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[0:00] It's good to be with you here today.

[0:17] It's all about moving forward, right?! Sure, there are times that we need to look back at a few things, and so I want to challenge you out of the book of Galatians.

[0:34] There are six chapters in the book of Galatians. We're going to look at it a chapter at a time, so I think we're, you know, Mike mentioned, you know, the month of May, and so, well, there are four Sundays in the month of May, so I'm not sure how we're going to work that, but we'll see.

[0:50] But I would challenge you and encourage you to be reading through the book of Galatians. It's what I do. I've read through Galatians, and I listen to it on audio a lot as well, whether I'm driving or riding my bike or just, you know, sitting there in my quiet time.

[1:09] Read it over and over and over again. I'd challenge you to read a chapter every day, and so you've got one day off on that. Not one day off from reading the Bible, one day off from reading Galatians.

[1:22] And I know, and the Lord is faithful. He will show you something in Galatians. It'll be something you've known before, and we just need reminded.

[1:37] Every now and then we forget. Sometimes we just have to apply it to a new situation. It's the same principle, but the names have been changed, and so it'll be that way.

[1:47] But sometimes we'll see something totally fresh, and it's like, wow, I've read that before. I didn't get that. So read through the book of Galatians, and I think that will make our time on Sunday morning even more fruitful.

[2:02] I've come up with a principle for each chapter, and so I'll share them with you briefly here, and then I'll touch on these as we go through. The overall theme of the series is moving forward with God.

[2:17] In chapter 1, I believe we see the principle of authenticity. Paul is going to be talking about our faith must be based upon truth.

[2:30] It's not how we feel. It's not what we want. It's faith based on truth. And so the principle of authenticity, we'll see that this morning. Chapter 2, I see the principle of identification.

[2:44] Understanding who we are in Christ. Everything is based upon Christ. It all hinges on Christ. And so when we see ourselves in Christ, we're called Christians.

[2:57] That means Christ in us. We're of Christ. Chapter 3, I see the principle of consistency. We are saved by faith.

[3:10] We'll fight about that. We'll fuss about that. We'll shout about that. But we need to understand it's consistent. Not only are we saved by faith, we walk in faith.

[3:22] Day 2, oh, by the way, is about faith. Day 3 is by faith. Day 4, every day is by faith. You don't get saved one way and then grow in your salvation another way.

[3:36] Chapter 4 is the principle of accountability. You read through chapter 4 and you'll see some of the challenges that Paul gives to this church that he helped start and now is writing back to them.

[3:50] You might think it would be a little rude. I think Paul would call it tough love. There's accountability. And then chapter 5 is the principle of replacement.

[4:02] Really, this is the other side of the coin to the principle of identification. We identify with Christ and then there comes a replacement. Christ picks us up as we yield to him.

[4:16] What did he say that his yoke was light and our yoke that we usually carry is heavy. And we allow him to take that yoke off of us, that yoke of sin, that yoke of bondage, that yoke of the law.

[4:33] And puts his yoke of righteousness and grace and holiness upon it.

[4:44] So, it's all about identification, but you do something with that identification. There's a replacement. And in chapter 6 is what I see the principle of interdependence.

[4:58] And I'll touch on this a little later. We start independent. And we're proud. And we're sinful. And it's all about us. And then we come to that point of dependence.

[5:10] A brokenness. A surrender. A following after of Christ. And that is the key. But there is also something else. Dependent. Independent.

[5:22] We then become dependent upon Christ. But then the third stage is what he created the church for. Interdependence.

[5:32] We need each other to encourage one another. He gave out the Holy Spirit, gave out the gifts that he saw fit. And, you know, the eye can't say to the foot or vice.

[5:44] We all need each other. And so the principle of interdependence in Galatians chapter 6. I'm going to be reading out the New International Version.

[5:54] If you've got another version, I think you'll be able to follow along. I would give you, I don't know you well enough to give you permission to just kind of close your eyes and listen.

[6:06] But maybe as we go along. Galatians chapter 1. Let me read through the first chapter. I'll make a few comments and then we'll look at the outline.

