Parresia · Let’s Keep the Amazing in Grace, Session 8: “Undiluted Grace”

Introduction 

Welcome to the 8th session of “Let’s Keep the Amazing in Grace.” This session is entitled, “Undiluted Grace,” and I will be covering several passages from Galatians. 

The book of Galatians is a letter that Paul wrote to several churches in Galatia. Galatia was not a city. It was a territory that included what is now Turkey. These churches were a mix of both Jews and Gentiles.

Paul wrote this letter to come against teaching that was being brought in by men who were trying to put the believers back under law.

Of all of Paul’s letters, Galatians lays out the strongest  case against any form of legalism. It is like a dissertation on undiluted grace. Paul even proclaimed a curse on anyone who would pervert the Good News of the Gospel.  

What is the Good News? If you tell me that God will forgive me all of my sins and call me righteous simply because I believe in Jesus Christ, that’s good news. But if you tell me that I have to then follow certain rules and regulations and be perfectly obedient to the law in order to remain righteous, that is bad news because no one has ever been able to do it.

And Paul’s main argument for pure grace is found in Galatians 2:21 – 

Galatians 2:21 – if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.

That’s why I love Paul so much. He always brought it back to Christ and Him crucified. 

Double curse/Paul Rebukes Peter

Now to Galatians, chapter 1 – Paul wrote – 

Galatians 1:6-12 – I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7 which is not another; [“Turning away” is the Greek word “metatithemi,” and it means “replacing one thing another.” They were replacing grace with different gospel, which was actually no gospel at all.]  but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. [“pervert” is “metastrepho” – “to reverse, to change to the opposite.” If you put a little law in grace, it’s like putting a little poison in your water. You completely change the composition of it.] 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. [“anathema” – doomed to destruction.] 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. [Paul pronounces a DOUBLE CURSE on anyone who preaches anything other than pure Grace!!] 10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. [being a bondservant for Christ means preaching the Gospel without compromise, even if it costs you your reputation.] 11 But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. 12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ. [In other words, he received the message straight from Jesus Himself. In fact, Paul referred to it as “my gospel” in Romans and 2 Timothy. [Romans 2:16; Romans 16:25; 2 Timothy 2:8]

Paul went on in Galatians 1 to write about his former life as a pharisee and how he had violently persecuted the church, but then – in verse 15 he wrote – 

Galatians 1:15-16 – But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb [before he was even born God had a plan for Paul! Even though Paul kicked against the goads, God had a plan for him!] and [God] called me through His grace, 16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him [Jesus] among the Gentiles,…

The same goes for us! Before the foundation of the world, God chose us and called us Through His grace, to reveal His Son IN us so He could reveal His Son to others through us!

Galatians 1:16-17 – [After Paul’s Damascus Road encounter with Jesus and his conversion which you can read about in Acts 9, 22, and 26, Paul says]…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, [In other words, I didn’t rush out to consult with any human being.] 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, [to consult with Jesus] and returned again to Damascus. 

There was a 3 year period of Paul’s life, often called “his time in Arabia,” during which he was taught by the Lord Himself. 

In the next several verses in Galatians, Paul gives a timeline of his travels. After the three year period in Arabia, he briefly visited Peter  for 15 days in Jerusalem and then he traveled for 14 years to different churches, and then he came back to Jerusalem.

This second trip to Jerusalem was for a meeting that we often refer to as the “Council at Jerusalem” in Acts 15 where they hashed out a question brought to Paul’s attention while he was at his home base of Antioch.

Acts 15:1, NLT – [False teachers had come in were teaching that:] “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

These false teachers were adding to salvation by grace alone through faith alone.

This caused great dissension.  Paul and his partner Barnabas argued vehemently with these men. So the church sent Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem to this council to work through it, and ultimately this group of leaders wrote a letter to all the churches refuting this heresy. 

At the Jerusalem Council, Paul,  Barnabas, and Peter all shared their testimonies of the remarkable salvations and the signs and wonders they had witnessed among the Gentiles. (Acts 15:7-11)

Acts 15:9-11, NLT – [In the meeting Peter stood up to try to change the minds of some on the council who were actually in agreement with the false teaching. He said -] He [God] made no distinction between us and [the Gentiles] them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. 10 So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? [Peter is saying the no one could keep the whole law – not even they could do it!] 11 We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.”

