["Pomp and Circumstance"]
You
Good evening and welcome to Verity Baptist Church
Can I please have everyone find their seats and grab their songbooks and turn to page number 259
Please find a seat and grab your songbooks and turn to page number 259
We're gonna start the service off singing Jesus saves
That's page number 259
Jesus saves and let's go ahead and sing it out on the first we ever the joyful sound
Jesus saves
Spread the tidings all around
Jesus saves
Bear the deuce to every land
Climb the steeps
And cross the waves
Onwards is our Lord's command
Jesus saves
Page 259
Let's sing it out on the second
Clapped it on
The rolling tide
Jesus saves
Tell to sinners far and wide
Jesus saves
Sing the islands of the sea
Echo back the ocean waves
Earth shall keep her jubilee
Jesus saves
Sing above the battle stride
Jesus saves
By his death and endless life
Jesus saves
Sing it softly through the gloom
Climb the heart
For mercy craves
Sing in triumph for the tomb
Jesus saves
Now you guys are singing good
But this is a song that just requires a little bit of oomph
So let's sing it out on the last
Give the
Give the winds a mighty voice
Jesus saves
Let the nations now rejoice
Jesus saves
Shout salvation full and free
High yourselves in deep escapes
This our song of victory
Jesus saves
Great singing. Let's open up in a word of prayer
Father God, thank you so much for this church, Lord
Thank you for these people coming out here on a Wednesday evening to serve you
I pray that our singing would glorify you, Lord
Pray that you bless the service and the preaching come
In Jesus' name I pray. Amen
Please turn your song looks to page number 43
Page number 43, we're going to sing
We're marching to Zion
Page number 43
We're marching to Zion
Let's sing it out on the first
Come we that love the Lord
And let our joys be known
Join in a song with sweet accord
And thus around the throne
We're marching to Zion
Beautiful, beautiful Zion
We're marching upwards to Zion
The beautiful city of God
Let those refused to sing
Who never knew our God
The children of the heavenly king
May speak their joys abroad
We're marching to Zion
Beautiful, beautiful Zion
We're marching upwards to Zion
The beautiful city of God
The hill of Zion yields
A thousand sacred sweets
Before we reach the heavenly fields
Or walk the golden streets
We're marching to Zion
Beautiful, beautiful Zion
We're marching upwards to Zion
The beautiful city of God
Let's finish it strong on the last
Let our songs abound
And every tear be dry
We're marching through Emmanuel's ground
To fairer worlds on high
We're marching to Zion
Beautiful, beautiful Zion
We're marching upwards to Zion
The beautiful city of God
Great singing!
Amen, alright well let's go ahead and take our bulletins this evening
We'll look at some announcements real quickly
If you do not have a bulletin just raise your hand
And one of our ushers can get one for you
If you need a bulletin just put your hand up
And we'll get one for you
The verse this week, Psalm 37, 4
Delight thyself also in the Lord
And He shall give thee the desires of thine heart
And that's a good verse there
We like that
If you open up your bulletin you'll see our service time Sunday morning service 10 30 a.m.
We of course invite you to be with us on Sunday morning on the Lord's Day for church Sunday evening service 6 p.m
And we're glad you're with us for the Wednesday evening Bible study
If you look at our soul winning times
Our main soul winning time is on Saturday mornings at 10 a.m.
And then we have additional soul winning times on Thursdays Fridays and Sundays at 6 p.m. on Thursdays
And then Fridays and Sundays at 2 p.m.
And if you'd like to go soul winning we'd love for you to make it to one of those times
If you are a first time guest, if it's your first time here at Verity Baptist Church we're glad you're with us
We have a gift we'd like to give you as you walk out of the church building tonight
If you go out our main foyer or if you go out our secondary foyer you'll see a little table set up
And on that table you'll see these little gift bags
Please grab one on your way out as a gift from us to you for being our guest this evening
And there are several resources in this bag that we'd like you to have
The one I'd like to highlight is this documentary that our church made
It's called Being Baptist, it's very well made, very interesting, we think you'll like it
We want to give this to you as a gift so please make sure you don't leave here tonight
Without grabbing one of these gift bags on your way out
And if you are a guest we'd ask that you please take a moment and fill out the communication card
Which is inserted in your bulletin, if you need a pen just raise your hand
And one of our ushers will bring you by Verity Baptist Church pen
You're welcome to keep the pen as a gift from us as well
We're not going to do anything odd with your info, we would just like to have a record of attendance
We actually would like to send you a little gift but we need your information to do that
So please take a moment to fill the card out
When we're done with the announcements we're going to sing a song
When we're done singing we're going to receive the offering
And as the offering plate goes by you can drop this card in the offering plate
If you notice there in our bulletin of course we are a family integrated church
What that means is that children and infants are always welcome in the service
We do not separate children from their parents for any reason
We do have mother baby rooms and daddy rooms available for your convenience
All of the rooms have comfortable seating, they have monitors set up so you can watch the service and listen to it
So please make sure you use those rooms as needed
If you need to be baptized you can please let us know
We have a baptism scheduled tonight
And if you'd like to get baptized then on the back of your communication card
You can check off that you'd like information about baptism
And we'll follow up with you and talk to you about that
If you've already spoken to somebody then all you need to do is at the end of the service
After we're done with the preaching when we're singing the last song
Just step out that door, one of our staff guys will meet you there
And we will get you situated for baptisms
If you look at the announcements and upcoming events
Of course the Red Hot Preaching Conference is right around the corner
And we just want you to be aware that it begins on Thursday July 20th at 6pm
And there will be no Wednesday evening service on July 19th
So normally our midweek service is on Wednesday night of course
But for the Red Hot Preaching Conference we'll have church Thursday night, Friday morning, Friday night
Sunday morning of course, Sunday night
So because of that there will be no midweek service on July 19th
And if you're used to going to the midweek service then make sure you're here on Thursday for the Red Hot Preaching Conference
And of course if you'd like to volunteer to help with the conference
You should have one of these cards where you can sign up to volunteer for different things
We actually could use your help tonight
And of course you guys all know that we're kind of short one staff guy
And there's a lot to do with the Red Hot Preaching Conference
And if you can help us tonight after the service
If we could get a group of volunteers to help us in the fellowship hall
We've got some soul winning invitations that need to be counted out and rubber banded
And I think if we get a good group to help us it could be knocked out pretty quickly
So if you could help us tonight after the service in the fellowship hall we would really appreciate it
That's not in the bulletin or anything it's just something we could use help with
So if you could do that we'd appreciate it
Prior they are practicing at 5pm on Sundays and of course they're practicing for the Red Hot Preaching Conference
The establishment class is on Sundays at 5pm as well
Ladies have a weight loss accountability group that meets on Wednesdays at 615
In the Mother Bay room closest to the foyer
You can check for your name there if you're part of our cleaning crew we appreciate your help with that
If you want to get on our BBC text list or our Bamba Not Bound email list
Make sure you do that on your communication card so you can stay up to date with what's going on
Please don't forget to turn your cell phones off or place them on silent during the service
They're not a distraction to anybody
If you look at the back of the bulletin birthdays and anniversaries for the week
This week we had Ms. Amy Cortez's birthday on July 10th
And today is Ms. Courtney Usher's birthday, July 12th
Happy birthday to Ms. Courtney and also brother Matt and Ms. Kim Borrello have an anniversary today
So happy anniversary to them as well
And later this week is Hezekiah Cruz's birthday on July 14th
Praise report, money matters, all of those things are there for you to look at
And before we sing the third song I do have a baptism certificate to hand out
So I'm going to go ahead and read this real quickly
It says certificate of baptism, this certificate is awarded to Lisa Diamond
In recognition of her baptism on the 28th day of June of the year 2023
We are buried with him by baptism into Baptist church with the verse there
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death
That like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father
Even so we should walk in newness of life
And we have pictures here for Ms. Lisa to remember the day of her baptism
And let's go ahead and give her a round of applause
And alright, let's take our song books and go to page number 207-207
And we'll sing Only a Sinner as we prepare to receive the offering this evening
207, Only a Sinner, sing it out on the first
Not have I gotten but what I received
Praising hath bestowed it since I have believed
Posting excluded, pride I have faced
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Only a sinner, saved by grace
This is my story, to God be the glory
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
207, sing it out on the second
Once I was foolish and sin ruled my heart
Causing my footsteps from God to depart
Jesus hath found me, that be my case
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Only a sinner, saved by grace
This is my story, to God be the glory
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Tears unabailing, no merit had I
Mercy had saved me or else I must die
Sin had alarmed me, fearing God's face
But now I'm a sinner, saved by grace
Only a sinner, saved by grace
This is my story, to God be the glory
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Suffer a sinner whose heart overflows
Loving his Savior to tell what he knows
Once more I tell him, would I embrace
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Only a sinner, saved by grace
This is my story, to God be the glory
I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
Amen. Good singing. We'll have the guys come up and help us with the offering at this time.
