Galations, Part 3

Well, last month, in this set of Bible studies, we covered up to the relations 215. So my intent today is to cover the whole content of six verses from 216 to 221. The best way for me to start and introduce the subject is the following. And you'll probably have experienced something similar. Many years ago, for a number of years in the Church in Johannesburg, I used to do the public address system. And in those days, you had to set up the PA, as we used to call public address, and we had long cables for the speakers, and you had to roll out these cables to put out those enormous column speakers.

And then you also had to put out cables to run all the way through to the mic. You know, nowadays, people have remote mics with, you know, radio or whatever you're using. So you don't have a lot of that. But you had long, and then we had to do that every week, pack and unpack, read a big box, and you had to roll these cables. And there was a special way of rolling, because you know, if you roll these cables one way and then roll another way, and whatever, they end it. And if you don't roll them carefully, they get all knotted up.

I don't know if you have seen cables when they really get knotted up. Then you've got this mess of wires all knotted up. It's like wool all knotted up, you know. You know, you've got this roll of wool, and then you get this wool all knotted up, and you've got to take this knot, and it can take you hours to a knottess. And then you put it straight. Another example is the hose pipe. I don't know if you lay out a hose pipe, and you guard it, and you leave it there, and then you move with this.

The next thing you've got a knot in your hose pipe. And you don't notice, and you leave it there, and you pull it, and a knot gets started. And you, and a knot, but it's got that kink in it. And the next time you roll it up, it kind of always goes back to that kink. You know, it's kind of annoying, but it happens. Now, spiritually speaking, it's kind of the same thing. Satan has put out certain, let's call it distortions of the truth, which knots the truth into such knots that it's sometimes, it's difficult, number one, to a knot it.

And number two, when you do a knot it, and you leave it for a while, then you go back to it six months later, it feels like it's already again not again again. You know, you get that knot back in, and you got to a knot. And, and this is really the problem, in a sense. That has happened all through the ages. Satan is being very clever to knock things up. I mean, I enjoyed the sermonette, and I appreciate the sermonette, Charles, because when you mention it, you know about feelings and fact, and people always go the area of feelings.

I mean, Satan also uses that in feelings. You think about the world's holidays. It's all about emotions and feelings. Oh, how pretty this is. Why can't you do it? Because it's so pretty. What's wrong by doing this? Because it's only giving, you know. It's all feelings and emotions, and people get caught onto these things. And likewise, in the understanding of justification. The understanding of justification is, in a sense, a very simple concept. It really is very simple. But Satan has knotted it up, like this little cords that have been knotted up and got kinks into it, etc.

That time and time again, when people look at it, it's so easy to get back into that knot and get it misunderstood. And that is the problem. So today, we want to continue with Galatians, chapter 2. We'll actually start from verse 15, because that's the beginning of the sentence. But let me just go back a few steps, just to put it into context, so that it helps us to understand. Basically, there were some people coming into the church in the area of Galatians, and putting these false understandings around the truth, the gospel of Christ, basically.

In other words, the understanding that we are saved freely by Christ, by Christ's sacrifice, and therefore by what He did for us. It was an act that we don't deserve it, none of us deserves it, and it's an act of motivated by pure love of God towards us, and He did it.

And therefore, there's nothing that you and I can do to pay back. It's just a gift. It's a wonderful gift. It is a gift. And therefore, Paul was saying to them that we are justified freely by the sacrifice of Christ. Now, this is exactly where the problem starts, because people don't understand what justification is. First, they think, well, justification means you're saved, and therefore, it means, well, you're already saved. Well, justification does not mean saved. It means justification. You know, and what is it? I mean, say it yourself in your brain.

Say it yourself. What is justification? Just say it yourself. And in simple words, basic means it's being made right. It's being made just. It's being made correct.

Another way of saying is it's being reconciled. Think about it. When we're justified, that means we are right with God. Our relationship with God is now right. That's what justified is.

Now, what makes our relationship with God wrong?

Our sins, right? Our sin separates us from God. As simple as that.

So, our sins and the penalty of sin is death. So, our sins say you have a penalty, and the penalty is you've got to die. That's as simple as that. There's nothing I can do but die to pay for it. Now, once I'm dead, I'm dead. So, but I'll fight for it, but I'm dead. So, what's it good?

So, Christ died for us out of his own free will. So, we are made right because he paid the penalty for us by his own free will. As simple as that. It's actually very simple. That's what it means. Justified means our relationship with the Father is now reestablished, is now reconnected.

