Galatians 3:1
Always Has. Always Will.
We knew the churches in the Galatia region had problems because of
Paul’s first statements in this letter.
Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed
from him that called you into the grace of Christ
unto another gospel:
7 Which is not another; but there be some that
trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of
Christ.
1. That was pretty quick.
a. By verses 6-7, we know a problem existed and that it
was serious, involving what the gospel is and is not.
b. There is no more serious an issue than that!
2. But it was also pretty vague.
a. No doubt the people Paul was writing to knew exactly
what he meant and where this letter was going to go.
b. But WE did not. Not until chapter 2:16.
I. The Key Verse \\#Gal 2:16\\
A. The key verse
Gal 2:16 …Knowing that a man is not justified
by the works of the law, but by the faith of
Jesus Christ….
1. This verse is key because it explains the problem. The
Galatians were leaving a gospel of grace for a false
gospel of works, keeping the law.
2. But it was also key because it plainly, bluntly, and
directly stated the truth.
a. No one—no one!—has ever been justified by the works
of the law.
b. Everyone—everyone!—who has been justified has been
done so by their faith in Jesus Christ.
3. This is the key verse to this entire book if not to the
entire New Testament.
4. It is faith in Jesus—and Jesus alone—that makes us
acceptable in God’s eyes.
B. This truth is not just key for the Galatians.
1. It is key to every human being.
2. If you are trusting anyone else or anything else, repent
and turn to Jesus.
3. No one is going to heaven with Him, and without Him alone.
II. The Sad Condition
A. Now in chapter 3, Paul chastised the Galatia as he described
them.
B. Notice what he said about them.
Gal 3:1 O FOOLISH Galatians, who hath BEWITCHED
you, that YE SHOULD NOT OBEY the truth, BEFORE
WHOSE EYES JESUS CHRIST HATH BEEN
EVIDENTLY SET FORTH, crucified among you?
1. It was not very flattering, but Paul was not name calling.
He was spirit describing.
2. However, it is infinitely better to be singed on earth
than to be burnt in hell.
a. Foolish - Foolish is the opposite of wise.
(1) Wise means to see things as God sees them.
(2) Since foolishness is always seen as the opposite
of wisdom foolish must mean that we are seeing
things differently from God.
(3) Sadly. it is possible for Christians to be quite
foolish and out of step with God.
(4) Foolish was not an insult but was the Galatians
current spiritual condition.
b. Bewitched - The word means charmed or controlled.
(1) The implication of the word is that someone or
some force (demonic) is exerting an influence on
the Galatians.
(2) Most probably it was both people and demons who
were doing just that.
(3) Faulty thinking lead to faulty beliefs and
actions.
(4) Christians must be careful to what they expose
themselves for, like anyone else, we are
influenced by it.
c. Disobedient
(1) The ultimate truth is that they might be acting
like they were bewitched, but they were being
disobedient to what they once knew to be true.
(2) By having the truth but being influenced to
reject it, they had made a choice AGAINST the
truth.
(3) Every Christian is responsible for his actions,
and amount of deception that they are exposed to
does not diminish that responsibility.
d. Blind - Christ had been evidently set forth.
(1) "hath been evidently set fort" is all one Greek
word.
(2) It literally means to write before.
(3) As clearly as if God had written the truth before
their open eyes, so Christ was presented to the
Galatians.
(a) Remember, Paul did not come with just words
and stories.
(b) He also came with miracles and power.
(c) He bore the stamp of authenticity that all
the apostles bore.
(d) Their abilities and gifts set them a part
from the Judiazers and all false teachers.
(4) They had closed their eyes to all of that and in
rejecting Paul and his message, they had
rejected the truth.
III. \\#Gal 3:6-18\\ The Old Testament Revelation:
A. We know from Paul’s testimony that he received his message by
revelation.
1. That means God either revealed something completely new to
Paul or…
2. God helped Paul to see something already known in a
different light.
