(Galatians 1:3-5 KJV) "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, {4} Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: {5} To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen."

We discussed a great deal of foundational material in our last lesson, though we never "exegeted" the above verses; and I am sure that some of you were prepared to point that out, if I neglected to do so. Yet, Beloved of God, exegesis - that is, breaking the text down historically or grammatically - is not always necessary. We do not exegete verses merely to show off our ability to do so, but we exegete Scriptural text when necessary to uncover some great Spiritual Truth. What Truth can be uncovered in these verses that is not already revealed? There is one Truth that is greater than any that history has ever produced, and that Truth glares from this text like the sun. Its rays dispel the night, chase away the chill morning air, and give my feet a clear path to walk.

We discussed the two extremes that have so hindered Christian thought throughout the ages. The extreme of asceticism (touch not, taste not, handle not) which, when fully revealed, entraps its practitioners in chains as sure as any that have been wound around the poor unfortunate slave of yesteryear. Asceticism robs it's victims of the freedom so necessary for a proper relationship with God, while at the same time fostering pride in the hearts of all those who succeed in following her bidding. The extreme of license (saved, saved, and free to sin!) brings with it the concept that the sacrifice of the Cross served no purpose other than to allow guilt free sinning. This demonic doctrine is found whenever Christians believe that it is perfectly acceptable to lie, that it is fine to condone sexual misdeeds, that God will "wink" at the bending of His rules and regulations, that we are free to form an image of god in our conscience completely divorced from the Historic God of Scripture, a god who does not care what we do as long as we "call on Jesus" first. Asceticism or license, either extreme is evil, and will always be evil. How to combat these extremes?

Look to Jesus. Consider what Jesus Christ our Savior purchased for us on the Cross. Reread verse 4 again:

(Galatians 1:4 KJV) "Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:"

Jesus "gave" Himself for our sins. This was what He did. Before you gloss over these words, precious Words of Life, consider what it cost our Savior.

For some reason unknown to me, many who claim to be Christian believe that our God has somehow changed with the times. They believe that our God, the same God Who demanded that child sacrifice be punished by death:

(Leviticus 20:2-3 KJV) "Again, thou shalt say to the children of Israel, Whosoever he be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that giveth any of his seed unto Molech; he shall surely be put to death: the people of the land shall stone him with stones. {3} And I will set my face against that man, and will cut him off from among his people; because he hath given of his seed unto Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name."

The same God Who demanded that those who practiced occultism be punished by death:

(Leviticus 20:27 KJV) "A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them."

The same God Who demanded that those who cursed His name, or killed another man, that they be punished with death:

(Leviticus 24:15-17 KJV) "And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin. {16} And he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death. {17} And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death."

The same God Who demanded that children who cursed their parents be put to death:

(Deuteronomy 21:20-21 KJV) "And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. {21} And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear."

This same God is the God of the New Testament that we now love and worship. There were a number of things that we feel that we can get away with today, if television is any indication, that were punishable by death if you were found out. These "violations of God's Law" are all, quite simply, acts of sin that are offensive to God's perfect and holy nature. God is love (1 John 4:8, 16), and His love was shown repeatedly in the Old Testament. But, Beloved ones, God is also JUSTICE and HOLY. God's love motivated Him to walk with man in the Garden of Eden, but God's justice motivated Him to cast fallen man out of that perfect place. Genesis 3:24 says that "He drove man out" - we were chased from Eden because of His justice. God's love motivated Him to allow Noah to preach the Gospel of salvation for 100 years before the Great Flood came (compare Genesis 5:32 with Genesis 7:6). God's justice motivated Him to flood the earth when the time of repentance was ended, and He would not stop that flood until all but those on the ark suffered screaming drowning deaths. God's love motivated Him to send Moses to demand that Israel be released from Egyptian bondage. God's justice motivated Him to send the death angel in to take the lives of every firstborn child among the unrepentant Egyptians. God's love motivated Him to lead Israel to the Promised Land, a land filled with milk and honey. God's justice motivated Him to kill all of the first Exodus generation in the desert, wandering for forty years in that oven of a country. As Jude wrote:

(Jude 1:3-5 KJV) "Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. {4} For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. {5} I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not."

And as the writer of Hebrews said:

(Hebrews 10:31 KJV) "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."

