Opposition to the Gospel in Galatia

Transcript

GR 1135
11/01/98
Opposition to the Gospel in Galatia
Galatians 1:1; Selected Verses
Gil Rugh

Turn in your Bibles, if you will, to the book of Galatians and to the first chapter, Galatians, chapter 1. We began a study of this epistle of Paul last week, and we’re going to continue in our study. We did basically background material regarding the establishing of the churches in Galatia as is recorded in Acts chapters 13 and 14. Paul established the churches in Galatia on his first missionary journey. He also visited them again on his second missionary journey and on his third missionary journey. So, they were churches that were privileged to have quite a bit of contact, personal contact with the apostle Paul.

If you’ve gotten to Galatians, chapter 1, if you’d put a marker in there, I’d like you to go back with me now to Acts, chapter 14, chapters 13 and 14. I want to look at a little bit more background with you before we move into the opening verses of chapter 1 together. When Paul established the churches in Galatia, he had a great deal of intense opposition from the Jews. These were not Jewish cities, but they did have a strong Jewish population. And it was that Jewish population that formed the intense opposition to Paul’s preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. For example, in Acts, chapter 13, verse 45, “But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming.” Down in verse 50, “But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their district.” In chapter 14, verse 2, “But the Jews who disbelieved, or disobeyed, stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren.” And, down to verse 19, you see how serious this opposition was. “But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead.”

So, there was very strong opposition to the preaching of Paul and the establishing of the churches in the region of Galatia by the Jews. Now, when Paul completed his first missionary journey, he returned to Antioch in Syria. That was the starting point. Now, remember, there’s an Antioch in Syria, which would be what we know as basically Syria today, and then there’s an Antioch in Galatia. So, don’t get confused. In Acts, chapter 14, verse 19, when we read, “Jews came from Antioch,” that’s Pysidian Antioch. Remember that’s the Antioch that is in the region of Galatia, and would be one of the cities that Paul is writing the letter to the Galatians to.

Well, at the end of the first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas come back to the home church in their home city and give a report on what God had done through the preaching of His word. And they spent some time there teaching the word, building up the church, and so on.

When you come to chapter 15 of Acts, we find a different kind of opposition to the gospel has developed. In chapters 13 and 14, see saw the direct opposition of the Jews who were opposed to Paul and Barnabas preaching that Jesus was the Son of God, the Messiah of Israel, the resurrected Savior. Now, in Acts chapter 15, we’re going to find an opposition to Paul and the gospel that developed from among the Jews who claimed to be believers in Jesus Christ, who claimed to believe that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel. But they also said that was not enough. You had to also be circumcised, keep the Mosaic Law. And, so, Acts, chapter 15, records what we commonly call the Jerusalem Council. The men who caused the crisis are referred to in verse 1. “Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” So, these Jews come down from Judea, the region of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is in Judea. They travel . . . you look on the map you’d talk about traveling up to Antioch [because] it’s north, but in the Bible, everything is down from Jerusalem. Jerusalem is elevated, but no matter you are in scripture, you go up to Jerusalem. So, they come to Antioch from Jerusalem, the region of, ah, Judea, and they teach [that] you have to keep the law of Moses. Look down in verse 5, “But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed . . .” That’s important now. You see the opposition to the gospel that is being dealt with in chapter 15 comes from within the professing Church, from among those who profess to believe in Jesus Christ. “Some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed.”

Now we’ll see in a little bit, in Galatians Paul said they were false brethren, false brethren. He did not view them as genuinely saved, but they claim to be brothers in Christ. They claim to have believed. They stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and direct them to observe the Law of Moses.” Particularly concerned about the Gentiles being saved here. You note two things here: They must be circumcised and they must observe the Law of Moses. And the issue here not only deals with justification, it deals with sanctification. The term “salvation” is the broad term. It’s the work of God in bringing us to Himself and molding and shaping us in preparation for eternal glory. That’s salvation. “He who has begun a good work in you, will continue to perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus,” Philippians 1:6 says.