It's now switched back on, you know, in modern terms, you know, for the younger people. It's switched on. The internet is working, you know? You've got the connection. It's linked up. That's what it is. It's you reconnected. You justified means things have been sorted out that you have a direct connection to the Father because before that you did not have and what separated us. Our sins. That's putting it very simple, which means there's nothing that you and I can do to fix it. I'm going to give you in a different example. I always like to refer to the example of traffic and going through a traffic light and getting a phone. But I'm going to use a different example. Still related to traffic, but slightly different. Imagine that you drive under the influence of alcohol and you caught and you got a DUI. Now, that's pretty serious. That's pretty serious because if you have a DUI and if it's a repeat offense, but even if it's not a repeat offense, depends which state, whatever law is exactly applicable in the state, but an offense of driving under the influence could put you in jail, could affect your driver's license, will affect your insurance, how much you pay in your insurance because your driver's license change is going to affect how much you're going to pay in insurance. I mean, it's got a whole lot of consequences.

And you could pay a fine to actually maybe not go in jail or whatever it is or whatever, but there's still a record that the insurance company has.

And whenever you go for a life insurance policy or whatever it is, there's one little question there that says, have you ever had a DUI? I mean, they always ask you that. Believe it or not, I did sell insurance and I know once upon a time that's always there. So, I mean, even if you've paid the fine and you're cleared, it's always on that record. Did you have this? Now, Christ's sacrifice is one that says he's paid, quote-unquote, for that DUI and he's erased the record. So then when you go and do that insurance, have you ever had a DUI? He says, no, it's clean, freely. Now, let me ask you a question. Does it mean, therefore, that now I have the right to drive under the influence of God?

Obviously, no, that's ridiculous. But that's what the world and the Satan's distorted thing says, well, you justified freely and now that Christ has saved you and whatever it is, you can! There's no law. Ridiculous. That's the kink that Satan has put into this, let's call it, whole spot of understanding what God's law is. And mankind, all of mankind, is according to it.

So Paul is saying, listen, there was some false brethren, as you can see in chapter 2, verse 4, there was some false brethren that came. And they came in secretly by stealth and he says, to spy on our liberty. You know, as they came and understand what we're doing, so they could plot against it. You know, when you spy against somebody, you look at it and see how I can plot against it. And what is our liberty? He says, our liberty, which we have in Christ. Oh, therefore, we don't have to keep the law. No, no, no, no. How liberty is that we were in jail, we were under, for instance, in the example I was giving, we had a record of driving under the influence, and now we have our liberty that the record is erased. We're no more under that penalty. We have been liberated from that penalty. We don't have that sin against us anymore.

That's our liberty. So, so he's trying to explain, listen, we have a liberty in Christ. What is a liberty? Liberty is liberty from the penalty of breaking the law. We've been freed. But that does not mean we can now go on and break the law. That means we don't have that penalty. Okay, but now I'm going to drive carefully. You know, I'm not going to do it again. That's the point. So he's trying to explain that, you know, these false brethren are trying to spy, because they're saying that that's not good enough. You have to do something else on top. It's like the Catholics. You have to do something else. What do they call it? If you've been a Catholic or have seen a Catholic, it's called penance. You know, you've got to do penance. I mean, I don't know if you've seen, but before Easter Sunday, as they call it, for 40 days, you've got a period of penance. In fact, day 41 is the day of carnival, as you probably know, because it's the day with go wild in the flesh, because for the next 40 days, you've got to kind of behave yourself. So that's the 40 days of so-called penance, which is coming out in February now, as you know, particularly in Brazil, when you have carnival, which is always, if I worked it out, I think it's Tuesday, because 40 days, whatever it is, from a Sunday backwards, it works out onto a Tuesday or something like that. And then they're going to have a carnival, and then after that, they go on to this penance. And if you've seen some of the Catholics, they go on to mountains, and they crawl up those mountains, carrying things on the backs, crawling on their knees, bleeding on their knees for penance. I mean, I am not lying. You can go and search for yourself. They do it. That's a fact. They do it. Penance. In other words, you've got to have works to make yourself right with God. It's the same concept. You've got to have works to make yourself right. And those works are penance, works of some sense. And Paul is saying, hey, you don't need works to make yourself right with God. Christ has done it for you freely. Obviously, on certain conditions. Conditions that you believe that in Him and believe, conditions that you're going to repent and live a new life now. Those are the conditions of baptism that you know, fights and repentance. That's it. Simple as that. But now we're going to live a new life. And that's what Paul is saying in this section. And we're going to go through it, and we're going to see. That's exactly what he's addressing. So, but he was saying, listen, there is these people coming in, upsetting and telling us that we've got to do specific things to be justified, because justified freely by Christ is not enough. And one of them, for instance, he said, come see. And he says, and that was a very cause why we had to go to the Jerusalem conference.