[6:17] And I believe you have the outline there in your program. Now, see, that's kind of my, that's really for both of us. Because I mentioned this thing about knowing you very well.

[6:29] It's hard to get up here and speak. At least it is for me. It is by the grace of God. And so as I look out and I see people, sometimes I'll see a smiley face.

[6:40] You know, Mike's got a big smile on his face. And I heard an amen or something. And so that, you know, sure, there's vanity. But I think God has, you know, baptizes some of that.

[6:56] You know, we're to encourage one another. There's nothing wrong with encouraging one another. And if we're challenged to encourage each other, then the receiving end of that encouragement is, you know, thankfulness and appreciation and grace.

[7:10] Okay, yeah, they appreciate what I'm doing. So there's godliness there. But, you know, I'm telling you, no matter, I've preached a lot. But if I look out there and I see some of you, you know, kind of going like this.

[7:27] And then, boom, popping back. Man, I'll, devil's right there. He's tempting, you know, trying to, man, they're, they don't, you're not doing very good.

[7:37] You know, they're getting bored. They're, they're, they're about to go to sleep. And so, you know, it can get me off track. And so, with you having the outline, number one, I think God's going to speak to you through his word.

[7:51] And so, you'll, you'll make different notes. And then, you'll have them in your Bible. And as you pick your Bible up this week, and, you know, maybe it's Tuesday afternoon or Thursday morning.

[8:01] And you, you see those notes. And then, you remember, oh, yeah, I remember, you know, not necessarily what the pastor said Sunday morning. Here's the note I said about what the spirit was speaking to me about.

[8:13] And a word of encouragement or a word of, you know, challenge or whatever. And so, that'll help you. It'll help me in this way. As I, and, and by the way, it's, it's not the slow dropping of the head.

[8:28] And I, I really, it's very hard to see your eyes. So, we're, you know, it's, it's not the slow, it's the sudden popping up. That's the giveaway.

[8:40] So, just a word of advice. It takes discipline. If you catch yourself, you, you wake up right about here. Just gradually come back up.

[8:52] And nobody will know. Now, that's normally, now that you've got an outline, when I look out and I see your heads going up and down, I'll think, wow, they're eating this up.

[9:03] They're making notes. And, you know, and the Holy Spirit will encourage me in that. So, the, the outline is for both of us. You can take notes and we'll, we'll get into the outline.

[9:15] But some of the things, as I mentioned, as I read, you may make a note there too. Galatians chapter 1, verse 1. Paul, an apostle, sent not from men nor by men, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead.

[9:36] And all the brothers with me to the churches in Galatia. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

[9:48] That's a common introduction that Paul gives. This grace and peace to you. What an introduction. What, you know, everything is based upon that.

[10:02] You know, we think of grace and the beautiful passage in Ephesians 2, 8 and 9 that says, For it is by grace you've been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is a gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.

[10:16] You know, it's not like he's wanting to, you know, beat us down for boasting. What I take in that is, you know, we're all in the same boat.

[10:27] The boat is sinking. It is sinking. But we're all in the same boat. And so, thankfully, I don't have to work for it. Thankfully that there's nothing I can do that will earn his favor other than the response of the Holy Spirit that is convicting me and persuading me.

[10:49] And through his mercy and grace. Grace is he, you know, it's just a blessing that he pours upon them as he begins this letter.

[11:00] And peace. Remember Jesus in the upper room. Peace be unto you. Several times, it was about peace. And it's not, let's have orderliness.

[11:13] Though God is a God of order. I love orderliness. I mean, that's why you've got an outline. I always have an outline because I need some order.

[11:25] Some don't. Some are more extemporaneous or other things. I need a little order. I enjoy orderliness. That's why I really pick up where God is a God of order.

[11:37] You look in the Old Testament and just things are laid out. Creation is laid out. The temple, the tabernacle, the temple, they're just all laid out. Have any engineers in here that, you know, appreciate that with me?

[11:51] The, you know, just order all through the Bible. Well, this idea of peace doesn't mean there's orderliness, though. Matter of fact, usually it's highlighted when there's disorder.