Now, when we get to the middle of Galatians 2, I want you to remember Peter’s bold stand here for pure grace, because even he was intimated by these imposters on another issue of the law.

Galatians 2:4 – [Back to Galatians, starting in Chapter 2, verse 4 – where Paul says] And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage),… [They had an agenda! They “came in by stealth” is a Greek word we have seen before- it’s the word “pareiserchomai” used in Romans 5:20 where it says, “the LAW ENTERED – pareiserchomai, came in alongside grace- that the offense might abound.”]

These men would slip in the back door to infiltrate their meetings in order to enslave them again to the law! And Paul wouldn’t put up with it for a moment:

Galatians 2:5 – …to whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. [Paul desperately  wanted the believers to stay free of the law!] 6 But from those who seemed to be something—whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man—for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me.

The deceivers were impressive and intimidating, but once again, we see that Paul had no fear of man. And like Paul, we have to be free of people’s opinions of us to truly help people!

Paul’s rebuke of Peter

Lets move to verse 11 where Paul to writes about a public, confrontation that he had had with Peter.

Galatians 2:11-13 – Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; 12 for before certain men came from James [they came from Jerusalem], he [Peter] would eat with the Gentiles; but when [these men] they came, he [Peter] withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. [The same Peter who was bold enough to stand against the false teaching that you had to be circumcised to be saved – was now afraid to eat the bacon and shrimp in front of those same guys] 13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him [Paul called Peter a hypocrite!], so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy. [Peter caused division in the body – because that’s what legalism does – and we can apply this to all forms of legalism – not just with church legalism – but also the cultural legalism that were living under today that I mentioned in an earlier session – legalism is a grace-hating spirit that causes division – and Paul was very upset about it.]

I think It’s incredible that Paul was the one to rebuked Peter:

• Who walked with Jesus during His time on earth? Peter or Paul? Peter.
• Who was saved first? Peter.
• To whom did Jesus say, “blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah….on the rock I will build My church…”(Matthew 16:17-18) Peter.
• Who preached on the day of Pentecost and 3000 people were saved? Peter.

• On the other hand, who was saved later? Paul. 
• Who was the persecutor of the church? Paul.

Paul rebuked Peter, the most prominent apostle and the oldest apostle in the church at that time, for compromising the gospel and walking in hypocisy.

How could Paul be so bold? Because he got it!  Paul, who said of himself in Acts 26 that he used to believed that he should do everything he could to oppose the very name of Jesus; and Paul, who said in 1 Timothy 1 that he had once been a a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; and in 1 Corinthians 15, he called himself the least of all the apostles, and in Ephesians 4 the least deserving of all believers in, and in 1 Timothy 1 the chief of all sinners. 

Of all people, Paul understood what Jesus had done for him, so he could not compromise on grace!  A few verses later in Galatians 2, he wrote

Galatians 2:19-21, The Message – What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that. Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily. [NKJV – if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.]

why did Jesus need to die if we can do it on our own?

Foolish Galatians

Now moving into chapter 3 – we have Paul’s greatest rebuke in the scriptures.

Galatians 3:1-3 – O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, [“obey” is the Greek word “peithō” which means “persuaded to believe.” In other words – “Who has cast an evil spell on you that you are no longer persuaded to believe what is true?”] before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? 2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

What is the “hearing of faith?” Believing. Remember the question the disciples asked Jesus?

John 6:28-29 – “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” [Believe is the work – we “receive the Spirit” by believing]

And then what does it mean to “receive the Spirit?” Do you remember when after His resurrection when Jesus came through the walls where His disciples were meeting, and John wrote – 

John 20:22 – He [Jesus] breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”

John 1:12-13 – [John wrote – ] As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. [God is a Spirit, so when we are born again, we are born of His Spirit]

John 3:6 – That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

When Paul asked the question “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?,” he was asking, “how were you saved? How were you born again? How were you made righteous in the first place? Was it because you kept 10 Commandments or because you believed the Gospel of the grace of Jesus Christ?

The obvious answer is they simply believed. And this was not just mental ascent.  This was the new birth.

Think about what it’s like when someone finally releases the burden of their guilt and shame at the foot of the cross, and they cry out to God for His mercy and forgiveness. That’s exactly what these Galatian believers had done at one time.

Think about what it means to turn to Jesus, who is “clearly portrayed among you as crucified” and see your sin in His body on the cross, and see Him washing your sin away in His blood and then taking your sin into the grave, and rising again without it, and then you receiving His life as your own.

