The Heart of The Gospel

One doctrine that may rightly be called the heart of the gospel, so much so that if a church has it, it has the gospel and if a church loses it, it does not have the gospel, is but the doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone.  Luther called it the "doctrine by which the church stands or falls"[1].  If that is true, then we have to lament over the fact that today, vast majority of Evangelical churches have fallen. For there is no deep and proper grasp of this fundamental and foundational doctrine either in the pulpit or the pew.  As a result of this horrendous condition, many a professing Christian is caught up in a performance driven Christian life. They claim to have peace and joy when they keep all the religious rules their denomination has taught them.  Or be drowning in gloom and doom, if they fail to keep up with it. On the one hand, they claim to live by faith in Christ and yet on the other hand, live like pagans trusting in their own works.

What is often forgotten by these legalistic Christians is, that no matter how sanctified one be, the righteousness one has, be it the Spirit-wrought righteousness, is not a perfect righteousness, that would give us the liberty to do away with the perfect righteousness of Christ. Unless one has some unbiblical notions of becoming perfectly sanctified while on earth, our righteousness, even the Spirit-wrought one, is never perfect and only progressing to be perfect. Hence all through our Christian life, we need to base our acceptance before God simply on the basis of Christ alone. Remember a legalist is not merely someone who is going around condemning people with erroneous understanding of the law, rather a legalist is anyone who trusts in his own obedience and not in the obedience of Christ for us. His death as our pardon and His life as our perfection is the exclusive and firm gospel-foundation, on which one needs to live the Christian life. It is quite grievous that most churches these days do not teach anything about this liberating and gracious goodness of the good news. They are all so caught up in heralding one imperative after another. 

D.A Carson, research professor of the New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, expounds Galatians 2:11-21 and unpacks in a very gripping manner this truth of justification in Christ alone. After his exegesis, he then moves onto real practical aspects of what it means to believe in our acceptance and standing before God on the basis of Another's Perfect Righteousness. It is quite alarming that this truth about Christ's imputed righteousness alone being our Perfection before God is not carefully studied or appreciated by today's pastors. Thus churches are full of people who are struggling to please God with their own works. Moreover these pastors who are ignorant of the gospel are rather preaching only rules, regulations, imperatives and obligations.  The role of the gospel in motivating us to good works is merely assumed or sometimes even forgotten. Thus the church is lost in this ocean of legalism, forgetting the gospel truth that our standing before God is not based on our righteousness. As John Piper said,  "our good works is never the root but the fruit of our justification."[2] 

Carson's exposition is rich with exegetical insights and theological precision. His  deep knowledge of the original languages and years of experience in exegesis in these languages, makes his sermon exegetically sound and sensitive. May this sermon awaken the hearts and minds of Christians who are lost in a paganistic understanding of living their Christian life. For as Carson says, “We are justified because 'Christ loved me and gave His life for me.' And everything else is paganism”. [3]

An Apostolic Disputation – and Justification  Listen | Download

Footnotes  

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[1]  Traditionally attributed to have been said by Luther, though many modern scholars do not agree with this. However it could very well be a derivative of Luther’s writings on justification, like the one quoted here from his introduction to Galatians,

In this epistle, therefore, Paul is concerned to instruct, comfort, and sustain us diligently in a perfect knowledge of this most excellent and Christian righteousness. For if the doctrine of justification is lost, the whole of Christian doctrine is lost. And those in the world who do not teach it are either Jews or Turks or papists or sectarians. For between these two kinds of righteousness, the active righteousness of the Law and the passive righteousness of Christ, there is no middle ground. Therefore he who has strayed away from this Christian righteousness will necessarily relapse into the active righteousness; that is, when he has lost Christ, he must fall into a trust in his own works. (Martin Luther, Luther’s Works – Volume 26: Lectures On Galatians 1535, trans. Jaroslav Pelikan, p. 9.)

[2] John Piper, Did Jesus preach the gospel of Paul, T4G 2010.

[3] D.A Carson,  An Apostolic Disputation – and Justification, Clarus 2008

Why Justification Is Not By Works

The Bible is emphatic in its teaching that God’s justification of sinful mankind is not by works of the law, but by faith alone in Christ alone. Despite the clarity of the Scriptures regarding this most crucial doctrine, much of Christendom is caught up in a works-driven religion. Justification as a free gift appropriated by faith alone is truly a humbling doctrine for our proud race. 

