A Different Gospel – 07/27/2025

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Parable inspired by Megan McKenna:
There was a woman out shopping
Who came across a store
she had never seen before
Inside she found all sorts of lovely things.
As she looked closer she even found such rare
Items like hope
and forgiveness
and patience
on the shelves.
She desperately wanted these things
And so sought the shop keeper.
Behind the counter she found Jesus
He said, “Make a list of all you want
And give it to me.”
She made out her list with things like
“Peace on Earth and peace with my sister,”
And “To lose a few pounds and
to end starvation,”
And plenty more
Until she had run out of room
on her piece of paper
She handed the list to Jesus
Who went to the back of the shop.
In a few moments he returned
And handed her many packs of seeds
She looked confused and said,
“Don’t I get to take the things on my list with me?”
And Jesus said, “Oh, this isn’t a gift shop,
it’s a gardening center.”

Let’s pray
Come Lord and join us here today
Give us the good grace
And the good sense
To be your soil.
Break up our hardness
Clear away the rocks
Cut off the dead wood
Make us a place that
Is nutritious, fruitful.

Let us be rooted and grounded
In your love
Cultivate us
Shape us
Train us

Help us become
The good in this world
We yearn for
The gentleness
The courage
The healing
The hope
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.
For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. Galatians 1:11-12

Intro: Last week we ventured into Paul’s letter to the Galatians

Right away we learned that he was not pleased with these Christians
– he accused them of deserting Jesus for “another gospel”
• but he hasn’t defined that other gospel specifically
• that’s what he does in the next section of the letter that we will cover today
– beginning in verse 11, Paul writes a brief autobiography
• he does this because his personal history tells a story
• as we make our way through this passage I’m going to include details supplied by the Book of Acts
◦ that will give us a fuller perspective of the problem in the region of Galatia

The preface: “I would have you know”

Paul informs us that he is about to present his next big idea
– it’s so important to Paul, he already spilled it in verse 1
• Paul had heard about Jesus–for instance, when Stephen was stoned (Acts 7)
◦ but he had not believed the testimonies about the Lord
◦ in fact, at one time he confessed,
“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth” (Acts. 26:9)
• the great majority of Christians living in Jerusalem and Israel had:
◦ either been followers of Jesus
◦ or had come to know him through his apostles’ preaching
– not Paul! – for him it took a personal revelation to bring him to Jesus
• the Lord had to knock him down and appear in a blinding light
• and he had continued to receive revelations of God’s truth
“Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has become made known to all nations, according to the command of God, to bring about the obedience of faith . . . .” (Ro. 16:25-26)

Chapter 1 Early life: Before Paul became an apostle
For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. Galatians 1:13-14

Paul’s conversion was big news
– I think that Paul himself was fond of telling his experience
• you also have a story of turning to Jesus
◦ and it may be more important than you realize
◦ everyone’s story is surprising and beautiful
• Paul’s was unusual, because previously he had tried to destroy the movement
– he was a rabbinical student of the famous Pharisee, Gamaliel,
• and was making significant progress that caught the attention of others
• at that time, he was devoted to the traditions passed down by the fathers
◦ these were the very traditions Jesus ignored
“Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus . . . and said, “Why do your disciples break the traditions of the elders?” He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?” (Mt. 15:1-3)

Paul’s reference to “Judaism” is significant
– this is a specific religion that belonged to a specific ethnic race
• it was the religion of the children of Abraham,
◦ and followers of the teaching of Moses and the Prophets
• this is an important factor in Paul’s story

Chapter 2 The turning point (“But”) when Paul meets Jesus
But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. Galatians 1:15-17

Paul doesn’t tell the whole story here (they’ve heard it)
– he relates only the key features:
• he met his destiny, which was determined before he was born
◦ so this applies, not just to that moment on the road, but to his entire life
• God chose to reveal his Son “in” Paul – this was his life’s mission
– again, the big idea is that Paul did not immediately run to others
• having had a divine revelation, he did not “consult with flesh and blood”–that is, any human person
• and in particular, he mentions Jerusalem and those who were apostles before him

Chapter 3 The next stage of his life, when Paul began his ministry
Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas [Peter] and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!) Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” Galatians 1:18-24