And let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we do thank you for allowing us to gather together tonight.
Lord, we pray that you bless the offering, the gift, and the giver.
We pray that you do meet with us as we take time to pray for our church family and, of course, as we study the Bible together.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
We pray.
Amen. All right. Well, let's go ahead and take our prayer sheets tonight and we'll go through our prayer list.
If you did not receive a prayer list on your way in, just raise your hand and one of our ushers can get one for you.
If you need a prayer sheet, just put your hand up and we'll get one for you.
And, of course, I want to remind you that the way you add a request to the prayer list is through your communication card.
On the back of the card there's a place for you to write down your prayer request.
If it's public, we'll put it on the prayer sheet.
If it's private, only I will see it, so make sure on the back that you check off whether it's private or public.
If you don't check it off, we'll do our best to figure it out, but we usually don't put those on.
We do add them in the order that they are received and they are removed after a couple of weeks.
And let's go ahead and take these requests.
So, Lord, I'll pray out loud and I ask that you would follow along in your mind and your heart and let's pray together.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we come to you tonight asking for these requests from our church family.
We begin with these health requests.
Ms. Brandy Barrett, praying for her brother Dylan's recovery from back surgery.
And also Ms. Laura Beth, praying for the recovery of Jehu as he fell out of his bunk bed and got some stitches around his eyes.
Ms. Docma, praying for her pain and relief there.
Ms. Michelle Scott, praying for healing for her aunt that fell.
And the Maples family, Brother Joe Maples, praying for Joe Jr.'s health.
And he's had some good improvements. They're hoping it'll continue, praying that it would continue.
Ms. Christine Ortiz, praying for her health and that the lesion on her liver would not be cancer.
Brother Salvador, praying for his health as well.
And, Lord, we ask for Brother Edgar and Ms. Selena, praying for Uretzi, that she would continue to be healthy and strong.
Lord, we pray for all these individuals. We ask that you would give them healing and strength.
We also want to acknowledge the praise report from Ms. Docma, that her son-in-law is one year cancer free.
And we thank you for that.
Lord, we also pray for Ms. Angel Cabuntala, our missionary, Dave Cabuntala's wife, who is undergoing chemotherapy in the Philippines right now.
And, of course, we want to pray for Baby John and pray for Brother Shah and Ms. Ava as he's undergoing chemotherapy in Stanford.
And he's going to be there for six to eight months.
Lord, we're praying that you would give all of these individuals healing.
Lord, we pray that your healing hand would be upon them.
We pray that you would give wisdom to the doctors and nurses dealing with them.
We pray that your will be done in all their lives, Lord, and that you would recover them.
And, Lord, we are agreeing in prayer, believing that you can and asking that you will.
Lord, we also pray for the ladies in our church that are expecting.
Ms. Rebecca, Ms. Kiki, Ms. Selena, Ms. Melody, asking that you give them all healthy pregnancies with no issues, no complications.
We pray for Ms. Brandy, praying for her other brother, Wyatt, as he travels, for safety as he travels.
Ms. Docma, praying for her daughter and her family's salvation.
Ms. Natalie, praying for the salvation of her husband and her family as well.
Lord, we pray for these individuals that they would come to the place where they'd be willing to hear the gospel, Lord,
that your Holy Spirit would work in their lives and that a soul winner would communicate the gospel clearly to them.
We also pray for these that ask for family members.
Ms. Nicole Johnson, praying for her cousin Shonda and her aunt Jeannie and her mother Henrietta.
Also, Ms. Christina Ortiz, praying for her family and her children.
Ms. Salvador, praying for his family as well.
Lord, we pray that you would bless these individuals.
We also pray for these that have financial needs.
Ms. Christine Ortiz, praying for her to be able to find a home.
Brother Salvador, praying for his finances and his work as well.
Lord, we pray that you would help them in regards to these things.
We pray for Brother Salvador, that you'd help him with his walk with you and his faith.
And Lord, we also pray for these that have unspoken requests.
Ms. Christine Laquetta, Brother Nate Deakins, Ms. Michelle Scott, Ms. Nicole Johnson, Ms. Natalie, Brother Salvador, all having unspoken requests.
And Lord, you know what their petitions are, you know what they're asking for.
We pray that you would answer according to your will.
We pray that your will would be clear to them and that your answer would be clear to them as well.
Lord, we also pray, of course, for our ministry here.
We pray for the prison ministry and their families.
And we ask that you continue to bless that ministry even now as it's just put on hold for a little bit.
Lord, we ask that you continue to work through the individuals being impacted.
We pray for the upcoming Red Hot Preaching Conference, that you'd bless this conference, help it to go smoothly.
And Lord, help all the events to run well and everybody to have a good time.
But more than that, I pray that you'd help us to hear from your word, that we'd be challenged through the preaching and that we might draw closer to you.
Lord, we pray for the purchase of this future church facility that we're in the midst of buying.
Lord, we ask that you would just continue to help as we work through that and all the different inspections and questions that need to be answered.
Lord, we ask that your will would be done and that you provide the way, the finances, everything that's needed for all the things that need to be done.
We pray for our missions, church plants in Manila, Pampanga, Bico, that you'd continue to bless these locations.
We pray for our evangelist, Brother Stuckey and his family, that you'd bless them as well.
And of course, we pray for our church here in Sacramento, that you'd continue to bless us, you'd continue to help us.
I thank you, Lord, for the group that is here tonight, that has come together on a Wednesday night to hear the preaching of your word.
I pray that you'd prepare our hearts even now to hear from your word, that we might draw closer to you, that we might be challenged by your word.
And Lord, we ask that everything that's done tonight would bring honor and glory to your name.
In the matchless name of Christ, we pray. Amen.
Please, open our eyes to Galatians 5.
Galatians, chapter number 5.
If you do not have a Bible, please put your hand up and I'm not sure I can bring you a Bible.
Galatians 5.
If you need a barrel, keep your head up and a shul come by.
Galatians, chapter number 5.
We read the entire chapter as our custom.
Galatians 5, verse number 1.
Stand fast, therefore, in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Behold, I, Paul, say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law.
Ye are fallen from grace.
For we, through the Spirit, wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love.
Ye did run well, who did hinder you, that ye should not obey the truth.
This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you, a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded.
But he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be.
And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution?
Then is the offense of the cross ceased.
I would they were even cut off which trouble you.
For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty.
Only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.
And these are the contrary, the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these.
Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred,
variants, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like.
Of the which I tell you before, as I also have told you in time past,
that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.
Against such there is no long, and neither Christ hath crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
If ye live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you for this evening. God, I thank you for your word and for the book of Galatians.
God, I say please give us all the tender hearts of the message.
I say be of the pastor to strengthen him and fill him with the Spirit.
We love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Amen.
Alright, we're there in Galatians chapter number 5.
And of course on Wednesday nights we've been going through a study in the book of Galatians verse by verse through the book of Galatians.
And tonight we find ourselves in Galatians chapter number 5.
And tonight we're going to go through a little bit over half of the chapter.
We'll make it to verse 15 and then we'll cover the rest of the chapter next time we meet together on a Wednesday night.
But let me just go ahead and kind of up front give you the three different headings.
There's three headings or sections in which we can see these 15 verses.
And I'll give you the divisions and kind of some titles for those headings if you're taking notes.
And I always encourage you to take notes on the back of your course of the week.
There's a place for you to be able to do that.
And the first heading I've simply entitled Stand Fast.
And if you're interested we'll cover verses 1 through 6 under that heading.
And the next heading I've entitled Ye Did Run Well and we'll cover verses 7 through 12.
And then the third heading I've entitled Called Unto Liberty and we will cover verses 13 through 15.
You'll notice that those headings or points are taken directly from the passage.
And the Apostle Paul is dealing with a subject that is a little bit of a controversial subject among Christians.
Not a controversial subject by the world standards.
We preach a lot of those as well.
But this is kind of a controversial subject among Christians that Christians like to debate about.
And it is this idea of Christian liberty.
And the Apostle Paul kind of deals with this and delves into this in this portion of Scripture.
So we'll begin with this first section, Stand Fast.
You'll notice there in verse 1 where I get the heading from.
He says, Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
That phrase, Stand Fast, means to have a firm or fixed or settled position.
And if you remember the Apostle Paul is dealing with the Galatians.
And one of the issues we've been talking about as we've been moving through the book of Galatians,
we've been talking about the different themes.
And one of the themes of the book of Galatians is the fact that there are these Judaizers who have came from Jerusalem to the region of Galatia.
They are bad mouthing and complaining against and criticizing the Apostle Paul and his ministry.
And they are teaching a false gospel.
They are teaching that someone has to keep the Old Testament Mosaic law in order to be saved.
And of course if you've been with us over the last several weeks as we've traveled through the book of Galatians,
you know that the Apostle Paul has systematically dealt with each one of those issues and has attacked it.
And here we kind of have his conclusion.
Now it's not the concluding of the book because he still has some very practical things to talk about halfway through this chapter and into the next chapter.
But he kind of ends this doctrinal portion in which he's been defending the faith and defending himself.
And he ends it by stating, stand fast.
He is making a request to the Galatian believers and he is requesting of them.
He is asking of them.
He is pleading with them that they would stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.
Notice that here in verse 1 there is a positive and a negative.
The positive is liberty.
He says, the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.
And then the negative is this, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
And I want you to notice that when the Bible talks about salvation and this term liberty,
and the reason I've entitled the sermon Christian Liberty is because he kind of deals with this idea throughout this passage.
And he deals with it in two different areas of the Christian life.
But the first one is this regarding salvation.
What he is referring to here when he is telling the Galatians to stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free,
he's referring to the fact that salvation is liberty and Christ has made us free.
And I want you to notice, keep your place there in Galatians chapter 5.
That's obviously our text for this evening.
But go with me if you would to the Gospel of John.
John chapter number 8.
If you start at the beginning of the New Testament, you have Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and John chapter number 8.
As you turn there, I just want you to notice that phrase there in verse 1,
stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath.
I want you to notice how your King James Bible says it,
hath made us free, hath made us free.
In John chapter 8 and verse 32, the Bible says this,
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
If you have a King James Bible that says make you free,
if you've got another version of the Bible, a corruption of the Bible,
you'll find that it says set you free.
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
And the modern Bible versions will say set you free.
John chapter 8 and verse 36 says,
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
In Galatians 5, you want to go back there.
Paul said stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free.
The same idea as when he says made us free is the same thing that John wrote
when he says the truth shall make you free.
And you might think, well, what's the difference?
Are those semantics?
But you need to understand that this is speaking about salvation.
The difference between being made free and being set free are two different things
because one is where you are just changing in your position.
The other one is where you are changing in your creation.
See, salvation, and I won't have you turn here, but I often think of this story.
When I think of this, you remember when the apostle Paul had been arrested
and he was about to be beaten and he has this conversation with the Roman centurion
and with the guard and with the guys that were going to beat him
and he talks about the fact that he's a Roman
and the soldier says to him with a much psalm,
he said I purchased this freedom, but Paul says I was free born.
And the idea when we think about it from the Roman Empire or just citizenship,
you can become a citizen or you can be born a citizen.
And when it comes to salvation and being a citizen of heaven, you're not naturalized.
They don't set you free and then you have freedom,
but you're made free because of the fact that you're born again.
When you get saved, you're born again.
You are a new creature.
The Bible says that we are a new creation revived and quickened by the Holy Spirit of God.
So when it comes to salvation, I was not set free.
I'm not a slave or a servant that was set free, but I am a child of God that was born free.
We were made free, which is why Paul says,
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.
John said, And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
So there's this positive idea of liberty,
but then the negative, if you're there in Galatians 5, look at the last part of verse 1,
And be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
He's saying, look, you were made free. You were created.
If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.
All things are passed away. Behold, all things are made new, are become new.
And here he says, look, because you've been made free,
because you were born into the family of God and you were made free and the truth has made you free,
he says, don't go back and be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
And this idea that he's talking about here, the yoke of bondage,
is the idea of going back to try to have some sort of works-based salvation
where you're under the bondage of the law and trying to earn salvation through the law.
And again, this is not the first time that the Apostle Paul has brought this up.
You're there in Galatians 5. Go back to Galatians chapter 2 just real quickly.
Galatians chapter 2 and look at verse number 4.
Galatians chapter 2 and verse 4. Notice what he says in Galatians 2.4.
He says, and that because of false brethren, unawares brought in who came in privately,
notice what he says, to spy out our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus,
that they might bring us into bondage.
And what he's saying is, look, salvation, the reason that the Apostle Paul is using this terminology
and referring to salvation as liberty is because salvation is not having to do anything in order to get saved.
Salvation is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.
It's putting your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is not telling you that you have to go to a confessional booth to be saved.
It's not telling you that you have to enter into baptistry waters to be saved.
It's not telling you that you have to go to church to be saved.
It's not telling you that you have to read the Bible to be saved.
And look, getting baptized and going to church and reading the Bible, all those are good things.
But if you have to do those things in order to be saved, then you are under bondage.
And those who teach that you've got to do anything in order to be saved
are trying to bring you out of the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free,
and they're trying to get you entangled back into bondage.
And this is what the Apostle Paul, this is why he makes this request.
He says, stand fast, therefore, in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.
Now that's the request.
Notice the reason, because you might think, well, what's the big deal?
What's the big deal if someone believes that you've got to do certain things in order to be saved or stay saved?
