I invite you to turn with me and your copy of the New Testament to the book of Galatians, Paul's epistle to the Galatian churches, Galatians chapter number one. I have often maintained that relationships, whether at home or on the job or in the church, are not plagued by disagreements as much as they are plagued by misunderstandings. Think about the conflict that you've experienced in your relationships with others, and think about why the conflict began in the first place. It may not have been a disagreement. It was most likely a misunderstanding, and it may have gone something like this. I thought you said, no, I never said that. If you would have told me, I would have, I did tell you. When did you tell me? I told you ten times, but I thought you meant that's not what I meant. Well, then you should have reminded me. Why should I have to remind you? Because I forgot. No, it isn't because you forgot. It's because you weren't listening in the first place. I made myself clear. Well, I heard it differently. And the craziness of that conversation is that it fits in so many different scenarios. We are so sure that we communicated clearly with someone about something, but somehow there was a misunderstanding and the message became confused or corrupted or lost in such a way as to make everything go wrong. So for that reason, in any relationship, it's important to check and recheck our message, to repeat and rehearse the message so that there is no misunderstanding, so that there is no confusion. In fact, it was the apostle Peter. who said this, he said, I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth, yes, I think it's right, as long as I am in this tent or in this body, to stir you up by reminding you. And so it is spiritually that one of the greatest benefits for you spiritually is sitting under the regular and repeated sound of Bible preaching and teaching. Folks, you've heard it all before. You may have heard it all before, but it's good to hear it again so that you have clarity and conviction regarding the truth. And so this morning, we begin a new series through the book of Galatians. We are gonna review the same message that you've heard before. It's that message once for all delivered to the saints. It's the gospel of grace. And we do this this morning, not because you haven't heard it before, not because you don't know it well, but because from the time that Jesus rose from the grave and ascended back up into heaven, the message of the gospel has become confused and corrupted by misunderstandings and misinterpretations and misapplications. And so it's good for us to review it again. The book of Galatians is perhaps most likely the earliest letter to be included in the canon of the New Testament, and it was written to correct the confusion and the corruption of the gospel message. For I would submit to you this morning, in this case, a misunderstanding of the gospel doesn't only cause relational conflict. It's bigger than that. It's greater than that. It's deeper than that. A misunderstanding of the gospel is a matter of life and death. And so this morning from Galatians chapter one, we begin a new series. And this morning I've titled this The Gospel of Grace. Let's pause for prayer, shall we? God in heaven, we come before you this morning standing in grace. as you have showered upon us through the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, his death and his resurrection. Lord, we're so grateful for that grace toward us. We pray that you would give us clarity. May we not have misunderstanding, as is the case in many places today, as was even the case in the first century. Lord, may we rejoice and celebrate your grace, I pray in Jesus' name, amen. Our scripture text this morning is best understood as having two parts. They form the primary division of your notes, if you have a copy of your notes there from the church bulletin. The introduction to Galatians, that's verses 1 through 5, and then the occasion for this epistle, this letter to the Galatians in the following verses. Let's begin by reading again, as was just read a moment ago, Galatians 1, verses 1 through 5. Paul, an apostle. not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead. And all the brethren who are with me, to the churches of Galatia, grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. These verses serve as an introduction, an introduction not just to this text but to the entire letter. In many ways, Galatians begins with Paul's standard salutation, his standard greeting, his standard introduction. And because Paul begins most of his letters this way, I read these verses quickly. You listen to them casually because they sometimes appear to be empty rhetoric to us. Yet Paul's introduction here is packed with important truths that we cannot overlook. We must not misunderstand what he's saying here early on. Let me break it down for you. Number one, the author is Paul. Now, when I sort through my mail each day, I quickly discard the junk mail by looking at the return address. When I work through my email each day, I quickly hit delete or junk. I discard the spam mail by looking at the sent from address. And the source of my mail, or the source of my email, makes all the difference in the world. Here, the human author of this letter is Paul. Paul, an apostle, he's an ambassador, he's a delegate, he's an officially commissioned messenger, not from man, but from God, verse number one. In fact, his message is from God. Look ahead to verses 11 and 12. Verse 11, but I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached to me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ." So folks, I submit to you that this letter, this epistle to the Galatians, is not junk mail because it came by revelation to the Apostle Paul for us. As part of his