Often we use the term salvation as synonymous with justification, and that’s not wrong, but we have to be careful, because when we do that we sometimes develop the idea that sanctification is separate entity from God’s salvation. That’s not true. Salvation, as God unfolds in the scripture, includes justification, God forgiving us our sins and declaring us righteous, and sanctification, the process sanctification of Him molding and shaping us in preparation for eternal glory. The issue of the Judaisers, will encompass both justification and sanctification, as we’ll see when we turn over to Galatians shortly.

We call these Jews who profess to be believers and wanted to teach you must believe in Christ AND keep the Law Judaizers. They’re different than just the ordinary Jews who oppose the gospel in chapters 13 and 14. Those Jews denied that Jesus was the Messiah. They rejected the facts of the gospel. The Judaizers claimed to believe in Christ and believe the facts of the gospel, but they also said that’s not enough. You must keep the Law of Moses. Circumcision is necessary for salvation. The keeping of the Law is necessary for a life of holiness.
The result of this Jerusalem conference, and the conference was held between representatives from the church at Antioch in Syria and the apostles and elders in the, ah, city of Jerusalem. Verse 2 of Acts 15 says, “When Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue.” So, they go up and there is a conference. And Paul and Barnabas and others from the church in Antioch, the Judaizers are there, and the apostles and elders of the church of Jerusalem are sorting through the theological issues. Verse 6 says, “The apostles and elders came together to look into the matter. After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and spoke.” Peter is the spokesman here. And it’s fitting, because he was the one who preached the gospel to the Gentiles for the first time in Acts chapter 10. And he gives something of the history and how God saved them.

Verse 9, he says, “And He made no distinction between us and them.” Us meaning us Jews [and] them referring to those Gentiles. “Cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the [yoke] of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? It’s clear [that] God saved them by faith. Why would you try to put them under bondage to the Law, which our ancestors could not keep and we were not able to keep? “But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they are also.” That makes clear here. I’m not saying the Gentiles are saved by faith and don’t have to keep the Law, but the Jews are saved by faith plus keeping the Law? No! We Jews and Gentiles, both, are saved by faith.

So, they establish here, with apostolic authority, that it is not necessary to be circumcised or keep the Law in order to be saved or to please God. That’s the conclusion of the conference. And then there is a summary letter sent out that’s recorded in verses 23-29. Let me just say that in that letter there are some guidelines given. The Gentiles are instructed not to do those things which would be purposely and overtly offensive to the Jews. But other than that there are not obligations upon you. They merely have some guidance here for the exercise of Christian liberty. Here’s some things that you should avoid at this time, so that you’re not intentionally doing that which would antagonize the Jews. But as far as keeping the Law, being circumcised for salvation, and so on, that’s not required. That was the conclusion of the conference.

Now, that may have settled it for some, but it did not settle it for all. Hopefully, some of these Pharisees who believed were genuine believers and submitted to the truth of the gospel and had their confusion clarified. But the rest of the New Testament would indicate that there was a group here of Judaisers who continued to hold firm and teach that keeping the Law, circumcision was necessary for a complete salvation before God. They become the plague of Paul’s ministry through the New Testament. Not primarily those who are outside [who are] opposing the gospel, but those from within the professing Church who claimed to believe but were corrupting the gospel by adding the requirements of the Law to it. We call them the Judaisers. You ought to have that term in your mind. The Judaisers were the Jews who claimed to believe in Christ, but said it was also necessary to be circumcised and to keep the Law. And naturally, they could come and say, we’re not denying the gospel is being preached. We’re simply saying it is not a complete gospel. And after all, did not God give the entire scripture? Is not the Law of Moses the law that was given by God on Mount Sinai? Now Christ has come and we have the joy of believing in Him, BUT we can now keep His law understanding it=s importance in a way we didn’t before. And they could make a case that became very confusing even to Christians. And it’s to deal with that kind of issue that Paul will write to the Galatians.

