SLIDES

The Book of Galatians 6:11-18

(Part 28)

Introduction

When I was in seminary, I took four or five classes with Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost. He had been teaching at the seminary for 30 years. As well-known as he was in evangelical circles for his teaching, the number of books he had written, and his knowledge of prophecy, you would think he would have been a hard nose professor.

One Thursday as I was waiting for class to begin, I noticed students were tuning in papers. I asked another student what was going on. He replied that we had a paper due that day. I looked at my calendar and had it down to be turned in the following Tuesday.

I went to the front of the room where Dr. Pentecost was sitting and told him that I had put on my calendar that the paper was due the next Tuesday. He said “Don’t worry about it. Turn the paper in next Tuesday.” There was no penalty for turning the paper in late. The extension with no penalty was pure grace. The law said it was due on a Thursday, but the extension showed God’s grace.

The New Covenant was ratified because of God’s grace. The period of the Law was over and the period of grace had arrived. We will see again that Paul stressed the importance of the New Covenant of Grace over the Mosaic Covenant. Why would anyone want to live under the authority of the Mosaic Law when they can live under the Covenant of Grace?

As we shall see, Paul begins this letter to the Galatians churches emphasizing grace and will end this book emphasizing grace. This is significant.

Paul’s Concluding Remarks (11-18)

1.      Paul wrote the end of the Letter to the Galatians Himself (11)

6:11 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.

From verse 11 until the end of the letter, Paul took the pen from his scribe and wrote the rest of the letter himself. This is a practice he often followed as seen in 1 Corinthians, Colossians, and 2 Thessalonians. The large letters he used probably referred to the size of the letters he inscribed. It may be that Paul wrote the conclusion in capital letters after the rest of the epistle was penned mostly in lowercase letters.

In 2 Corinthians 12:7-21. Paul asked the Lord three times to remove what he called “a thorn in the flesh.” The Lord told him no that his grace (divine enablement) was sufficient for power is perfected in weakness. It has been suggested that Paul may have had cataracts so he could not see well.

2. Three False Motives of the Judaizers  (12-13)  Starting with the false motives of the Judaizers, he states three things that motivated the Judaizers as we read in verses Galatians 6:12-13.

12 Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 For those who are circumcised do not even keep the Law themselves, but they desire to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh.

First, they wanted to glory in the flesh of the Gentile believers. Since the Judaizers were unbelievers, they did everything in the flesh. Since they did not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, they could not at any time walk in the Spirit. So, they did their best to glorify the things of the flesh. The more Gentiles they could persuade to be circumcised, the better it made them look. They wanted to be able to report to the Judaizers in Jerusalem how many Gentiles have been circumcised.

Second, they wanted to avoid the persecution of the cross. To preach or teach that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone would bring persecution from other Judaizers. To preach both law and the cross brought almost no persecution because they could then remain merely a sect within Judaism because part of one receiving salvation would be by works of the Law such as circumcision.

Third, they do not keep the law themselves. Even those today who insist that evangelical believers must keep the law do not keep the law. They always have to make all kinds of adjustments because no one keeps the law in its entirety or in the way it is written. There are great portions of the law which everyone ignores no matter how ardent they are about keeping it. I’ve been to the Messianic congregation in Roswell many times. Most of those who attend drive. That is forbidden in the Mosaic Law. So the Judaizers of Paul’s day were characterized by totally false motives. Even at the most Orthodox synagogues in Atlanta, some synagogue attendees will park several blocks away so as to appear to have walked to synagogue.

3. The Proper Motive (14) 

14. But may it never be I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

The contrast is vivid as Paul declared his boasting to be in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Judaizers the Cross was an object of shame; for Paul it was the object of glory. They gloried the flesh; he gloried the Savior. The “Cross” speaks of the forgiveness of sin of Christ with which Paul was identified as seen in Galatians  2:20.

20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Also, the world was crucified to Paul and he to the world. The world system with all its allurements, fleshly displays, and religions of human effort was cast aside by Paul. He looked at the world as if it were on a cross—and the world looked at Paul as though he was on a cross. The proper motive, by which Paul operated, was glorying in the cross alone, according to verse 14.

4. The New Creation is what’s Important (15)

In verse 15 Paul draws a very important conclusion concerning circumcision.

