Well, we're going to be turning to the book of Acts, back to Acts chapter 22. Over the last few weeks, we've taken some much-needed detours, and looking at the rapture one week, another week looking at Romans chapter 8, and God's mercy to us, and that there's nothing that can separate us from the love of Christ. How much can separate us? Nothing. Nothing can separate us. And we even looked, while we were back in the beginning portions of Acts chapter 22, we looked at the light that Paul saw, and we looked at the sound that he heard, the revelation of Jesus Christ to him when he called him to be the apostle of the Gentiles. So, we're going to pick it up today. I won't say specifically, because I know you're going to say back in verse 1, but we're going to pick it up in verse number Verse number 14. They surprised you, didn't they? Yeah, let's go to verse 12, rather, and we'll read to the end. It says, "'And one Ananias, a devout man, according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there, came unto me and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him, And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that just one, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth. For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now, why tarryest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. And it came to pass that when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance, and saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem, for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. And I said, Lord, They know that I imprisoned and beaten every synagogue and them that believed on thee. And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by and consenting unto his death and kept the raiment of them that slew him. And he said unto me, Depart, for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.' And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth, for it is not fit that he should live. And as they cried out and cast off their clothes and threw dust into the air, the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging, that he might know whereof they cried so against him. And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman and uncondemned? When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest, for this man is a Roman. Then the chief captain came and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yes. And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born. Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him. And the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him. On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty whereof he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear and brought Paul down and set him before them. And Lord, we just pray that you would add your blessing to your word this morning. In Jesus' name, amen. So we see that some distinctions here happen with the Apostle Paul. The Apostle Paul, who had just seen and heard Jesus Christ on that road to Damascus, at the same time that God, the Lord, speaks to Ananias that this man Paul You're going to go and he's going to come unto you. And of course, if we go back in the chapter 8, Ananias says the usual thing. This is the guy that persecuted us. Why? Why am I going to take him in? What are you going to do with him? And of course, the Lord said, he's a chosen vessel unto me. So Jesus Christ personally picked out Paul, as we see, to go to the Gentiles. The apostles before were They went to the lost sheep of Israel with the gospel of the kingdom. Remember, that message was repent. Repent and be baptized as a nation to turn away from your sins. And the Messiah would come, Acts chapter 3, 19. He would come at the time of refreshing. We can call it a time of regeneration as well, when the nation under the Messiah will be reborn, so to speak. It'll be the messianic kingdom that will take place, not because of the work that people do today, but because of Jesus Christ himself coming to restore that kingdom at the end of the tribulation period. What a work that will be. So we go back to verse number 14. This is Ananias speaking. The God of our fathers has chosen thee. So he's chosen him specifically for this purpose. And what does he say? Well, look at the next part, that thou shouldest know his will. You know, it was Jesus personally told him his will, and Paul, being a good Pharisee, a good teacher of the law as well, he would know all the prophecies that took place before, and he would actually have the key to this prophecy, would be the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So that's wrapped into the whole message. He's chosen thee to know His will. Specifically, Jesus would speak unto Paul, that he'd know his will and see that just one. We saw further down at the end of the chapter when he went to Jerusalem, he actually did see the Lord Jesus Christ. He did appear to him. And if we go back to the rest of the scriptures, we see that Jesus spoke to him often, spoke to him with this new revelation of this mystery of the body of Christ. He should know his will, that you should see that just one, and should us hear the voice, I lost my place, the voice of his mouth. So these four things right here in that one verse, Jesus chose Paul to do. a unique calling that he heard, that he had. And he's saying, verse number 15, "'For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou seen and heard.'" So we see a distinction because we look at Paul's epistles and we see things that we don't find in the Apostles' writings as well. Things like the rapture. You don't find that anywhere else. The catching away of the saint, the rapture of the church, the mystery, Christ in you, the hope of glory. This was a mystery that was revealed through the Apostle Paul, this unique Man! Verse number 16, and now, and now, why tarryest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. There it is, just like Acts 2.38. That means baptismal regeneration. You need to be baptized to be saved. But wait a minute. Let's call a time out on the play. What did that mean? It meant exactly what it said. Remember, the book of Acts is a transitional book. It starts out with Peter. Well, actually, it starts