The request is to stand fast, therefore, in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free.
And then the reason is found in verses 2, 3, and 4.
Notice the reasons in verse 2.
He says, Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised...
I want you to see that phrase there, if ye be circumcised,
I want you to understand that the reason that he brings up circumcision here
is because that's what they're actually dealing with in the context of the people who he's talking to.
The churches in Galatia are being taught that if you want to be saved,
you have to be circumcised under the Jewish law or the Old Testament law,
the way that they would do it in order to be saved.
That's why he uses that example, if ye be circumcised.
But I want you to understand something, that that can be interchanged with any work of the law.
In fact, if you skip down to verse 4 just real quickly,
you'll notice that it says Christ has become of no effect unto you,
whosoever you are justified by the law.
So he says, If ye be circumcised is anybody who's trying to be justified by the law.
Now, if you look at verse 2 again, I want you to understand,
when he says, Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised...
The idea is, whatever action you think that the keeping of the law is,
he says, If ye be circumcised, notice what he says, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Now that's a pretty stern statement there to say, look,
If ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
And again, the idea is not if someone's just been circumcised and Christ is not going to profit anything,
it's if they got circumcised believing and trusting that they had to do that in order to go to heaven.
If they're trusting in their circumcision to go to heaven, Paul says, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Verse 3, For I testify again to every man that is circumcised that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
We're going to come back to that in a minute, but look at verse 4.
Christ has become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law, ye are fallen from grace.
And here's what you need to get and understand.
When you see that phrase there in verse 2, If ye be circumcised, that's just an example.
That's the example he's using because that's what the Galatians are dealing with.
But you can swap that with any other keeping of the law and it would be true.
See, Paul said, Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
And the idea is this, he's telling these people, if you go and get circumcised,
because you think that you need to get circumcised in order to go to heaven,
that's some sort of an action that you need to do.
He says, If ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
We could say, If you get baptized, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Now again, nothing wrong with getting baptized, we're going to have a baptism tonight.
But if you're getting baptized thinking that some way, somehow, that water is going to save you,
then Christ shall profit you nothing.
If you go to church and think, well going to church and the act of going to church is what's going to save me,
then Christ shall profit you nothing.
If you repent of your sins, look, nothing wrong with repenting of your sins.
We try to help people repent of their sins all the time.
But if you stop drinking or stop doing something thinking, well that will be the thing that gets me to heaven,
then Paul says, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Look at verse 4, Christ is become of no effect.
Christ cannot help you and will be of no effect unto you,
whosoever of you are justified by the law, ye are fallen from grace.
And the idea is this, that if you add the keeping of the law to salvation, then Christ shall profit you nothing.
Because you cannot have it both ways.
You're either going to get to heaven by keeping the law or you're going to get to heaven because you were unable to keep the law
and you've accepted the price of salvation and the fact that Jesus died on the cross to pay for your sins.
Look, you either put your faith in Jesus Christ and put your trust in Jesus Christ to save you,
or you put your faith and your trust in yourself and your keeping of the law.
But you can't do both.
And you see, today people will teach, oh no, it's both.
You know, when we go out soul winning and all day long, religious people say,
well yeah, we have faith in Jesus, but you also have to, you can't just live however you want.
Yeah, we have faith in Jesus, but you also have to go to church.
Yeah, we have faith in Jesus, but you also have to get baptized.
Yeah, we have faith in Jesus, but you also have to repent of your sins.
But here's the thing, Paul is clearly saying, if you're trusting in anything to get you to heaven, Christ shall profit you nothing.
You say, how can that be?
Well, keep your place there in Galatians and go to Romans if you would.
Romans chapter number 11.
If you go backwards from Galatians, you've got the book of 2 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians, then the book of Romans.
Romans chapter number 11.
It's either Christ or it's you. It's not a mixture.
You cannot have it both ways.
And the apostle Paul actually kind of makes that clear in Romans 11.
I've showed you this verse before, but I think it's good for you to see it again.
Romans chapter 11 and verse 6, where he says this,
And if by grace, Romans 11 to 6.
Now what's he talking about?
He's talking about salvation.
Because remember the famous Ephesians 2, 8 and 9,
For by grace are ye saved through faith.
And that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.
Because salvation is a gift, it is of grace.
And if it's of grace, then it's not of works.
Now notice what he says in Romans 11 to 6.
He says, and if by grace, he says, if you and I are saved by grace, then it is no more of works.
Otherwise, grace is no more grace.
And what I often teach our church family, when we look at those passages,
Think of the word grace as free, because that's what it means.
Unmerited favor, you're getting something you don't deserve.
Work means to earn.
Salvation throughout the Bible is called a gift.
And what he's saying is this, if the gift is free, then you can't earn it.
Otherwise, if you're earning it, then it's not free.
He says, and if by grace, then it is no more work.
Otherwise, grace is no more grace.
He says, but, just to make sure, he says, let me say it a different way.
But if it be of works, if you can earn it, then it is no more grace.
Otherwise, work is no more work.
And here's what he's saying.
He's saying you cannot have salvation both ways.
You cannot say it's of grace and it's also of work.
He says it's either of grace and you get it without paying for it.
You didn't earn it.
You don't deserve it.
Somebody else paid for it.
The Lord Jesus Christ is on the cross and he gives it to you by grace
or it's of works and you earn it.
But you can't have grace and works.
And this is what Paul is saying if you go back to Galatians 5-1.
He says, look, Galatians 5-2, behold, I, Paul, say unto you
that if you be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
He says you want to trust in your circumcision for salvation,
then good luck with that on your own because Christ shall profit you nothing.
Verse 4, Christ has become of no effect unto you.
Whosoever of you are justified by the law, you are fallen from grace.
So here's why he's telling them to stand fast and stick with the liberty
where Christ has made us free.
He gives them two reasons.
The first reason is this.
And what Paul is telling them is this.
If you try to keep the law to go to heaven, then Christ shall profit you nothing.
And you can't keep the law and trust in Christ.
You've got to choose one.
And it's interesting to me because, look, isn't the Bible just clear?
I mean, you can just clearly read this and just think like, yeah, it makes sense.
If you be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Christ has become of no effect unto you.
Whosoever of you are justified by the law.
And it makes no sense to me why it is that so many religions today are teaching
you've got to work your way to heaven.
And they'll say the opposite of what Paul is saying.
No, no, it's faith in Jesus, but you also have to.
And every religion has their own little, you know, steps or whatever.
They might say speak in tongues.
They might say repent of your sins.
They might say pray at a certain time.
Whatever it is, but they all are trying to just have this mixture
between something regarding the justification by the law and Jesus Christ.
Paul says no.
And then here's what's interesting.
At the end of verse four, I want you to notice this little phrase.
He says, ye are fallen from grace.
And this is a phrase that is kind of a common commonly used phrase
that comes from the Bible when someone is fallen from grace.
And let me just kind of explain this term to you.
You know, in just our normal vernacular today, just in the secular world,
when somebody says, oh, so and so has fallen from grace.
What they mean by that is that, you know, they're no longer in favor.
They're no longer liked.
You know, the boss stopped liking them.
They've fallen from grace or the girls stopped liking them.
They've fallen from grace.
Right.
Or whatever it might be.
But when people use this term theologically, when they say fallen from grace,
what they mean is that somebody lost their salvation.
When a preacher or someone teaching the Bible refers to someone falling from grace,
they will say that that individual has lost their salvation.
What's interesting to me is that there's no way you can get that from this passage.