God is love, but He is also holy justice. His love motivated Him to offer undeserved salvation to mankind, but His justice demanded that He somehow pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus gave Himself! What a terrible price was paid for our sins. Jesus gave Himself! He, Who knew no sin, took on all the penalty that we owed. The second Person of the Trinity, come to earth to save us, prayed and wept in the Garden of Gethsemane. He knew that He would have to bear the penalty, but this Jesus, this Savior cried out to the Father:

(Matthew 26:39 KJV) "... O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Jesus did not want what was coming. He did not want to bear this terrible burden. Every lie we told branded us as liars, violators of God's ninth commandment. Every small thing we took, even a grape from the grocer without payment, shouted out to Heaven that we were thieves, violators of the eighth commandment. When we hated and carried grudges against one another we committed murder in our hearts, and were branded as violators of the sixth commandment. Every careless word, every blaspheme that rolled so easy off the tongue, marked us in God's eyes as violators of the second commandment. If we broke one commandment, we shattered them all. Jesus would have to take our punishment, for our sins demanded our deaths.

Jesus prayed three times that our cup of judgment pass from Him, and three times the Father, looking down from Heaven, could only wait. The penalty had to be paid. Sin had to be atoned if creation would ever return to fellowship with the Creator. Christ was led in chains from that Garden, beaten bloody with cruel Roman whips, and then nailed to the cross of shame. As the sins of the world were poured out on Jesus, at one point He cried out in horror "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Jesus gave Himself.

(Galatians 1:4 KJV) "Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:"

Jesus gave Himself so that He could deliver us from this present evil world. When you understand this statement, when your heart grasps what Jesus did for you, then you will no longer fall into the extremes of asceticism nor license When you consider His blood encrusted and horror contorted face taking a beating for you, then you will no longer say "What Jesus did was not enough. I have to add my little bit to the Gospel message to truly be saved". When you hear His cries of anguish as every evil that you offended our Holy Creator with are paid for, then you will no longer think: "Saved, saved, so now I can sin without guilt". If you have seen the Cross in your mind's eye as it really was you will tend your relationship with God as if that were the most precious and wonderful thing in the world ... for it is.

Evangelist Ray Comfort tells a story - I will relate this in my own words - that puts it all in proper perspective. A young boy wanted to take a boat out on the lake to go fishing, but his father told him no. "Son, that lake is full of crocodiles - big ones - and if you go out you may be harmed". For a while the son fishes from the shore, but has little luck. After a time he decides that his father was just too conservative. The son launches a boat out into the lake and begins to fish. Before much time passes - sure enough - a large crocodile swims alongside of the boat and capsizes it. As the son hits the water he begins screaming for help. In a flash, the father runs from the house, dives into the water, and pulls his son from the water. As the son lay gasping on the shore, he raises himself up to thank his father, and notices, to his horror, that his father's legs are mangled and bloody. The son was saved from the crocodile because the father took the punishment that the son should have borne. What son would have looked at his father after such an episode and said, "Thanks for saving me dad. OK, now I've got to give that lake one more try!" No, only a monster would do such a thing. No Christian, once he understands the statement "Who gave Himself for our sins", would ever take sin lightly, nor would he diminish that which Christ did by adding his own works to the Cross. When we regard Jesus high and lifted up, suffering for us, we avoid both asceticism and license. God grant His preachers the will to preach the Cross, the Blood, the Atonement. We have so miserably failed in our preaching and in our compromise with the world, look at what we have done to your Church, dear Jesus. Forgive us O Lord, and guide us as we continue this study. May it touch hearts, and knit us closer to You. Amen.

(Galatians 1:6 KJV) "I marvel (Present Indicative Active, Linear Aktionsart, I am constantly amazed, in a state of shock) that ye are so soon removed (Present Middle Indicative, Linear, military word meaning to desert in the face of the enemy, "have begun to go AWOL") from him (refers to God the Father. He is the one who called us to salvation) that called (Aorist Active Kaleo, called in a point of time) you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:"

(Galatians 1:6 KJV) "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:"

Paul understood the sacrifice that our Lord Jesus made for him on the Cross, and had preached what he understood - the Gospel of salvation - to these Galatian believers. Unlike many ministers in our present age Paul preached the Gospel without compromise, something that often earned him beating and shunning from even the most religious crowds. But Paul preached, and he preached the Truth as God had revealed it to him. As he preached the Cross and moved among the Galatians something wonderful happened. These people, these hearty nomads, these unconquerable warriors fell to their knees in repentance. They heard the call, the KALEO of God, and answered that call. Noah preached and none repented but eight. Paul preached and men who should never have been saved, the Hell's Angels of Paul's day, gave their hearts to Jesus. Yet this didn't make Paul marvel, for he knew:

(Romans 1:16-17 KJV) "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. {17} For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."