Turn over to Acts, chapter 20. We see here developing a strategy of Satan that he continues to use today. There is the direct opposition from those outside, but now Satan has developed a strategy to corrupt the Church from within. Paul warned the elders of the church at Ephesus of this in Acts, chapter 20, when he said in verse 29, “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves’ men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw the disciples away after them.” You see, from among your own selves, meaning from within the Church, from among those who professed and claimed faith in Christ, there will arise these false teachers who teach perverse things.

Go back to the book of Galatians, and then when you get there, back up a page or two into 2 Corinthians, chapter 11. 2 Corinthians, chapter 11. Paul dealing with the same basic issue as he warns the Corinthians. Verse 2, “I am jealous for you,” 2 Corinthians 11:2. “I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. But I am afraid, that as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus. . .” So, you note, these aren’t those who deny Jesus, but they are teaching Him differently than Paul did. It’s another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear with this beautifully.” So, you see, they’re altering the truth concerning Christ. He is wonderful. He is necessary. But He is not everything. There is more. They’re presenting the gospel, but it’s a variation of the gospel which totally corrupts it and makes it altogether different, as Paul will tell the Galatians.

Look down in verse 13, “For such men are false apostles. . .” Note that. They claim to be apostles. So, you see, we’re dealing from those within the professing circle, those who profess to be believers in Christ. These men are “false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.” You see, as we come over to Galatians shortly, these Judaisers claimed that they were the true apostles of Christ. Paul was not the genuine article. His apostleship was not real. “No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore, it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness; whose end will be according to their deeds.”
Paul says, “Don’t be shocked.” This is the way Satan works. He dresses himself up as an angel of light. So his workers do the same thing. And it’s always more difficult. It had to be more difficult for Paul and Barnabas to confront the Judaisers at Antioch who claimed to believe what they believed about Christ. That would be more difficult than going head to head with the Jews who opposed the preaching of Christ in the cities of Galatia when they established them. Now you have the confusion: Are these with us or against us?

I mean, look the Judaisers, one of the problems with the Judaisers is they will be closer to Paul and his doctrine than anyone else on the earth who is not genuinely saved. Here you have the core of true believers. These are the ones who have truly believed and experienced God=s salvation. Now you move out from that and you have those who claim to believe all the truth concerning Christ, and believe all the truth revealed in the Old Testament. They have simply put it together and said that both the Law AND the gospel is necessary for salvation. Then you move out from that to Jews who deny the gospel, but believe the Old Testament. Then you move out from that to those who are pagans who are worshipping the sun, the moon and the stars.

Here you got people at least they say we believe that Jesus is the Messiah, too. We believe that He’s the Savior and you have to believe in Him, but we also want you to know that=s not enough. You also have to be circumcised and keep the Law. They say, well, at least we got somebody who believes the same thing we do, even if they believe a little more.

Paul cuts no slack here. And there is a crucial issue. And we see the way Satan works: infiltrate within and see if he can’t offer an invitation that will bring a compromise. And we’ll see how this works in a moment.

Everywhere Paul went he had to deal with the Judaisers. Turn over to Colossians, chapter 2. We studied the book of Colossians not too long ago. Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians. So, about three books past Galatians, you come to Colossians. And what is sometimes referred to as the Colossian heresy, is simply the Judaizing heresy. The Judaisers that came to the city of Colossae. Everywhere Paul went he’d preach the gospel, establish a church and move on, and the Judaisers would come in behind him, saying, Paul preached to you the gospel, but he didn’t tell you everything you need to know and they brought confusion to these new believers.

In Colossians, chapter 2, verse 8, “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.” I think he’s referring here to the Mosaic Law and what is associated with it. Verse 11, “And in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ.” The spiritual circumcision is what brought about your salvation, not physical circumcision. Verse 14, “Christ has canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us which was hostile to us.” The Law could condemn. The Law couldn’t save. Christ dealt with that in His crucifixion.

Verse 16, “Therefore, let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink, or in respect to a festival day or new moon or Sabbath day. Those things were a mere shadow of what is to come. The substance belongs to Christ.” And so on.