out with Jesus and the apostles, and Acts 2, 3, and 4 deal with Peter preaching to the nation of Israel, the day of Pentecost, with the Israelites, the proselytes, who had come from all over the world to come to the day of Pentecost. And I know we've been there before. Let's look at Acts chapter 238 for a second. Acts chapter 238. I think I've covered this the same exact way before, but as a refresher. I remember back when Back when I was first saved and belonged at a Pentecostal church, this was the go-to verse for salvation. Look what it says, verse 38. Let's go to verse 37, of course. Now, when they heard this, They were pricked in their heart and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? It's interesting. I've been using this large print Schofield reference Bible, and right above 37, it's correct. It says what Israel must do. That's the heading on there. I like that. That's what I wrote in my other Bible. It didn't have that heading. I said, this is for Israel. This is for the nation of Israel. Verse 38, we'll see the similarity between what we just read in Acts 22. Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. That used to be our go-to verse in a Pentecostal church. Well, number one, it's the Holy Ghost that does the baptizing first, and a believer has the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. There's nothing you must do to be perfected in this world. No baptism, no even communion. You don't have to take that. It's a memorial that we have to remember what Christ did. So the words in verse 38, literally meant what it says. And the only reason we can understand that is if we look at it as being for Israel, that this is dispensational in nature. So let's read it again. Then Peter said, "...repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins." Even in my Baptist years, they used to use that because, of course, in the Baptist church, you're not saved by baptism, but if you want to be part of the local church, you better well get baptized in order to have membership. Actually, the church has no such ordinance as that. If you are a believer, if you have trusted Jesus Christ for salvation, you believe the gospel, who is it that baptizes? It's the Holy Spirit that baptizes you into that body, so that all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are members of that one body. So the Baptists have it wrong, the Pentecostals have it wrong, of course the Catholics have it wrong because they trust in infant baptism, etc. But the reality is this means what it says, repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins. Why is that important that it's for Israel and not for the church today? Because when you see in this message of going into the kingdom, it's going to be identification for them for the forgiveness of sins. A Jew going through the tribulation or into the tribulation, Jesus Christ had returned on the apostles' timeline if what Peter was preaching in Acts 2, in the fulfillment of Joel, had started immediately, that's what would have happened. It would have gone back to John the Baptist. I like that, he's the only one called the Baptist. John the Baptist. He was there to baptize the nation of Israel as its final prophet and priest, to baptize them in as a nation into repentance and the forgiveness of sin for them. For us, our salvation is complete and secure without anything else but believing the good news that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried for our sins. That's the scope of the gospel for us today. Let's go for a second. Let's look at this choosing once again. Let's go to 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. And you know I want to go to verse 1 in this one, because that's where the gospel, in a nutshell, is summed up. Let's go to chapter 15. And we will go to verse number one, then I'm going to skip down to the end of the chapter. Verse number one, "'Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you.'" You know, it was Paul, and back in Romans 3, he called it, my gospel. How arrogant of Paul. It was a unique message that he had that nobody else had. It was given to him by the Lord. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand." There's the good news for justification, sanctification, and glorification. The gospel is enough to get you saved, to keep you saved, and to get you into eternity. by which also you are saved if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain." It's interesting, what's believing in vain? I've done that a few times. I walked a couple aisles. I was told I had to go to a certain person in order to believe. But our belief is solely upon what Christ did. And if ye keep in memory, what does keeping that in memory? Keeping that in memory lets you know the reality of what has already happened. Yesterday I had the privilege of officiating two weddings. You know, in one day, it was pretty cool, but tiring at the same time. And in each of them, the emphasis was, on this day, you say, I do, and that's permanent. The day you said, I do, to the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, that's a permanent work. It can't be taken away. And in our lives, we do have our ups and downs. Anybody can agree with that, I'm sure. We have good days, we have bad days. We have days that are exceptional, we have days where it's down in the dumps and you just don't want to get out of bed. I don't know if I'm the only one that has days like that, but we do. But if we keep in memory what Paul preached, if you keep in memory that salvation, that eternal salvation, then you do well for yourself, unless you believed in vain. If you believed in something else besides the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, you have believed something in vain, believed something that you had to perform to do. Verse number three, for or because, for I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received. Where did he receive it from? He received it from the revelation of Christ. He received it more than likely in his ministry or his education in the wilderness for 14 years, just hearing from the Lord. Imagine going to a seminary or something for 14 years, and you could turn off all the different theologians