introduction here, Paul addresses the churches of Galatia, the audience of this letter. is the churches of Galatia. Now there's some debate about the exact location of the churches of Galatia, but it seems clear that Paul was writing to the churches in the cities that he and Barnabas visited on his first missionary journey. You can read of those things in Acts chapters 13 and 14. Paul and Barnabas visited Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derby, these are the places in southern Galatia, part of modern day Turkey, most likely the recipients or the audience of this letter. It also seems clear that Paul penned this letter to those Galatian churches after Acts 13 and 14. the first missionary journey, but before Acts 15, which was the Jerusalem Council. Why is that clear? Because there's no mention of the Jerusalem Council here in the book of Galatians, even though the very same themes of the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15 and this letter to the Galatians would have made it very relevant and practical to to address those things. So by omitting any mention to the Jerusalem Council, we could conclude that this letter was written prior to Acts 15, after the first missionary journey. How about this? Number three, the acknowledgment. Paul's acknowledgment here, as part of his introduction, he acknowledges the fundamental message of the gospel, the gospel of grace. It begins first with the gift of grace. You see it there in verse number four. who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil age. The very heart of the gospel is the giving or the gift of these things. Of course, we know John 3.16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. Titus 2.11, for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. And so God gave Jesus. In his grace, he gave Jesus. Jesus, in his grace, then goes to the cross and lays down his life. God's gift of Jesus, Jesus' gift of himself, was a gift of grace because there is nothing that we can do to merit or earn that gift. It's a free gift of God, not of works. Look again at verse number four, who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil age. The goal of grace is to deliver us. to deliver us. Jesus said, I have come to seek and to save, to deliver. And the purpose of this gospel message, this grace, is to deliver. It's not a social rescue to be accomplished by political lobbying or legislation, but it's a spiritual rescue that can only be accomplished by the shed blood of a perfect lamb. And it's a deliverance from this evil age. You see it there in verse number four. It doesn't refer to all of the ills of 21st century or the corruption of our modern culture alone, but it reveres to the satanic world system that has dominated the world since the fall. God's grace is giving us Jesus Christ to rescue us from or deliver us from the satanic world system that has dominated the world. Look at verse 4 again. Who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father. This is the governor of grace. According to God's will. For the plan of redemption was the sovereign plan of God from the beginning. Even Jesus acknowledged in his high priestly prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, thy will be done. John chapter one says, but as many as received him, to them he gave the power, the right to become the children of God to those who believe in his name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, here it is, nor of the will of man, but of God. And so the entire plan of redemption, the entire gospel is according to God's will. He is the one who governs that and has ordained that. Verse number five, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. If you were Pastor Matt preparing this alliterated outline, what would you do with verse number five? To whom be the glory forever and ever. Okay, we're working with the G's, right? We've got the gift, the goal, the governor of grace. The glory, come on people, you're with me, the glory of grace, right? This is a doxology for God's glory is the ultimate end or goal of final conclusion of God's redemptive plan. Salvation and God's grace toward us is not simply for our benefit. It's for ascribing glory to God the Father. You can read Ephesians chapter one, of course, where Paul explains that our salvation, our redemption is to the praise of his glory. And so Paul acknowledges these things at the very outset, the very front. So the message of the gospel should not, cannot be confused. There's no misunderstandings here. And then he concludes his introduction with there at the end of verse number five, amen. Now, normally we think of amen as a conclusion after a hymn is sung, after a prayer is given. In this case, it's at the end of his introduction, acknowledging the gospel of grace. So, let me repeat the message, lest there be any misunderstanding. Letter A, Jesus gave himself. Letter B, and these sub points of course should be letters and not numbers, forgive me for that, but Jesus gave himself, letter A, to deliver us, letter B, according to God's will, that's letter C, for God's glory, letter D. I hope that you can say amen to that. And that's what Paul gives us at the end of verse number five. So we're doing some formal Bible study here. It demands that we know something about the human author. That was Roman numeral number one, the author, Paul the Apostle. We need to know something about the human audience. That's the churches in Galatia. I cited a few of those cities there. We need to know something about the subject or the theme of the letter, and that was Paul's acknowledgments. But another important element for good Bible interpretation is to understand or to know the occasion. for the writing of the letter. What precipitated Paul's writing of this letter to those churches after the