That’s grace. That’s how we began, and that’s how we live it out every single day by grace in utter dependency on the Spirit of grace.

How tragic it would be for any of us to go back to the bondage of  self-righteousness,  identity in the flesh and the guilt, shame, and condemnation that comes with it!

Galatians 3:3-6 – Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? [“sarx” – self-effort] 4 Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? [“You were persecuted for this, are you going to cave in now!”] 5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? [Does God supply the Spirit and work miracles because of what we DO or because we BELIEVE?] 6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” [That’s the simple gospel.]

Slave vs Son

As Paul continues in Galatians 3 and into Galatians 4, he explains how this gospel isn’t just about what we believe, it’s about who we are. We are heirs and sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Christ has died and risen again, making US heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ – right now – spiritually speaking!

Paul contrasted being an heir – a son who is ready to inherit now — with a child, unable to inherit yet. He said being under law is like being a child who has no privileges, no inheritance, and no control over his life – he’s no different than a slave. 

Here are a couple of Greek words that he uses in Chapter 4:

• Huios – A mature son who inherits now
• Nepios – A baby or a young child unable to inherit yet

Galatians 4:1-2 – Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child [nepios], does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all 2 but is under guardians and stewards [this is an analogy to the LAW – guardians and stewards give the rules and control every movement] until the time appointed by the father. [So until that child is ready to receive his inheritance, he’s going to be under the heavy hand of the guardians and steward.]

Galatians 3:24-25 – [In Galatians 3:24, Paul said – ] Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. [We’re not under the law]

1 Timothy 1:9 – knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person

A child, as long as he is a child – even if he’s the richest kid in the kingdom and heir-apparent to the greatest estate – he is no has more privileges than the servants. 

So as long as he’s a child, even though one day he’ll be the master of all, he can’t enjoy his position. He can’t drive his dad’s Rolls Royce or write a check or do any of the things that inheritors do.

This passage is talking about the change from slaves under law (like a child) to sons under grace.

Galatians 4:3 – Even so we, when we were children [when we were under the law – nepios – unable to inherit], were in bondage under the elements of the world.

That phrase “elements of the world” is the Greek word “stoicheion” and in this context means being under rules and regulations with no say in the conduct of our own lives – like children in elementary school. That’s what living under the law is like.

“Just tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” It’s behavior modification. It’s no different than living like a slave. Law is for slaves.

Grace is for sons who have had a heart transformation – a new heart and a new spirit within and a new nature as a new creation.

We as sons,  live by the promptings of the Holy Spirit from within, not from the letter of the law from the outside. We live out of the love relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Sonship

Galatians 4:4-5 – But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son [huios, His heir], born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

“Adoption as sons” is one Greek word – “huiothesia” from the word “huios” which means a son with the nature of the father. So huiothesia is stronger than “adoption” in the sense that we think of it. As sons of God, we have His nature – His spiritual DNA. 

Galatians 4:6-7 – And because you are sons [huios], God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son [the Spirit of Jesus] into your hearts, [and just as Jesus cries out to His Father, we cry out to Him with the term of endearment – ] crying out, “Abba, [Daddy] Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son [huios], and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Are you free to call God “Daddy?” Are you comfortable in His presence?

We’re no longer slaves! The spirit of a slave brings an ungodly fear that tells us that we are not worthy to be in the presence of God.

There is no way to be comfortable in the presence of someone if we feel undeserving to be there. And if you fear someone, it’s just a matter of time that you will hate them. 

And because of legalism and this ungodly fear based on lies that they are unworthy, there are people who end up hating who they perceive God to be. That’s why we’ve got to tell this lost generation the truth about the God of grace and mercy.

Romans 8:15-16 – [In Romans 8, Paul also talked about the spirit of sonship] For you did not receive a spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of sonship [huiothesia] by which we cry out Abba Father. 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, 

Sonship is a matter of spirit. The Spirit of sonship is the Spirit of Jesus in our hearts and involves THREE things that Jesus came to give us:

• our sense of identity from our heavenly Father.
• our sense of acceptance from our heavenly Father.
• our sense of approval from our heavenly Father.

As joint-heir with Jesus, our Father also says to us:

Matthew 3:17, NIV – “This is my Son [that’s our IDENTITY], whom I love [that’s His ACCEPTANCE]; with Him I am well pleased [that’s His APPROVAL].”