[12:08] Paul said it this way when he wrote to the church at Philippi in Philippians 4, 6, and 7. He said, do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God and the peace of God.

[12:28] That transcends all understanding. Why does it transcend all understanding? Because it's a peace that shines the brightest when there is great disorder.

[12:42] Again, I love to plan things out, and I love to have my deadlines before the deadlines. You know, there's always the drop dead.

[12:53] You know, I never tell people the drop dead date because that's the day I'm going to drop dead if they don't have it done. I tell them the day, you know, depends on how big the project is, whether a few days before that or a few weeks before that.

[13:07] I love that orderliness, and I, you know, this is my thorn in the flesh, and I struggle with that. Why does the peace transcend my understanding?

[13:20] It's because even when everything is going wrong, the promise is there that there can be peace in my heart and in my mind.

[13:34] It says the peace which transcends all understanding and that in Christ there will be a guarding of our minds and our hearts.

[13:45] My heart and mind need guarding. You know, I'm getting to that age where every now and then, you know, Mary just needs to grab my hand and steady my hand.

[13:57] My mind needs steadying. My heart, sometimes my heart, you know, starts pumping a little too much because I'm worried or I'm afraid or whatever it is, and my heart needs guarded by Jesus Christ.

[14:15] And so that's all wrapped up when Paul says grace and peace to you in this letter that I'm writing you. These things we need to talk about.

[14:27] We continue in verse 4. Who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age according to the will of our God and Father.

[14:45] Jesus Christ gave himself. And this idea here that he has rescued us should put aside any question that there could be of the purpose of Christ coming to earth.

[15:02] It was to rescue us. We needed rescuing. Verse 5. To whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. I'm astonished that you...

[15:15] And this verse 6 is really the verse of the whole book. The theme of the whole book is contained right here in verse 6. I am astonished.

[15:27] Why is he writing them? What's the purpose of Galatians? He's writing them because he's astonished. What is he astonished about?

[15:38] That they are so quickly deserting the one who called them by the grace of Christ. And are turning to a different gospel.

[15:52] That's it in a nutshell right there. That is Galatians in a nutshell. Paul has heard these stories. We'll get into the stories. He's heard these stories.

[16:02] And he's astonished. He can't believe it. This is a church he helped start. And several of them there. The churches of Galatia. And now they are embracing a different gospel.

[16:19] He uses the word deserting. You know, it's not a matter of going to the cafeteria. Now, are there any cafeterias left in Barnalsville? Oklahoma City just closed down Luby's there on North May in Britain.

[16:34] I think there might still be one and more. Boulevard cafeteria downtown. Well, they call it Midtown. That closed about a year ago. How many of you have ever been to the boulevard in north downtown Oklahoma City?

[16:48] Old cafeteria. My parents like cafeterias. They live in Ada. They come up to visit us in Oklahoma City. Guess what? We go to the cafeteria. And you know what?

[16:59] Well, there's just fewer and fewer people there. And older and older people there. And they finally closed it down. But this is not a cafeteria.

[17:12] This is not a matter of, you know. And you know, in cafeterias, they'll have these names. There'll be the, like, Luan platter or something like that.

[17:24] And there's this platter. And they've got a price up there. And I just always went through and said, I want that. I want that. And they'd say, well, now, you know, you can get two rolls. I don't want any rolls.

[17:35] I, you know. So, they do kind of have some menu pricings. But for the most part, you know, if you want Jell-O and cottage cheese and pie and that's all you want, you can get that at a cafeteria.

[17:50] You can get a little of everything or just one thing. But you can't do that with the gospel. You cannot pick and choose with the gospel and with the Bible.

[18:05] And so, Paul uses this word here. It's not that you've picked up the true gospel and this other gospel and you just kind of carrying them both along.

[18:16] No. When you pick up this gospel, you desert that gospel. Because they cannot go hand in hand. They are the opposite of one another.