So, you see, what the Judaisers bring in, you got to keep the Law, you got observe certain days, you’ve got to observe the Sabbath. All these things are added to faith in Christ and corrupted and undermined the truth of Christ.

Come back to the book of Galatians. It’s in the book of Galatians that Paul most fully and directly deals with the issue of the Judaisers. And it’s a very pertinent and relevant letter. It’s not, well, what do we care about that issue 2,000 years ago? We care because we are dealing with the same basic issues today. And the Church is being corrupted and the purity of, and simplicity of devotion to Christ is being marred by the tolerance in accepting of a kind of teaching where we look at it and say, Well, at least they agree with us on these things. Now, they have some differences here, but can that be major? We need to be very careful, as Paul told the Ephesian elders, be on the alert. Be on the watch.

These Judaisers, in the book of Galatians, let’s look at a few things, claim to be teaching the gospel. Verse 6-8, “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ for a different gospel.” You see, they’re presenting the gospel, but it’s a different gospel. Not a variation of Paul’s, as he viewed it, verse 7, “It’s not really another, [but] these are those,” the end of verse 7, “who want to distort the gospel of Christ.” So, you see, we’re not dealing with those who deny the gospel, [but] we’re dealing with those who want to reshape the gospel and make the gospel - believe in the death, resurrection of Christ and be circumcised and keep the Mosaic Law for salvation.

Over in chapter 2, I eluded to this when we we=re Acts, he refers to Titus and his refusal to circumcise Titus. And I think this carries us back to the issues of Acts, chapter 15. We’ll see that when we get into Galatians, chapter 2. But note verse 4, “but it was because of the false brethren.” Now you see there he refers to them as false brethren. Those who claimed to be brothers in Christ but were false. “Secretly brought in who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus in order to bring us into bondage.” You see they are not; they were not truly saved.

“But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.” So you see what Paul says? If we didn’t stand firm the truth of the gospel would not remain.

You know what’s happening in evangelical church today? There is no pure gospel to pass on to the coming generation because we sit back as the adults of the day and tolerate the corruption that continues to infiltrate the Church and we are looking for ways to get along. Paul said the issue was that I have a pure gospel to be passed on to you and remain with you.

Over in chapter 3. I told you that the issue here is not only justification, how you are saved, but it’s also sanctification, how you live as a child of God. Look at verse 2 of Galatians 3, “This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the work of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”
So, be careful. It’s not a well, you know, yes, you believe in Christ for salvation, but then it’s necessary to keep the Law for your sanctification. Paul says that’s a ridiculous argument. We’ll talk about this when we get to chapter 3, but you know that’s the argument of those who want to say that we have to be under a portion of the Mosaic Law.

I’m reading a book that was just published relating to the Law and the Gospel. The man is attacking those who do not believe that we are under any aspect of the Mosaic Law. He says they are antinomians, those who are against law. And he blends it together. If you are against submitting to the moral demands of the Mosaic Law, you are against all requirements of God. You believe in licentiousness.

Dispensationalists are often accused of this by those of a covenant persuasion. But to say that I have to live under any part of the Mosaic Law, in order to have the kind of life God wants me to have as His child, is foolishness! Paul will deal with that very strongly when we get to Galatians, chapter 3. Look over in chapter 6 of Galatians. Paul says here’s what the real problem is, verse 12, “Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.”

Now that’s why we did the background, one of the reasons we did the background in Acts. Remember the strong Jewish influence in these cities where Paul established churches in Galatia, in the province of Galatia? Now the Judaisers come along with the kind of mixture and compromise that can tone down the opposition. They say, look, we’ll preach you believe in Christ, but you also have to be circumcised and keep the Law. Well, the Jews aren’t going to have such intense opposition to this kind of message because you’re preaching Moses, you’re preaching circumcision, you’re preaching the Mosaic Law.

Great! So you see what they do? We’ve developed the compromise. We preach the gospel and we preach the Law so everybody’s happy and we avoid persecution. Do you have any trouble with that? You always have to be so black and white? So narrow? We’re still preaching Christ. We’re not denying anything about His death, burial and resurrection. We simply also say that it’s necessary to be circumcised and to believe the Law. And you know what? We have many more opportunities now in Iconium, in Lystra, in Derby, in Pysidian Antioch, to share the gospel with people. They think much more highly of us as a church now that we don’t make ourselves so narrow and closed. Paul has no time for that. He says that’s not the gospel at all. That kind of thinking permeates the church today. We think we make certain compromises and, as long as we don’t deny the basics of the gospel. The fact that we compromise the truth just gives us more opportunities, far more people come to our church than would come if we were so narrow. It’s the work of the Devil and it subtly permeates.

We’re always looking. Do we have to draw a line here? We have to draw a line everywhere God draws it in His word. No more places, no less places. Remember, the book of Revelation concluded with a condemnation on anyone who added anything to or took anything away from what God said and required.
Now back to Galatians. We are ready for Galatians. Remember we’re studying Galatians. Satan is really using three strategies. He has direct opposition. We saw that from the Jews who did not believe. He has imitation, create those who claim to be believers who will infiltrate and corrupt the purity of the gospel. And then, his third methodology is to attack the messenger of the truth. So, Paul will spend the good part of the first two chapters of Galatians defending his authority as an apostle. The Judaisers were saying, Paul is not a genuine apostle, at best, Paul is a second level apostle. The Judaisers claimed to be the real article. Remember, they disguised themselves as apostles of Christ, and they’re constantly trying to erode people’s confidence in Paul as a true apostle. So, Paul will begin, and the first 5 verses really are the introduction to the letter. And in this introduction, he is going to cover the basic issues that will be developed in the rest of the book. And one of those issues is the matter of his apostleship. And we are going to concentrate on that in our, in the rest of our time together.

Note, the letter begins, “Paul, an apostle (not sent from men, nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead), and all the brethren who are with me, to the churches of Galatia.” “Paul, an apostle,” the word apostle comes from the Greek word stello, send. Apostle, apostello. Apostello is the verb to send. It’s used, I don’t know, 100 and some times, 140 times or so in the New Testament. So, it was somebody who was sent. The background, in the Old Testament in the Greek translation there, and often carried the concept of one who was sent with a message representing another. And that really becomes its more limited use technically in the New Testament. It’s sometimes used just of those who were sent some place. But we are talking about the apostles, as Paul is identifying them here, he=s narrowing it down to a specific group who represent Jesus Christ and have a message from Him. In the New Testament, it generally refers to the 12 apostles and Paul. Those especially selected and appointed by Christ.

Now, Paul met the qualifications of an apostle. And I want to spend some time walking through these with you, so that we understand what was required to be an apostle in the technical sense that Paul is using it of himself [in] Paul, an apostle. There’s confusion on this today, and, ah, we will refer to that later on.

First requirement that Paul met to be an apostle: He was an eye witness of the resurrection. He was an eye witness of the resurrection. The twelve formed a special group and they are referred to as “the twelve,” the original twelve. Judas was false. He hanged himself. They=re back to 11. In Acts chapter 1, you find the disciples meeting to replace Judas. And they replace him with Mathias, so that the 12 remains the 12, that special, unique group of apostles. In that context, in Acts, chapter 1, verse 22, Peter says he must be one who can be an eye witness of the resurrection. One of the roles that the apostles carried out was that they were to be eye witnesses of the resurrection. In other words, they could declare the truth of the gospel, the death and resurrection of Christ because they had seen Christ after His resurrection from the dead.

