THE TRUE GOSPEL-- A REVELATION FROM GOD-LESSON 1

THE TRUE GOSPEL-- A REVELATION FROM GOD!

Lesson 1

Galatians 1:1-24

I. THE SALUTATION. vs. 1-5

A. The Letter, vs. 1-2.

1. From Paul, v. 1a.

a. Paul means “little.” He was originally named Saul (asked of God), Acts 8:1, “And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles.”

b. He persecuted the Church, Acts 8:3, “As for Saul, he made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison.”

c. He was saved on the road to Damascus, Acts 9:1-6, “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. 3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 6 And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.”

d. He called himself the chief of sinners, 1 Timothy 1:15, "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."

2. The source of his apostleship, v. 1b.

a. Not of man, v. 1, “Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)”

b. But of God, 1 Corinthians 1:1, Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,” 1 Corinthians 9:1-2, “Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord? 2 If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord.”

3. In his salutation he includes all the brethren who were with him, v. 2a.

4. Addressed to CHURCHES of Galatia, v. 2b.

a. Note that it is “CHURCHES” PLURAL.

b. Note that THE churches mentioned ARE NOT of a universal visible or invisible nature.

c. NOR a REGINAL church.

d. NOR a DENOMINATIONAL headquarters.

e. But rather LOCAL VISIBLE CHURCHES that are PLURAL IN NUMBER.

B. The Greeting, vs. 3-5.

1. Two great blessings and their source, v. 3. Note which one must come first.

a. GRACE in salvation first, Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

b. PEACE through the blood of his cross, Colossians 1:20, “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.”

2. The gift and the purpose, v. 4.

a. He gave himself, Titus 2:14, “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

b. For our sins, 1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

c. To deliver us from this present evil world. (Many want deliverance from hell but not from the world and their sins.) “But the word peace is also used in contrast with that state of agitation and conflict which a sinner has with his conscience, and with God. The sinner is like the troubled sea which cannot rest.” ---Barnes. Isaiah 57:20, “But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.”

3. To whom be glory! v. 5; 1 Timothy 1:17, “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

II. THE OCCASION OF THE EPISTLE. vs. 6-9

A. To warn them of the Danger of Another Gospel, vv. 6-7.

1. They were being removed from the truth, v. 6. "Removed" is in the present tense, indicating that their defection was not complete, but in progress. "Removed" means a turncoat, desertion, revolt, a change in religion and morals. However, Paul uses as mild a word as possible. “He does not employ the language of severe reproof, but he expresses his astonishment that the thing should have occurred.” ---Barnes Notes

2. Only one true gospel, 1 Corinthians 15:1-5, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:”

3. Another gospel is a perverted gospel, v. 7. "Pervert" here means to transform into something of an opposite character, as the sun turned into darkness in Acts 2:20, "The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come."

B. The Penalty for Preaching A False Gospel, vs. 8-9.

1. Even an angel would be accursed, v. 8. “This is a very strong rhetorical mode of expression. It is not to be supposed that an angel from heaven would preach any other than the true gospel. But Paul wishes to put the strongest possible case, and to affirm, in the strongest manner possible, that the true gospel had been preached to them.” ---Barnes Notes

2. Any man would be accursed, v. 9; 1 Corinthians 16:22, “If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.” TO EXTERMINATE = The Hebrew verb is frequently used of the extermination of idolatrous nations. ---Easton’s Bible Dictionary.

a. The Lord knows His own, Matthew 7:21-23, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”

b. They would not have Christ reign over them, Luke 19:27, “But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.”

C. Let Us Note the PERVERSIONS OF THE GOSPEL TODAY.

1. Some say: Get into the RIGHT church, be baptized to be saved, confess your sins to a priest, celebrate mass, live the best you can, believe the articles of faith, believe the pope is infallible, and then you die, go purgatory and then heaven.

2. Believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, baptized by immersion FOR REMISSION of sins, live the best you can.

3. Accept Jesus Christ for PAST SINS, then getting to heaven DEPENDS ON HOW you live till you die.

4. TAKE Jesus Christ as your EXAMPLE and TRY to LIVE like Him, and then go to heaven. MOST CHURCHES TODAY TEACH SOME FORM of the above FALSE GOSPELS.

5. HOW DIFFERENT IS GOD’S WAY which is as follows:

a. By REPENTANCE AND FAITH accept Christ as your only and all sufficient Savior for your PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE SINS, Acts 20:21, “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”

b. Then SERVE HIM BECAUSE YOU LOVE HIM!!! Galatians 5:13-14, “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

D. The Preeminence of the Gospel (a Review.)

1. The PURITY of the gospel, v. 4a; Romans 8:3, “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:”

2. The PURPOSE of the gospel, vs. 4b-5; 1 John 3:8, “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.”

3. The PERVERSION of the gospel, vs. 6-7; 1 Timothy 6:5, “Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.”

4. The PRESERVATION of the gospel, vs. 8-9; Deuteronomy 4:2, “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.”

III. THE SUPERNATURAL ORIGIN OF THE GOSPEL OF PAUL vs. 10-24

A. The Gospel and Men, vs. 10-11.

1. Not designed to please men, v. 10; Acts 4:19, “But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. 20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

a. Paul admits that before his conversion he received his authority from men, Acts 9:1-2, “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.”

b. But NOW he had a higher aim and that was to please God, 1 Thessalonians 2:4, “But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.”

2. The Gospel was NOT from men, v. 11; 1 Corinthians 11:23, “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:”

B. Paul's Gospel was A REVELATION FROM GOD, vv. 12-24; Ephesians 3:3, “How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,”

1. His gospel DID NOT come from his Jewish RELIGIOUS background, vs. 12, 14.

2. His PERSECUTION OF THE CHURCH shows his ISOLATION from the church, the apostles and their doctrines, v. 13.

3. His salvation and calling CAME FROM GOD and not man, v. 15.

4. He conferred NOT with flesh and blood, v. 16.

5. His stay in Arabia reveals that his doctrine was NOT FROM MAN, v. 17.

6. After 3 years, he spent 15 days at Jerusalem, vs. 18-20.

a. Apostolic contact with Paul was limited to Peter and James, Galatians 2:9, “And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.”

b. His doctrine was not changed. This event recorded in Acts 9:26-30.

7. He did spend time in Syria and Cilicia, v. 21. Acts 15:23, “And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia: 41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.”

8. His face was unknown to Judean churches, v. 22.

a. Paul had visited Jerusalem only, and he had formed no acquaintance with any of the churches in the other parts of Judea.

b. The Galatian churches were like the churches in Judea, “in Christ,” 1 Thessalonians 2:14, “For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:”

c. However, they rejoiced in what they heard about his preaching, vs. 23-24; 1 Timothy 1:13-16, “Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 14 And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 15 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 shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.”

CONCLUSION

The true gospel today, is from God and not man. Too many preachers and churches base their doctrines on the traditions passed down by man, instead of going to the Bible, God's revelation, and getting their doctrine from it!

--Lesson by E. L. Bynum; Revision by Art Davison