B. What did Paul reveal here about the Old Testament?
1. Abraham was saved by faith:
Gal 3:6 Even as Abraham believed God, and it was
accounted to him for righteousness.
a. In this statement, the Bible is summarizing what faith
is and what faith does.
(1) What faith is: It is the sinner believing God.
(a) Believing what?
(b) Whatever God tells us.
(c) That sounds open-ended and some mock us
because of it, but that is all right
because I mock them for believing the fairy
tales that they believe.
(2) What faith does: It moves my sins off my ledger
onto Jesus’ and it moves Jesus’ righteousness
off His Ledger onto mine.
(a) The word accounted is an accounting term.
(b) It means imputed, concluded, supposed,
reckoned.
(c) We could substitute the word "transferred"
for it.
(d) Faith causes a transfer to take place.
i. My sin goes on Jesus’ account.
ii. Jesus’ righteousness goes onto my
account.
b. This is the Bible saying that Abraham was not saved by
the law.
c. Then Paul tells us two more things:
(1) Abraham could not have been UNDER the law because
he lived 430 years BEFORE the law was given.
(2) Once God made Abraham’s salvation a gift of
promise, it became unalterable.
Gal 3:17 And this I say, that the covenant, that
was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law,
which was four hundred and thirty years after,
cannot disannul, that it should make the promise
of none effect.
Gal 3:15 Brethren, I speak after the manner of
men; Though it be but a man’s covenant, yet if it
be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth
thereto.
d. By the way, Paul did not originate this statement.
(1) Remember that I told you earlier that some want
to discredit Paul because his teaching are so
plain on the topic of salvation by grace.
(2) However, Paul was not writing this statement. He
was quoting it.
(3) God spoke this statement about Abraham and his
salvation at the time it happened.
Genesis 15:6 And he (Abraham) believed in the
LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
2. The Jews are blessed by faith:
a. All of the Jews blessings come—not by the law—but
by faith.
Gal 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the
promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of
many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is
Christ.
b. Paul said that the first promises God made to Abraham
in Genesis was not to Abraham’s descendants but to
his Descendent, Jesus.
Ge 12:7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and
said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and
there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who
appeared unto him.
c. God would later ADD to the first promise some
conditions that would include Abraham’s many
descendants, but the additions made for them would
not nullify the basis of the first promise upon
which all of the others were built!
Gal 3:17 And this I say, that the covenant, that
was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law,
which was four hundred and thirty years after,
cannot disannul, that it should make the promise
of none effect.
d. So that everything the Jewish people have or hope to
have—including their salvation—was promised to them
by faith through Jesus Christ.
3. The heathen are saved by faith:
Gal 3:8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God
would justify the heathen through faith, preached
before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee
shall all nations be blessed.
a. Paul explained that God included the Gentiles in the
first promise when He referred to "all nations" being
blessed by Abraham’s act of faith.
b. Important truth - God has always planned on the
Gentiles being saved.
(1) The Gentiles were not an afterthought with God.
(2) God did have an order and an time, and I feel for
the Gentiles who have not had and do not have
as much opportunity as you and I.
(3) But I will tell you again that God made certain
that every family on the earth had the knowledge
of His grace at least twice times:
(a) At creation
(b) After the flood
(4) Then 2,000 years ago, He created, commanded and
gifted the church to tell everyone of the
gospel.
c. With the nugget that the Gentiles were always part of
God’s redemption plan, Paul made another statement:
Gal 3:7 Know ye therefore that they which are of
faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
Gal 3:9 So then they which be of faith are
blessed with faithful Abraham.
(1) What Paul was saying is that Gentiles who believe
are more the children of Abraham than Jews who
don’t.
(2) Why? The basis of kinship with Abraham was not
blood or circumcision but faith.
Friend, we are blessed to have the gospel. Not only can we be saved,
but we can be saved so easily. Not only can we be saved easily, but
the gospel was repeatedly spoon-fed to us even though we were
rebellious. May God help us to share the good news of gospel with
others.
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