  

Expounding Paul from Galatians 2:15-21, Jonathan Christman, pastor of Heritage Baptist church, Owensboro, Kentucky, states four main reasons why justification is not by works alone. Christman argues that justification by works of the law is first of all futile, secondly sinful, thirdly self-centered and finally blasphemous. This message is not just for unbelievers but also for believers to know what kind of salvation they have received. To fully grow in our salvation, we need constant reminders of our justification and how it is entirely by grace alone and through faith alone. This will help believers from drifting into a works based relationship with God and enable them to stand on Christ alone.  At the end of the day, none of us are accepted before God due to our piety or devotion or obedience. Rather it is only on the basis of the atonement work and  the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ alone. Grasping this truth is of utmost importance in a believers life. A believer who embraces this liberating truth of God’s gracious justification in Christ would make much progress in his sanctification, daily disciplines and in his ministry to others.

A large section of Christians sadly do not believe in preaching these gospel truths to believers. They have moved away from the gospel into some “weighty doctrines”, not understanding that we cannot divorce our teachings on the Christian life from the central message of the Bible – the gospel of God’s grace. At the center of this central message lies justification by faith alone in Christ alone.

Note To Self : Death To Self  Listen | Download

The Testimony of Apostle Paul

Jonathan Christman of Heritage Baptist church expounds the testimony of Apostle Paul in Galatians 1:13-17, to show how the gospel is exclusively dependent on Jesus alone. He notes how the gospel is against the religion of “I” and how salvation is entirely a sheer gift of grace. Christman asserts how the gospel is not religion, by showing how Paul was very moralistic prior to his conversion, yet not pleasing to God and was very zealous in his traditions even persecuting the church, yet was not outside the reach of God’s grace. Paul’s conversion thus teaches us that the gospel not only saves people from irreligion but also from religion.  Christman thus exalts the power of God’s grace in the gospel that overcomes the evil unbelieving hearts of sinners.

Christman makes some very valuable observations, sheds light on important insights and makes key applications to us, all pointing to the amazing, gracious, Christ-centered, eternal love of God revealed in the gospel.

But When God..  Listen | Download

Christ Crucified is Everything

When you put your trust in Christ, the overpowering attraction of the world is broken. You are a corpse to the world, and the world is a corpse to you. Or to put it positively, you are a ‘new creation’ (Galatians 6:15). The old you is dead. A new you is alive — the you of faith in Christ. And what marks this faith is that it treasures Christ above everything in the world. The power of the world to woo your love away is dead.

Being dead to the world means that every legitimate pleasure in the world becomes a blood-bought evidence of Christ’s love and an occasion of boasting in the cross. When our hearts run back along the beam of blessing to the source in the cross, then the worldliness of the blessing is dead, and Christ crucified is everything.

- John Piper, The Passion of Jesus Christ  (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2004), 85

No Other Gospel

Today Crossway releases a new book on Galatians, No Other Gospel: 31 Reasons from Galatians Why Justification by Faith Alone Is the Only Gospel by Josh Moody, senior pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. Josh Moody (PhD, Cambridge University) is the author of several books, including The God-Centered Life: Insights from Jonathan Edwards.

In No Other Gospel, Pastor Josh Moody writes, “we tend toward human gospels”  and hence believers must constantly battle to maintain the purity and simplicity of the gospel. Paul was acutely aware of this as he wrote his letter to the Galatians. He was writing to an established church—experienced believers who had started to slip in their gospel witness. Moody finds in Galatians particular relevance and parallels to many churches today. Stemming from a series of sermons delivered to his church, he examines thirty-one reasons Paul gives for this gospel. Moody writes this book with a pastor’s heart, addressing important topics such as “The Gospel Not Moralism” and “The Use of Gospel Freedom.” Paul’s message is foundational to the Christian faith, and thoughtful readers will benefit from Moody’s exposition. [1]

D.A Carson notes, “Paul’s Letter to the Galatians so strongly and passionately articulates the gospel of grace that it has proved transforming in many generations of preachers from Luther to Wesley and beyond. Here Josh Moody reinforces that heritage for the twenty-first century.”

“These expositions are clear, well-organized, exegetically careful, and theologically faithful.”, says Senior Pastor, Kevin DeYoung, “They're also filled with good illustrations, personal application, and a proper dose of British wit. These qualities make for very good preaching and a very good book.”