And then we discussed it with Peter and the other apostles. We had a conference, and under the guidance of God's Holy Spirit, we saw, yeah, that no, that's we just defied freely by Christ. We don't have to do these things, although those things were instructed for these relights, but they were physical things, part of the physical covenant of these relights, but not to the Gentiles. And so he explained that. And therefore they gave him, they gave Paul, the right hand of fellowship, as you can see in the middle of verse 9. They gave him the right hand of fellowship, says you, one of the apostles, we support you, we're behind you, we're all working together. Paul, you're going to this area, and we're going to that area, and we work together, we won, and that's it. But even then, even Peter then slipped up, and even Peter, he says, but even Peter then can read that in verse 11, even Peter slipped up, because he started bringing in some of the Jewish beliefs, like for instance, when the brethren are together, he would eat with the brethren, that were Gentiles. But when the Jewish brethren came into the fellowship, he separated himself, he segregated himself, and he would not eat on the same table. Imagine we have a potluck, yeah? And the potluck, we have some Jews, and we've got some non-Jews, and you have to set up two potluck tables. One's for the Jews, and one for the non-Jews. And Peter knew very well, because you remember, and he reminds him, he knew that, because 15 years before he had had that dream, when he had to go, I think, if I remember correctly, to the House of Cornelius, and he had a dream, was the sheep came down with clean and unclean animals, and then he says, no, I can't eat this, and then he had that dream a few times, and then he came to realize that what God was telling him is, do not call any man unclean. In other words, don't discriminate any person. All people are the same. All people are the same. So Peter made a mistake, and therefore, I corrected him publicly, because he didn't mistake publicly. So that brings me to verse 14. And in verse 15, he says, we who are Jews by nature, you know, it's we, and he's talking to those that are mentioned, those that are Jews by nature, because they're not always Jews, but we are Jews by nature, you know, it was by our genetic descent we are Jews, and because of that, we have God's laws, and God's ceremonial laws, it's because the Jewish people had those laws, and not sinners of the Gentiles. In other words, we not the Gentiles, which the Jews saw them as sinners. It was the Jews saw, we Jews are not sinners, but the Gentiles are sinners. But we ourselves, being Jews by nature, we know now that we are in God's church, we know that a man is not justified by the works of the law. In other words, a man is not made right by works of law. In other words, we are not made right by any physical thing we do in the law. Now, it's very interesting at this point to add a point here of very importance, is that in the Greek, in the Greek, the article that, T-H-E, the article that does not appear. And so in Greek says, knowing that a man is not justified by works of law. In Greek, a man is not justified by works of law. Now, this is interesting because it has a far broader meaning than God's law, which is what people are trying to say. In Greek, it says ergon nomo, which means law works, works of the works of law, not the works of the law.

The definite article is not in there, which is a principle which is a broad principle. Therefore, the principle is works of law do not pay the fine of a law. And that is a broad principle of price to every law, which means me driving through an intersection, always through a green light, will not pay the fine of going through the red light. In other words, works of crossing an intersection correctly does not pay the fine of a previous intersection. That's what he's saying. So works of law, it's generic, it's a principle that he's talking about. Put it another way, a work of driving always without being under the influence will not pay the fine of having driven under influence. So works of law do not pay for a previous transcription. So that's really what he's saying there. Put it another way. What the Jews were doing, they were adding different laws that would give them a justification to maybe not obey God's law or to work around God's law. For instance, you remember with, for instance, you can read that in Mark 7 where he says that they called things like they were Corbin. Oh, this is Corbin. Therefore, I don't have to do it to my mom and dad. I don't have to help out my mom and dad because this is Corbin. And therefore, I've got to give it to the church. And Christ was pretty upset with them and said, you guys, you're making the law of God of no value by sticking to your tradition.

You see, so Christ always criticized them for the tradition. I mean, you look at time and gain. Paul was the Gentiles. The Gentiles says to the Gentiles, you know, the religious rights of your Gentiles are not going to make, are not going to forgive you anything. Any religious rights of offering sacrifices or anything like that are not going to make anything right.

