Remember How You Were Saved!

TRANSCRIPT

I greet all of you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our text for today’s message is taken from Galatians chapter 3 verse 1 to 5. One of the saddest things to see is when a professed Christian moves away from the pure gospel and follows after a false gospel; a gospel that says you must believe in Jesus plus something else.

Throughout the history of the Church, there were many believers who have started very well. They believed in the fundamental truth of the Bible, but along the way, they were pulled away from the truth they first believed. They would add to their understanding of the gospel a set of rules and regulations, a set of do’s and don’ts, and unless you follow this legalistic system, you cannot be saved.

But this is not something new. It had already happened in the time of Cain and Abel. At the beginning in the book of Genesis, when Cain brought the fruit from the ground as an offering, believing that he could make himself right with God by his own goodness, by his own efforts. Unlike Abel, who brought the animal sacrifice, believing that he could only be made right with God through the ultimate Lamb whom God would send to save him, which was none other than Jesus Christ.

From then onwards, man has always tried to make himself right with God through his own efforts. Whether it be good works, giving money to charity, things he had done or not done, things he has said or not said, or other forms of sacrifices man thinks that he can make himself right with God. But there is only one way a man can be saved, and that is to believe in the pure gospel of grace. The salvation is received by faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross, plus nothing else.

That was the gospel the Apostle Paul had faithfully preached to the Galatians. And if you look back to Galatians chapter 1 verse 6 and 7, he said to them “I marvel” – which means, ‘I am amazed’ – “that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another” – which means, ‘It is not another of the same kind, but another of a different kind, a totally different gospel, a false gospel.’ “But there be some that trouble you, and would pervert” – or ‘distort’ – “the gospel of Christ.”

My friends, if the Galatians were to be pulled away from the truth of the gospel to a false gospel, it can also happen to us. Today we have the health, wealth and prosperity gospel that will falsely teach you that if you believe in Jesus Christ, you will be wealthy, healthy and successful; the New Age gospel and so forth. We must be extremely careful.

Here in this passage the Apostle Paul would be defending the pure gospel of grace, or the doctrine of justification by faith alone. The false teachers were teaching another gospel; a gospel plus circumcision, plus the ceremonies, rituals and requirements of the old covenant, and Paul reminded the Galatians [of] how they were saved in the first place. All of us would agree that our testimony in itself is not an absolute reliable, spiritual evidence because it is very subjective, it can be false, and it can be misunderstood. But when our testimony is built on spiritual truth, it can be a very powerful defence. That is exactly what Paul was trying to do. He asked the Galatians to consider their own testimonies, in the light of the work of Jesus Christ, the work of the Holy Spirit, and the work of our Heavenly Father. This is what we want to learn from today’s passage. The title is: ‘Remember How You Were Saved’.

I. Remember the work of Christ

Our first point is: ‘Remember the work of Christ’. Galatians 3 verse 1, “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?”

Let us consider several words in this verse. The first word is “foolish” which means not thinking, not being able to figure things out, or the failure to perceive. Have you ever encountered someone who says to you, ‘You think I’m foolish or stupid?’ He or she may be intellectual, may have a very high IQ. We are not referring to mental foolishness, but spiritual foolishness. Intellectually, scholarly, worldly, that person may be brilliant, but spiritually a fool. As the Psalmist says, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Psalm 14 verse 1. Surely the Galatians were very intelligent, clever people, able to engage themselves in all kinds of business dealings. But as far as spiritual matters were concerned, or things pertaining to their salvation, they were very careless; they were not able to think spiritually.

This word “foolish” has a mixture of anger, love, and surprise. Remember Jesus used this same word to rebuke the two disciples on the road to Emmaus and this is what Jesus said: “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets [have spoken]”, Luke 24 verse 25. They had studied the Old Testament, they had learned all the things that the prophets of old had prophesied, and yet failed to understand that as the Messiah – Jesus – not only had to die, but had to be raised from the grave.

The second word is “bewitched”, which means to be captivated and fascinated in a misleading way. In other words, Paul was saying, ‘Who has misled you? Or dragged you away from the truth, so much so that you now refuse to obey the truth. You were saved and transformed by the powerful gospel in the crucified Christ and now you are are going back to Judaism; believing in Jesus plus something else. Why are you doing that? Do you not remember before your eyes “Jesus hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you”?’ (Galatians 3:1) The original word for “evidently set forth” was a word used for posting official notices in the market place, or in public places, for everyone to see. In a spiritual sense, Jesus Christ was lifted up, publicly declared, crucified before the very eyes of the Galatians. It does not mean that the Galatians were physically present at the foot of the Cross at Calvary. 