Where in this passage does it say you're fallen from grace and you lost your salvation?
Or let me take it even a step further.
Where in the Bible does it say you can lose your salvation?
Nowhere in the Bible does it say that anybody ever loses their salvation.
The phrase fallen from grace does not mean that if a Christian sins,
he falls from the grace, thereby loses his salvation.
Instead, to fall from grace in this context is the only context that is important.
And it is this, that when someone chooses,
when someone chooses to put their faith in something they're doing,
circumcision, keeping the law,
when they choose to put their trust in some aspect of the law,
then they have fallen from grace.
Because if it be of grace, then it is no more works.
Otherwise, grace is no more grace.
So it's easy to understand if you just look at the context,
the phrase fallen from grace means this,
to choose a works-based salvation is to relinquish grace
as the principle means by which salvation is given.
So when we go out soul winning,
and we ask people about salvation and they say something along the lines of,
well, yeah, I mean, I believe in Jesus, but I could lose it.
They've fallen from grace.
If somebody says, well, I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
but you know, you got to repent yourself.
You can't just live however you want.
Then they have fallen from grace.
Because you can't have works and grace.
You can't have my part and his part.
And people will literally say, well, yeah, Jesus did his part,
but I got to do my part.
No!
If you're trusting in your part, then Christ shall profit you nothing.
Christ has become of no effect unto you.
It's either grace or it's works.
You can't have both.
And if you choose works, if you choose the law,
if you choose some sort of action you're doing to get yourself to heaven,
you've fallen from grace.
Grace is no longer available to you because it's either grace alone or nothing.
It's either Christ alone or nothing.
So if you try to keep the law to go to heaven, Christ shall profit you nothing.
That's the first reason.
Now, maybe you're here and you say, and I'm sure everybody here can understand that,
but there might be somebody listening online or whatever saying,
well, I don't know about that.
I don't think that's enough.
There's a second reason.
And I would say the second reason is even more compelling than the first reason,
though the first reason is pretty compelling,
that it is possible for you to put your trust in some action that you are doing,
and when you put your trust in that, you cannot put your trust in Christ.
Christ shall profit you nothing.
Here's the second reason.
It's found in verse 3.
For I testify again.
Notice the second reason.
Nobody gave the first reason in verse 2.
Reiterated in verse 4.
In verse 3, he says, let me give you another reason.
For I testify again to every man that is circumcised.
Remember, he's talking to people who are believing and putting their trust in their circumcision.
He's talking to guys that are going out and getting circumcised
and thinking that that is part of their salvation.
They are trusting that they are going to heaven.
If you would have asked them, do you know for sure that today you go to heaven?
And they would say, yes, I believe on my way to heaven.
What are you trusting in to get to heaven?
They would have said, I got circumcised.
That's what they would have said.
No different than when we go out sowing and we say, what are you trusting in to get to heaven?
Well, I got baptized.
What are you trusting in to go to heaven?
Well, I spoke in tongues.
What are you trusting in to go to heaven?
Well, I used to do drugs and now I don't.
Now look, I'm God.
If you used to do drugs and now you don't, praise God for it.
But if that's what you're trusting to get you to heaven, then Christ has become of no effect.
Now notice what he says in verse 3.
He says, for I testify again to every man that is circumcised,
that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
What's the second reason?
Well, the first reason is this, that if you're trusting in something that you're doing to save you,
Christ shall profit you nothing because it's either grace or works.
You can't have it both ways.
That's the first reason.
But the next reason he says, if you try to keep the law to go to heaven,
then you are a debtor to do the whole law.
See, if you add the keeping of any part of God's law to salvation,
then you must commit yourself to keep every part of God's law for salvation.
You and I don't get to pick and choose.
We don't get to say, well, I'll do this part of the law and this part of the law and this part of the law,
and I think that's enough to get me to heaven.
No, no, no. God says, hey, you get to choose.
You either put your faith in Christ alone or if you want to try to keep the law, no problem.
You can go to heaven keeping the law, but you better keep the whole thing.
Notice what he says.
For I testify, verse 3, again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
Because, look, any part of the law will send you to hell. Isn't that true?
For whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Any part of the law will send you to hell.
If you want to go to heaven based off your own righteousness, you've got to be without sin.
The problem with that is that there is none righteous though not one,
for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, and you can't keep the whole law.
But if you want to go down that road, if you want to say, well, I want to take my chances,
and I think that I'll just try to live a good life and try to keep the Ten Commandments,
and hopefully that'll get me to heaven.
Hey, let me tell you something.
If you try to keep the law to go to heaven, you are a debtor to do the whole law.
You better keep the whole law.
And I don't have to know you to know this about you.
You can.
And I can't.
And nobody can.
In fact, only one man could, and his name was the Lord Jesus Christ.
So we see this first section here, that you are to stand fast, therefore,
in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Why?
Because if you're trusting in your circumcision, if you're trusting in your repenting of your sins,
if you're trusting in your going to a confessional booth, if you're trusting in the fact that you took communion,
if you're trusting in the fact that you go to church,
if you're trusting in the fact that you're doing anything, Christ shall profit you nothing.
And if that's not enough of a compelling reason, then here's another reason.
The minute you decide that you're going to keep any part of the law in order to go to heaven,
then you become a debtor to do the whole law.
And nobody can do that, because Paul already explained to us in the book of Galatians
that the purpose of the law was to be a schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ.
We weren't supposed to look at the law and say,
Okay, there's the plan, I'm going to do it.
No, the whole purpose of the law was for us to look at it and say, I can't do that.
I can't keep that.
I've already broken that.
And it was supposed to bring us to Christ.
That we might say, I can't work my way to heaven.
I'll accept grace.
I'll accept the free gift.
So we see this first section, stand fast, verses one through six.
Then we see the second section, I want you to notice it in verse seven.
I've titled it this, Ye did run well.
Ye did run well.
And the apostle Paul kind of shifts gears here a little bit.
It's related to what he's talking about.
But now he begins to focus on the fact that these individuals were on the right track
and now they're no longer on the right track.
He says there in verse seven, Ye did run well.
Who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
And there's three things I'd like you to notice regarding this hindrance.
He's referring to the fact that they have been hindered.
He says, Ye did run well.
Notice this word, hinder.
Who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
Now I want you to notice the first attribute of hindrance.
And the first attribute is this.
You say, how can I know if I'm running well?
Because the Christian life is likened to a marathon that we run.
In fact, let's just run a couple of verses real quickly.
Keep your place there in Galatians five, go to Hebrews chapter 12.
Towards the end of the New Testament, if you go backwards, you have the book of Revelation, Jude,
third, second and first John, second and first Peter, James, and then the book of Hebrews.
Revelation, Jude, third, second and first John, second and first Peter, James, and then Hebrews.
Towards the end of the New Testament, the book of Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 12, look at verse one.
Hebrews 12 and verse one, he says, Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about
with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight,
and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.
The Christian life is likened unto throughout the Bible as a race, not a sprint but a marathon.
It is a lifelong race.
And here we are told to set aside, to lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us,
and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.
The apostle Paul got to the end of his life and he said, I finished my course.
He said, I got to the end. He said, I got to the end of my race.
The Christian life is a race.
And what Paul is telling the Galatians, when he tells them here, go back to Galatians 5,
he says, Ye did run well.
He said, You were on this run. You were running the Christian life.
You were on the track running the Christian life.
And he says, Ye did run well. Who did hinder you?
You say, How can I know if I'm running well or I'm not running well?
Notice the attribute of hindrance.
He says, Ye did run well but I know you're not running well now because you have been hindered that you should not obey the truth.
If you want to know how well you're doing in the run in the Christian life, you got to ask yourself this question.
How are you obeying the truth?
Because all of this is connected.
And you should know the truth and the truth shall make you free.
How do you get saved?
You come to the truth.
Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me.
But you know, the way that you say, How do you get saved?
You come to the truth and the truth makes you free.
How do you run well?
You come to the truth.
Sanctify them through thy word, thy word is truth.
You come to the word of God and it is the truth of God's word that causes us to run the Christian life and to run well.
How do we know when you're not running well when you're not obeying the truth?
Ye did run well, who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
So we see the attribute of hindrance.
How can you know if you're stalling?
How can you know if you're being hindered?
How can you know if you're not making it in this run called the Christian life?
How do you know if you're not running well or if you are running well?
It's simple. Ask yourself this question and answer it truthfully.
Am I obeying the truth?
Ye did run well, who did hinder you?
Why aren't we running well, Paul?
Because I've noticed that you've been hindered that you should not obey the truth.
You're not running with patience the rays that have set before you.
So we see the attribute of hindrance.
What is it? Not obeying the truth.
But I want you to notice the agent of hindrance.
Notice that it is a person who stopped them.
Verse 7, Ye did run well.
Then he says this, Who?
Who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
And for the next few verses, Paul kind of focuses in on this
because he's looking at them and saying, I know you're being influenced by someone.
I know that you were on this Christian run, on the track,
running the race that was set before you,
and then somebody, a who, a person has hindered you that ye should not obey the truth.
Look at verse 8.
He says this persuasion.
You see the word persuasion there?
The word persuasion or persuading means to convince someone, to influence someone.
He says this persuasion, this persuasion that took you off the truth,
that took you off the track.
He says, It cometh not of him that him there is a ring to Jesus.
He says, cometh not of him that calleth you, a little love and love and a little love.
We're going to talk about that verse here in a minute.
Look at verse 10.
I have confidence in you, through the love of Jesus.
I have confidence in you, through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded.
Notice what he says,
But he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment whosoever he be.
Often in the Christian life, it's not a what that hinders us, it's a who.
It's an agent of hindrance.
It's an individual that we allow into our lives.
It's a friend, a relationship, a job, a co-worker, a neighbor.
And the Apostle Paul here is asking the churches in this region of Galatia a question that I've often asked as a pastor to individuals is,
Who are you listening to?
Who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.
In verse 10 he says, I have confidence in you through the Lord that ye will be none otherwise minded,
But he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment whosoever he be.
And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution?
Then is the offense of the cross ceased.
Look at verse 12.
I would they were even cut off which trouble you.
The word cut off here, if you study it out in the Old Testament, is used in different ways.
But one way, in the Old Testament, people were cut off or cut out of the congregation, meaning they were kicked out.
And sometimes that cut off was permanently they were put to death.
In Old Testament Israel, obviously, that was a government.
In the New Testament, that word cut off is used to kicking someone out or separating from someone.
And Paul says, I wish you would just cut that person off.
I wish you would get away from that person.
I wish you would, he said, that person that is hindering you, that is stopping you, I wish you would cut them off.
And let me tell you something, I've said this for years to you young people, and I'll say it again, to you young people and you not so young people, your friends will determine the quality and the direction of your life.
The people that you allow into your life, the people that you allow to hinder you, the people that you allow to have influence over you, they can stop you from running the Christian life.
And so often I've seen individuals who are running the race that is set before them, running the race that is set before them, and then they meet someone.
And it's like, who did hinder you? It should not obey the truth.
It is not just the attribute of hindrance, but it is the agent of hindrance.
And again, Paul has brought this up already in Galatians, go back to Galatians chapter 3, look at verse 1.
Galatians 3 and verse 1, O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you?
Remember that word bewitched?
There he's saying it's like you're under a spell, who hath bewitched you, that ye should, notice the consistency, the consistency that ye should not obey the truth.
Young people, please listen to me.
When you go off the rails and you stop running the Christian life, you stop obeying the truth, more than likely it won't be a what but a who.
And young men, unfortunately, it'll probably be a she.
Young ladies, unfortunately, it'll probably be a he.
Your church attendance will be good till she showed up.
Your soul winning was great till he showed up.
Your Bible reading was good till they showed up.
Who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
So we see the attribute of hindrance and we see the agent of hindrance.
But I want you to notice, thirdly, the advancement of hindrance.
Notice what he says there in Galatians 5 and verse 9, a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
This is not the first time the apostle Paul says this. In fact, he says it in 1 Corinthians 5, 6, if you like that for your notes.
He says, your glorying is not good, know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
He uses this phrase in two different places and under two different contexts to explain two different things.
But the phrase is just an axiom. It's not meant to apply in any specific situation.
It's just a truth and the truth is this, that sin spreads.
A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
And look, often it is the who. And what I've learned as a pastor is that my job is to fight the who.
Because the church is a flock and the Lord Jesus Christ is the shepherd.
But I'm the German shepherd. I'm the watchdog that's supposed to fight the who.
You say, why do you fight the who? Because a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
And a little bit of foolishness and a little bit of a bad attitude and a little bit of the wrong philosophy and a little bit of trying to hinder people and discourage people is going to leaven the whole lump.
Because people get upset at me. Let me just let you in on a little secret.
People get upset and say, I don't understand why Pastor Jimenez is preaching against me.
First of all, number one, there's like 190 of you here tonight. I'm not that smart to know all your...
Maybe it's just the Holy Spirit, number one. Let's just start there.
Pastor Jimenez preached this sermon against me. Maybe it's the Holy Spirit trying to convince you of sin.
But if you're like, no, no, I know for sure that Pastor Jimenez is preaching against me, let me let you in on a little secret.
You know the stuff I preach against is the leaven that's leavening the whole lump.
Because, and don't take this the wrong way, I hope you understand my heart, but we're all stupid.
And you're stupid. I'm stupid. You have sin in your life. Everybody has sin in their life.
I don't care about your sin. But you know what happens in a church like this is that people try to spread their stupid sin.
And they show up to a place like this and they're like, no, no, no, let me tell you what I think.
And look, as soon as a certain philosophy starts trying to creep into the church...
Because, I mean, we've dealt with this for years.
I mean, I'll just give you an example because I think it's an example that's not around right now.
But maybe it is and I don't know it and you're going to think I'm preaching against you, but it's the Holy Spirit.
I'll purposely avoid the ones that are happening right now.
But you know, at our church, this is a soul winning church. I don't know if you know that.
It's a soul winning church. And we push this philosophy that, hey, the best time to soul winning, our big soul winning push, our big soul winning rally is Saturday morning.
Saturday morning soul winning. Now we have additional times where there are some people that cannot make it to Saturday morning.
We understand that. We're not mad at you. You work on Saturdays or you commute or whatever. We've got other times.
But what we often tell people is this. If you can make it on Saturday, make it on Saturday. Saturday morning is the best soul winning time.
The best time to get somebody saved is right before church on Sunday and bring them to church on Sunday.
Or get them saved on Wednesday afternoon and bring them to church on Wednesday.
And it's funny because people will start pushing this philosophy like, oh no, no, we don't have to go on Saturday.
Don't go on Saturday. And I think to myself, why are you trying to go against the pastor?
If you don't want to go on Saturday, don't go on Saturday. Nobody cares. It's fine.