Even, even offering animal sacrifices within the Jewish law cannot forgive your sins.

You know, that's what's in the Bible. Offering the sacrifices of goats and lambs cannot forgive people's sins. Let's look at that in Hebrews chapter 10. Keep a little tab in the relations because we're going to come back to relations for some reason. I'm joking. Of course, we're coming to relations. We'll get it back to you. But Hebrews chapter 10. Hebrews chapter 10.

Let's read the first four verses of Hebrews chapter 10. Now, that's very interesting because it says, for the law. Now, which law? Now, here it says, the law. Which law? Now, by context, and you're going to see, as we're going to read a bit further, but by context, we can clearly see that it's talking about the ceremonial law of animal sacrifices. The law which was added because of transgressions. It's like saying, yeah, it's a law that says these are the fines that you've got to pay for the following transgressions. So yeah, it's a law that says, always go on a green light and always go on a red light. Or it never goes on a red light. Yeah, it's another law that says, if you go on the red light, he has your fine. So there's a law that itemizes the fine. How much you got to pay? So there's a law of that was added specifying the rights, the ceremonial rights, the ceremonial law. For the law, adding a shadow of things to come. The law is a shadow of things to come. Exactly. The ceremonial law is, I've got the scapula and the light is very diffused, but if I had a spotlight here, strong light, then I would have a shadow at the bottom from the scapula. The shadow is not a reality. The reality is a cup. The shadow is only, let's call it an image, or something that tells me that indeed there is a cup, but it's not the cup. Likewise, the ceremonial law was only a shadow, you know, that little shadow of the real sacrifice. Those sacrifices were only a shadow of the real sacrifice, which is Christ's. So let's go on. So for the law, that's the ceremonial law, the one of animal sacrifices, having a shadow of things to come, which yes, the things to come was Christ and his sacrifice, and not the very image of the things. So those shadows was not the reality, not the very image of the reality. The reality is Christ. It's his sacrifice. So the law, as it says, the ceremonies, those animal sacrifices, can never, with these same sacrifices, yeah, you see, so it's talking about sacrifices, the law with these sacrifices, can never, with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. In other words, these sacrifices can never make the people that do those sacrifices perfect. In other words, can't make them righteous, can't make them right with God, cannot make them forgiven, because if they did, they wouldn't have to sacrifice again. I mean, if you pay the fine, why pay it every year? Why pay it every day? Oh, I've got to pay the fine, and by the way, you've got to pay it every month.

What do you mean? If they'd been paid, you wouldn't have to pay it again. That's what he's saying. He said, can never, with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then, would they not have ceased to be offered? Yeah. If they really paid for the sacrifices, they would have ceased to be offered. They wouldn't have to offer them again. For the worshipers, once purified, if indeed that those sacrifices would purify, if they indeed purify, would not have more consciousness of sin. So if it really had paid the fine, you wouldn't be worried about. There would be no more record, no more record of being under DUI. You would not have to go to the insurance company every time they ask you, have you driven under DUI, whatever it is, no, never, because there's no conscience of it. It's gone. It's gone. Only Christ sacrificed. He raises it. Gone. Perfectly what? Righteous.

Wow. Think about it. That's what it means. That you don't have to ever say, I was a sinner, because it's gone. It's gone. It's the consciousness. But in those sacrifices, there is a reminder of sins every year. Why? Because they don't forgive. Verse 4 says, for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sin.

It is not possible that the animal sacrifices to erase sin.

There were only a shadow of the reality, and the reality is Christ. And Christ's sacrifice is the only one that wipes away sin. We are justified by Christ's sacrifice, not by any other sacrifice for bull or goats or anything like that. They were a reminder. It's like you and I, you have the days of unleavened bread, and you eat unleavened bread. It's just a physical reminder that when you do it, it kind of draws that lesson into us. It's just a physical reminder. That's why in the world tomorrow, they will again have sacrifices. Yes, by the Israelites, not by the Gentiles, but again they'll have sacrifice in the world tomorrow. There'll be a temple, there'll be sacrifices. Not that they will take away sins, but they'll just be as a point of education, a reminder of the people to educate. And it says, yeah, that's what we need and we thank for Christ's sacrifice. It's just a reminder as physical human beings. That's what it is. So the point is, no works of any law can take away sin. No works of any law can take away sin. It basically says, parents cannot pay for your sins. That's really what it's saying for those that have a Catholic background and understand it.