So, to be an apostle in this sense you had to have seen Christ after His was resurrected from the dead. In Acts, chapter 10, Peter refers to this fact at the house of Cornelius. Acts, chapter 10, verse 40, Peter says that they crucified Christ by hanging him on a cross. Acts 10:40, God raised Him up on the third day, and granted that He should become visible. Now note, God granted him to become visible. Not to all the people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us, who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. The apostles were those who knew Christ during His physical ministry and saw Him after His resurrection from the dead. Paul will be a unique apostle in this sense, and we’ll see shortly. Look in 1 Corinthians, chapter 9. 1 Corinthians, chapter 9, verse 1. 1 Corinthians 9:1, Paul says, Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? That refers to his experience on the Damascus Road in Acts, chapter 9, when the resurrected Christ personally confronted Paul, who was called Saul then, more commonly.

So, here Paul claims, I am a valid apostle. I have seen the resurrected Christ. Ah, look in 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. Paul unfolds the gospel that he preached. Verse 3, Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures . . . He was buried, and . . . He was raised, in verse 4. Then verse 5, And that He appeared to Cephas (that’s Peter), then to the twelve. You see, the twelve were that unique group so identified. Paul doesn’t include himself as one of the twelve because he’s not. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time. So, He didn’t just appear to the twelve, He appeared to 500 at one time. Now, they did not all qualify as apostles because, as we’ll see, there’s other requirements to be an apostle than [just] the requirement to have seen Christ after His resurrection. But this is one definite one. Then He appeared to James. This is the James who is the half-brother of Christ. He was not a believer during Christ’s earthly life. He was also the leader of the Council at Jerusalem in Acts, chapter 15. Last of all, verse 8, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. Last of all to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.

Now, a couple of things you ought to note here. Paul claims that he is the last one to receive a post resurrection experience of Christ. Last of all, as one untimely born, He appeared to me. I, ah, stress that because there=s some people who claim that they are apostles today. I have a problem with that. Paul said he was the last to receive a resurrection [experience]. This means there are no apostles after the death of these first century men, because Paul was the last one to receive a resurrection experience. So, after Paul and the other apostles died, there were no more. Paul says he was a unique case. “I was one untimely born.” You could translate that “a miscarriage.” He was untimely born. This was a unique case. Not only did He appear to me last, but He appeared to me last as a unique, special case. Paul declares here very clearly, and offers the credential, he was an apostle and he was the last one so appointed. Okay, first requirement he met: He was an eye-witness of the resurrection. In order words, he saw Christ after the resurrection, so he could testify. I’m not telling you that Christ raised from the dead because someone told me, I’m telling you because I saw Him.

Second requirement of an apostle that Paul fulfilled: His ministry was accompanied by miracles. His ministry was accompanied by miracles. In 2 Corinthians, chapter 12, verse 12. 2 Corinthians 12:12, “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles.” You note, Paul says these were the evidences of a true apostle: signs, wonders, miracles. Just jot down Acts, chapter 5, verse 12. Acts 5:12 says, “At the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were taking place among the people.” You know, it wasn’t just every Christian was running around doing miracles in the first century church, but the apostles were doing miracles. Remember in Acts, chapter 14? The apostle Paul raised the man who had been lame from birth, enabled him to walk. Another evidence of his apostolic authority. In Romans, chapter 15 and verse 19, Paul said that his preaching of the gospel was done in the power of signs and wonders. That’s one of the reason I believe that what we call the miracle gifts of the Spirit ceased with the death of the apostles. If miracles and miracle gifts were one of the accompanying evidences of being an apostle, when you no longer have apostles, I take it, you no longer have the evidences of apostleship. Now, doing of miracles was not the only evidence that you were an apostle. You have to have ALL the requirements to meet the evidence.