[18:27] It can't be dry and wet at the same time. Now, it can rain and the sun can be shining. I've seen that. But you can't have a wet spot and a dry spot in the same spot.

[18:39] It's either one or the other. And so, verse 6 is the heart of the book of Galatians. And this is the challenge for you as you move forward.

[18:50] It's to make sure that you have this authentic gospel. Verse 7. Well, the very end of verse 6.

[19:01] Turning to a different gospel. Verse 7. Which is really no gospel at all. Evidently, some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.

[19:13] Now, what I mentioned earlier about God is all about order. 1 Corinthians 14.33 tells us that he is not the author of confusion.

[19:26] Who is the author of confusion? Satan is the... If you're confused, it's because of Satan. God is the author of clarity.

[19:37] God is the author of order. And so, we see here that they're trying to throw you into confusion. Perverting the gospel. Verse 8.

[19:49] But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned. As we've already said.

[20:01] So now, I say it again. If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned. And now, verse 10.

[20:12] Am I now trying to win the approval of men or God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

[20:26] I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. Now, this is sliding into the other part of the outline here.

[20:38] Again, this idea of God wanting there to be order. God wanting there to be clarity. God wants you to know.

[20:49] Think of 1 John 5.13. When I have had the privilege of sitting down with somebody and walking them through the gospel presentation.

[21:00] And they are, you know, showing that, you know, it appears that the Holy Spirit is convicting them. And they're ready to make a commitment to follow Christ.

[21:11] And as I, you know, lead them in that commitment. One of the things I'll point to them is 1 John 5.13. These things have I written unto you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.

[21:28] That's what it's all about. Is me praying with them and showing them scriptures. And them coming to a certainty of where they stand with God.

[21:40] And that they can know forgiveness. And that they can follow him and not guess about what the outcome will be. But they can know.

[21:52] Because God wants us to know. And Paul here says, in verse 11, I want you to know. Verse 12, I did not receive it from any man. Nor was I taught it.

[22:04] Rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. Speaks to so much of what Paul, not so much of what he wrote. He wrote so much of the New Testament.

[22:17] And that Paul received what he wrote from the Holy Spirit. Guided by God through the revelation of Jesus Christ. Verse 13. For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism.

[22:32] How intensely. And that Judaism. That's going to pop up. Over and over. I'll just go ahead and tell you now. That's where the other gospel comes from. The law.

[22:43] It's where the other gospel comes from. That he'll be combating throughout here. And so right up front. He's laying down the boundaries. And he's telling them. Listen. You guys are struggling with the things of Judaism.

[22:57] And the people of Judaism. What they're trying to put upon you. And so as he begins laying out his arguments. He says, listen. There's no one.

[23:09] That was a greater Jew than. Than I am. He wouldn't have said I was. He would have said that I am. Because he was Jew. And he was a Hebrew of Hebrews. He went to the right schools.

[23:23] And knew the right people. And he had the right positions. And obviously we'll see. Here in just a moment. He even was at that forefront. Of persecuting the church. And so he has the credentials.

[23:38] And so then. In verse 13. For you've heard of my previous way of life in Judaism. How I intensely. I persecuted the church of God. And tried to destroy it.

[23:50] He was there physically arresting people. And physically helping stone people. Stephen. And so he was physically trying to destroy the church.

[24:02] You parallel that with this other gospel. Is more philosophically. Trying to attack. And to destroy the church. Kind of coming in the back door.

[24:14] Kind of sneaking in. And yet will undermine. The true gospel. Verse 14. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews. Of my own age.

[24:25] And was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when God. Who set me apart. From birth. And called me by his grace.

[24:37] And we. You know there's probably really nothing. That we're going to look at in Galatians. That will back up this statement. That I'm saying. But I think it comes from this.

[24:47] Paul wasn't the only one set apart. Paul wasn't the only one that was special. If you want to say it that way. In the eyes of God. Every single believer.

[25:00] Could say this same thing. Every single believer could say. I was set apart by God from birth. And called.

[25:11] By his grace. Verse 16. To. Reveal his son in me. So that I might preach him among the Gentiles.