In other words, man cannot be made just.

I don't know if I say man, I mean woman, of course. Mankind, men, people cannot be made just. You know, as we cannot be made without sin before God by any works of any religious law.

So even the ceremonial law that God gave them, which was added because of transgressions, that law cannot take away sins. That's what we really are in Hebrew standards for. So our works of law abiding, how good they may be, cannot forgive poor sins.

Do you understand that? They cannot forgive poor sins. Me driving always on the green through an intersection cannot pay the fine of a previous red light, the transgression. That's what it is. So good works or good law abiding cannot pay past sins. Only Jesus Christ sacrificed space for our sins. Now why does Jesus Christ pay for our sins? Because he's our Savior. He's our Savior. Just look at a few points here. 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy, chapter 1. We're going to read verse 8 to 10. 2 Timothy, chapter 1. We'll just start reading from the middle of verse 2 Timothy, chapter 1.

And he says, Christ, and he said, For the sufferings of the gospel, according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with the holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. It was even before time began. When did time begin?

Time began when the sun and the morning the stars were created.

And he says, That grace was given to us through Christ before time began.

So God knew that Adam and Eve would sin. God knew that they would do wrong sooner or later.

And therefore God created the sun and the moon, stars time in other words, days, months, years, which are measured by the planets and the earth, the rotation and the moon and sun, etc. So the way we measure time, so it's before time began, the way we measure it, Christ had already been given as a sacrifice, but has now been revealed to us by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is our Savior. Who's our Savior? Jesus Christ. Now turn with me to Isaiah chapter 13 verse 4. Who is our Savior? We read our Savior Jesus Christ.

Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 13 verse 4. Isaiah 13 verse 4. I am the Lord your God ever since the land of Egypt, and you shall know no God but me, for there is no Savior besides me. God is our Savior. Everything was created by and through Jesus Christ. And that's what it says. And there is no Savior besides me.

Turn with me to Titus chapter 2 verse 10.

Turn with me to Titus chapter 2 verse 10.

Telling us about being bond servants, not pouffering, not but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things. Who's our Savior? It's God. Who is our Savior? Well, read in verse 13. Looking for our beloved hope and glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. You know, I've had some people in the church coming to me and telling me—not in this congregation, so it's nobody, you know, so—and saying, there's nowhere in the Bible that calls Jesus Christ God. And there it is. I mean, if you doubt on that, read in chapter 3 verse 4.

But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior towards man appeared, had appeared because Christ appeared and came and gave His life for us. And looking verse 6, He poured on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior. And looking for a Savior, this is a faithful saying. So Christ, as the Creator, obviously, is much smaller than the highest. You know, that's why the Bible talks about God. There's God the highest. And why does it say the highest? I mean, if Jesus Christ was the highest, obviously it's not, because He says, the Father is higher than me. So the Father is the highest. The mere fact that He's the highest, that means that He's lower. Interesting, isn't it? I mean, in all Old Testament, many times it talks about the highest. And obviously it shows that the Father is the highest, Christ is lower. And He submitted it, and He said, I'll do it. I'll come to the earth. I will create everything, and I'll save mankind. So it is beautiful when we start understanding that Christ the Creator came to earth and gave His life for you and me. Now, that's why His life can pay for all our lives, because it says, life for life. So it's life for life, one life for one life. But yeah, you have one life, which is Christ's place for all lives. Why? Because He's the Creator. He could have created everybody again, all the way from scratch. So His life is far worse more than all of us. Now, think about it. He gave up eternity. He gave up His life, because you're reading Philippians 2, verse 6 and 7, and it says, you know, He was in the form of God, and it was not robbery to be equal to God, and He came in the form of man. And to the point, He humbled Himself voluntarily to the point where He died on the cross, as it says. Now, let me ask you a question. Would He have done it? Would Christ have done that if He doubted that the Father would not resurrect Him?

If He had a doubt that the Father would not resurrect Him, would He have given up His eternity He would have become a human being and died gone, finished. As they say in Salat but He did not doubt on the, in the Father, He did not doubt on the highest that He would resurrect Him. In other words, He had faith in God. And therefore, He only did that because He had absolute faith in God. And because He had absolute faith in God, He did it.