first missionary journey? What issues were at hand? What was he trying to accomplish? Who was he trying to admonish and why? And the occasion for the writing of the book of Galatians helps us with the application and its value for us today. So the occasion for the book of Galatians. And there is an abrupt change now here from the introduction, that's verses 1 through 5, to the occasion in verses 6 through 10. Now, Before we get to that, in every other letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to the churches that we have preserved for us in the canon of scripture, Paul added to his introduction transitionary remarks, transitionary verses of thanksgiving and commendation. And they were spiritual niceties, maybe we might say, or generous affirmations, for example. to the Romans, Paul would have added to his introduction. Here's what he did to the Romans. First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. All right, Paul's letter to the Corinthians. Paul added to his introduction, he says, I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus that you were enriched in him by everything. Okay, to the Philippians, Paul added to his introduction by saying this, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine, making requests for you all with joy. Okay, to the Colossians, Paul added to his introduction with these words, we give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints. You get the picture. And if we were to lay out the epistles of Paul and these letters to the churches, we would find some of this pattern. However, here to the Galatians, he omits the compliments. He cuts straight to the chase, addressing the occasion for the letter. And the occasion is a misunderstanding about the gospel. And those misunderstandings were not trivial. Verse number six, I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel. Folks, the alarm. The alarm is a desertion to a different gospel. Let me illustrate this in this way. Let's assume for a moment that there is a crisis at hand. In fact, what if I were to stand before you just now and I were to declare to you that the building is on fire and we need to evacuate right now. Now, this is just an illustration, so nobody move, all right? You are safe in your seat. The building is on fire. Well, if the fire is at the far end of the building, let's say the seminary library is on fire. How about that? Or what if the school offices are on fire, this wing of the building? If that was the nature of the crisis, then we might, in an orderly fashion, I might ask you to remain calm, inform you of the situation, appeal to our ushers to ready themselves, allow parents with small children to make their way to the nursery to retrieve their children, while the rest of us carefully and calmly exit through these various doors at your own convenience out onto the lawn until the fire department can return, can come and put out the fire. However, what if the fire is in the church foyer and smoke is filling the auditorium? We now have a crisis of a different sort. And I might stand in front of you and say, the building's on fire, get out. And without forming a committee, without detailed instructions, it's every man for himself, run for the exits. And it might be total chaos. I've got a convenient exit right here, so I know I'm safe, right? Good luck for the rest of you. But the alarm is pulled, and the warning is issued. And I would suggest to you that in Galatians 1 verse 6, the apostle Paul is pulling the alarm. And he's saying, we've got a crisis, a problem. The believers in the churches of Galatia, remember, he just finished the first missionary journey in visiting with them, establishing those churches and teaching them the gospel. And somehow there's already a misunderstanding. There's confusion, there's corruption. They had easily and readily deserted from the true gospel, and the destructive fire of a false gospel was sweeping through their churches, and Paul had to sound the alarm. You say, Pastor Matt, that's the problem I have with old-fashioned fundamental preachers. They're always sounding an alarm. Watch out for that man. Watch out for that church. Beware of that Christian book. All the heresy in California is coming this way. Doctrine is diluted. The gospel is being compromised. Holiness is out the window. And on and on, the Bible preacher sounds the alarm. Everything is a crisis. Well, let me tell you, if you read the New Testament, The letters of the apostles to the churches and the pastors of that first century, they were repeatedly pulling the fire alarm and they were warning the churches against false teachers, phony believers, and an errant gospel. In Acts 20, Paul warned the Ephesian elders to be on guard for wolves in sheep's clothing. That's a little dramatic, don't you think? In 2 Corinthians, Paul warned the believers about those who would preach a different gospel. In 2 Peter, Peter warned his readers about false teachers. In 1 Timothy 4, the Holy Spirit warned of those who would depart from the faith or read the book of Galatians. Folks, the alarm has been pulled because Satan has been releasing his fiery darts since the very beginning to destroy a clear understanding of the gospel of grace. Well, certainly not at Fourth Baptist Church, right? Lord willing, no, but our problem is this at Fourth Baptist Church, myself included, is we have come to ignore the alarms. Think about this. I'll share this example in the first person, but we've all been there. You come out of the mall and you're walking through the parking lot or through the parking garage and you hear a car alarm sounding. Have you been there? And perhaps a car theft is in progress. Perhaps someone is being assaulted. Do you ever have that thought? No, you don't have that thought. What do you think? You think