and have your doctrine completely from the Lord himself. That's what happened with Paul. We benefit from that today. But today we do not see Jesus Christ physically. We see him through his word that is illumined in us by the Spirit. For I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scripture. and that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve. Actually, I didn't want to go to the end. I want to just get to verse number eight. After that, he was seen above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remained unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James, then of all the apostles. And last of all, he was seen of me also, as one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, that I am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what I am, and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain. but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed." So we see Paul here. It sounds like he's brash. He says, I labored more than all of the apostles. When was the last time you heard from an apostle in the book of Acts? We see Peter in Acts 12, then he disappears after that. So the emphasis after Acts 12 is on the ministry of Paul. And he would continue. He would preach the gospel wherever he went. Notice what he did. We'll go back to Acts 22 in a second. The first thing he did going back in a circle where we started here, was he was baptized for the remission of sins. It was in a transition period. He had heard from the Lord Jesus Christ, but then after, he would get clearer revelation from Christ. But why did Paul get baptized for the remission of sins? Wasn't he already, just because of his calling, wasn't he already saved or whatnot? Was he saved or not? He was saved. He was called by Christ. But in this transition period, just like the other times when he had Timothy baptized, or circumcised rather, and not Silas, in Acts 18, when he took a vow and went to Sancreia and fulfilled that vow by getting his hair shorn, and then in Acts 20, what did he do again? He went, or Acts 21 rather, he went And he did as James had said there, he went and took that vow along with the four gentlemen that had a vow on them. In other words, he became a Jew when it was appropriate. He became all things to all men so that he could gain some. So this is what happened with the Apostle Paul. Let's go back to our text in Acts chapter 22. Actually, let's bypass Acts. Let's go over to the book of Galatians for a second. The book of Galatians. Chapter number two. Actually, let's go back into chapter one, because it goes right along with the beginning of 1 Corinthians 15. Yeah, chapter number one, verse six. No, no, let's go to verse one. I'm not going to say I'm sorry for going back to verse one because we need it here. It says, Paul, an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead. Right there, that's, you know, he was called by Jesus himself. and all the brethren which are with me unto the churches of Galatia. Grace be to you and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God and our Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. I think we should take verse number four and put that right in front of us. As we see this whole world careening down that Route 666, remember, He's called us out of this world. We're going to be delivered out of this world, out of the wrath of God that's coming upon the world. And because of that, look at verse number six. Verse number six, in spite of the grace of God bestowed to the Galatians. I think the Galatians were the earliest people that were, I don't say think, I know they were the earliest outside of Israel to hear the gospel on Paul's missionary journey. So he went into that region of Galatia, which is basically central Turkey today, the southern Galatia and northern Galatia, and he would go in and lay that foundation of the gospel. And what happened right from the beginning? Right behind him were the Judaizers there to take those converts away and get them back under the law. I marvel that you were so soon removed from Him that called you unto the grace of Christ unto another gospel." Even that another gospel, even today, it's one that adds to the simple gospel of Jesus Christ. Not only that, it's also one that subtracts from that as well. So they added to the gospel. They added circumcision. They added the law. They added all these things. But being a believer, you're not under the law. You're not under any of the ordinances that were given in the Old Testament. Do you have the freedom to do some of those things? Yes. I'd encourage you, I've never done it, but I've had people invite me to Passover cedar recreations. Does it have a benefit for us today? No, but it's a great learning thing for us to know. All the other things, are they good to do? Yes. But are they necessary for salvation? If you add to salvation, it becomes a problem. unto another gospel which is not another." In other words, they are teaching faith in Christ. You go to any cult today, any Christian cult, they teach Jesus. They teach a Jesus. I came out of one where we worshipped and ate a cookie or a cracker. The cracker Jesus. They claimed that they're worshiping Jesus. You can hear the Gospel at times, but yet, the addition to the Gospel. Then you have the Mormon Jesus, who is just another angel, a created being, and the brother of Lucifer. They could speak all about the grace of God, but yet that grace is received by works. So all these false Jesuses. Today we have even a more deadly and dangerous Jesus that doesn't belong into any denomination or group. It's this Jesus that He comes beside you and is your best friend, your buddy. How was it that there were even dolls you could get? Jesus dolls where you could pull the string, I am with you always. all these different things, making a mockery out of the Lord Jesus Christ. Which is not another, but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. I can't get over hearing a, what's his name? He's a fruitcake and a half, Todd White, claiming that Jesus became hate. He hated the Father, just like you. I'm like, Todd, Jesus never hated the Father. He became an offering for sin. He did not become that sin. He didn't become hate like us, but he became that hate offering in our place. So all these different things, even if you don't pay attention to it hard enough, they're evident. It's crazier and crazier. And what that stems from is a failure to know the Word of God. Simple things. I'm speaking with people who have, Christian people have children that are questioning their, what sex they are. Just go back to Romans chapter 1. Go back to Genesis chapter 2. And it's from a neglecting, not an all-out rejecting of the Word of God, but it's a neglecting of the Word of God and letting flesh dictate what truth is. Let me get off of that. I'll get in trouble. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you, where do a lot of false gospels come from today? It comes from these nuts that say that an angel appeared to them in the kitchen. An angel appeared to me. Angels do not appear to the body of Christ. We see them ministering to Israel in its entirety. When you see an angel, there's nothing for us about angels. Why? We have the Holy Spirit dwelling in. Anytime you see an angel as a messenger, it's dealing with Israel in tribulation or in times past. We're not going to have a merry moment where an angel comes to us and tells us that we're found to be faithful. We have the Bible. We have the Spirit to do that. But look at the rest of this verse, number eight. "'But though you are an angel from heaven, "'preach any other gospel unto you, "'than that which we have preached unto you, "'let him be accursed.'" I have to admit, that looks like such an obvious verse, but when I see accursed, if you see a before a word, it means not. So, accursed, does it mean that you're cursed or not cursed? Cursed, the term accursed here is atithemi in the Greek, a being not and tithemi ordained, or re, a could be re. So let him be reordained. I think God is full of grace. We teach that he's totally accursed, but even Benny Hinn has a chance to go back and reset and believe the gospel of Christ. Just a little thought there that I put out. I think I put it out before and another time, and I still scratch my head over it as well. But think of that. The word, A, not cursed. They're not cursed. And the word is actually about being reset. So even the heretic today that is rejected. Paul says to reject the heretic after the second or third admonition. What's that rejection for? Perhaps that he'll go back and reassess what he believes and come back to the Lord. There have been instances like that. They're miracles if somebody turns from false doctrine and turns to the truth. There's one, and I know him, I won't call him by name, but I know him personally. He has a website, an excellent website, Apologetics, and on Twitter and Facebook, it's Amos37.com. That guy is a resident of the town I work in. And I spoke with him a while back ago because he used to be on cable television every Sunday. And he wouldn't mind if he hears this because we've talked about this personally. And he used to have a show called the Prophecy Train. Remember the Prophecy Train on Sunday mornings on charter media cable. And he had the most wacky ideas. He believed that he was a prophet. You know what? He changed. He was accursed in this sense. He saw the truth of God's Word, and God cut through him. And he has an excellent apologetics ministry online, and that's a work that can be done. Did I rejoice a couple years ago when it was alleged that Benny Hinn had turned from his ways. He didn't really, he just kind of put a different mask on the ways that he was doing. But there was hope in that. I just mentioned Todd White a few minutes ago. Again, he's gotten worse since he so-called repented from his false doctrine. He's gotten worse because he puts all the work on himself and trusts, and Todd we trust, would be his motto. But anyways, Verse 9, as we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I yet please men, I should not be the servant of Christ. But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after men. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught of it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." Again, this is the unique ministry of Paul. How many people today say that they've had a revelation of Christ? You know, lots of people out there, but they take Scripture out of context. "'For you have heard of my conversation and time passed in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God and wasted it and profited in the Jews' religion.'" That's how he emphasized that he's profited in the Jews' religion. He was in the Jews' religion. and profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers, but when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me by his grace to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen. Immediately, I conferred not with flesh and blood." Later, he would go and confer with James and Peter. Neither when I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me, but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and bode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God I lie not. Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, and was unknown by face unto the churches of Judea which were in Christ. But they had heard only that He which persecuted us in times past now preacheth the faith which once He destroyed, and they glorified God in me." Well, let's continue because this is where I wanted to start. Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas and took Titus with me also, I went up by revelation and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run or had run in vain." So first thing he did is he went privately to James and Peter, and they gave him the approval. But he would go continue on to the Gentiles, they would continue on to the Jews in Jerusalem, because they were told to stay. But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised." We know later that Timothy was. He was circumcised because he had a Greek mother and a pretty lame Jewish father. So it was a testimony to the Jews there of the faith that he had. And that because of false brethren, Unawares brought in who came in privily to spy out our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, that he may bring us into bondage. Who are these false brethren? They were Judaizers who pretended to be with them. They hid in the background. They had their own doctrines that they wanted to bring everybody under. They hid under the cover of Christianity, under the cover of liberty, to bring people into bondage, to whom we gave place by subjection. In other words, Paul says, we let them speak by subjection. No, not for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. So he allowed them to be subject unto them. At the same time he preached, Paul would continue to preach Christ and stick with his doctrine. And those that were there privily, people could understand who they were and what they were doing. That's what happens. People will often, I always use this example of, and Gordon stood with me totally, even under a point of threatening the person. Remember Peter? On Wednesdays, that guy we had, he came in bringing another gospel. another Bible, another Jesus, all different things. And I would battle it out with him over these things. And one time Gordon just walked over and he did this. I think he scared the daylights out of the guy. But, and I've said this before, he pushed a Bible, it was the Lamza Bible, which was done out of a branch of the Eastern Orthodox Church. And George Lamza didn't believe in the wrath of God. He was a universalist. That God loves everybody, no matter what, everybody's going to heaven. And I was talking about the wrath of God with this man. I said, God's wrath is upon everyone who doesn't believe. He's like, no way, I don't believe that. So I took his Bible, I think it's in the back here still, and I highlighted it with sticky notes. in every place where you could find the wrath of God in the New Testament and the Old Testament, and there were like 200 and some odd sticky notes in there for all the pages where the wrath of God was. So the last time I saw this guy, at home I have papers that he wrote and everything, I never read them, but he was arguing about God not being wrathful, and we were looking that way, and I turned him around with me this way, And I pointed to his Bible, it was up on this table right here. He says, what's that? And he was like shocked that I had Alamza Bible. First of all, I said those pink things that are in there, that's all where the wrath of God is found in the Bible. He darted out. I haven't seen him since. But that's what happens, is you stick with the truth of God's Word. And that's what Paul was doing, sticking with the truth that he had revealed to him by the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Judaizers that came in were found out, would be found out. But unfortunately, many people don't. That's why we need to be discerning. That's why we need to understand the right division of the Scriptures, to understand those things. But let me continue here. I didn't mean to go into Galatians here, but I don't think I'm going to get through what I had prepared either. But what else is new, right? Verse number 6. But of these who seem to be somewhat, whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me, God accepteth no man's person." Those that seem somewhat, they were in leadership. This sounds just like the church in Corinth, where the people followed the false teachers, subjected themselves to spiritual abuse through them as well. It says, "'But of these who seem to be somewhat, whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me. God accepteth no man's person. For they who seem to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me.'" Paul's like, it doesn't matter what their status was. God's no respecter of persons. He says right there, I just kept on going with what God's revelation was. But contrary was, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter." Peter and the Twelve had that gospel to go to the lost sheep of Israel. Paul's was unique where he was to go to the Gentiles. So he never preached. He preached to the Jews, but his message was the message of grace throughout, no matter what. that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty to me toward the Gentiles. And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship, that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. Only they would that we should remember the poor, that same which I also was forward to do." And that's how we see Paul ended up back in Jerusalem when everybody else told him not to go, because he remembered the poor, those who were under persecution in Jerusalem, to bring them the offering that was received from the churches in Macedonia. But, verse number 11, but when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face because he was to be blamed. That's it, Paul having the audacity to tell off the Pope. Peter knew better. Peter knew the words of Paul, but yet he would continue to minister to the circumcision, but he wasn't bound by those dietary laws. He had contradicted him and James' words that just remember the poor. But he went back and reverted back into the dietary laws. I withstood him to the face because he was to be blamed. For before that, certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles, but then when they were come, he withdrew and separated themselves, fearing them which were of the circumcision." I think of old tough Peter there. Remember before Jesus died, or before he went to the cross, Peter's like, oh no, I'm not gonna let that happen. When Jesus said he would be crucified, oh no, not you Lord. And what did Peter do? He told him, before the rooster crows three times, you'll have denied me. Or before the rooster crows, you'll have denied me three times. Right there, that was Peter. He was like that with Jesus, he was like that with Paul as well, and with James. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him, insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with this assimilation. Barnabas, who would accompany Paul on the first missionary journey, he was even carried away. They had that mob mentality that was going, that mob mentality would continue to follow Paul throughout his ministry. Yet one person to raise up a stink about Paul's message and the entire group of the Jews would be after him. When I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou being a Jew livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not do the Jews, why compelest the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? That's a good question that we have to ask ourselves, either. Why we can't be compelled to the dietary laws and restrictions under the covenant to the Jews. But yet, Paul explains this over in Romans chapter 16, which we won't go to, but just a quick summary. When you see, when he says that you see a weak brother, a weak brother is somebody that, in that case, was somebody that was a Jew, that was in Judaism, and converted, and he still has those dietary restrictions, and he still doesn't think that it's okay to eat bacon. I often wonder if they had, they must have had bacon around there somewhere. Not to eat bacon, he says, don't cause them to stumble. You do those things so you can win that brother and speak with him. And I know I've said this over and over again. When Lent came, I purposely ate the pastrami sandwich in front of my co-workers. Ha-ha! Gotcha! I have grace. Let's go through the rest of the chapter. We who are Jews by nature and not sinners of the Gentiles, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified," now get this, by the faith, I love the King James Bible has this correct here, the faith of, Where am I now? "...the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law, for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." In other words, Jesus Christ came. If I were to continue, keep on going in this chapter, if I go to Philippians 2, we'd see that. He came in the form of a man. He came, He put aside a lot of His glory, and He became a man. He came into this earth coming to do the will of the Father. Even at the point of death, be thy will, let this cup pass from me. Jesus came and subjected himself to trust his father while he was on earth. That's why he could communicate with his father and his father back. Can you picture him? Father, do I really have to go to these people that reject me? And the father is like, trust me son, you do. This was planned from before the foundation of the world. So it was the faith of Christ. Where in his human form, he would have to trust in his father. Think of that paradox. The eternal Christ becoming a weak man. in order to pay our debt that we could not pay ourselves. That's the beauty of the cross. That's the beauty of our Lord Jesus Christ as well. Verse number 17, But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, We ourselves also are found sinners. Is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. Paul would explain this in Romans chapter 6 and 7. You know, we are all by nature sinners. We're all by nature the children of wrath. We all by nature and these vile bodies continue to sin on a, let's see, monthly basis, weekly basis, daily basis. How about hourly basis? How about minutely? Is that a word? Minutely basis? How about by the second? We can't help ourselves. We are who we are. Going back to Paul in Acts chapter 22, I was a persecutor, but now I've been given the revelation of Jesus Christ, and it's by the grace of God, I am what I am. He was what He was, even while He was persecuting the church. Even the mercy of God that was upon Him, but God called Him to be that apostle of the Gentiles. Verse number 18, For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. If I go back in and try to build up by the law, he becomes a transgressor, becomes a sinner. That's why he would stick with the grace of God. For I, through the law, I am dead to the law that I might live unto God. That's the only thing the law can do. It can bring death. The law can give you your death sentence. It can't give you the acquittal of it. Only faith, grace through faith can give you that, freed from the penalty of that law. And again, this is on my list of the top 100 verses. I almost said top 10. I don't know. I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Not I. Of course, he doesn't live because he's dead. We're all in that same boat today. If you've believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, guess what? You're dead. The old man is dead. The flesh is still creeping around, but the old man is dead. We have the new man, which is Christ. The old man is crucified with Christ. I am crucified with Christ, I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. Know what the greatest life that we can have? It's the Christ life. He's alive. living in us today. That's why we have hope in this horrible world that we're in. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith, here it is, of the Son of God. The same way Jesus Christ, while He was on earth, had faith in the Father, we also have faith in Christ. The same way, because we are weak in the flesh. The faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God, for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. you know, before the righteousness came by your performance, you and I had to perform. In religion, you and I have to perform. I think I, I don't know the last performance-based thing I did. I think it was confirmation, you know, where I was deemed as, you know, having the faith. I had to have my sponsor with me and had to call him a different name than he really had, so I really don't know what I did, still to this day. But that's the difference is today. Trusting in anything else except what Christ did on the cross of Calvary is indeed vain. Christ died for no reason if that's the case. God sent his Son in the form of a man to suffer, bleed, and die on the cross of Calvary. Amen? Maybe I'll get back to the message next week like I started to. But the reality we have in this present evil world we're in, we have just one refuge. Our refuge is in the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who did love us, who did, who has called us unto His purpose. What is that purpose today? It's pretty easy. Trust Him. Simple as that can be. Trust Him. No matter what happens, trust Him. It's hard to say, I think I had mentioned this someplace, that it's seemingly impossible in our human existence to trust, but yet that's what we need to do. We don't understand, but we do trust in what Christ did on the cross. Amen.