That the Gospel of Christ and what He did for us is the POWER OF GOD. It is a mighty sword that thrusts into the soul of man, a wonderful saving weapon purchased with His own precious Blood. This didn't make Paul marvel - he knew that God was able. What marveled Paul was that these Galatians, these warriors conquered by the Cross, had so quickly deserted their post when "another powerless gospel" was preached in his absence. This caused Paul to nearly go into shock! How is it possible that the Gospel of Christ preached by one of His key Apostles be overthrown by something as foolish as the Judaizers preached? The Galatians heard the Gospel call and answered, just as every believer who is indeed a believer, a True Believer, has heard the Gospel call.

(Ephesians 4:4 KJV) "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in (Aorist kaleo + en, in the sphere of hope) one hope of your calling;"

God the Holy Spirit sent out Paul the Apostle to Galatia; Paul preached the Gospel under the power of that same Spirit; the Galatians heard that Gospel call and answered "yes" to that call. The Christian conversion is a supernatural thing from the very start. It is no wonder that the worldling, the unsaved heathen do not understand the calling of the believer. It would be easier to explain the concept of electricity to a dog, than to explain the conversion of the called to a state of salvation. Yet each one of us who has been saved has been individually called by the Spirit and by the Gospel and have been given the choice of either accepting or rejecting that welcome event. What did we do that was worthy of salvation? Nothing, nothing at all! God called and we, with the rot of our lives unveiled before our mind's eye, answered. We were like the homeless waif, hungry and alone, offered the finest accommodations at the payment of Another. We saw the offer, heard the Call, and answered "Yes, Lord!".

I marvel that all do not answer that Call as the Galatians and we have answered. I marvel that some of the homeless reject the Gospel Call because they are too "proud" to accept. Others reject that Free Gift because they are suspicious of its offer - surely such a thing could not be true! Yet others reject the Call because they assume that the Master of the House, the Creator of all, will not cast the foolish away into an eternity of damnation. I have had fools - and I use that classification with all sadness in my heart - write and tell me that "God is just too good" to cast away into eternal hellfire. One wrote and, with twisted logic, set forth the theory that God is unjust if He punishes us - after all, we did not choose to be born of Adam - why blame us? Oh foolish ones, it is because of His justice that we MUST suffer eternal damnation if we do not escape by accepting the loving gift of Christ. Many children drowned in a cold sea, drowned because their parents chose to attend the voyage of the unsinkable Titanic. Many children died on Pompeii under volcanic ash, frozen in eternity as they lay smothered, and not one chose to be where they were when eternity beckoned. German innocents died under Allied bombs, and Jewish innocents were murdered because they were led to the wrong place by those who had control of the expedition. Adam our father chose the evil over the righteous, and brought death upon all of creation. Rail at God if you will, but He has offered YOU a choice to escape the punishment that Adam brought on us all. When the Call comes, answer "Yes", and be saved by calling on the name of Jesus.

(1 Corinthians 7:15 KJV) "But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to (Aorist kaleo + en = in the sphere of peace. God reconciled us to Himself by Christ. Romans 5:1) peace."

The Gospel Calls every believer to peace with God, though our positive answer to that call may bring the condemnation of the world on us. We are condemned of the world for the heathen rolls in the filth of self-gratification: they cannot understand why the believer would separate himself from the same filthiness of living.

(1 Thessalonians 4:7 KJV) "For God hath not called us unto (Aorist kaleo + en = in the sphere of holiness) uncleanness, but unto holiness."

Believers, Children of God, Christians by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ are called KALEO and EKLEKTOS, the "Called out ones" and the "chosen, elected of God". Though men will take these wonderful titles that God has given us and fight over them, divide up into denominations as a result of arguments about the use and application of these terms - oh the shame - these designations for the believer were given to us to teach us that Christ is all in all. We did not earn nor deserve our salvation. Had Christ never called us by His Spirit, had we never been awoken to the fact that we were lost and undone, we would never have been saved. We answered the call when it was made, but there is no merit in that. We believed when we were shown the risen Savior, but there is no merit in that. Who would congratulate the drowning man for grasping and clinging to the thrown life preserver? Would we clap him on the back and say, "Well done! You got yourself out of that predicament?" No, precious ones, if any are to be congradulated it must be the One who threw the Preserver. It was the One Who took the time to hear the cries of the drowning, and then made the effort to save him. Christ was that One. We were lost, dead in our sins, destined to eternal damnation, fools drowning and not knowing it. Christ recognized our estate and, taking the just penalty for what was due us, sent the Preserver, His Spirit, out to our grasp. We were awakened to our estate and, praise only to Jesus, reached out and grasped the Preserver to our salvation. Christ is the Hero who saved us. Yet, what did He save us to?