When Paul faithfully wrote and preached the gospel, he had described the crucifixion of Christ so clearly that those who listened to his message, they could almost see the nails being driven into Jesus’ hands and feet. As Jesus hung on that cross, they could feel Jesus struggling to breathe. And each time He had to breathe, he had to push Himself upward to draw air into the lungs. And there would be this excruciating pain as the nails ripped through the veins and bones. The air could be inhaled into the lungs but it could not be exhaled. They could feel our Lord struggling to breathe each time He tried to take just one breath. They could visualise the blood flowing from His sides. So in a spiritual sense they were brought to the foot of the cross. Through the gospel message they saw how Jesus was crucified right before their eyes.

On Monday morning we had our Monash Gardens Elderly Worship Service. There was this elderly woman who could hardly speak because of some infirmities and the moment we sang ‘The Old Rugged Cross’, she started to cry. I could see her lips moving and singing according to the lyrics but I could not hear any voice coming out from her. It was as if she was brought to the foot of the cross and reminded of how Jesus died for her on that rugged Cross – so she started to weep. Have you ever, in your own quiet time, read the Bible and you come to a portion of Scriptures – something that happened more than two thousand years ago – but the moment you read it, you cannot help it but to cry? It was as if you were brought to the very place where Jesus was persecuted; He was spat at, they beat Him, they crucified Him – you were there.

Remember in our previous message we have learned what it meant to be crucified with Christ. In Galatians 2 verse 20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” As believers, when Jesus saved us and redeemed us through the gospel message, we were brought to the cross of Calvary where we saw our Lord Jesus crucified right before our eyes, because of our sins. At that moment whatever happened to Him, happened to us. When He died, we died. When He was buried, we were buried. When He was risen, we were risen in the newness of life as a new man in Christ. Therefore the Galatians had seen the crucified Christ through the gospel message.  They were crucified with Him but now they were bewitched; they were dragged away from this pure gospel to another gospel, to the legalistic teaching of Judaism. When they did that, essentially they were denying the power of Christ’s resurrection by which He had paid the penalty of their sins and bought their salvation. My friends, it is Christ and Christ alone, and not Christ plus something else. The moment we believe Christ plus something else, we are denying the power of Christ’s crucifixion that is able to pay the penalty of our sins. We must never do that.

II. Remember the work of the Holy Spirit

Next Paul moved to remind the Galatians a second thing: ‘Remember the work of the Holy Spirit”. Look at verse 2, “This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” Here Paul was saying, ‘This is the only thing I want to find out from you.’ In other words, let me ask you this question, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit by the works of the law? Was it through some special ceremonies? Or was it through some rituals that were performed? Or did you receive the Holy Spirit the very same moment you believed in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour?’ In our modern context we would have asked this question in this way, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit through baptism or attending church or serving God in the different ministries?’ The answer is very obvious. We received the Holy Spirit at the very same moment we believed in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, right? 

We must understand the work of the Holy Spirit in our salvation and in our Christian lives. The Holy Spirit convicts the heart of the lost sinner and reveals Christ to him. When the sinner believes in Christ, he is born of the Spirit; the Spirit indwells in him and he is a new man in Christ. Romans 8 verse 9 says, “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” So every believer has the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit helps the believer to live his life on this earth. He assists the believer to pray, especially in times when he does not know how to and is incapable of praying. The Holy Spirit assists him to read and understand the Bible, to worship and serve God, to walk in the path of righteousness, to comfort him, to strengthen him, and so forth. When he disobeys God and His Word, he is grieving the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30).  When he continues to live in sin, he is quenching the Holy Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19). This does not mean that the Holy Spirit will leave him because Jesus had promised that the Spirit abides with the believer for ever (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit will never leave you. You will not lose your salvation, but you will lose the fellowship, the joy, the power that you need to live a godly Christian life. That is the reason why so many Christians are so sad, unhappy, miserable and ineffective. Not that they have lost their salvation, but they have lost the fellowship; they have lost the joy and power of the Holy Spirit because of sin.