Do you understand what I said? Nobody has to go on Saturday.
But when the pastor preaches, hey, Saturday's a big soul winning rally. We have a hundred soul winners show up on Saturday morning.
Let's make it exciting. Let's make sure that's a big day. When you're pushing that and then somebody's trying to go against that,
I've got to ask myself this question. Why are you trying to hinder what we're doing?
Look, if you know that I have a certain belief or a certain doctrine, if you know that my wife and I for the last 12 years have led this church in a certain direction,
and you want to come in and say, well, I'm not going to do that and I'm not going to follow that, that's fine.
You don't have to do anything. You don't have to follow anything.
But the moment you start trying to spread your influence and spread your philosophy because a little leaven, leaven it the whole lot,
you better look out for this German shepherd.
Because like I said all of a sudden, if you're going to come fight me, you better come out swinging.
Because I've worked too hard for this. I spent too many years. I fought too many battles.
I've fought too many battles. I've been too much blood shed for me to allow you with your little pride issue and your insecurity issue and your need to feel big.
Say, well, what should we do? You go start a church somewhere. I don't know.
Say, Pastor, I don't know if you preach this way, you're going to get kicked out.
And then I'll start a church across the street called Barilee.
But I'm going to fight!
And look, this is an independent Baptist church. This is a King James church. This is a soul winning church.
This is a salvation migrates through church. You can come in here and not believe the King James. We're okay. We're not insecure. We'll let you do that.
You can come in here and not even be saved. We're okay.
But the minute you start spreading your garbage, a little leaven, leaven it the whole lot.
So look, if you've got these philosophies that are trying to discourage people or you want to influence people,
and usually it's people justifying their own sin. And it's like, nobody cares. Do whatever you're going to do. Just do it.
That's between you and God. But people got to justify their own sins. They're like, well, let me get you doing what I'm doing.
Because then it won't be that bad. Well, as soon as the little leaven starts leavening this lump, you better be ready because I know it's always a who.
Who did hinder you? That you should not obey the truth.
So we see the attribute of hindrance. We see the agent of hindrance. We see the advancement of hindrance. A little leaven, leaven it the whole lot.
Unfortunately, things don't get better on their own. Usually you have to remove the leaven to save the lump.
Go back to Galatians chapter five. So let me just let you in on a little secret. You don't want me to preach against you? Don't spread your dumb philosophy.
If you know there's something I don't like, stop trying to get other people to do it. I don't know how else to say it.
You're like, I know Pastor Mendez is against X, Y, and Z, but I'm going to try to get the whole church to do X, Y, and Z.
Okay, you want to fight? Because I'm trying to buy a 3.5 million dollar building right now, and I'm under a lot of stress, and if you need some fight, I need some stress relief.
Try me.
Galatians 5, look at verse 13. Here's the third heading, called unto liberty.
Called unto liberty. Notice what he says, Galatians 5, 13.
For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty, only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Here the apostle Paul begins to deal with liberty because the minute you start talking about liberty in the Christian life and you start saying, hey, you don't have to follow the law in order to be saved, you don't have to submit yourself in the bondage of the law,
then people start accusing of saying, oh, well, you're teaching that you're trying to give people a license to sin.
And what I always say to people is, last I checked, nobody did a license to sin. They do it all on their own. They're unlicensed drivers.
So Paul here begins to help people understand this idea of liberty, and now he's still talking about liberty and salvation, but he's applying it to the Christian life, and here's what he's saying.
There's a misuse of Christian liberty, and look, today most people that talk about Christian liberty are misusing it.
You say, what is the misuse of Christian liberty? Galatians 5, 13. For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty, you have been saved not by works, not by keeping the law, you have been called unto liberty, only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh.
What is he saying? Here's what he's saying. Yes, salvation is not of works, but don't use that as an excuse to then just live a lifestyle of the flesh.
Go to Jude in verse 4. There's one chapter in Jude. Jude chapter 1, look at verse 4. And this is what the liberal Christian churches today say.
They'll say, oh, it's grace, so therefore it doesn't matter. We can just do whatever we want.
Jude 1, 4. For there are certain men crept in unawares who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, notice the words, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness.
The word lascivious or lasciviousness means unrestrained, lustful, giving into the flesh.
And he said there are some who turn the grace of God into lasciviousness. There are some who say, well, because it's of grace, then you can just live however you want.
That's how we ended up with churches all across this country that you walk in and it looks like you're walking into a casino. You sit down and it feels like you're sitting down at a rock concert.
And they're just like, yeah, I mean, oh, the rock music. Yeah, just everybody dressed modestly. Yeah, just whatever.
And they have people fornicating and drunkards and drug addicts. And look, we help drunkards and we help drug addicts, but we try to help you get off of that.
And these people are saying, well, it's grace, so you don't have to do anything. Look, yes, that's true. It's grace, so you don't have to do anything to be saved.
But use not your liberty as an occasion to the flesh. You say, how do you balance the two? Here's how you balance.
You go out every week and preach salvations by grace through faith, not of works. You don't have to do anything to be saved.
And once you are saved, you don't have to do anything to lose it. And then you bring them to church on Sunday morning and Sunday night and Wednesday night.
And we preach the word of God and we tell them, here's what God expects of you. Not to be saved, but just because you love him and he loves you.
The idea is that we should not misuse Christian liberty. We should not have this thought that says, well, because I can do anything and still be saved, I should do anything.
Go to 1 Corinthians chapter 6. Paul deals with this in 1 Corinthians chapter 6 as well. Notice what he says.
And look, you better believe that during times, I said this to you a couple of weeks ago, there's always tension during times of transition.
There's always tensions during times of transition. And during these times of transition, do you ever believe, do you think the devil is happy that this little verity Baptist church started in a living room somewhere?
Do you think the devil is happy that we're buying a four-acre property with a 400-seat auditorium? Do you think he's happy about that?
Say, why does he care? Because he knows we're going to fill that thing and reach people at the gospel and disciple them and get people off of drugs and get people off of alcohol and help people restore their marriages and help them raise their children for God.
He's not happy about that. So yeah, during this time, people are going to start acting up.
There's going to be the whos that have hindered you, and we're going to have to fight those battles. Look, we're building and we're battling. We're building and we're battling. Be ready for it.
Don't say, ah, well, I don't know. Look, be ready and realize the devil is going to fight us every step of the way.
Just yesterday, Brother Nate sent me a text. It was really interesting. I was sitting at the table with my wife, and he sent me this text, and we pulled it up, and he said, I have the text, but I won't read it, but he said,
It was like almost to the date. He said, 12 years ago, you preached a sermon, and he gave me the sermon name, and he gave me the time marker, and we were in the house.
It was 12 years ago, we were in the house, and in the sermon, I'm saying how our church is eight months old, and we're meeting in this living room, and I was talking about like, one day, our church is going to grow, and we're going to have a big, nice facility, and we're going to, you know, this and that, whatever.
I'm talking about how one day, we're going to run 100, and one day, we're going to run 200, and one day, we're going to have, and I'm saying, look, it's going to be the same thing, and I thought it was just interesting.
It was really encouraging to me for a couple reasons. Number one, that here we, and in the clip, I was saying, you know, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, and here we are 12 years later, and it's like we have, because the sermon was called increasing to a multitude, or increasing a small amount to a multitude,
and I was preaching out of Genesis on a Sunday night. It was really encouraging to me, because I was talking about, back then, I was talking about today, and I'm thankful that here we are, 12 years later, and nothing's changed.