Some people say, Well, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. So, if there were healings done in New Testament times, we can expect it done today, because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. That is one of the most inappropriate arguments, because Jesus Christ has not eternally been Man. He is the same yesterday, today and forever, but you realize there was a time when Jesus Christ was not Man, He was only God. So, He was the same yesterday, today and forever, does not mean He did the same thing in the same way all the time. He walked the earth in a physical body 2,000 years ago [but] He’s not doing that today. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. In His basic character and being, He is unchanging. He is God. But that does not mean He does the same thing in the same way all the time. These miracles were associated with apostolic ministry. That relates to the third evidence of apostleship. The first was they were eye-witnesses of the resurrection. The second, their ministry was accompanied by miracles. Third, he received his message directly from God. They received new scripture. Paul will talk about this is Galatians, chapter 1, verses 11 and 12, when he’ll say he didn’t get his gospel from men, he wasn’t taught it by other people, God communicated it directly to him. Turn over to Hebrews, chapter 2. Hebrews, chapter 2. The writer to the Hebrews says in verse 3 of Hebrews 2, “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard . . . .” That would have been apostles. So, here you have the line, Christ spoke the truth, then He spoke it through those who heard it from Him. “God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.”

In other words, as these apostles received new information from God, how would you know that they didn’t just make it up? One of the evidences was [that] their ministry was accompanied by the miraculous. Every time tongues are spoken in the book of Acts, it’s in the context of an apostle’s ministry. In fact, the Samaritans in Acts, chapter 8, can’t even get the Spirit until the apostles get there, and evidenced by speaking in tongues. And so on.

So, the miraculous that were associated with apostolic ministry served to validate the new revelation they were being given from God. That’s why Ephesians 2:20 says, “The Church is being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets.” Prophets also received direct revelation from God. Now, they did not have the same authority and importance as the apostles did. 1 Corinthians 12:28 says that the order is first apostles, second prophets, third teachers. Apostles and prophets both received direct revelation. Teachers simply explained the revelation that had been given to apostles and prophets. I am not laying the foundation for the Church in that sense today. I am building upon what the apostles and prophets received from God. So, Paul received his message directly from God and that will be the subject of, ah, consideration in Galatians, chapter 1, so we won’t go into that with Paul.

All right, the fourth requirement of an apostle. He was an eye witness of the resurrection. His ministry was accompanied by miracles. He received his message directly from God. And number four, he was appointed directly by Christ. So, in Galatians, chapter 1, verse 1, “Paul, an apostle.” And now he wants to elaborate on the fact [that] he was not appointed by men, but he was appointed by Christ. So, he says, “Not sent from men, nor through the agency of man.” “Not sent from men” means his apostleship did not originate with man. It didn’t have a human origin. In other words, the twelve apostles did not decide to make Paul an apostle. His apostleship was not from men. It didn’t originate from men. “Nor was it through the agency of man.” It wasn’t through man. Men were not the agency. So, God did not say, I’m choosing Paul. I want you twelve apostles to appoint Him. No. Men weren’t even involved in that way. It wasn’t from men, it wasn’t through men. What he is showing is, his apostleship was not in any way dependent upon human, human origin or human agency. In this way he is no way, in no way inferior to the twelve, for example. He’ll deal with that [in the] opening part of Galatians in the first two chapters, really, to show that he wasn’t inferior in any way to the other apostles.
“But [he was an apostle] through Jesus Christ, and God the Father.” He only uses one preposition here. The preposition through. Through the agency of Jesus Christ and God the Father because that presupposes the origin. If God the Son and God the Father are the agency through which your apostleship is brought to you, obviously They’re the origin, too, because you can go no higher place. And using one preposition joining Jesus Christ and God the Father showed the high exalted position Christ has. Ah, that here He was exalted with God the Father. It came through Jesus Christ and God the Father. So, he has divine origin for his apostleship and he has divine agency. And He puts Jesus Christ first here because Jesus Christ is the one who confronted him on the Damascus Road. His appointment was direct from God. And God the Father is the one who raised Him from the dead. So, again, the resurrection, which will be so crucial in this whole issue, in the finality and completeness in the work of Christ is associated here with Paul=s apostolic ministry and his testimony of that resurrected Christ.
There are “all the brethren who are with me.” As Paul usually does in his letters, he associates a word of greeting, if you will, from those who are with him, but nowhere in this letter does Paul name any other person with him. Paul is standing here on his authority as an apostle and his alone. These brethren with him would have been those associated with him in his missionary activity. They’re just mentioned, but they are not joined with him in apostolic authority. And he’s writing “to the churches of Galatia.” Churches that he had established there. And then he’ll turn to the message he preached. So, he establishes his position as an apostle and his authority, and then the message that he has. And then he’ll be ready to develop the details.