if someone can afford a car with an alarm, why aren't they smart enough to turn it off, right? We hear the alarm, but there is no concern. We're rather annoyed at the disruption that the alarm is making. And in the privacy of our thoughts, we think, why can't they get it together? Probably some mom who lost her key fob in the bottom of the diaper bag and doesn't know what she's doing, and we go on our merry way. The occasion for Galatians is to sound the alarm for believers who had deserted to a different gospel. But it was not a wholly different gospel. It was a perversion of the true gospel. And that's the analysis. It was just a perversion of the true gospel. It's easy to identify a false religion or a cult. Their message is so radically different that we're able to see it clearly. But when the truth is tweaked just a bit, it becomes more difficult. And the overused but yet appropriate illustration is that of counterfeit money, and the genius behind counterfeit money is how closely it resembles the real thing. And just as you can buy a Rolex that isn't a Rolex, or you can buy a diamond that isn't a diamond, we call these products knockoffs or counterfeits, so too there is knockoff Christianity. And let me explain to you that that the knockoff that existed here, this is foundational for our entire study of the letter to the Galatians in the coming weeks. The knockoff is that this was a Christian movement. not a pagan movement or an atheist movement. It was a Christian movement of those who sought to sustain their justification, their salvation by their good works. Okay, turn the page with me to chapter three, Galatians three, verse two. Galatians three, verse two. This only I want to learn from you, Paul is asking. Did you receive the spirit by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith? Okay, this should be an easy question to answer. Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? There's the confusion, the misunderstanding. Look ahead to chapter four, verse number nine. Chapter four, verse number nine. But now after you have known God, rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements to which you desire again to be in bondage? The law. Why are you exchanging God's grace for the law again? Turn to chapter five, verse number four, chapter five, verse four. You have become estranged from Christ. Chapter 5, verse 4, you who attempt to be justified by law, you have fallen from grace. Folks, this is why Paul wrote to Timothy, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And that is what I would charge us with this morning and for the weeks to come. Back to Galatians chapter 1, verse number 8, chapter 1, verse 8. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed, let him be anathema, strong language, this is the accursed. The accursed is the assertion of another gospel. It doesn't matter if it comes from your favorite personality with lots of credentials. It doesn't matter if it comes from the big man preacher with the big church ministry. It doesn't matter if it comes from a voice or a vision from heaven. If the message of the gospel of grace is not clear, let that one be accursed. But never mind the hypothetical. Look at verse number eight. I'm sorry, verse number nine. Paul repeats himself. The hypothetical's in verse number nine, as we have said before, so now I say it again. If anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. Okay, you say, pastor, what's the big deal? Folks, the gospel of grace is not just an invitation. to those which, if believed, grant salvation. That's often what we think of the gospel. It's for the unbeliever. When the unbeliever believes the gospel, they gain salvation. The gospel of grace is the message that ought to govern all of our lives following our justification, our conversion, our salvation. And so I've given you this. It's not there in your notes, but before you on the screen, the gospel of grace was not only an invitation to unbelievers, but also had implications for believers. The gospel of grace isn't only a matter of our salvation, it's a matter of our sanctification. And this is where misunderstandings occur and perhaps confusion can occur. We cannot live with a misunderstanding of the gospel. We have to get it right. There are a lot of things that maybe I'm not 100% sure of. There perhaps are gray areas that we would admit in life, but the gospel is not one of those. We have to get it right. Let me conclude with this. If you have not received God's free grace gift of salvation, I want the message to be very clear. It's not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but it's according to his mercy, his grace, that he has saved us. It's by grace that we are saved through faith. It's not of ourselves. We want you to know that gospel. If you have received God's free grace gift of salvation, I want the message to be very clear. Do not allow or accept any misunderstanding. Do not turn away from the faith once for all delivered to the saints. You see, the alarm has been pulled, and we need to get this right. The gospel of grace. Let's pray. God in heaven, thank you so much for your grace toward us in loving us in spite of ourselves while we were yet sinners, in loving us in a way that you sent Jesus Christ to die for us. Lord, your grace is greater than all our sin, and we're so grateful for it. Lord, it has purchased our redemption, and Lord, it conforms us to the image of Jesus Christ in sanctification. Lord, I pray that the men and the women, the children of Fourth Baptist Church, those under the sound of my voice, may not suffer misunderstanding, but might rejoice in clarity and conviction regarding the gospel. And Lord, in the weeks to come, as we unpack this letter, may we just celebrate your amazing grace toward us, I pray in Jesus' name, amen.