King James Bible, soul winning, heart preaching, all of it. It also encouraged me that I think my speaking abilities have gone better, because I was really bad. I'm thinking to myself, why are you even listening to this, brother Nate?
But it was encouraging. Maybe we'll use it in a clip somewhere. It'll be highly edited though.
Galatians 5, look at verse 13. In verse, he talks about the misuse of Christian liberty.
For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty, only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh. And then he says, here's the proper use of liberty. And here's what is funny to me.
Here's what's funny to me. Because people will say to us, they'll say, but if you tell people that they can be saved, and they don't have to do anything, then how are you going to get them to show up to church?
This is what the Catholics think. We've got to hold this over their head. You better come to church, or we're going to send you to hell. You better put money in the offering plate, or we're going to send you to hell.
If we don't hold this over people's heads, you better live a good life, you better endure until the end, or you're going to go to hell. If we don't hold this over them, then how do you motivate people to work for God?
And I think to myself, I don't know, we've got 190 people here for a mid-week service. We have 100 soul winners going out every week, knocking doors, we're not paying any of them.
You say, how do you motivate them? Let me let you in on a little secret. You don't always have to motivate people through fear. Do this or you're going to go to hell. Do that or you're going to go through hell.
If you don't do that, God's going to send you to hell. That's not the way that you live the Christian life. You say, how do you live the Christian life? It's one word. Paul says it. Love.
Look at it. Galatians 5 13. For brethren, you have been called into liberty. Only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh. Notice it. But by love, serve one another.
Why would you serve? Because you love God. Paul said it this way. The love of Christ constraineth me. I don't go to church because I have to. I go to church because I want to.
I don't read the Bible because I have to. I'm afraid I'm going to go to hell. You know why I read the Bible? Because I love the Bible. You know why I live for God? Because I love God.
You know why I go to so many? Because I love. The people out there are going to die and go to hell. It's love. The best motivator is love.
Notice verse 14. For all the law is fulfilled in one word. That's what Paul says. For all the law is fulfilled in one word.
And here's how you know Paul is a Baptist preacher. Because he says all the law is fulfilled in one word, then he gives you a whole phrase.
He says for all the law is fulfilled in one word. What word is it, Paul? Even in this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
But he's not. He is saying, what is the one word? Here's the one word. Love.
Jesus said it this way. The greatest commandment is to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy might.
And to love thy neighbor as thyself. What's the key word? Love.
For all the law, and this is setting up Paul, because Paul's about to go into one of the most well-known passages, which we'll see next time we're in the book of Galatians together, when he talks about the works of the flesh versus the works of the spirit.
He says, why would somebody walk in the spirit? One word, love.
See, look, you can manipulate people for a while. You can scare people for a while.
But how do you end up being the Christian that runs the race that is set before them year after year, decade after decade?
I often tell people, don't talk to me about how many years. Talk to me decades. When you start telling me about decades, when you're like my dad and you're talking to me about how many decades you've been soul winning, that'll impress me.
How do you do that? It's one word, love. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
And then he says, here's the opposite of that, verse 15, but if you buy and devour one another, take heed that you be not consumed one of another.
And this sets us up for the next portion of scripture, which we'll look at next time, next time we're in the book of Galatians, which is the works of the flesh versus the works of the spirit.
But they're done through this one word, love. The key words for this passage, love and liberty. Why liberty? Because salvation is not something that you have, salvation is not having to do with anything that you do to get saved.
It's because salvation is not having to do anything. That's why it's liberty. Why is it liberty? Because I don't have to do anything to get saved. I didn't do anything. He did it all, I just put my faith in him.
But it's also salvation, it's also liberty because salvation is not me having to do anything to stay saved. There's nothing I have to do to stay saved. It's liberty.
Well then why do you do what you do? Because of this word, love. You understand? That's what Paul's teaching. He says, let me give you two words. He alliterates them. One is liberty.
What does that mean, Paul? It means you don't have to do anything to get saved and it means you don't have to do anything to stay saved. Then the question would be, well then how do you get anybody to do anything?
He says, well let me give you the next word, love. For all the law is fulfilled in this one word, love. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and love thy neighbor as thyself.
That's Powerheads and our word of prayer. Heavenly Father, Lord we love you, we thank you for this passage of scripture.
And Lord I pray you help us understand it, that yes it is true, there is nothing I need to do to be saved and there is nothing I need to do to stay saved.
But that doesn't mean that I live my life however I want because love causes me to keep the law.
Jesus said if you love me keep my commandments. Lord I pray you help us understand that, help us be Christians that are filled with love.
Love for God and love for others. That we walk in the Spirit and then we won't fulfill the lust of the flesh. We love you. In the matchless name of Christ we pray. Amen.
We're going to have Brother Moses come up and lead us in a final song as we prepare for baptism tonight. So we'll sing as we prepare for baptism after the singing tonight.
Please enter your song books page number 121. Page 121. I sing like a river glorious.
That's page 121 and we'll sing it on the first.
Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace.
Over all victorious in its bright increase.
Perfect yet it floweth, cooler every day.
Perfect yet it floweth, deeper all the way.
State of our Jehovah, hearts are fully blessed.
Winding as he promised, perfect peace and rest.
Hidden in the hollow of his blessed hand.
Never folk and follow, never traitor's hand.
Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care.
Not a blast of hurry, touch the Spirit there.
State of our Jehovah, hearts are fully blessed.
Winding as he promised, perfect peace and rest.
Sing it out on the last.
Every joy or trial, falleth from above.
Praised upon our dial by the Son of God.
We may trust him wholly, all for us to do.
May you trust him wholly, mine him wholly true.
State of our Jehovah, hearts are fully blessed.
Winding as he promised, perfect peace and rest.
All right, well tonight we have Brooklyn Scambler coming for baptism.
And I asked brother Jay if it was okay to announce this, but of course Brooklyn is brother Jay's niece.
And it's his first salvation. And so his first salvation is his niece.
So yeah, congratulations brother Jay.
First salvation is his niece and she's getting baptized. So praise the Lord for that.
And Brooklyn, have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior?
All right Brooklyn, by your profession of faith, I baptize you, my sister,
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost,
buried in the likeness of his death, raised to walk in newness of life.
God bless you.
All right, well just real quickly, let me first of all thank you for being here.
Of course we appreciate all of you being here tonight.
And let me just remind you that next week is the Red Hot Preaching Conference,
so there will be no midweek service, no midweek service next week because of the conference on Thursday.
So just shift from Wednesday to Thursday, be here for Thursday night, and it's going to be a great time.
And if you can help us, if you're able to help us tonight, we could really use your help in the fellowship hall
just as soon as we're done right now. If you can make it over, if you can go over to the fellowship hall,
anybody that can, we just got to count out some invitations, rubber band them,
and get them ready for the Red Hot Preaching Conference.
So if you're able to help, we'd appreciate your help with that.
Keep baby John in prayer. He's going through chemotherapy, of course,
and just praying for the Redari family and for that whole situation.
And keep the building situation in prayer. We're just moving forward with everything,
getting a lot of good answers and getting things done, but we're not done.
So just be in prayer for all those things. If there's anything we can do for you, please let us know.
But Moses, would you mind dismissing us with a word of prayer?
Let's close in a word of prayer.
Father God, thank you so much for this church, Lord.
Thank you for the sermon, thank you for the book of Galatians, and thank you for our free salvation.
I pray that you bless us as we depart, keep us safe, and bless the upcoming services.
In Jesus' name I pray, amen.