Well, let me summarize with you what we’ve covered here. We noted, first of all, that the Devil operates in three ways as the enemy of truth.
1) He directly opposes the truth. People just deny the truth concerning Christ. They reject it. And there is opposition that come from those who would attack the truth.
2) He develops an imitation of the truth. He works within to corrupt the purity of the truth. So, the Judaisers take the truth and mix it, and thus corrupt it.
3) He attacks the messenger of the truth, to undermine their credibility of what is being conveyed. No, difference in the basic way that Satan operates down to our day.

Paul has demonstrated and declared, if you will, more than demonstrated, his apostleship. And I want to note two things about apostles. They are not original with me, but I wanted you to be aware of them. Number one, apostles had unique authority from God and the message communicated [to] them is the authoritative word of God. That’s why we’re studying the letter to the Galatians. The Church is being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Why didn’t you come today and hear ten points on building a more effective business, six issues of the political climate of our day? Because the Church is to be built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. We come to find out what God has said through His spokesmen. That means that this truth, now contained as our New Testament, has its own unique authority. So, men who would say, Well, you know, Paul was in error here. Well, you know, this doesn’t really apply, ah. And we’d attempt to overrule the scripture.

Reading in a commentary this week, one of the men were sharing it with me, and the man was saying, when Paul wrote this section of Romans, he was emotionally worked up and wasn’t quite accurate. But then when he wrote Ephesians, he had settled down a little bit, and he had gotten things straight. Well, you know what that man is doing? He is asserting his authority over the apostles. Well, Paul was wrong here, [but] I’m right. Well, we understand, apostolic authority in that sense continues through apostolic truth.

And that relates to the second thing I want to say. And that is there are no apostles today and there is no apostolic succession. We live under the authority of the scriptures that were given through the apostles. Roman Catholic Church creates a major heresy by this kind of thinking. The Church gave us the scriptures, therefore the Church is over the scriptures, meaning the Roman Catholic Church. That is not true. The Church did not give us the scriptures. God, through the apostles, gave us the scriptures. The Church came into existence as a result of the truth communicated through the apostles. The Church did not give us the scriptures. The apostles gave us the scriptures. And the only apostolic authority that exists today is the message of the apostles as contained in our scripture. So, we live under the authority of the scripture. And the Church lives under the authority of the scripture. The Church does not have authority over the scripture. And there are no new apostles today. There is no apostolic succession today. There never has been, because you had to be directly appointed and had to meet all four of the qualifications that we look through. That is simply the way for men to try to assert their authority over God’s truth. So, we want to be very clear on these issues. This Church has to live under the authority of the scripture. The Church is under the authority of the scripture. The Church is not over the scripture. The Church did not give us the scripture. God gave us the scripture.

We have, particularly in Charismatic realms today, men saying, well, now, we have apostles and prophets present in the Church again. That is not true. If we carefully study the scripture, we find out what was required of the apostle we find out it is an impossibility. Another way of men trying to put themselves above the apostles and above the truth that God communicated.

These are crucial issues and our foundational now to Paul as he turns to deal with what is the substance of the gospel. And he’s going to put that in his introduction, so that we are prepared in our mind to understand the simplicity and clarity of the gospel, and to stand against any alteration or corruption that might take place.

Let’s pray together. Thank you, Lord, for those men that you specially raised up to be apostles, that were entrusted with Your authority and Your truth in the establishing of Your Church. Lord, we thank you for the impact of their ministry down to our day as we take Your word and study it and submit to it and experience the gracious ministry of Your Spirit in our lives. Lord, I pray that we, as individuals, and we, as a church, might be alert and faithful, that we might be careful of the schemes of the Devil, that we might be obedient to the truth, that You might be honored and glorified. And we ask in Christ=s name. Amen.