[25:22] I did not consult any man. Nor did I go up to Jerusalem. To see those who were apostles. Before I was. But I went immediately into Arabia. And later returned to Damascus.

[25:34] Then after three years. I went up to Jerusalem. To get acquainted with Peter. And stayed with him 15 days. This. You know sometimes we don't get a. We don't appreciate the timelines.

[25:45] In the Bible. You know some of the books. Are not necessarily in chronological order. As we're reading through. You know there's. There's not a whole lot of dates.

[25:56] And even the. The. Markers that are put out there. Maybe they're. You know they're celebrating. The festival of. Tabernacles or something like that.

[26:07] That doesn't mean anything to us. Yes. But in the Jewish calendar. That would have been a marker. Of when that was taking place. During the year. And so there's not a whole lot of. Understanding of the time.

[26:19] And so. You know we're. We're reading. In an axe. Or. And it talks about Paul's conversion. Talks about him persecuting the church. And then his conversion.

[26:30] And then boom. We've got these epistles. And it's just kind of like. Bam. Bam. Bam. And yet there were years. That passed. Immediately he went off. Into the desert for a while.

[26:41] And then. Another three years. And then there were other years. I mean. There were quite a few years. Between when he was saved. And then when he really began. His public ministry. Almost.

[26:52] You know similar to. To Christ preparation. And then writing the epistles. But anyway. Verse 16. Verse 18. After three years.

[27:02] I went up to Jerusalem. Acquainted with. To get acquainted with Peter. And stayed with him 15 days. I saw none of the other apostles. Only James.

[27:13] The Lord's brother. I assure you before God. That what I'm writing to you. Is no lie. Later I went to Syria. And Cilicia. I was personally unknown.

[27:24] To the churches of Judea. That are in Christ. They only heard the report. They only heard the gossip. And what was the gossip?

[27:35] The man. Who formally. Persecuted us. Is now. Preaching. The faith. He once tried to destroy.

[27:47] It's crazy. And they praised God. Because of me. Chapter one.

[27:58] Of the book of Galatians. Well I do have a few things. That I want to note. And make an application. The principle of authenticity.

[28:11] Mike mentioned that we lived in California. For 27 years. And so. We would come back to Oklahoma. For various times. How many of you have been to Ada? Any of you?

[28:23] Have you ever been to Folgers? The hamburger place. Right there on Main Street. It's a. It's a legend. And it's a tiny place. There are. Probably 12 stools. At the counter.

[28:34] They've got a counter there. 12 stools. And then maybe. Later. They added a little table. In front of each window. And so. You probably can't seat. More than. 16 people.

[28:44] Or whatever. And usually. Not always. But usually. You get there. And you know. You want to get on site. On inside. If it's hot. Or cold. And usually. You're kind of standing.

[28:55] Right next to a couple of people. Kind of looking over somebody's shoulder. Almost. And. It was Thanksgiving. And our son was in town.

[29:05] As well. And so. The two of us. Are standing there. We'd gone down to eat. And just that morning. In the paper. I had read. About. Black powder.

[29:16] Hunting. Season. Had just opened. In Oklahoma. And. You know. I kind of. Went through the article. A little bit. I've never been black powder. Hunting.

[29:26] Or anything like that. So. Here we're standing. And there are two guys. Just standing. Right. Next to us. Talking about. Hunting. And I.

[29:37] Kind of knew. One of the guys. And they're just. Going back and forth. And they were talking about. Yeah. We're going to. And so. They kind of. Pause. To take a little breath. And I just said.

[29:48] Black powder. And they both. Turned at me. And then just. Jibber. Jibber. Jibber. You know. They just started. Talking away to me. Kind of like. I know a little bit of Spanish. And so.

[30:00] There have been times. I have given my testimony. In Spanish. In a. In a Hispanic church. And I've told them this. I've said. Listen. I don't speak. Spanish very well. But.

[30:10] I get up. And I. Give my testimony. It takes like. Five minutes. I'm just going. Going. Going. In Spanish. And then. I'll go back. And man. They'll just come at me. In Spanish. Just 90 to nothing.