Are we saved so that we might foolishly jump back into the sea once again? No, we are saved out of sin so we can dedicate ourselves to Christ Who saved us. In many societies it is taught if a person save your life, then you owe your life and allegiance to them. This same practice is true of Christianity. Christ saved our lives, and we owe our lives to Him - thus we are called to avoid the sea of sin, uncleanness, and to follow in His footsteps, the way of holiness. Father forgive me, but so often I forget this. Father forgive us, so often we all forget this. God called us, kaleo us, snatched us from a sea of condemnation so we can serve Him in holiness, walking in a way pleasing unto Him.

(2 Thessalonians 2:14 KJV) "Whereunto he called you by (dia + genitive, by means of the gospel. Volition is included in the doctrine of election. By our response, we enter into the sphere of election) our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."

(1 Corinthians 1:9 KJV) "God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord."

We were kaleo, called to salvation so that we could have fellowship with the Eternal Godhead. We were not called or saved out of this world so that we could continue to walk in its ways; we were called out so that we could find restored fellowship with the Godhead, so we could have a relationship with God.

(1 Thessalonians 2:12 KJV) "That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory."

We were kaleo, called out of this place of death so that we could live by the standards of the Kingdom of God. We were called out of this world so that we could walk, not as the worldlings walk, but as children of God walk, in ways honoring and pleasing to our Savior.

(1 Timothy 6:12 KJV) "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses."

(1 Peter 2:9 KJV) "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:"

We who are Christians are kaleo, called out of this world of death in order that we lead others to this same salvation. Our God is love, and does not want anyone to perish in the sea of sin that encompasses man on every side. Our God is just, and cannot allow those who are drowning in this sea to enter His Kingdom unless their way is earned. Yet how can a drowning man earn his preserver? He cannot, but Christ did. We who are Christians are not called to stand on the shore of salvation and yell out to the drowning "swim harder, swim harder!". Yet this is what so many believers do. We forget that the Preserver is provided by Christ. We forget that we are to offer the provided Preserver as a means to attaining the shore. When we forget we begin to add other things to the Preserver: Believe on Jesus AND stop doing this; Believe on Jesus AND stop doing that. How foolish! The drowning person only has the power to grasp the Preserver and surrender as he is tugged to shore. Once on shore we stay away from the drowning sea, following His example in His power, and throw out the lifeline to others drowning in the sea.

(1 Peter 2:21 KJV) "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:"

• What caused Paul to "marvel", or be in shock over the Galatians?
• What are the implications of our kaleo, calling to salvation? Consider these verses:
  • 2 Thessalonians 2:14; Ephesians 4:4
  • 1 Corinthians 7:15
  • 1 Thessalonians 4:7
  • 1 Corinthians 1:9
  • 1 Thessalonians 2:12
  • 1 Peter 2:9
  • 1 Peter 2:21

(Galatians 1:7 KJV) "Which is not another; (allos, another of the same kind) but there be (Present Linear Aktionsart, there are some who keep on troubling) some that trouble you, and would pervert (Present Active Participle, it is always the purpose of the Judaizers to pervert the Gospel) the gospel of Christ."

The Judaizers were adding to faith for salvation: you must believe and raise your hand, must believe and be baptized, must believe and sign a pledge card, must believe and do this or that. How often have we as believers fallen into this trap of Satan? We begin to tell others of the wonderful Savior Jesus Christ, and tell how He came to die for our sins. We preach the Gospel then, almost without thought, we begin to add to that Gospel. We consider the state of being that Christ has led us to, and in considering that state we preach a Gospel that includes what we are now. Those of us who once loved the bottle preach, "Accept Christ and give up drinking, and you will be saved". Those of us who loved an "altered state of consciousness" preach "Accept Christ and give up your drugs, and you will be saved". Those of us who loved the night life preach, "Accept Christ and give up the theater, the night life, the carousing and you shall be saved". Those of us who felt called to certain rituals preach "Accept Christ and be circumcised, or baptized, and you shall be saved". There are a hundred, nay, a thousand ways that we add to the Gospel of Christ based on where God has brought us in our relationship with Him. It is not a wrong thing to stop using the bottle, or drugs, or the night life, or to be circumcised - the things that man often runs toward as a means to satisfy his Old Sin Nature usually lead to destruction. There is nothing wrong in stopping these things. Yet stopping these things has nothing whatsoever to do with being saved, no more than starting these things have anything to do with being saved. Many have "walked the aisle" at Church, joined the Church, are teaching Sunday School or filling posts as Deacons, Elders, Ministers, Evangelists, or Preachers, and are yet dead in their sins. Many have come into the assembly of the saved and, because they outwardly appear righteous, they are afforded prestige in the Body. Many walk among us who have never had their eyes opened and believe that the amount of the offering they give every week will get them into Heaven. These are "wells without water":