How do we know that Heaven will be our eternal home and all the blessings? How do we know all these things will surely come to pass? Ephesians 1 verse 13 tells us when we believe in Christ “ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance”. The word “earnest” means ‘the pledge’. A pledge is like a down payment given to somebody intending to make a purchase. You know like giving an engagement ring to a girl; that man promised that he is going to marry her. The Holy Spirit is given to the believer as a divine guarantee; that every thing God has promised regarding our heavenly inheritance will surely come to pass. The gift of the Holy Spirit is the greatest proof of our salvation; it is the guarantee of our eternal glory.

Most certainly the Galatians will respond, ‘We have received the Holy Spirit at the very same moment we believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.’ So how then could you be deceived by the false teachers in thinking that the Holy Spirit will come to you by your own efforts, by your own works? That was Paul’s line of argument.

He went on to say in verse 3, look at verse 3. "Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” Which means the moment you were saved, the Holy Spirit convicted your heart, indwelled in you, helped you, guided you, led you, empowered you. It was a spiritual, supernatural work. From then onwards you began to live your transformed life. But now you are trying to make perfect what the Holy Spirit had begun in your life. You are trying to be spiritually mature by your own efforts – by the work of the flesh. That is what it means. Do you think you are better than the Holy Spirit? You can do a better job than the Holy Spirit? Do you believe in that? Are you so foolish?

Today we have many movements, like the Charismatic movement. They will tell you there are special conditions or requirements that you must have, or you must do, in order to have blessings added onto the perfect finished work of Jesus Christ and then you can receive a greater fulness of the Holy Spirit. In a certain sense they are teaching a different “fulness” of the Holy Spirit. They are teaching that there are different categories of Christians, different levels. At the lowest level are the normal Christians and then the next level are the Christians who can speak in tongues. That is why they are so eager to have Charismatic classes – to teach the people to roll their tongues, to repeat certain words and phrases, and then speak in Charismatic tongues. And the next level are Christians who can interpret those Charismatic tongues. Further up the ladder there will be Christians who can prophesy, as in foretell the future. And finally there are those Christians who can interpret those prophecies. My friends, there’s no such thing as the different levels of the Holy Spirit. And there’s no such thing as the different categories of Christian. These things are never taught in the Bible. When God saved us, you and I received the fulness of the Holy Spirit at the very same moment we believed in Jesus Christ. Not some part of it; the fulness of it.

Verse 4. “Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain.” The basic idea of the word “suffered” means ‘to experience’, and the phrase “by so many things”, or ‘so many things’ is a reference to the believers’ experience with Christ and the Holy Spirit. By faith, the believer saw Jesus Christ crucified for his sins, he believed in Christ and at the very same moment he was indwelled by the Holy Spirit, having experienced the work of Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit. If he thinks the Judaizers are right and that it must be Jesus plus something else – the work of the Holy Spirit plus something else – then Paul says every thing would be in vain. Right? If it is Jesus plus something else, it is the Holy Spirit plus something else, then every thing – every thing that you and I believe in – would be in vain. Meaningless. What Jesus and what the Holy Spirt cannot achieve, neither can you and I. It would be impossible.

III. Remember the work of the Father

Our final point is: ‘Remember the work of the Father’. Jesus said in Luke 11 verse 9 – maybe you can turn with me to Luke 11 verse 9 – allow me to read for you. The gospel of Luke 11 verse 9, Jesus said, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Jesus was referring to salvation and he went on to say, verse 11, “If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?” Verse 13, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” So the Holy Spirit was a gift and it was given to us by the Heavenly Father.

Back to our text, Galatians 3 verse 5, “He” – the Heavenly Father – “therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” Allow me to explain. The word “ministereth” means to supply. God the Father continues to supply to the believers the fulness of the Spirit, in power and in blessing, and it continues to work miracles among us through His Spirit. This miracle is the transformation of life. This miracle is the wonderful change God is doing in your life and my life as believers; through the church, through the fellowship groups, Bible studies, the Home Care Groups, prayer meetings, church camps, youth camps, Christian literature, your quiet time. God will use His Word and the wonder working of His Spirit to wrought this miracle in us, this transformation in us.