[30:22] Wanting to ask me this. And it's like. You know. I don't. I can't answer those questions. I don't speak Spanish. That well. When I said black powder.

[30:33] They thought. I knew black powder. And they just turned to me. And just started talking to me. And. And. Our son. He looked at me like. Are you kidding?

[30:45] And so now. If our. If I'm with my son. Around anything. And there's something going on. That's just not right. That's not. Authentic. He'll kind of look at me.

[30:56] And say. Black powder. That's just our little code word. For something. That's fake. You know. We have fake news today. It's everywhere. Talking about. Fake news.

[31:06] How. How can you tell. What's real. And what's not. Another. We just moved here. And Mary's from Paul's Valley. What's one of the most famous things. That happens in Paul's Valley. Falls Creek.

[31:20] Well. It's close by. But I mean. Right there in town. The world. Noodling tournament. Is in Paul's Valley. Every summer. Come on. Do we have any noodlers here?

[31:36] And so. And it really. You know. Probably. We moved back in 2010. Probably about. Oh seven. Oh eight. It just. Exploded.

[31:49] There was a guy. I think he was from Japan. That came and did a documentary. About noodling. And they. Mentioned the noodling festival. In Paul's Valley.

[31:59] And so that just got all kinds of attention. It's just huge now. There are thousands of people there. Anyway. We decided. You know. We're going to go to the noodling festival. And so. Here we are.

[32:10] You know. I've got my plaid shorts on. And my. You know. Colored shirt on. And we're at the. And they've got one of those big long trailer. Aquarium things. You've probably seen them where they do little fishing demonstrations.

[32:21] And. And this guy had this giant catfish. Well. I wanted my picture made. And so he. You know. You grab him by the mouth. And so. I'm. You know.

[32:31] He's keeping hold of. I'm kind of like. Like. You know. I need my picture made. And so here I am. In my. You know. Banana Republic outfit. And. This giant catfish.

[32:43] And then you can kind of see this hand and arm. Into the picture. And it's like. You know. It's totally bogus. I mean. I'm trying to like. Yeah. Here. Actually. I went noodling one time. Our pastor.

[32:54] We're. Members at First Baptist Church Piedmont. Gary Caldwell and I went to high school together in Ada. And he's a big noodler. And he took our son. And. Took me to noodling one time.

[33:05] At Lake Eufaula. Anyway. I'm not a noodler. But I've got this picture of me. With this giant. Fish. And you know. You might think I caught it. Except this other arm.

[33:15] That's still attached to the mouth. That goes off. Camera. It's not real. But here. We need to see the power of authenticity.

[33:27] And so there are two things. The first is. The authentic gospel. We've already seen. I've already touched on a little bit. So I. I won't really repeat that. The true gospel.

[33:39] And the. Untrue gospel. And really there's. You know. You could. Probably come up with. A thousand different. Unauthentic. Unauthentic.

[33:50] Gospels. But they really. You just lump them all in. In one lump. But there was one in particular here. This Judaism. This legalism. You see.

[34:02] Most of the. First wave. Or two. Of believers. Were Jews. And so. I mean. You can see how it happened. They all had been circumcised. Or the men had.

[34:13] They all had gone through. You know. The different. Jewish schools. And all of that stuff. And so then. Yes. They. Made a commitment.

[34:23] To follow Christ. And. And. You know. For many of them. I'm sure they were believers. But. They. Had never seen. You know. They were all Jews. That's all they had seen.

[34:34] And then. To see some Gentiles. Get saved. And then. To come into their. Congregation. It was a little weird.

[34:47] Everyone in there. Had. Was Jewish. And. Now we would call them. Messianic Jews. They had. Committed themselves. To follow Jesus. As the Messiah.

[34:59] And. And. This man. And. And this woman. Had. Had made a similar commitment. To follow Jesus Christ. The Savior. But.

[35:09] They weren't following. Any of the dietary. Regulations. They. He was not. Circumcised. Now today. You know. Most men are circumcised.