(2 Peter 2:17-22 KJV) "These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. {18} For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. {19} While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. {20} For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. {21} For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. {22} But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire."

Drowning people who believe that they, by their works, can swim to the shore of salvation. Salvation is not a state that is achieved by "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ AND". Salvation is a state achieved by REPENTING, that is, by looking to God and saying with all your heart and being "HELP!" It is a state that begins when we look at ourselves without blinders and, now seeing, admitting to God that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. We admit to the Father that we are lost and undone, that we cannot do anything pleasing to Him, and we throw ourselves wholeheartedly on that which Christ has provided for us with His own flesh. The Bible calls this "Repent and Believe", and that is the Gospel that we need to preach.

When we, like the Judaizers, add to the Gospel message, a Grace fully purchased by the work of our Savior Jesus Christ, then we bring the Pauline curse on ourselves:

(Galatians 1:8 KJV) "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be (Present Active Imperative, keep on being cursed) accursed." (anathema, to be set apart for Divine destruction)

(Galatians 1:9 KJV) "As we said (Perfect Active Indicative, we said before and say it again) before, so say (Present Linear Aktionsart, I keep on saying) I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be (Present Active Imperative eimi + noun = keep on being cursed) accursed." (anathema, to be set apart for Divine destruction)

Why such a strong denunciation to those who would add to the Gospel message? Consider this carefully. The Gospel of Christ alone has the power to supernaturally bring to life the lost. The Gospel of Christ, purchased with the blood and work of our Savior, this alone has the power to make a Christian. When we adulterate or add to the message with our own opinion we are saying by our actions "I do not believe that the Gospel has the power to transform a soul. I think that I must add my own abilities to the Message, else it will be unable to create the effect necessary in the candidate for salvation". How arrogant! We did not hang on the Cross with Jesus, though we made it necessary that He hang. We did not cry out with Jesus, "My God, My God, Why have You forsaken Me?", though we made it necessary that He scream out in agony. We did not have the sins of the whole world poured out on our souls, though we did make it necessary that He suffer so. How dare we add to the message! Repent and Believe on Jesus! No other Gospel was given to the Church by our Savior, and any other Gospel yokes the unsaved into the fellowship of the saved. Perversion of the Gospel curses us, curses our assemblies, and brings with it its own punishment. God forbid that we add to the Gospel of Christ!

• When we add conditions to the Gospel message, which is "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved", what do these conditions do to the Gospel message?
• Paul uses very strong language in verse 8 to express God's displeasure over those who would add to the Gospel message. To whom does this curse apply to? What does the curse entail?

I have discovered over the years that there is something in the Old Sin Nature of man that inherently despises that which costs us nothing. If it costs nothing or is free to us we have an idea that it is worthless, cheap, or without merit. Especially in America, where Capitalism is like another god, we respect that which costs much, but reject that which costs little. We feel that we must add to that which is free or cheap, else it is nothing.

Such thinking highlights the core of the Old Sin Nature, human pride. Salvation was not something that cost nothing. Salvation was not cheap. Jesus paid the ultimate price for the free Grace that God has given to us. What He purchased began with the shame of being stripped naked and placed on display, continued with the number of beatings and tortures that He endured, and ended with His agonized cries as He hung on a bloody tree. Grace may have been offered freely to us, but the Son of God paid dearly for what we so often take for granted.

This is the main reason that the Apostle Paul wrote so angrily to the Galatians. Paul understood what Christ bore when He paid for our sins. To make light of this payment, or even to assume that one jot of effort needed to be added on our part to make what Christ did complete - this is just shameful! Because the Gift of God in Christ was so hard earned, so precious, and yet so freely offered, Paul refused to charge for his own services to the Body of Christ. Paul never took money from the churches around him unless they were Grace oriented - that is, unless they understood the Grace of God and followed its principles in their daily walk. It was difficult for anyone to attack Paul's preaching of the Gospel, for he never gave Satan nor his ministers a foothold in his life. That's a good principle to follow in Christian service. All ministers of the Gospel of Christ need to be careful to be Grace oriented. We must not allow money or goods to overshadow the Cross of Christ.

