Galatians 1:6-9
No U Turns
As Christians, we must make sure that we stay the course. In reading some
articles on the internet the other weak, I came across a man who now operates a
website encouraging people that they can live just find without religion. That of
itself did not surprise me; but as I read the article, he made a statement which
did surprise me. He said that he had pastored a Christian church for nineteen
years. Now, I don’t know what kind of church it was, or even if he was telling
the truth, but to think that someone could study the Word of God for nineteen years
and then walk away from it, certainly surprised me.
I understand that Christians can be confused, can have doubts, and can get side
tracked. So today, I preach the same message that the Apostle Paul preached two
thousand years ago. Paul said we must be certain that we do not make any U Turns
when it comes to certain areas of our life.
Notice what Paul said.
I. We must not make U Turns when it comes to Jesus Christ and the gospel.
A. Paul marvels that these who had once trusted Jesus as their Savior have
now turned to another gospel.
1. In the context, this church had accepted Jesus and the gospel.
a. After Paul had left, some Judaizers had come in and told the
Galatians that in order to be saved, they had to trust Jesus
and keep the Old Testament law.
b. Paul says that in altering the gospel, they had created another
gospel.
c. Of course, Paul affirms that there are no other gospels.
2. There is only one gospel, one Jesus, and one way to heaven.
3. Now, we must understand that one cannot change the gospel without
creating a new gospel and one cannot change Jesus without creating
a new Jesus.
B. Let us be certain that we understand there is only one Jesus.
1. You cannot change who Jesus is without creating another Jesus.
a. Our Jesus is the Jesus of the Bible.
b. Our Jesus is the eternal God.
c. He had no beginning and no end.
d. Our Jesus has no equal, no contemporaries. He is not one of
many or even one of two. He is One alone.
d. He put on robes of flesh to dwell as a Man among men.
e. He was virgin born.
f. He lived a sinless life.
g. He was compassionate, loving, kind, forgiving, but truthful,
forceful, and dynamic.
h. If you change anyone of these truths, you create a different
Jesus.
2. Neither can you change what Jesus did with creating a new gospel.
a. He did many powerful wonders and signs as described in the Bible.
b. He died a substitutionary death.
c. He was buried for three days, arose from the dead, and sits on
the right hand of the Father to make intercession for the
saints.
d. Changing any of these actions creates another Jesus, who is not
our Savior at all.
C. Let us also be certain that we understand you cannot change the message
of the gospel.
1. All are born sinners.
2. All are under the curse of death and damnation.
3. The only hope for the human race was and is a payment of our death
penalty, which Jesus made on the cross.
4. If we believe that Jesus is who the Bible says He is and that He did
what the Bible says He did, and will repent of our sins, we will
be saved from our sins.
5. If we add to that simple message of redemption by grace a single
work, we have polluted the entire message and changed the gospel
to a lie.
D. On these points we cannot compromise, we cannot change, we cannot quit,
and we cannot turn about!
1. Some might get concerned when I mention those who have created new
Jesuses or new gospels, but they need to be exposed.
2. The Mormons have created a new Jesus. They say that Jesus and
Lucifer are part the sons of God. They say that God had many sons.
Mormons believe that God took requests from His sons on how to
redeem the earth and that Jesus’ won. Lucifer, on the other hand,
was rejected and so became evil. Folks, that is not my Jesus.
3. Catholics may worship our Jesus but they have changed the gospel.
They teach that to be saved, one must be baptized into
Catholicism, that they must keep the sacraments, that they must have
last rites. Friend, that is not the gospel.
II. \\#Gal 2:18\\ We must not make U Turns on doctrine.
A. Understand that I do not mean that we can not grow and learn more about
doctrine, thus changing our minds about beliefs we previously held.
1. Most all Christians grow in doctrine and change their minds about
some teachings.
2. I have and am doing that.
B. What I am saying here is that we cannot decide that a truth we know
is true is not important anymore.
1. Paul, in this context, is talking about Peter.
2. Peter knew that under the New Covenant, Gentiles were as welcomed
to receive Christ as their Savior as Jews.
3. Peter was the Apostle that God used to introduce that doctrine
(Acts 10).
4. But when Peter got around some Jewish Christians \\#Gal 2:12\\, he
began to withdraw from the Gentiles as though they were less than
loved by God.
5. Peter had not changed his mind about a truth he had accepted. He
just decided that truth was not important any longer.
6. \\#Gal 2:11\\ Paul withstood him, that is, confronted him!
C. There are no U Turns on doctrinal truths.
1. I have already mentioned the doctrines of Christ and salvation.
2. We can add to that doctrines…
a. of holiness - God is holy and God has commanded us to be holy
b. of forgiveness - The saved have received it and they are
commanded to give it.
c. of standards in leadership - Pastors are to be men, husbands to
one wife, not novices but teachers of the Word of God, who
handle well their own homes, and model Christianity.
d. of distinction between the sexes - Men are not women and women
are not men, they have different roles in dress, in the home,
and in the family.
e. of marriage - Marriage is between a man and a woman.
f. of eternal salvation - There was one Christ who died one time to
purchase eternal life for each soul who would accept Him.
g. of a changed life - The proof of a conversion.
h. of a blood atonement - It is not just the death of Jesus Christ
that saves but it is the application of His blood upon a
heavenly altar that saves.
3. We know that every truth in the Bible is not the most important
truth.
a. Sometimes, we can agreed to disagree with some Christians about
some things for the love of Christ.
b. However, even in doing that we must not minimize Bible truth.
c. Doctrine can not just be ignored or forgotten.
d. These are not our truths that we guard but God’s holy Word.
(1) Let’s believe it.
(2) Let’s defend it.
(3) Let’s live it.
III. \\#Gal 3:1-3\\ We must not make U Turns concerning the Holy Ghost.
A. No doubt there are differences in some of our beliefs about the Holy
Ghost.
B. However, about some things, we must be steadfast.
1. The Holy Ghost is the third Member of the Trinity.
a. That means that He is and always has been God.
b. He can be nothing less.
(1) The Holy Ghost is not just an influence or a presence.
(2) He is a Person.
2. The Holy Spirit does the convicting work of the Godhead on earth.
John 16:8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of
righteousness, and of judgment:
(a) Not a one of us would be saved if it were not the work of the
Holy Ghost.
(b) Not a one of us would be growing if it were not for His work.
3. The Holy Ghost indwells the believer.
Ro 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of
God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
4. This indwelling of God in our flesh gives us permanent and continual
fellowship with the Godhead.
Ro 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we
should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with
groanings which cannot be uttered.
C. In this context, these Galatians, who had come to Christ by the work of
the Holy Spirit, were now abandoning Christ alone for salvation.
1. It was the Holy Ghost who had convinced them that Jesus was
sufficient for salvation.
2. But some wicked men had crept into their church and told them that
Jesus was not sufficient, that they need to keep the Old Testament
law and trust Jesus.
3. Now Paul chides with them.
a. If the Holy Spirit was capable enough to show them who Jesus was
and what Jesus had done, why did they need men to tell them
otherwise?
b. Paul rebukes these Galatians, telling them that they had done a
U Turn on the Holy Ghost.
D. We must be careful that we do not make a U Turn from following the Holy
Ghost.
1. Today, every new teacher has a new angle about God, Christ, the
church, or heaven.
2. We are not to be followers of men but of the Holy Spirit!
3. Don’t seek new fads in Christianity—there aren’t any!
4. Contrary to popular Christian opinion,
a. God is not giving new revelation…
b. God is not re-writing the Bible…
c. And God is not changing His mind about things.
<Outline
Index> <Close Window>