What happened to Paul in Damascus became a repeated pattern
“For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus. And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the Son of God.’ . . . When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul.” (Acts 9:19-25)
– Paul would stir up trouble in a city until his friends moved him along
• after he was gone, they enjoyed a period of peace and quiet
For instance: “And when the brothers learned this, they brought him [Paul] down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up” (Acts 9:31
• in Jerusalem, Paul was introduced to Peter (Cephas) and James
◦ this James was not the brother of John, but one of the Lord’s brothers
◦ James had become a leader and main spokesperson for the apostles in Jerusalem
• from there Paul traveled north into Gentile territory
◦ meanwhile, he was not well known in Judea
◦ people knew of him by reputation, but not personally

Chapter 4 A historic visit to Jerusalem
Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery—to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do. Galatians 2:1-10

Paul returned to Jerusalem with two companions
– Barnabas was already well-known with church there and its leaders (Acts 4:36-37)
• Titus was a stranger to them – and he was a Gentile (Greek)
◦ this troubled some of the believers in Jerusalem that Titus was not Jewish
• Paul had his own purpose for returning to Jerusalem
◦ he wanted to present to the leaders the message he preached to Gentiles
◦ their support was vital to his credibility in foreign countries
– something happened during that visit,
• and it brings us to the critical point of this whole autobiography
◦ none of the leaders were forcing Titus to be circumcised
◦ but there were people who weren’t pleased with that
• Paul calls them “false brothers” who crept in to spy on him and his companions
◦ what bothered them was Paul’s “freedom”
◦ and the freedom he gave to Gentile Christians
• if those people had their way,
◦ Paul and his Gentile churches would have become enslaved (v. 4)

I want to make a brief observation:
– Christians who spy on other Christians in order to find fault, have lost their way
• Paul told the Corinthians to examine themselves, not each other
◦ and he asked the Romans,
“Why do you pass judgment on your brother? . . . So then each of us will give an account of [ourselves] to God” (Ro. 14:10-13)
◦ be aware that there are people who do that, and avoid them

What we’re going to do now is probe deeper into Paul’s story

Paul mentioned his purpose for being in Jerusalem,
– but he didn’t give all the details – and they’re important
• a large church had emerged in Antioch (a large city in Syria)
◦ it was the first big church consisting of Gentiles; non-Jews
(and it was there that followers of Jesus were first called “Christians”; Acts11:26)
“But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved’” (Acts 15:1)
(note that the threat was so great that their “salvation” hinged on it)
◦ Paul and Barnabas got into a heated argument with these agitators
• the leaders in Antioch decided to sent a delegation to Jerusalem
◦ they wanted to learn the opinion of the apostles
◦ the same argument erupted there
“some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them and order them to keep the law of Moses’” (Acts 15:5)
– did you hear that? there was a “Pharisee party” within the church
• a few years later, the leaders informed Paul
“You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed. They are all zealous for the law” (Acts 21:20)
• previously, if a Gentile (male) wanted to convert to Judaism he had to be circumcised and keep the laws of Moses
◦ naturally, Jewish believers considered Christianity to be a branch of Judaism and therefore the same rule would apply to Gentiles who converted to the Christian faith
◦ that is what the issue with Titus was about
– those who added this requirement to Gentile converts
• were not helping people who wanted to become Christians
• but creating a deterrent

Three times Paul says Jerusalem’s Christian leaders “seemed” to be something
– “influential” (twice) and “pillars” — in which we pick up a tone of sarcasm
• they were obviously sensitive to the Pharisee party
◦ maybe also overly impressed with them and eager to please them
◦ it is possible they felt the Pharisees improved the status of Christianity in their culture
• I think Paul considered the leaders to be compromised
◦ for instance, he significantly “edited” the instructions he was to carry back to the Gentile churches
(compare Acts 15:28-29 and Galatians 2:10)
– but the point is, the teaching that the false brothers and Pharisee party were promoting was
• Christians are saved by grace plus something else!

Conclusion: The church in America today is plagued by spiritual illnesses

One of them is the implied (or asserted) claim that grace alone is not enough
We’re saved by grace, and something else
Perhaps it’s biblical inerrancy – or pro-life – or a political party
Our task is to discern the additives we’re being fed, and avoid them
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Eph. 2:8-10
And don’t make it harder for people to come to Jesus
Build bridges, not barriers