(Galatians 1:10 KJV) "For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased (Imperfect Linear Aktionsart, I kept on pleasing) men, I should not be (Imperfect Linear Aktionsart, I should not continue to be) the servant of Christ."

The Apostle was careful to avoid flattery, gimmicks, tricks, salesmanship tactics, or anything that is rooted and grounded in the things of this world to call men to accept Christ as Savior. In many local churches it has become common practice for the pastor or elders to fall into the trap of the numbers game. This same numbers game is what has led so many Christians to begin to identify the physical building where they meet on Sunday as "the Church". When you think of the "Church" as a building instead of the people of God who are inside of the building, you begin to tie concepts of success to how large the building is. "Has our Church grown this year?" really means, "How much has our Church building grown this year?". The world looks at physical building size and attributes success or failure to the project, but this is not the way of God. Pastors locked into the numbers game are forced into using worldly methods to show worldly growth. Most of these worldly methods involve catering to the whims of the people, buttering them up, flattery, doing whatever was necessary to get the support and the money of those who attend the church's meetings.

The message that Paul preached was not his word. The message that I, or any minister preaches, it is not our word. If it were our word then we would have the right to compromise, to change our mind, to soften the word. No dear friends, the message of the Gospel, this is God's Word, and as it is God's Word then only God has the right to modify that Word. Ministers only have two choices: preach the Word of God as God has given it to you, or cease claiming that you are ministers of God. People often write to see if I will change my opinion about something taught in the Word of God. Several dear and heartbroken people have written, wanting the message modified to suit their own beliefs. One lady wrote to tell me that she has a dear Muslim friend, a precious and good person totally dedicated to her faith. Don't I think that God will let her into Heaven when she dies? No, precious one, for Jesus said:

(John 14:6 KJV) "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

And the Word further says:

(1 John 5:11-12 KJV) "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. {12} He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."

And in a hundred other places the Scripture makes it clear that Jesus Christ is the only means by which we can be saved. If you love your friend, then tell her about Jesus. Tell her that Mohammed has tricked her, and leads her straight to eternal damnation. If it hurts the feelings, then so be it - it is not my word, it is God's, and must be preached as God has said it.

Another heartbroken soul wrote to tell me that her father had "discovered" he was homosexual after years of being married, that I seemed harsh on that alternate lifestyle. Child, I do not hate nor do I condone hatred toward anyone, regardless as to their practices in this life. Yet the Scripture clearly states:

(Leviticus 20:13 KJV) "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them."

God did not create man to lie with man as he would a woman; even common sense that we were not designed for such things. God considered this violation of His design an abomination, and in Israel punished such behavior with death. Did the coming of Christ negate this regulation? Is homosexual love now an acceptable thing in the eyes of God? No, God has not changed, nor does He ever change His attitude on acts of sin. He forgives sin based on the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross, but does not condone nor look the other way at sin because Christ paid the penalty.

(1 Corinthians 6:9-10 KJV) "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, {10} Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God."

This passage is disastrous to those who claim that God has forgotten homosexuality as a sin in the New Testament. There is absolutely no question that Paul is alluding to homosexuals. The word effeminate, the Greek word malakov, is defined as "soft of things, persons who are soft, effeminate, especially of calamities, men and boys who allow themselves to be misused homosexually" (William F. Arndt and F. Wilbur Gingrich, "A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature" (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1957). 4th rev. ed., s.v. "malakov"," pp. 489-90). The phrase abusers of themselves with mankind is the Greek arsenokoites, which literally means a "male homosexual or pederast" (Arndt and Gingrich, "A Greek-English Lexicon", s.v. "ajrsenokoivth"," p. 109). These people, along with unrepentant adulterers, drunkards, extortioners, and fornicators shall not inherit the Kingdom of God. Rather than seek to condone a lifestyle as alternate, we need to preach the Gospel message of repent of your sins and accept Jesus Christ as Savior. God is able to heal the homosexual, along with the drunkard and the homosexual and the extortioner, if they come to Him through the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. But, beloved of God, if we modify the teaching of the Word to suit our audience, we cease being God's ministers and become no more than charlatans, entertainers preaching pretty messages to placate those who have no interest in the things of God. It is not our word, it is God's Word. Paul understood this, and so must we. Error creeps in the Church when we consider the Gospel to be anything other than God's property. If it is my property, I can modify or change it … but if it belongs to another, can I modify it without becoming dishonest?