So, it was the faith of Christ in the sense that did it for us. First, obviously, it was His love. It was His motivation that He loved us. He only did it because He loved us. Then, He did it because He absolutely trusted in the Father. It was that He had absolute faith in God the Father that He would resurrect Him. On the third day. And therefore, He did it. And because He did it, He gave His life, He gave His blood for us. And therefore, we justified freely by that. And therefore, we justified freely by Christ, by Christ's sacrifice. And we justified freely, in other words, by the faith of Jesus Christ. It's not my faith. I don't have to work out and go to German. Faith German. Faith German. Develop enough faith that I have enough faith so that I can be justified. No, it's not your faith, not my faith. Surely, we've got to believe that in God and that it is sufficient and that He's done it and that's it. We've got to believe in Him. We've got to have faith in Him. But that's why it says from faith to faith. You see, because it's not your faith, because it's the faith of Christ that made it possible. And now you and I need to believe in Christ. We need to follow His example and have the same faith. From faith to faith.

I think it's beautiful when you start putting all these pieces of puzzle together and it just fits.

It's just beautiful. Let's look at a few points here. In 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 14.

2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 14.

2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 14 and 15. Read 2 verses.

It says, but you must now continue in the things which you learned and been assured of knowing from whom you've learned them. And then from childhood, so Paul is talking to Timothy, from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus.

Through the faith of Jesus Christ, not our faith, the faith that is in Christ Jesus. And that's how we are saved ultimately. Yeah, we justify it first, but justification is only the first step that we are justified. We're made right with God. We reconcile with God. And from then, now we've got to live and overcome and grow and overcome and overcome and overcome and overcome until the end, which is I either, when you and I die, or when Christ comes, whichever comes first.

That's the end of the road for me and for you. When we die or when Christ comes, whichever comes first. And then, have we been faithful or not? Faithful all the way to the end.

So, salvation comes through faith. It starts the first step.

And then, that's why in baptism says, two conditions for baptism. It's faith and repentance. Faith is to believe that Christ's sacrifice is sufficient.

And all the things we believe believe the Bible and God's power and all that. And that the Church is basically the mother and that therefore it's our training ground. We believe in that, the environment that God gives us, believe. And, repentance means that we're not going to continue driving under the influence, but now we're going to quote unquote by the analogy. But we're going to live the right way.

That's repentance. And we're going to walk that way with God's the help of God's Holy Spirit. We're going to walk that way and those are the conditions of baptism.

Faith and repentance. And then, we walk the right way.

I'm taking time because I'm trying to... I'm not this king on the host pipe, you know? Like I used in the Numbers up front. So, I'm trying to make it very, very clear. And I'm trying to make it clear to understand that it is the faith of Jesus Christ. Look at another example in Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 chapter verse 8 and 9. Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8 and 9.

For by grace you have been saved through faith.

Now, we have been saved from going that way. We're now going this way. We've been rescued from that way. It's not the ultimate salvation yet because ultimate salvation means we've got to be loyal to the end. But from God's point of view, we have been saved because from God's point of view, you'll never leave us or forsake us. He will never leave you or forsake you. Whatever started in you, He will finish. Man, what consolation! We have guarantee from God that from His side of the equation, He will not let us down and we will make it. The only reason that you and I might not make it is if you and I hang the boots on the side and give up. It's up to us. But if we don't and we remain faithful to the end, we will make it. That's what He says. So as far as He's concerned, we made it.

The call is now on us just to stay loyal, just stay on the road. Not give up, stay on the road.

Man, what great degree of confidence as we particularly now approach the Passover. And it's time now to start thinking about these structures and things like that, to say, thank God for the sacrifice of Christ. Thank God for what He's done for us. And then He is basically guaranteeing us an outcome provided I don't mess up. Provided I don't give up. I mean, we'll all mess up, but we all do things wrong. But all I'm saying is stay in the light. Sure, we all will trip, but stay in the light. Don't go back to the dark and stay in the light. What lovely encouragement it is. I hope you see it as encouragement that God gives us that He says, you will be saved, but it starts through faith. And the first faith is of Christ. Then yes, we've got to believe in Him. And that not of yourselves. What is that not of yourselves? That faith is not of yourself. He says, you have been saved through faith, and that faith is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. God has given us the gift of Jesus Christ's faith that He died for us. And therefore, might everything possible because of His absolute faith and trust in the Father. If He had doubts that the Father will do that, He would have not done it. But because He had absolute faith in the Father, He did it. And therefore, that is a road to eternal life. That is a road to salvation through faith. And that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of my works, not of your works, lest we should boast. It's not my works, not my penance, not anything I've done. No works of any law, nothing. It's the faith of Christ that justifies us. Then we have to believe in Him, and we've got to believe in Christ now, that that is sufficient. And therefore, because we believe, we've got to do our part.