The Yoke of Bondage

Further down in Galatians 4, Paul continues his discussion of sonship by contrasting two sons – a “son of promise” under grace vs. a “son of the flesh” under law by using the symbolism of two famous women and their sons.

Galatians 4:21-23— Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman. [The bondwoman was Hagar,  Sarah’s Egyptian slave girl; and the freewoman is Sarah, Abraham’s wife. The back story here is that God had promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations, but he had no children. When he was 86, Sarah got impatient and told him to sleep with Hagar, and Hagar conceived Ishmael] 23 But he who was of the bondwoman [Ishmael] was born according to the [Abraham’s] flesh [“flesh” / sarx = self-effort. Abraham was still able to father a child at 86 – he was still fruitful even if it was from his self-effort.], and he [who was born] of the freewoman through promise, [speaking of Isaac, born of Sarah. He was the child of promise because by age 99, when Isaac was conceived, Abraham was impotent, so God performed the promised miracle.] 

Sometimes God waits until we can’t possibly use our own effort to force a promise to happen. In His mercy, He closes all doors but the one of faith.

Galatians 4:24-29 – which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants:  [Paul is saying that these two ladies and these two sons represent the two covenants – law and grace. The Old Covenant and the New Covenant] the one from Mount Sinai [where the law was given] which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar— 25 for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, [Hagar was the Egyptian slave girl. That’s part of the analogy. When you think Egypt – think taskmaster. When you think “law,” think taskmaster. “for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia – ] and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children [speaking of those under the law even today]— 26 but the Jerusalem above is free, [the heavenly Jerusalem where we are in the Spirit!] which is the mother of us all. [Sarah, who represents grace, is the mother of us all! Grace is our mother! Faith is our father – Abraham (Romans 4:16) Grace and faith are our spiritual parents!]. 27 For it is written: [Paul quotes Isaiah 54:1 about barrenness and connects it to Sarah] “Rejoice, O barren, You who do not bear! Break forth and shout, You who are not in labor! For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband.” [Hagar had taken the place of the wife because Sarah was barren for so long. If you are a person of grace, it might seem for a while that you don’t see any results, but just keep on keepin on rejoicing because GRACE WILL BRING FORTH MORE FRUIT than legalism ever could! “If the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory”] 28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. 29 But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.

If you go back to Genesis 21 you will see the story of Ishmael persecuting Isaac.

Paul says, “Even so it is NOW…” Ishmael is still persecuting Issac. Keeping the symbolism that Paul is communicating – he’s not referring to what’s happening in the middle east – he is saying that the self-righteous, legalists will always persecute those who are of grace. I can personally attest to this! People who don’t understand grace and the freedom that it brings, hate it. It scares them!

Galatians 4:30-5:3, 9 – Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.” [Cast out legalism! You can’t receive the abundant life Jesus came to give us if you think you must earn it or deserve it. It must be received as a gift of grace.] 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free. 1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. [The yoke of the law! Next Paul gives the specific example of legalism that was giving them so much trouble at the time -] 2 Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. [In other words, “If you adhere to the law for righteousness, the blood of Jesus is worthless.” And as Paul put it in Galatians 2:21 – “if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”] 3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law [in other words, if you try to keep the law in one point, you better keep the whole law. ]… 9 A little leaven [speaking of the law] leavens the whole lump. [Put a little law in your grace and your grace became law.]

Put that side by side with – 

James 2:10 –  For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.

Law in all its forms and grace are mutually exclusive. They don’t mix.

Galatians 5:9, TPT – Don’t you know that when you allow even a little lie into your heart, [the lie of legalism: “Do this and you will be accepted. If not, you will be condemned.”] it can permeate your entire belief system? 

The Yoke of Jesus

The Old Covenant way of thinking was called the “yoke of the commandments.” It was a metaphor for acceptance of the body of thought taught by the rabbi’s from the Mosaic Law. But Jesus came bringing a whole new belief system.

Do you recall that Jesus mentioned a yoke? He was speaking to people who were heavy laden with the yoke of the law when He said,

Matthew 11:28-30 – Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [Rest from your striving] 29 Take My yoke [My way of thinking] upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy [My way of thinking is easy] and My burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30, The Message – “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

If that is our desire, then we can accept nothing less than the undiluted grace of God.

Copyright info: All scriptures in the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

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• The Message, Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson