Galatians 3:23-27 - The Role of the Law

How do we understand the Mosaic covenant and its relationship to the people of God in the New Testament? That's the thrust of this bible study from last Wednesday night where we covered Galatians 3:23-27.

To try to understand what Paul is saying here we went back and reviewed the covenant of grace in its various administrations beginning with the proto-evangelion in Genesis 3:15 and continuing through Jeremiah 31 and Christ at the cross. But how does Moses fit into that?

Part of the problem in Galatians that Paul has been working to solve is the seeming conflict between the Abrahamic unconditional covenant of grace and the Mosaic conditional covenant of law.

What Paul has done to reconcile these two seemingly contradictory things is to teach us the true purpose of the Mosaic covenant. According to Paul, the Mosaic covenant served a specific and limited purpose within the framework of the Abrahamic covenant. In other words, Moses served Abraham. This is what we talked about last week.

There was never salvation in the law. There was never life in the law. The law condemned us and killed us. And according to Paul that was its purpose all along. In an ironic twist, then, the law becomes grace to us because it shows us our shortcomings, teaches us our true nature, and points us to Christ. And now that we are in Christ we are no longer under the law.

But does that mean we no longer have to obey God's moral precepts? Are the Ten Commandments antiquated and obsolete? We discuss all that, as well as the continuing role of the Law in the life of a believer, in this bible study. Below you will find a link to the audio recording of it. Just click the link, a new window will open on your browser and you will be able to listen to the Bible study from your computer or other device. God bless.


Click here: Galatians 3:23-27 - The Role of the Law


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Mark 3:20-21, 31-35 - The Family of Jesus

In this passage we are introduced to Jesus' family and, guess what? They thought he was mad.

Likely, the idea that Jesus' family thought he was crazy was scandalous to the early church. After all, if you were writing a history designed to convince people to believe on Jesus, why would you include the fact that his family did not believe and in fact thought he was crazy? Doesn't make sense. Unless it was true.

And if it was true, why did Mark include this kind of negative information in his gospel? Because there is an important lesson being taught in this story, as we shall see.

When Jesus' family decides to go find Jesus and save him from himself they find they cannot get to him because of the crowd. Jesus is in a house surrounded by a multitude. Inside the house with Jesus are the disciples. Outside are his family. Why are they standing outside? Presumably because of the crowd. The crowd is so bad, so pressing, so demanding, remember, that Jesus and his disciples can't even eat. No wonder Jesus' mother and brothers can't get to him.

But there's more than that here. Mark emphasizes that they are on the outside. Mark includes this fact to convey to us that his brothers were not among his disciples. They were not believers.

Where are you standing with Christ? Do you still have doubts? Do you still wonder if all this could really be true? Perhaps you are thinking, "Well, maybe it contains some truth, but it's just too incredible, or far-fetched to believe such things in our modern, scientific age." Then this section of Mark's gospel was written for you, too. Three chapters in, where do you stand with Jesus? Are you on the inside with him yet? Sitting at his feet? Listening to his words? Determined to follow him? Or are you on the outside still?

This is the sermon I preached from this section of Mark on Sunday, March 19, 2017. I hope you will take the time to listen to it. It's not a long sermon, but it is a very important one, for it challenges us to think about who Christ is, and what our relationship with him is. Are you on the inside with Jesus or standing outside with misconceptions? To listen to the sermon just click the link below.

Click here: Mark 3:20-21, 31-35 - The Family of Jesus



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Galatians 3:15-22 - Moses Serves Abraham

Paul is in the middle of his theological argument against the Judaizers, an argument which covers chapters 3 and 4 of Galatians. Here is what we have covered thus far in chapter 3:

First he argues from their experience (v. 1-5).
Then he argues from the Scripture showing how the Scripture backs up their experience (v. 6-18).

A. He first points out that Abraham was justified by faith alone. (v. 6-9)
B. Then he points out that the law brings a curse. (v. 10)
C. Next that the Scripture itself says we are justified by faith. (v. 11)
D. Then that law-keeping as a human effort is the opposite of faith. (v. 12)
E. Finally that the curse brought upon us by the law was taken by Jesus at the cross in order that he might give us the promise made to Abraham by faith. (v. 13-14)

Now, in the passage covered in this bible study, he switches gears just a little and makes an argument from everyday life, though he will still tie it in to Scripture.

Essentially his argument is this. The covenant promises made to Abraham were eternal and immutable. Something that happened 430 years later cannot change them. And those promises made to Abraham clearly stated that we are made righteous through faith. Nothing God did through Moses can possibly change that.