(Galatians 1:11 KJV) "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after (kata, preposition, according to the norm or standard of) man."

(Galatians 1:12 KJV) "For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Who owns the Gospel message that we preach? Was it Paul's Gospel? Did someone teach Paul a man made gospel that he, in turn, preached to the Galatians? Some claimed, and even claim today, that Paul preached a "Pauline Gospel" that was unique. Some have even inferred that Paul was the only Apostle to the Church, for he was given a specific Gospel message that no other minister had. This is patently untrue! The Gospel that Paul preached was the Gospel of Christ. It was not Paul's word, but it was God's Word. It was not Paul's property, but it was Christ's purchased possession.

(John 5:21-24 KJV) "For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. {22} For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: {23} That all men should honour the Son, even as they honor the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. {24} Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."

Jesus Christ owns the Gospel, for He purchased that Gospel with His own blood. Paul purchased nothing of himself, but preached the Gospel of Christ.

(Romans 1:9 KJV) "For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;"

(Romans 1:16 KJV) "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."

(Romans 15:19 KJV) "Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ."

(1 Corinthians 9:12 KJV) "If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ."

(1 Corinthians 9:18 KJV) "What is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel."

• Who owns the Gospel? Who gave the message to Paul? (John 5:21-24; Romans 1:9, 16; 15:19; 1 Corinthians 9:12, 18)
• What gives power to the Gospel message?
• Should I use salesmanship and other worldly means to promote Christ? Why or why not?

(Galatians 1:13 KJV) "For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted (dioko, Imperfect Linear Aktionsart, I kept on persecuting, made it a habit) the church of God, and wasted (portheo, Imperfect Linear Aktionsart, to sack it, kept on ravaging) it:"

What makes a minister of the Gospel? How does one come to such a place of service? Many believe that ministers are goody two-shoed, sinless caricatures of mankind. Many believe that ministers are completely sinless, almost as if they were virgin born and incapable of sin. This is not the truth! Ministers are human, just as fallible as all the sons of man. Paul was no exception to this truth. As an unsaved man he, as a member of the Sanhedrin, the ruling body in Israel, kept on persecuting the Church of God. He thought that he was a good man, with good reason to do as he did. Paul was just as other men are: arrogant, self driven, implacable, sure of his own righteousness and sold on his own methods. He was, in reality, a murderer many times over, and witnessed, even contributed to the death of saint Stephen (Acts 7:58 - 8:1). What changed Paul from murderer to apostle, sinner to saint? The same thing that changes all believers, the Gospel of Jesus Christ:

(1 Timothy 1:15-16 KJV) "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. {16} Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all long-suffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting."

(Galatians 1:14 KJV) "And profited (prokopto, Imperfect, kept on profiting) in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers."

Paul used Judaism just as Judaism used him, and kept on profiting from his destruction of the Church of Christ. Paul knew that he was not worthy of the Gospel of Christ. None of us are! I often hear questions like, "Do you think that Hitler, if he had accepted Christ as Savior, could have been saved?" This is often a key question among worldlings seeking to discredit the Gospel of Christ. Do I think that Hitler could have been saved if he accepted Christ as Savior? Yes, absolutely! If you answer that question any other way, you just don't understand the Gospel of Christ. Paul was saved, and he was involved in many murders that - at the time - I believe he thought were justified. Just because the state sanctions something as "good", this in itself does not make the action righteous. The Sanhedrin sanctioned the destruction of the Church, considering its practices to be treasonous to the state of Israel. There are countries today that sanction persecution and murder of Christians because their governments consider Christianity subversive, treasonous, divisive to their people. Guess what? They are right, Christianity is divisive. Our Lord Jesus said:

(Matthew 10:34-39 KJV) "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. {35} For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. {36} And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. {37} He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. {38} And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. {39} He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."

Christianity and its teachings are in direct dichotomy to worldliness. The Roman government of Jesus' day expected its citizens to revere Caesar. Every family had some god or some idol that they worship. Christianity and its Founder, Jesus Christ, demanded that its disciples walk and talk as their Founder decreed. Jesus said:

(John 14:15 KJV) "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

Jesus taught that He was the only Way to God. He taught that all other religious systems were false, and Christianity alone was true. He taught that there was only one Gospel, and that was His Gospel. The world demands a compromising world view of all things, whereas Christianity at its root rejects all compromise.