Again noted New Testament professor Douglas J. Moo endorses this book saying, “Josh Moody’s No Other Gospel blends attention to the text, theological insight, and pastoral application in a model of Scriptural exposition. His focus on Galatians is a great choice, since this letter addresses so clearly the nature and importance of the gospel – a critical matter in an age when so many Christians and so many churches are confused about the gospel and its centrality.”[2]

Here is Josh Moody and Justin Taylor having a small chat on the book:

Flip through to view an excerpt from this book below or Download a pdf of the excerpt

No Other Gospel: 31 Reasons from Galatians Why Justification by Faith Alone Is the Only Gospel

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 288

ISBN-10: 1-4335-1567-9

ISBN-13: 978-1-4335-1567-5

Size: 6.0 in x 9.0 in

Weight: 14.1 ounces

Published: January 31, 2011

Footnotes

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[1] Publisher write up for No Other Gospel, Crossway.

[2] Endorsements, Crossway.

“The Israel of God” According To Paul

When the apostle Paul ends his letter to the Galatians, he pronounces his benediction as follows in Galatians 6:16 “And as many as walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God”.  Who the Israel of God is in this verse,  is the exegetical issue that has generated the most discussion and disagreement among interpreters of the letter. Most in the history of interpretation have argued that Paul uses this phrase with reference to the church, the “true Israel” or “spiritual Israel.” Yet a number of scholars believe this view is very questionable, if not highly unlikely.

The following essay by Christopher W. Cowan, Adjunct Instructor of New Testament Interpretation at Southern Seminary, considers the issues that have contributed to the competing understandings of the verse, looking first to the arguments of those who believe Paul uses “the Israel of God” to speak of ethnic Jews in some sense. Cowan then offers several reasons to justify the traditional interpretation and argue that Paul instead uses the phrase to refer to the church. In the context of Galatians (and the New Testament) it is best to see “the Israel of God” in Gal 6:16 as a reference to the unified people of God consisting of both Jews and Gentiles who have faith in Jesus Christ.

 

Cowan first lists the arguments of Ernest de Witt Burton, Peter Richardson and S. Lewis Johnson, to interpret “the Israel of God” as referring to ethnic Jews and not the church. Burton argues for the illogical order of “peace” and “mercy” in this benediction, compared to other NT benedictions and the lack of any other instance in which Paul uses the term “Israel” except to refer to the Jewish nation. Like Burton, Richardson also builds his case on the illogical order in the benediction, to prove that Paul, while writing this verse, had two groups in mind. Johnson objects to taking the kai (“and”) that follows “mercy” in an explicative or epexegetic sense ( as to mean “namely,” “that is”).

In response to these arguments, Cowan gives  five reasons why he believes the traditional interpretation of this phrase, as referring to church is justified by the context of the letter. His reasons briefly are as follows : 

(1) While it is certainly true that nowhere else in the New Testament do we find the term “Israel” being applied to the church, the concept is ubiquitous.

(2) The context of Galatians justifies understanding “the Israel of God” as designating all believers, Jew and Gentile.

(3) Believing that the church is the “true Israel” and that there is a future salvation for ethnic Israel are not inconsistent propositions.

(4) The infrequency of the epexegtical usage of kai is not sufficient evidence to deny its presence in Galatians 6:16.

(5) The unique construction of Paul’s benediction here and the unique combination of “peace and mercy” would appear to argue against its being a formulaic benediction.

Cowan thus concludes his brief essay, by reminding us the adage that “context is everything” and employing the context as the decisive factor in understanding Paul, he says, Paul identifies the church, those who conform to the new creation in Christ, as the true Israel.

Context Is Everything: “The Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16  Read

Footnotes

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[1]  Christopher W. Cowan, Context Is Everything: “The Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16, SBJT Fall 2010

Does Paul Impute Legalism To Moses?

It is very common to hear interpretations of Pauline epistles that suggest a false dichotomy between an Old Covenant system based on works and a New Covenant system based on faith. One of the most common passages used to draw this conclusion is Galatians 3:12, where Paul seems to compare law and faith. Now it is right to conclude from this verse that righteousness comes through faith and not on the basis of deeds. However is it right to say that the Old Testament, at least partially was a legalistic covenant between God and his people. Is it right to say that Paul in Galatians 3:11-12 is pitting the theology of Leviticus to that of Habakkuk. 

In the 2005 edition of The Gospel Witness, James M. Hamilton Jr., Associate Professor of Biblical Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote an article investigating on this issue of Leviticus 18:5 in Galatians 3:12. According to Hamilton, to view Old Covenant as a partial legalistic covenant “fails to appreciate the gracious character of the Levitical system”. Hamilton recognizes the central problem with the Galatians as a failure to “understand the law’s role in salvation history”.  With an aim to demonstrate the salvation-historical nature of Paul’s argument, Hamilton in the first section of his article, attempts “to summarize the Levitical system of the Old Testament with the hope of gaining a better understanding of the nature of the Old Covenant.” With that foundation laid, he then “considers the context of Galatians 3”.