The covenant God made with Abraham was an unconditional covenant. That's why Paul uses the word "promises" interchangeably with "covenant." Those promises were not contingent on obedience. They were grace. They were and are for all those who believe. By contrast the covenant at Sinai was conditional and had a different purpose, as we shall see.

It has been pointed out that the promises made to Abraham are all God saying, "I will . . . " while the covenant at Mt. Sinai was all God saying, "You shall . . ."

This bible study was an important one because it helped establish the relationship between the covenant God made with Abraham and the covenant God made with the people through Moses and what that has to do with us in the New Testament. In other words it gives us the relation between law and grace. In doing so it puts a lot of things in order and in perspective as far as what we are to think about the relation of the Old Testament and the New. I hope you will take the time to listen to it and to think through these things. Beneath all this there is wonderful news. There is gospel.

To listen to the audio from this Wednesday night study just click the link below.

Click here: Galatians 3:15-22 - Moses Serves Abraham



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Mark 3:7-19 - Jesus Chooses His Disciples

And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him.--Mark 3:13 ESV

Most of the major things that happen in redemptive history take place on a mountain. Abraham takes Isaac up on a mountain to sacrifice him. God reveals himself to Moses on a mountain. Moses receives the Ten Commandments on a mountain. When Elijah faces down the 400 Prophets of Baal it happens on a mountain. It is a mountain (Mt. Zion) upon which the temple is built. Jesus delivers his most famous sermon on a mount. Eventually he will be crucified on a hill outside Jerusalem. The symbolical meaning of the setting is clear. Something significant is taking place.

And what does Jesus do on the mountain? He calls to himself "those whom he desired, and they came to him."

God has always chosen his people. There is such a contrast here between the previous section where the crowds are flocking to Jesus and Jesus is plotting his escape from them, to this scene where Jesus goes up on the mountain and calls/chooses his disciples and they come. He says in John 6:37:

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

The parallels between Israel and the Church in this story are uncanny. Think of Israel. How did Israel begin? It began with the calling of Abram out of idolatry, a summons which he obeyed and in obeying became a type of all God's people everywhere. In Galatians, Paul compares the Gentile believers to Abram in that both were called out of the nations to be formed into the people of God, a people distinguished by their faith. Here we see Jesus calling and men (and women we learn later) responding in faith and obedience. Do they come freely to Christ? Certainly. Did we come freely to Christ? Absolutely. But what made us come? We came because the word came to us in power. This is the effectual calling of grace. We were summoned. Remember what Jesus says in John 6:37:

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

Who will come to Jesus? All that the Father gives to Jesus. Will any of those whom the Father gives to Jesus fail to come? No, all of them will come. And all of them, whoever they are, Jesus will never cast out. God chooses his people. 

There's something else here as well. Jesus calls them to himself. There were other itinerant rabbis of the day who had followers. But none of these rabbis called and chose their followers. Their followers chose them as a means to an end. Just as young people graduating high school will choose a college in order to attain a higher education and be prepared for some greater work, so students (disciples) in that day and age would choose a rabbi in order to sit at his feet and from him learn to master the Torah, or law of God. But in this call, the call of Jesus, he calls his disciples to himself, not as the means to a greater end, no, Jesus is the end himself. God chooses his people.

Below you will find a link to the audio of the sermon I preached from this passage. I hope you will take a few minutes and listen to it. The word of God is powerful and we need more and more of it in our lives. Click and listen and grow in grace. God bless.




Click here: Mark 3:7-19 - Jesus Chooses His Disciples



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Galatians 3:10-14 - The Cursed Messiah

There is some evidence to suggest that when first century Christian preachers proclaimed the message of Christ they were met with the response "Jesus is accursed!" from their unbelieving Jewish antagonists. In fact, Paul seems to address this in 1 Corinthians 12:

Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.--1 Corinthians 12:3

Was there truth in the accusation and why would anyone ever say it? To understand this we need to understand the Jewish mindset when it came to capital punishment and anyone who was hanged. In Deuteronomy it was famously stated this way:

“And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance.--Deuteronomy 21:22-23

The idea that their Messiah could ever be hung on a tree was offensive to faithful Jews for this reason. Tell them about a potential Messiah and they might listen. Tell them about a Messiah hung on a tree and they wanted none of it. The very idea was ludicrous. Disgusting. Offensive. So when, for example, Paul preached "Christ crucified," this is what they heard: "Messiah hung on a tree," "Messiah accursed." No wonder Paul said that his message was a stumbling block to kinsmen. Paul knew about that stumbling block firsthand. He himself had railed against the idea until he met the risen Christ on the road to Damascus. It was then that he understood. Jesus was, indeed, cursed--cursed for us, cursed in our place. Or, as he puts it in Galatians 3:

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.--Galatians 3:13-14

And this is the crux of his argument in this part of chapter three. The law brings a curse, not because of any flaw in the law, but because of the flaw in us. We sinned and brought upon ourselves the curse. Jesus redeemed us from that curse by being cursed for us.