Would God have saved Hitler, or any mass murderer, dog that they were, if they accept the Gospel message? Yes He would. Further, it is pleasing to God, literally His pleasure, to save as many as will surrender their lives to Christ Jesus our Savior.

(Galatians 1:15-16 KJV) "But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, {16} To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:"

(Galatians 1:15 KJV) "But when it pleased (eudokeo, Aorist Indicative Active, God was pleased with the election of Paul, this occurred in eternity past before man existed)

Though Donahue and the other talk show airheads condemn Christianity for its stance on salvation (and shame on you for watching these abominable shows!), the Bible teaches that God is always pleased to save those who believe on Jesus Christ for salvation.

(1 Corinthians 1:21 KJV) "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe."

This concept chastens us, is totally contrary to our own innate sense of pride. We all, somewhere deep inside, have at one time or the other fostered the idea that we were good people. The idea that God will save a good person is not bad, but that He would save a Hitler, or a Stalin, or a Paul - no, that concept surely can't be Biblical. The truth is, God our Father is always pleased to save anyone who accepts the finished work of our Savior Jesus Christ. Salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is indelibly etched into the Plan of God. The Father planned from the very beginning to make peace between Him and us by the Blood of the Son.

(Colossians 1:19-20 KJV) "For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell; {20} And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven."

God was never satisfied with the Old Testament offerings. How can an animal pay the penalty for sin that Adam brought on all mankind? An animal did not bring sin into humanity, an arrogant man did that. Adam considered the forbidden fruit, considered that his wife ate this fruit without impunity, and in considering all these things forgot all that God had told him. Animal did not bring condemnation on humanity, man did. Animal could not pay the penalty for sin. Only man could do this.

One of the greatest lies that Satan has trotted out for the world to worship is Darwin's theory of evolution. Though there are evidences that animals have gone through minor changes in order to adapt to their environment, there has never been any proof that animals have evolved from one form to another entirely different form as Darwin supposed. Yet year after year science stands behind the foolishness that man is evolved from apes. If this lie were true, then Christ would have come as an ape to pay for our sins. The Old Testament sacrifices would have involved apes, not sheep and cattle. In fact, if Adam were early "Prehistoric" ape-man, then the Old Testament sacrifices would have been sufficient to save. Truth be told, the Old Testament sacrifices were not pleasing to God for the animals offered to pay for our sins were not in the image of Adam.

(Hebrews 10:6-9 KJV) "In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. {7} Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. {8} Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; {9} Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second."

(Romans 5:12-15 KJV) "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: {13} (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. {14} Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. {15} But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many."

Sin entered into the world through the disobedience of one man, Adam our forefather. Once sin entered into the world it brought with it immediate spiritual death and eventual physical death. God used the Old Testament sacrifices to teach man how horrible sin was. Each animal brought to the altar was forced onto that bloody table of stone or earth. As the animal was led in, and hoisted up, it began to struggle against this unfamiliar situation. The animal was tied down, frightened, lashed to the "horns" or posts of the altar so it was completely helpless. At the proper moment the priest forced the animals head backward and, regardless of its struggles, slashed its throat so that its blood poured out, caught in a bucket. The priest, now bloody, his clothing in disarray, takes the blood and sprinkles it over the people gathered around the altar. What a horrible object lesson! How terrible sin is, and its payment is, to God our Father.

The sacrifice of animals, a thing that should cause every animal lover to shudder, was only made necessary because God wanted us to understand how abhorrent sin is to Him. The animal sacrifices were teaching aids, object lessons, but not efficacious, not redeeming in themselves. Jesus Christ would have to come and be sacrificed for our sins. Sin came on humanity by Adam; Christ would have to pay for what we could not pay for.

(Galatians 1:15-16 KJV) "But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, {16} To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:"

God used animals to teach man that Christ would have to come and die for our sins. It pleased God to save Paul, just as it pleases God to save every person who has ever accepted Christ as Savior, regardless as to what they did while they were unsaved. Paul was careful not to add or subtract from the Gospel message that was given to him, Christ's Gospel that has the power to save all who believe. The Church of Christ needs to be as Paul was, preaching the saving Grace of God by faith in Christ Jesus. We must be careful to take nothing away from the Gospel. We must be careful to add nothing to the Gospel. It is not our Gospel, but it is Christ's Gospel - and the only Word from God that has the power to save from eternal damnation.