Today is a new posting of the Weekend Sermon. Thanks be to God for the opportunity to post the sermon this week. I hope that everyone is having a very good week.
This week has been a busy week. I have been working a lot on writing, and I am in the midst of making some big decisions. The weather is still not very good where I live. Please pray that the storms and rain predicted for today and through the upcoming week are not as bad as predicted. Thank you for your prayers. I have one other prayer request. The arthritis in my hands is not getting better. Please pray that my hands will stop hurting so much. Thank you.
In prayer this week, please remember to pray for those in the United States who are still recovering from the damage caused by flooding and tornadoes. Please pray that people will get the aid and the help that they need. The people in Mozambique also need our prayers as they are still recovering from the storms that hit that country.
We need to continue to pray about the Ebola outbreak in Africa. There are now cases in Uganda as well as Congo. Please pray that this virus will be contained and that those who are sick will make a complete recovery.
Continue to pray for peace in the troubled areas of the world. Syria, Libya, Sudan, South Sudan, Yemen and Afghanistan all need our prayers.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those who live in Chad and Myanmar. Pray that many will here the good news about the love of Jesus.
Today, we will be continuing with our series of messages on the some of the false teachings that were coming into the early church. In the first two messages in the series, Jesus dealt with some false beliefs. Last week, we saw that Paul had to deal with the issue of antinomianism. This week, we see that Paul had another false belief that he had to deal with. This issue also involved Peter and James as well.
In the book of Galatians chapter 3, Paul begins the chapter by saying, "You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?" Paul will go on in Galatians 3 to state that there were some in the church who were trying to teach that it was necessary to keep the Old Testament laws in order to be saved. They believed that one had to have faith in Jesus, but they also believed that a person had to follow the laws given to the Jewish people in the Torah.
This isn't the first time that Paul and the early church had to deal with this issue. We read about this in Acts 15. Some in the church were troubled by the fact that Paul and Peter had brought gentiles into the fold of the church. There was a belief by some that a person who was not Jewish needed to become a Jew before becoming a Christian. Paul was opposed to this idea, and it was decided that a church council would be held in Jerusalem to decide the matter
Peter, Paul and James were present at the meeting. This council decided based on Peter's encounter with Cornelius that God had accepted the gentile believers. The council decided that the gentiles would be accepted into the household of faith on the basis of faith in Jesus alone.
In Galatians 5:4, Paul would state, "You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace." In the book of Romans and in the book of Ephesians, Paul makes it clear that salvation is by grace through faith. We trust in Jesus Christ and in Him alone for our salvation. Paul states it this way in Ephesians 2:8-9 -- "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works so that no one can boast."
Paul, and the rest of Scripture, makes it quite clear that salvation is the gift of God. We are saved by the grace, the unmerited favor, of the Lord. We cannot add anything to the saving work of Christ on the cross. It is Jesus alone apart from works.
Now, how does this apply to us today. Unfortunately, many people still believe in Jesus plus good works brings salvation. I've seen this play out in two different ways in my evangelism ministry. Some that I talk to will say that they will be with Jesus in Heaven because they are a good person. They believe that if they do more good things than bad things, the Lord will let them into Heaven. The other belief that I've encountered is held by those who believe that a person needs faith in Jesus, but then a person must also partake of the sacraments and do good works in order to obtain salvation.
The Bible is clear that both of these ideas are not correct. We are redeemed by the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. We perform good works because we love Jesus and want to obey Him. Our good works do not achieve salvation for us. Our good works are a sign that we have a true possession of faith and not an empty profession of faith.
There is an old hymn that sums it up. This hymn says, "Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow". If you have never placed your faith and trust in the finished work of Christ on the cross and believed that Jesus has risen from the dead. I invite you to turn to the Lord in repentance and faith this day.
Next week, we will continue with our series on false teachings. The sermon will be posted on Saturday. On Monday, I will post the verses. I hope to post a review on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
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