This is the Bible study we did on this passage on Wednesday, March 8. I hope you will take the time to listen with us to what the word of God has to say. Just click the link below and be blessed.



Click here: Galatians 3:10-14 - The Cursed Messiah



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Mark 3:1-6 - Jesus Confronts His Opposition

The narrative here at the beginning of chapter three closely follows that of the end of chapter two. While recognizing that Mark does not necessarily write in chronological order, the events in the last five pericopes are probably more or less chronological as the opposition to Jesus increases incrementally in each one. In a strictly chronological sense there may have been other incidents that took place in between these stories, but Mark has grouped these five to show us the steady increase in opposition to Jesus.

And if Jesus had wanted to he could have avoided much of this. He didn't have to, for example, provoke the scribes earlier in chapter two by saying to the paralyzed man, "Your sins are forgiven." He did it deliberately. He makes no attempt at secrecy when he reclines at table with tax collectors and "sinners." He had to have known they were being watched as they plucked grain and ate it in the field on the Sabbath.

And now in this incident Jesus once again deliberately provokes his opponents. There is nothing about this healing which couldn't have waited until the next day. There is nothing about this healing that couldn't have waited until later on, in private. In fact, this man hasn't even come to Jesus for healing, he just showed up to synagogue on the Sabbath. This entire incident is instigated by Jesus to provoke. But when I use that word 'provoke' I'm not trying to make the case that Jesus just has a mean streak or a chip on his shoulder. His provoking is an act of love. He is deliberately confronting their unbelief and if they were to truly listen to him right now they would embrace him and be saved. But in responding the way they do, with unbelief, they have turned his act of love into a furthering of their eventual judgment.

This is what happens when we are confronted with the truth about Jesus Christ. We either respond in faith or we respond in unbelief. If we respond in faith and embrace Christ we are saved. If we choose, rather, to reject Christ, as the scribes in this story do, we are only furthering the judgment that awaits us. Jesus is the polarizing figure in human history and how we respond to him matters more than anything else in life.

In Mark 3:1-6 we come face to face with men who have already made up their minds about Jesus. They have come to hear him preach on a Sabbath, and they are watching him closely, not because they are listening to his message, but because they want to see if he will say or do something wrong. In fact, because they know he has done many healings they are hoping to see one on this occasion, but not for the good of someone who needs healed, nor even for the simple thrill of seeing something special. No, Mark says this:

And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him.--Mark 3:2 (emphasis mine)

What will Jesus do? And what does his response teach us? To find out take a listen to the sermon I preached on this passage. You will find it linked below. My prayer is that your response to Jesus will be one of faith.




Click here: Mark 3:1-6 - Jesus Confronts His Opposition



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Galatians 3:6-9 - The Children of Abraham

God made promises to Abraham--important promises--tremendous promises--promises to him and to his descendants. The first time we see this promise is in Genesis 12:

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”--Genesis 12:1-3

A few verses later we find this recorded:

Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had appearehd to him.--Genesis 3:7

But why does this matter to us? What does any of this have to do with a person sitting in a pew in the year 2017? What did it have to do with the people reading Paul's epistle to the Galatians in the first century? Everything.

Who are the descendants of Abraham? Who are his offspring? This question was answered by first century Judaism in this way: we, Jews, the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are the offspring or descendants of Abraham and it was to us that the promises were made. Many Christians believe this to this day. But the Apostle Paul disagrees with them. Paul is about to make the argument that Jesus alone is the offspring or descendant of Abraham to whom the promises were made and that only those in Christ are the heirs of the promises made to Abraham.

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.--Galatians 3:7-9

The true children of Abraham, and the heirs of the promises made to Abraham, are those who are united to Christ through faith--Christ who is the true Israelite, the consummate Jew, the Heir of the promises. This is true of those who are ethically Jewish and of those who are not. We become fellow-heirs through faith in Christ. Just like Abraham! After all, Abraham was a Gentile (there were no Jews yet when he was called) just as were the Galatians.

There is much more to this bible study than just that, so I invite you to listen to the audio recording of it linked below. Just click on the link and it will take you to a page on SoundCloud where you can stream it on your computer or other device. May God richly bless.



Click here: Galatians 3:6-9 - The Children of Abraham


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