In trying to make sense of the Levitical system, Hamilton contends that sincere trust from one’s heart is very much an inevitable element even in keeping the law and in the offering of sacrifices in penitence. Hamilton says “The Mosaic Covenant requires perfect obedience to the law, but the law provides sacrifice for the reparation of relationship when laws are broken. In order for these sacrifices to repair the relationship with Yahweh, however, they must be offered from a trusting heart that is repenting of the sin and seeking Yahweh’s pleasure”. If done without a right heart, then it does not bring any pleasure to Yahweh. Thus the covenant of Moses is to be, in that sense, kept by faith and if thus kept, then Leviticus 18:5 promises escape from being slain by the holiness of Yahweh.  Though this faith is not an explicit faith in the Messiah and His sacrifice, it is still a sincere trust in God and the sacrifices He has instituted for the covering of our sins.  Thus to view Old Covenant as a legalistic covenant is a failure “to appreciate the gracious character of the Levitical system”

In understanding the salvation-historical context of Galatians 3, Hamilton points out that the issue is not “that the Old Testament presented a legalistic way of gaining salvation but that the period in salvation history in which the Levitical system was operative has ended.” Hamilton therefore concludes that, “anyone who seeks to approach God by means of the Old Covenant in this new period in salvation history must keep the Old Covenant law perfectly (Galatians 5:3).” Since the Old testament sacrifices for sins are no longer in effect, the Law Covenant if kept should be kept flawlessly.  Thus Hamilton concludes his article as follows: “Thus, the statement in Leviticus 18:5 as it is used in Galatians 3:12 is equivalent to Galatians 5:3—the one who submits to the Mosaic covenant in this new period of salvation history “is obligated to do the whole law.” Paul does not impute legalism to Moses.”

This short article is worth reading for its many valuable insights into the nature of the two testaments, how faith is an inevitable element in both of them and that neither of them, particularly the Old  is legalistic in its nature.  A proper understanding of this will yield much fruit in faithful interpretation of Paul.

The One Who Does Them Shall Live By Them: Leviticus 18:5 in Galatians 3:12  Read | Download

The Gospel in Everyday Life

Evangelical author and speaker Jerry Bridges addresses the issue of gospel in our daily life. He expounds Galatians 2:15 – 20, to show how the apostle Paul relates on a daily basis to his justification in Christ. Bridges shows how every believer should live consciously in the present reality of their justification in Jesus Christ. 

 

Bridges first lays the foundation of what the Christian doctrine of justification by faith is. After laying this foundation and showing how this serves as the context for understanding Galatians 2:20,  he ventures into expounding it. Perhaps you have never heard verse 20 quoted in light of the meaning of its context.  Very often Christians quote verse 20 as an isolated verse and completely forget about its context. However Bridges shows how this verse when interpreted in light of its context, teaches the glorious truth of living in the present reality of our justification in Christ.

Like the Galatians, we are so easily persuaded by our flesh that we can gain favor before God through our spiritual performance rather than solely depend on the performance of our Lord Jesus Christ for us. However Bridges reminds us that we should always look outside of us for our justification and this we have to do daily. For we do not earn favor from God by doing our spiritual disciplines, rather we humbly receive the favor which Jesus has earned for us. The central thought of Bridges’ sermon is summarized in the following quote, which should humble us and make us radically Christ dependent and gospel centered.

“Through His death on the cross and His sinless life, Jesus Christ has earned every blessing and every answer to prayer that you will ever receive.”

In these days of resurgence of a gospel-centered theology and methodology, especially among Reformed Christians, Bridges offers an excellent, wise, exegetically sound and deeply practical sermon on living the gospel-centered life.  He shows how this is not a novel concept we are inventing in our day and age, but rather one believed in and taught by Christians of past centuries. Bridges specifically notes how the Puritan John Owen used to teach the same things in his day. However Bridges reasons that living the gospel-centered life is older than even the Puritans and goes back 2000 years into apostle Paul’s teaching in Galatians 2:20.

This message will make the hearer deeply grateful for the gospel of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ and will constrain him to live in light of the gospel everyday.

Very highly recommended.

The Gospel in Everyday Life Listen | Download

Jerry Bridges (born December 4, 1929, Tyler, Texas, United States) is an evangelical Christian author, speaker and staff member of The Navigators. He is author of several books, including, the Pursuit of Holiness, the Gospel for Real Life, and the Discipline of Grace. He has been on the staff of The Navigators since 1955 and currently serves as a resource person to the Navigators University Students Ministry in the United States. Jerry and his wife Jane live in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They have two married children and six grandchildren.