[35:20] As babies. It's a different thing. It's totally different. When you hear. Circumcision. In the body. Now. I mean. It's a similar procedure. But it's a totally different concept.

[35:31] When circumcision. Is mentioned. In the New Testament. It is. It is. Always. About. The legalism. Of the law. And keeping.

[35:42] The old covenant. And. And usually. Against. The new covenant. Now. They may say. Well. It's just.

[35:54] In addition. To the new covenant. Now. A lot of times. It's nice. To get extra things. You go to the. Bakery. Get donuts.

[36:04] How many of you. Have ever found. An extra donut. In your. You know. Your. Bag. At the. You know. You need to go. The right. Bakeries. You know. I'm used to. You know.

[36:15] You. They call it. The baker's. Dozen. They throw in an extra one. And you get that. And. That makes me happy. It doesn't take a lot. To make me happy.

[36:25] Just that little. X. Somebody did a little extra. And I like that. And in most situations. It's nice. To have something extra.

[36:37] Except. I can think of one. Now. Maybe there's others. But I can think of one. When you. Have Jesus Christ. When you have the son of God.

[36:49] When you have the savior. When you have the one that. Was perfect. Without blemish. Tested. In every way as. We are. And yet without sin.

[37:00] And he suffered. Injustly arrested. Unjustly tried. And crucified. Executed. And then on the third day.

[37:11] He rose from the dead. When you try to add things to Jesus. We run into a problem. There.

[37:23] Is nothing. A little extra. That Jesus needs. Jesus. It's. It's. Jesus alone. Now. There are different perspectives.

[37:34] Obviously. We talk about the work of the Holy Spirit. Obviously. We. We talk about the father. And there. You know. Different nuances. To that. But. But it is Jesus.

[37:45] And so. When we talk about. Oh yeah. You can come into our congregation. But you need to get circumcised. It's. It's.

[37:57] It's. Jesus. Plus. Something. And not just anything. It's Jesus. Part of the old covenant. And it's. Jesus. Part of the. Law. And it's.

[38:07] Jesus. Part of. Regulations. And part of. Rules. And it. Just. Doesn't. Work that way. And so. That's what Paul was talking. And that's what I said.

[38:18] It. It's. It's insidious. It. It can kind of creep in. Because it'll use the same terms. It'll highlight Jesus. You know. We. We don't have any problem with.

[38:30] Getting a little bothered by some people that. Don't highlight Jesus. We don't have any problem. You know. People that want to highlight. Some other. Being. Some other.

[38:42] Deity. We can get bothered about that pretty quick. But. But this is a. A group that we're using the same terminology. And. We're talking of Jesus.

[38:52] But it was Jesus. Plus. Something else. And so. There is the authentic gospel. The definition of gospel is euangelion.

[39:04] That is the. The Greek. Then you get into the Latin. That's. Evangelion. And then it moves to the Anglo-Saxon. Which is a little bit of a jump there. I mean. Not jump in.

[39:16] You know. Leaping. But it's just the transition to. God. Spell. And then that moves. The gospel. The good news. It was the message that was delivered.

[39:29] That. Total victory. It was the good news. That's what the gospel is. Romans 1.16. Says. I'm not ashamed of the gospel.

[39:40] Because it is the power of God. For salvation. To everyone who believes. First. First. To the Jew. And then. To. The Gentile. For in the gospel.

[39:52] A righteousness from God. Is revealed. A righteousness that is by faith. From first to last. Just as is written. The righteous.

[40:04] Will live by faith. The just. Will live by faith. So what makes this gospel authentic? Well. Paul tells us. In verses 11 and 12.

[40:15] It's authentic. Because he. Got it. From God. It was revealed to him. From Jesus Christ. That's what made it authentic. And.

[40:27] The gospel. Is authentic. Because. It is. Jesus. You can't separate the two. The.

[40:38] The Bible tells us. In John 1. In the beginning. Was the word. And the word. Was with God. And the word. Was God.

[40:50] And the word. Became flesh. And dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory. As of the glory. The only begotten of the father. Full. Of grace. And truth. Jesus.