So let's look at another example in Revelation 14. Revelation 14, because I want to leave it very clear that we're talking about the faith of Jesus Christ. You know, some people sometimes saying, oh, I don't have enough faith. I really don't have enough faith. I'm discouraged because I don't have that faith. I'll never make it. I don't have enough faith. You know, brethren, it's the faith of Christ. You don't have to have enough faith. It's His faith that has done it for you and I. Look at Revelation 14, talking about people that have remained loyal to the end, that have shown the patience to the end, to remain loyal to the end, and says, Yah is the patience of the saints. In other words, what is the hallmark of the saints that have remained faithful to the end? Two things. Those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. That we are justified by the faith of Christ. As simple as that. So with that, let's go back to where we started in Galatians chapter 2 verse 16. We really are making good progress. But it is important to actually get back at this. Knowing that a man is not justified by works of law, but by faith of Jesus Christ. If you have the King James Version, the old King James Version, you will see it's the faith of Jesus Christ. If you have the young's literal translation, you can see it's of Jesus Christ. If you have the Dobby translation, which is another literal translation, you'll see it's the faith of Jesus Christ. Even we have believed in Christ, yes, we believe in Christ, we believe in what is done, that we might be justified by faith of Christ. Again, it should be of Christ. And not by works of law, for by works of law, no flesh shall be justified. It's very clear. And we've tried to take the kings out of the spike, and we went through it carefully, step by step, and so that this verse becomes very clear in our mind. Then we are justified by the faith of Christ, because of what he did, and not by any works of any law. That is very clear. Verse 17. Verse 17, it says, but if while we seek to be justified by Christ, yes, that's what we seek. We ourselves are also found sinners. If we are sinners, is Christ a four minister of sin? Certainly not. What is he saying?

He's saying that if we are following Christ, and that means we're going in the light, as if you're reading John, elsewhere in John. He says if we're walking in the light, we could occasionally trip. But it's not an excuse to now walk in the darkness. We've got to be living the right way with Christ in us and that. So Christ is not a minister of sin saying, well, therefore, now you can go out and just break the law. Now, therefore, you can just go out and drive under the influence. Now, therefore, you can be a sexual offender. No, he's not saying that. What he's saying is we've got to live the right way now.

But if we happen to trip, like John says, no, I think it's John. First John says, he says, if you trip, you walk in the light. If you're saying that you have no sin, you're a liar. You know, we are trying to live the right way, but none of us is perfect. We're trying.

And what he's saying is Christ, therefore, a minister of sin? No!

Because look at it again at Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8, where we were a moment ago. Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8, which is the next book, just a few pages ahead. Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8. It says, for by grace we have been saved through faith, and that not of ourselves, it's the gift of God. Not of works lest any should boast. For we are his workmanship.

We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. In other words, we are a rough diamond. None of us is worth. We look at ourselves, we're just a rough diamond, but he's shaping us. He's working that diamond. He's cutting it, shaping it, refining it, cleansing it, purifying it, putting it through the fire to actually get the good characteristics out of that diamond out. He's testing it all the time. Created in Christ Jesus for good works.

Not for bad works, for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

You see, we ought to repent and now walk in the right road for good works and walk in them. It's not going back and have carte blanche to sin. No, that's not what it is. That's what Paul's saying. Here, we don't have carte blanche to sin. Look, if we are sin, maybe we trip, but we don't have carte blanche to sin. We've got to walk in the right way. We are his workmanship to live now the right way. We're justified by faith, but we've got to now, now that we've been justified, we've got to repent and walk the right way in the correct way. That's why we've got the other scripture of Paul that confuses people, which is in Romans chapter 2 verse 13. And let's go there. Romans chapter 2 verse 13.

Romans chapter 2 verse 13, which says, For not the years of the law are just in sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified.

It's not telling us how sins are forgiven.

Sins are forgiven by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, by the faith of Jesus Christ.

But it says our Christian has to live. He has to remain, to remain right with God. How he has to live, how he has to practice, how he has to remain on that road doing right, godly works. And so that when he reaches the end of the road, it will be the ones that yes, after they've repented, that have stayed faithful, keeping the commandments and the faith of Jesus, and stayed in that road, remain faithful till the end. And therefore, it's the doers of the law that will be ultimately justified.

Because that's how they lived after they repented.

But the payment of our sins is paid freely by the faith of Christ. So it's important to put these two together to actually make it nice and clear and understand that.

So let's continue with Galatians chapter 2 verse 17.

Now that we've explained verse 17, it says, but if while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves have found sinners, is Christ the former minister of sin? Certainly not, certainly not, because we're supposed to be walking in the light, and we're supposed to be practicing now God's laws. Yes, we may trip now and again occasionally, because we're not perfect yet, but we're trying to go the right way. Verse 18, for if we build again those things which I destroyed, in other words, if I go back to committing sin and walk in darkness, because I've destroyed that, I'll make myself a transgressor. If I go back to just driving under the influence, I'll make myself a transgressor. That's what he's saying. For I, through the law, what has the law told me? The law told me that with this intersection and you see a green light means you can go. I mean, Mr. Law said it was a pink light with yellow stripes that you could go, then that's what the law, but it says it's green, and it happens to be a universal. Thank God, imagine when I go to Brazil if the law was a different color. I'd really be confused, but so fortunately the whole world is adopted green, and green means gold. Okay, fine. The law tells me what is right and what is wrong. That's what the law tells me. The law does not tell me how to pay the fine. I mean, there's a different law that says that, but it doesn't pay the fine for me. The law just tells me what's right and wrong. So it says, for I through the law, because the law told me what's right and wrong, died to the law. Why? Because I sinned, because I brought the law, and because I brought the law, I died to the penalty of the law. I fell under the penalty of the law. So the law showed me what's right and wrong, and once I know what's right and wrong, I realize that I had done wrong, and therefore I died, because that is the wages of sin is death. That I might live to God. I died by the law, but I would live to God. Why? Because Jesus Christ sacrificed freely, paid for the sin. Now I've got to repent and live to God in a new way of life. And that's why it says, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I will live. In other words, I don't do my pleasures. I don't do my own desires. I don't do the things that I want of the flesh.

But Christ lives in me. Through God's Holy Spirit, Christ lives in me, and now I follow the lead of the Holy Spirit. Christ living in me, would Christ be committing sin? No. So if Christ is living in me, I'm walking with Christ through the power of God's Spirit, living a godly life, so that by the time I finished the race, I have been obeying the Lord. You see? So Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith of the Son of God. I live by that faith of the Son of God. That's He made it possible for me, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

You see? So it's basically saying, Christ sacrificed freely given to me because He loves us, because He had faith in the Father to pay for our sins. You know? Nothing. I did nothing, paid freely. On the condition, there are repent, and I live my new life. And if I do that, if I commit to do that, He then will give me the helper, which is the Holy Spirit. So my commitment is, I repent, I want to do it again. His commitment is, He gives me the helper, and now the two, we work together, the Holy Spirit and my Spirit, which is God's mind and God's power, and we work and try to overcome and live God's way. In other words, Christ lives in me because it's the mind of Christ. It's God's mind, and so we live that. So it's no longer me, a man of sin living, but it's Christ living in me and living a new life. I live by faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God. In other words, I don't reject the grace of God. No, He's given us that grace. That's important, and I'm not frustrating it because why? Because now I am living the right way. So I'm not frustrating, I'm not upsetting the grace of God, I'm not kind of continuously tramping on it. No, because I have repented. I've taken that sacrifice, I've repented, and I'll live the new way. I do not frustrate, I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ dies in vain. If I could obey some law that would pay for the penalty of my sins, then why would Christ die? Why would He come and die for us? Why would He do that sacrifice if I could have done a checklist of things? Then that wouldn't have been necessary.

And so I hope that I have tried to explain in a very clear way what the wall has knotted up through the power of Satan. You know, Satan's got this veil over the wall, as it says in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 3 and 4. It says, Satan's got this veil over the wall that it's just like, think about it, it's like a cataract on your eyes, and everything is just kind of fuzzy, and people can't see it. And God takes that blindness out, He goes there for laser, and removes those cataracts so you can actually see it. But Satan is blinded and rolls it all up so that we don't see the glory of Christ in us. That's what it is, so we don't understand. So we don't understand what it is that Christ lived in us. That means we are going to live a new life.

And when we don't see that, we can't be saved. And that's what Satan wants. He wants to deceive us, so we won't be saved. The next time, next Bible study, then we'll take into starting to chapter 3.