15 For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.

When it comes to salvation, circumcision means nothing and uncircumcision means nothing. What counts is being a new creation, being a new creature in Christ, which means being regenerated through the cross of Christ. Concerning Jewish people, regeneration through the cross frees them from the law because they are dead to the law and no longer have any obligation to keep it. Gentiles, then and now, have had no obligation to the Mosaic Law because Gentiles were never under the authority of the Mosaic Law. Circumcision is necessary for Jewish believers in keeping with the Abrahamic Covenant; it is a necessary obedience, just as baptism is necessary for obedience. But neither circumcision nor baptism is a requirement for salvation. Neither circumcision nor baptism will avail in the area of justification or sanctification.

For those who follow the rule that circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, what matters to them is the cross of Yeshua. Paul says in Galatians 6:16 there is peace and mercy for two separate groups:

5. Gentile believers and Messianic Jews who are of the new creation will fine peace and mercy (16)

16 And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.

First, Paul declares peace and mercy upon them. Who are the them? They are Gentile believers. Second, he declares peace and mercy upon the Israel of God. Who is the Israel of God? It is not the Church. The Israel of God refers to Jewish believers, the believing Remnant within and among the Jewish people. One must never make the mistake of identifying the Israel of God with the Church or with Gentile believers as being some kind of new “spiritual Jews.” or “belonging to spiritual Israel.” This is not taught anyplace in Scripture. First, the repetition of the preposition (“upon” or “to” depending on the translation) indicates two groups are in view. Second, all the 65 other occurrences of the term “Israel” in the New Testament refer to Jews. It would thus be strange for Paul to use “Israel” here to mean Gentile Christians ot the C. Third, Paul elsewhere referred to two kinds of Israelites—believing Jews and unbelieving Jews. The believing Jews are called the Remnant.

5. Paul had enough persecution and troubles (17)

17 From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus.

As we come to the last two verses of Galatians, we find Paul a weary and worn-out man. He writes as if he has exhausted all his energy defending the gospel of grace. Nevertheless, Paul urges the Galatians to no longer allow the legalists to get the upper hand, thus causing him “trouble.” Paul had surely suffered agony as he worried over the spiritual health of the churches in Galatia and worked hard at composing a letter to free them from the threat of bondage. If they would just heed these words, they would relieve him of his anxiety.

Why should the Galatians listen to Paul rather than the Judaizers? Ultimately it came down to the marks of authenticity Paul bore on his own body. While the Judaizers promoted the physical mark of circumcision, Paul pointed to the “brand-marks of Jesus.” The Greek word for these marks, stigma, refers to “signs of ownership such as were branded on slaves and cattle.” In 2 Corinthians 11:24–28 we find how Paul received the stigma of Jesus.

24 Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26 I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27 I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.28 Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.

Ironically, the very thing the Judaizers were trying to avoid—persecution—Paul regarded as a mark of a true preacher of the gospel. This was in line with Jesus’ own words: “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20).

Now, we come to verse 18 in the book of Galatians in which Paul brings the letter to a close.

6. It’s All About Grace (18)

18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen.

The interesting thing about his conclusion is that he ends the book on the same note that he began the book. this is significant because this tells the story about the theme of the entire book. What might that theme be? Let’s look at Galatians 1:3 to find the answer.

Galatians 1:3 - Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,

The theme of Galatians is Grace of God. This is called an enclusio. Between 1:3 and 6:18 the theme of grace permeates the entire epistle. We find grace in some contexts to mean “unmerited favor” concerning salvation and in other contexts to mean “divine enablement” which is needed live the Christian life. Both, of course, which come from God. As in the book of Galatians, Christians begin their new life by the unmerited favor, grace, the Lord gives the sinner to be saved and continues their life in Christ until death with God’s divine enablement.

Application

The theme of Galatians is Grace, pure and simple. Throughout the entire epistle Paul pits the Mosaic Law against the New Covenant of Grace. Grace always wins! So As we come to the conclusion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians, let’s step back and consider how we can apply the main truth of the book as a whole.

First, the doctrine of the Grace of God must be our main emphasis when it comes to forgiveness of sin and daily living.

Salvation by grace and living our daily lives by grace instead of law is one of them. There is no substitute for grace in salvation and living the Christian life. The other doctrines or essentials of the faith must also defend and fought for

Second, some things are worth fighting for.

3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.

The word contend earnestly means “to exert intense effort on behalf of something.”

Third, we must strive to work for and to maintain the unity of the Body of Christ.

All men and women who are believers have been baptized (identified or united) into the Body of Christ. We are all equal in the Body with Jesus as the head. We must treat each other as brothers and sisters in Christ, not as our enemies.

SELAH