[41:00] Is the gospel. And so. This gospel. Is authentic. Because it came from Jesus. Jesus. And because it is Jesus. And because it points to Jesus. It's all about Jesus.

[41:12] And so. The application. Is that. If you are going to move forward. Both individually. And. Obviously. As a church. You're going to move forward.

[41:24] You've got to hold fast. To the authentic gospel. That is. Jesus Christ. And then number two. The authentic apostle. There were questions.

[41:35] About. Who Paul was. An apostle. Is a messenger from God. Oriented. Anointed. From God. Separated from man.

[41:46] And. And yet. Still just a man. We're to follow God. Not the apostle. But. A true apostle. Is always pointing people. Toward God. You know. Paul said many times.

[41:57] You need to imitate me. As I imitate. Christ. So. He was. The authentic gospel. What made Paul authentic. In verses 13.

[42:09] And. And 14. He's honest. About his past. You know. It's difficult. To trust someone. That tells you something. That's not true. Or that.

[42:22] Over. And sure. You. You don't always need to tell somebody. The first time you meet them. Your. Your whole life story. But. You know. Appropriately. Shares. Information. About their background.

[42:34] And so. He was honest. About his past. As he. Talked about. You know. Judaism. And. And persecuting the church. He was authentic. Because he was called by God.

[42:44] And in verse 15. He lays out that calling from God. And then in verse 16. He was authentic. Because he was preaching. The authentic gospel. Second Corinthians.

[42:56] Ephesians. Four or five says. For we do not preach ourselves. But Jesus Christ. As Lord. And ourselves. As your. Servants.

[43:08] For Christ's sake. That. That's Paul's. Anointing by the spirit. I was going to say. That's Paul's writing. Well. Paul wrote it as. Lord letting. That's his testimony.

[43:19] That's who he is. The authentic. Apostle. And so. As he wrote. Much. Of the New Testament.

[43:30] We read. Colossians. Or. Galatians. Philippians. You know. First. Second. Timothy. And just go down the line. We know. That.

[43:41] It is authentic. Because God. Used. This. Man. Used. This guy. Hand in hand.

[43:51] With the people. And then. By the grace of God. This word. Has been. Preserved. All these centuries.

[44:03] And this. Letter. Is. Just. As individual. And just as specific. And just.

[44:15] As applicable. And meant. For you. Today. As it was. For the churches. Almost. 2000. Years ago.

[44:26] And so. We're moving forward. With God. I can give you. Some challenges. And. You. You don't. Have to wait.

[44:38] For a new pastor. To be in moving. With the Lord. Matter of fact. I. I would say. That. And again. The. The Lord. Works in mysterious.

[44:49] Ways. I would. Think. A pastor. Would be excited. To come. To a congregation. That was. Moving. Forward. With the Lord.

[45:01] Just said. God's bringing us together. And. I'm just going to join in with that. And. I'm just kind of. It's kind of like. You know. There are a few times. Paul said. Well. Okay. This is a little more.

[45:12] My own opinion. Than it is from the Lord. You know. This. Just my personal opinion. I've. Consulted with many. Many churches. You know. You need to find. God's.

[45:23] Way. Forward. And then. He will bring a man. That will also. Be ready. To join that. Sure. There are times. And places. When.

[45:33] God brings a man. And he's got. A vision. That may be. Quite a bit different. Than the vision. The church has been used to. And. And. That does work. But.

[45:44] Most of the time. I have seen. A man. Joining the vision. That God has already been. Percolating up. And so. That's where you come in.

[45:57] Allowing the Holy Spirit. To percolate. And work. And lead you. Individually. You. You can't differentiate. Your individual walk. And the church walk.

[46:09] You individually. What you're struggling with. Your health. Finances. Relationships. Work. School. Whatever it is.

[46:19] Just keep going down the line. As the Lord. Percolates that. In your life. You're moving forward. Because you are. Following. Him. Through the.

[46:31] Authentic. Gospel. And we see that. So clearly. In Galatians. Galatians. . Thank you.