciples were transgressing the traditions of Judaism, of the Pharisees? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. Now, nowadays, because of COVID, everybody's careful about washing their hands. Is that what it's talking about, hygiene?

We go to verse three. And he answered and said to them, Why do you transgress the commandments of God because of your tradition? You see, Paul was very zealous in these traditions that transgressed the commandments of God.

You see, so the traditions, if they break in God's law, are not good. For Christ then refers to God commanded, honor your father and your mother, and he will curse the father and mother, let him be put. However, who says to his father and mother, Well, I'm not going to give my or going to help my dad or my mom, because you have made that void because you have certain laws that say, No, this I won't give because I made this holy, therefore I'm not going to give it and help my parents. You see, so Christ was criticizing them. And then let's look a little bit further in verse six. Then you need not, because of those traditions, you need not honor his father or mother, thus you made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.

And so we go back. What's wrong with washing hands, then?

Why was Christ criticizing them? By washing hands. You see, the problem is that they had some sort of a specific routine that made them spiritually better people than others spiritually between inverted commas, because of their way they washed hands. It wasn't just hygiene.

So let's look at Mark chapter seven. Mark chapter seven.

Verse three. For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way.

Unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders, was not the act of washing your hands before you eat for hygiene purposes. It was washing their hands all the way up to their elbows in a special way to be better, to be better than others. Look at verse five.

And then Christ answered and said to them, verse six, Well, did not Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites?

I mean, Christ did not beat around the bush. You bunch of hypocrites! Man! He's telling them! He's telling them! Hey, you guys, hypocrites!

Verse three. For those people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of man.

The law of man is not talking about the law of God. It's talking about man-made laws.

Now, Paul, when he talks about laws, sometimes you've got to read the context, because sometimes he may be talking about God's law. Sometimes he may be talking about the ceremonial law, which is killing animals as a sacrifice. Sometimes he may be talking about the law of man.

So you have to read the context, because in the context, you will then understand which law he's referring to. That is very important. That is very important. Now, alone here, I've just described you three types of laws. The law of God, eternal law, the Ten Commandments, the law, which is the ceremonial laws, which were added because of transgressions, and I've also talked about, yeah, laws of man.

So it's very important to understand that.

And so he says, verse 8, For laying aside the commandment of man, you hold the tradition of man, in other words, commandments of man, traditions of the fathers, as Paul referred to. And he said to them in verse 9, All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. And verse 9, Verse 10, Christ criticized them, and this was what Paul was encountering, because he came from Judaism between inverted commas. It's not talking about being anti-Jew. It's talking about this Jewish approach of that time, or in other words, a pharasical approach. Of that time, that was breaking God's laws.

So one tradition I mentioned I said I was going to talk about too. One of them was the way they washed their hands, quote unquote, but in a specific way.

Look at another tradition.

You probably didn't notice this, but look at another tradition in Acts chapter 10 verse 28. Acts chapter 10 verse 28.

Acts chapter 10 verse 28.

Then he said to them, you know, now this is a situation near Peter, and is the situation near the house of Cornelius, and then you know how unlawful.

What law? What law?

Is it God's law? Is it in the Bible?

Because you know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to another nation.

Oh, since when is that God's law that you can't have company with people of other nations?

But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. This was not a biblical law. It was a Jewish law, a tradition of man.

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that Jews can't talk to Gentiles and be with Gentiles and eat to Gentiles. It said if they want to be part of your nation, they have to be circumcised to be integrated into the nation. It's like the nationalization. To be a member of that nation, like to be nationalized, to be part of the nation, they had to be circumcised. But they could be together. Nothing in law says they could not be together.

You see, look also at Acts 11 verse 2.

And when Peter came to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision, in other words, some of the Jews that were of that group, of that clique, in other words, very probably the pharasical faction of the Jews, the pharasies, those of the circumcision, contended with him, saying, you, they said to Peter, you went into an uncircumcised man and ate with them. Where is it in God's law that you cannot eat with Gentiles?

You see, so this was against pharasical law, not against God's law. Look also at Acts 15. Acts 15 verse 1.

And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, unless you are circumcised. Those were the circumcision of that sort of mentality.

Those that are of the circumcision. According to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.

So salvation is because of physical circumcision, which means unless you are circumcised, and unless you are a national of the nation of Israel, circumcised, you cannot be saved. You cannot be saved.

And then he says, therefore, when Paul and Barnabas, you see, Barnabas had traveled with Paul. Barnabas had been in that first missionary trip with Paul all the way. You see, this Acts 15 is after the first missionary trip. So Barnabas had been with Paul all the way. So he knew this very well. He had lived. And there was no small argument.

There was a big raucous, a big argument in the church, in the early church.

And therefore, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and others of them, we read that included Titus as well. In Galatians, we will see that included Titus. And others, either of them, should go to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question, about this big problem that was there in the church in Antioch. So they did go. So we see that Paul was advanced in the tradition of his fathers, as we read in Galatians chapter 1 verse 14. And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation. In other words, he was super righteous in this matter. He was the creme de la creme of this quote-unquote belief. He was really exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. God used a man like that and knocked his head like cracking a nut and said, right now, listen to me. So it just shows up. And then look at it. But when it pleased God, when God decided, now is the time. God knows when to do it. God knows when to do specific things. God who separated me from a mother's womb and called me through his grace.

God had already from whilst Paul was still in his mother's womb, was already set aside because he knew through the family where he would be. And you say, well, is this predestination? No.

And I'll tell you why it's not predestination. You're a very simple example. Some of you play chess. If you play chess, and if you are a good chess player, you are going to kind of pre-determine where your opponent is going to go. And you're going to create certain moves to cause your opponent to go in certain moves so that later on you can checkmate him. You can kind of forecast what the opponent is going to do if you create the right bait. And then later on, you've got the trap and you got him. If you're a good chess player, you can work out your moves in advance. It's not that you can read the future, but it's just that you have that type of brain that you can think it through and you can work it out well in advance.

Do you think that God has that brain? That he can work things out and say, well, with this sort of situations, I can move the pieces of the chess that way. That's why it's not predestined, but when he wants to do something, he can maneuver things for that to happen. That's why God can prophesy and say certain things are going to happen. And it will happen. Why? Because God can make sure it will happen that way because he is powerful enough to do it.

If people disobey him, God says this is going to happen. And he can make sure it will happen because God is the boss. He's not a dictator. He's a loving, caring. But in the end, we are going to fall trapped because of the fruits, if we do wrong, of doing wrong. It will catch people in due time, in due time.

Now continue. So when it pleased God, when it was the right time, who had already separated me from Amanda's womb for this purpose, he was making sure that he had the right education, the right training, was exposed to the right Jewish leaders. Why? Because God needed a man that would go to the Gentiles, that would know Judaism like the back of his hand, to be able to fight and to break through and to create God using this man, create a bridge to break through this Jewish stronghold against Gentiles. So God had to use somebody that really knew the Jewish law. And why not make sure that this individual, Saul, was such a top-notch disciple in that teaching, in that doctrine, superzealous, that then, at the right time, when it pleased God, called him through his grace, called Paul. He had been sanctified, he had been separated for that purpose.

And then, at the right time, God called him when knocked him on the head and said, hello Paul, hello, why are you persecuting me? And then he was blind, and then he had to think about it for three days, and he had to really repent. And he had to accept the authority that God had laid down through his ministry.

God, through Christ, through those apostles, and he had to accept that authority to be healed.

So it just shows that line of authority that existed. And so, continuing, yeah, verse 16, to reveal his son in me that I might preach him among the Gentiles, who might preach the gospel of Christ, who his son did among the Gentiles. So his job was to preach among the Gentiles, and yes, and other, he had a three-fold mission, as we've covered before, but he had one of his main missions is to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. And so I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood. I did not get this apostolic authority by talking to man.

Again, we are called to the ministry. It's not something that we take it upon ourselves.

God calls us to the ministry, and that is a calling from God. And then his calling was to preach to the Gentiles. Now, verse 16, preaching to the Gentiles, why is he focusing on this about preaching to the Gentiles? Because he is defending his apostolic authority, his responsibility that was given to him by God to get through to the Gentiles. Let's look at Romans chapter 11. Romans chapter 11 verse 13. Romans chapter 11 verse 13.

For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry. Why? Why? Because in the Jewish circles, apparently they were undermining, they were running down the ministry to the Gentiles, like second-class citizens, things like that. And Paul is saying, this ministry to the Gentiles is not inferior than the ministry to the Jews.

He is defending his apostolic authority. So, let's go on, continue our reading in verse 17. Nor did I go to Jerusalem to those who were the apostles before me. In other words, I did not get the teaching from man. I did not confer it with flesh and blood, nor did I go to the apostles. There had been apostles before I was.

But I went to Arabia. I went to Arabia and returned again to Damascus.

And then after three years, Paul went to Arabia for three years, for three years, and somehow he was taught in Arabia by Christ himself for three years.

He is training to this apostolic job was given to him directly by Christ, not by man, not by the other apostles that were before him, but this training was given to him by Christ himself.

Now, I went to Jerusalem to see, and then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter and remained with him for 15 days. So, what have we got here? Paul was called probably, probably, I'm not saying for sure, but probably about one year after Christ's death, maybe AD 32. He was taught by Christ for three years.

So, 32 plus three makes it AD 35. Right? Then he went to see Peter and remained there for 15 days.

Verse 19, but I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord's brother. Ah! So, James, the Lord's brother, was an apostle. I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord's brother. Was James the Lord's brother one of the 12 apostles? No, because we know that his brothers, his siblings, didn't believe in him until after his resurrection. But James, the Lord's brother, is an apostle.

Look at Acts 14. 14. Look at Acts 14. 14. And when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard this, ah, the apostles, Barnabas and Paul. So, yeah, we have Barnabas is an apostle, and Paul is an apostle, and James is an apostle. So, there were more than 12 apostles. So, let's continue now in Galatians chapter 1, and now we finished reading verse 19. So, let's read now verse 20. Now, concerning the things which I write to you, indeed, before God, I do not lie. Wait, I'm not lying that I was taught by Christ himself for three years.

I'm not lying that. Afterwards, I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. So, once Paul was taught by Christ, he went to Telpeter, and then he went back to Syria and Cilicia. So, we know he was in that area. And I was unknown by face to the churches in Judea, which were in Christ.

The brethren in Judea did not know of Paul, except they knew that he was the one that had tried to persecute them. Verse 23, but they were hearing only, he who formally persecuted us now preaches the faith, which he once tried to destroy, and they glorified God in me. So, he was not known. And look at chapter 2 verse 1. Then after 14 years, so what do we have is Paul was called, probably AD 32. He was taught for three years, probably till AD 35. And then he goes on for another 14 years, which puts us, what? AD 49, which is the time of the Jerusalem Conference.

So, and that is the time of Acts 15. Right? It all click, click, click, it clicks in.

And so during that period of 14 years, he learned more about God's Word. And then those last few years of those 14 years, that is from AD 45 to AD 48, say about those last three years, because he went to Jerusalem in AD 49. So those last three years, 45 to 48. So that's like after he'd been in the church and been after he had seen Peter for 10 years, he had been taught by Christ for three, then he went to see Peter just for 14 days. And then it was 10 years growing and learning and practicing living. And then he had his first missionary trip for three years. And then there was this big debate in the church, then they ended up going to Jerusalem Conference. You can see how it all fits together. So that puts that together. And now we begin chapter two, because now this is the Jerusalem Conference of Acts 15. So he says, then after 14 years, I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas. Remember Barnabas? Paul and Barnabas were the apostles, as we read in Acts 14, 14, a while ago. And Barnabas went with Paul on his first missionary trip. He, everything, Barnabas was involved in. And Paul, they were working together for that first missionary trip. And also took Titus with me. You see, Titus also went, because remember when it says Paul and Barnabas and other men, which would include Titus, of course, because that's what he says, yeah, and I went by revelation. So what do we have here? Titus went to the Jerusalem Conference to prove a point. And we'll get to that in a moment. And then he says, and I went up by revelation. What do you mean by that? Well, by revelation is one Greek word, Greek 602, Apokalupsus, it could be translated because of, by, because of, in fact, in my Bible, in my New King James Version, there where it says, by, next to by, he's got a little one, and then in my margin says because of.

So I went up because of revelation. What do you mean? Of the scholars. Explaining whose truth, disclosure of this truth. So you went because of the need to disclose this truth, this understanding of what is happening with the Gentiles. So that's why they went to the Jerusalem Conference to explain what was happening. Translated by revelation. But it could be translated because of the disclosure of this truth.

And then he says, and communicated to them. So when you look at Acts 15, verse four, so let's look very briefly at Acts 15, verse four, it says, and they, and when they came to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all things that God had done to them. That's what it's saying there in Galatians chapter two, verse two. You went up to report all these things, to explain, to disclose the truth of what's happening, to give them the news of his missionary trip, and how God was working and calling Gentiles. But he went to the church and the apostles and the elders. And so when we go back to Galatians 2, verse two, it says, and communicated to them, who's them? The church and the apostles and the elders. That gospel which I preached among the Gentiles. That good news that I preached among the Gentiles, but privately to those who wear, what do you mean, but privately to those who wear a pair of reputations. You see, he then went privately to those that were members of the conference. Like I said, but separately, but particularly with specific focus, he went, let's call it, to that council of elders. You know, he went to that privately. So he went to the church, but then privately, like in an executive session, he then went and discussed this situation. Let's call it in an executive session about what God was doing. It is so privately to those who wear. So let's look at Acts 15 verse 6. Acts 15 verse 6. He says, and now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. So he went to the church, but then privately, in particular, in like an executive council session, he then got together with the apostles and elders to discuss this hot issue about Gentiles coming into the church, because those that were of the circumcision were saying, well, these Gentiles now need to do this to be saved. So hey, this is a big issue. So he went privately to these people to discuss that. So let's continue now in Galatians chapter 2 verse 2, to those that were of reputation, lest by any means I might run or had run in vain.

In other words, I might run. That's in the present continuous tense.

Might run or had run. Or put it in otherwise.

Otherwise, it was the work that he was doing, so that the work that he was doing and that he had done would not be in vain. He had to discuss this so that with the elders, with the leadership of the church, with the council, let's call it that, and otherwise this, the work he had been doing, and he had done, that he was doing and had done, to the Gentiles that God was calling through the ministry to the Gentiles, Gentiles, so that this would not be in vain. And now continuing in verse 3, Yet not even Titus, remember I mentioned just now a moment ago that Titus went really to prove a point, and here is the point that Titus proved by being dead, because Titus was a Gentile. Titus was a Greek, therefore Titus was not circumcised, and he said, but yet not even Titus, who was with me being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. So when Titus, which was with Paul, which was a Gentile, which was one of those that had been converted, the apostles at that meeting did not say, hey, you got a circumcised Titus. No, that was not even compelled. So that was not even mentioned, put it another way. Why? Because why? Because they recognized by Titus the fruits of a Gentile having God's early spirit, and he wasn't circumcised. So they saw by the fruits. So Titus went as a witness, a living witness of what God was doing to Gentiles. He has a man becoming a pillar in the church, right, becoming an elder in the church. We know we've got the epistle to Titus. So yeah, we have a man, and God was using him. So that says that yet not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised.

Okay, let's now look at verse four. And this occurred, you see, this whole issue, this whole Jerusalem conference, all this occurred. Why? Because because false brethren, false brethren, or maybe they were brethren, maybe they were in the church, but there was something wrong there. False brethren secretly brought in, who came in by stealth, to spy our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage. You see, these false brethren came in by stealth.

It's like a stealth aircraft, you know, your radar doesn't pick it up. He came in very subtly, you see, Satan is subtle. He says he was more subtle than all the animals, it said, when the serpent came to Adam. Subtle, subtle, deceiving, deceiving. They came in by stealth, like under the radar, that he was infiltrating into the church.

Under the radar, subtle, little Isaiah, little Twesiah, subtle. Oh, that is dangerous.

Brought in, secretly brought in, who came in by stealth, to spy out our liberty.

You know, so what do you mean, our liberty? So in first place, these were Pharisees. You read that in Acts 15 verse five. Acts 15 verse five. Well, in verse one, you know, unless you are circumcised, Yah is talking about false brethren. And then in Acts 15 verse five, it says, but some of the sect of the Pharisees. See, these were Pharisees. This is the so-called Judaism. And Paul himself said, when he was defending his position, he said, I was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. You know, he was like, you know, super zealous about that.

So he's talking about Pharisees that came to spy our liberty in Christ, our liberty, which we have in Christ. What is liberty? What is liberty? Is liberty to do what it pleases me?

That's not liberty. That's pain and suffering. You see, if you do or pleases you sooner or later, there's gonna be pain. Oh yeah! In the short term, it may appeal good. It may appeal, I have the sense of peace. Or it may appeal, I get some satisfaction.

But that is short term, because after that is suffering and pain.

True liberty is the liberty to live as we should. True liberty is to live as we should, not to live as we please.

Oh, people today says, well, you are liberated from the law, from the law. You don't have to keep God's commandments. Oh, so I can kill now? If I can murder people, I'm liberated from the law.

To what were we slaves?

Romans chapter 6 verse 20. Romans chapter 6 verse 20. Romans chapter 6 verse 20.

For when we were slaves of sin, you were free, regarded to righteousness. Slaves of sin. Look at verse 16. Romans chapter 6 verse 16. Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves, slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey. If you're a slave, whether to sin, leading to death, or of obedience, leading to righteousness. Slaves of sin. That means slaves of Satan. Slaves of demonism. And that brings fear.

That brings problems to people. People that are influenced by Satan, they have mental problems. They struggle. They are suffering.

Or they were free to do everything. Or when they first got the sin, I just had this feeling of such peace. Because now they don't have any peace. You see, Satan is subtle, comes in by stealth, and so his ministers come in by stealth.

In Galatians chapter 1 verse 4, last week we mentioned about this. Let me just emphasize this again. I was talking about grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil age. You remember I mentioned the word evil there is a word that implies that you that being Satan wants to cause evil. I said it's not just evil, but wants to cause trouble and pain. So that is this present evil age. We as Christians, we are called as Christians to be liberated from this bondage of Satan. Our calling is not for us to be free to do or live as we please, which in the end does not really make us free, but makes us slaves of Satan and his demons of demonism. Therefore, we are really free from this bondage of Satan. That's why it says you're free. Yeah, in Galatians chapter 2, it says that these people that come in in stealth, they bring us into bondage, because in the end we are being deceived by Satan.

So this is brethren where we're going to stop today. We'll continue with this next lesson. And thank you so much, and you all have a good evening.