Once there was an alcoholic, a terrible drinker, who had spent all his money on drinks. He became a Christian. He gave up his drinking habits and he tried to evangelise to his friends.  His friends were very sceptical and they said to him, ‘Do you really believe in the miracles in the Bible?’ The Christian replied, ‘Of course I do’. They laughed and said, ‘Do you mean that you really believe that Jesus could turn water into wine?’ He replied, ‘I sure do. In my home, he had turned wine into food, into clothes, into furniture.’

At the beginning of our message we said that our testimony in itself is not an absolute reliable spiritual evidence. That is why whenever we use our testimony to defend the gospel, people would challenge that it is very subjective. It can be false, we may be delusional, it can be misunderstood. But my friends, deep down in our hearts, we know our own testimonies. We know who we really are. You and I know whether our lives are truly transformed or not. Nobody needs to tell us, we know ourselves. We know why we come to church this morning. We know why we are worshipping, why we are fellowshipping, why we are serving, why we are giving of our tithes and offerings. Whether it is for the sake of our parents, or for the sake of our children, or for whatever obligations we may have in our minds. Or is it because God the Heavenly Father has given to us the Holy Spirit and He is working in your hearts and my heart, transforming our lives through His Spirit, compelling us to do all these things. You and I know who we really are. Nobody needs to tell us; we know. 

That was exactly what Paul was telling the Galatians. You know your own testimonies. You know your own transformed lives, whether it is the work of your heavenly Father. If it is the work of your heavenly Father, then the next question is to ask, ‘Is it because of your own effort? Is it because of your own strength? Or is it because of the hearing of faith?' You have heard the voice of God speaking to you through His Word – through His indwelling Spirit – compelling you and then you respond by obeying Him. The question is, ‘Is it by your own strength, by your own effort, by your own works? Or is it by the hearing of faith?’

My friends, if we have truly been brought to the foot of the cross, we have seen how Jesus was crucified on that cross to save us, how He shed his precious blood to wash away our sins, we were crucified with Him. At that very moment when we believed in Him, the Holy Spirit indwelled in us. Our Heavenly Father was the one who gave the Holy Spirit to us, and He is working this miracle in us – this transformation of life – moment by moment.

If that is true, then we take no pride, absolutely no pride at all. All the things that we are doing is because of Him. You and I will not be murmuring and complaining about our services; why do some people serve more and others serve less? Why must I be the one who is always doing all these things? We will not be struggling about our tithes and offerings. We will not grumble about supporting missions. We will not struggle about having so many fellowships groups. Why so many Bible studies? We will not drag our feet to church because we are doing all these things through Him who is working in us. 

The reason why we always complain, and why we always murmur, is because we still think that it is because of our own strength, because of our own wisdom, and our own works, that we are doing all these things. That is not what it means to be crucified with Christ. To be crucified with Christ means that we have died with Him. It is no longer I that liveth, but Christ that liveth in me (Galatians 2:20). We take no pride, and because there’s no pride God will remind us, ‘Do not grumble, do not complain, do not struggle. It is Me who has given you this gift – the Holy Spirit. I am working this miracle in you, transforming your life.’ May the Lord forgive us if there are times we have said things that are not biblical; we have murmured and complained, we have not served him with the right heart attitude, we have not been totally committed to Him.

The Lord has reminded us, it’s nothing about us, it is God who is working through us.  He has reminded us, the work of our Lord Jesus on the Cross of Calvary.  He has reminded us, the work of the Holy Spirit, as believers the Spirit dwells in us and worketh in us.  He has reminded us, that this is a gift from our Heavenly Father and till today, until we die, He is working in our lives, transforming us, and this is called the miracle of life.  So let us humble ourselves and say, ‘We are but Thy creatures, we are but instruments.  Lord I will not complain, I will do whatever the Spirit leadeth me.  Until I see my Lord face to face.  Strengthen me, help me.  All to the glory of God.’

Let us pray.  Our Father in heaven, we thank Thee for enabling us to consider this portion of Scriptures.  Indeed, how Thou has used the Apostle Paul, inspired him, to write such an Epistle and how he is able to defend the pure the gospel of grace.  It is Christ alone plus nothing else.  Oh Lord indeed, not even ourselves, we are just instruments.  Help us that we will not take pride in the things we do.  Help us that even as we serve Thee, we have this heart attitude that is right with Thee.  Help us to always consider how we were saved.  It is truly the work of our Lord Jesus Christ, it the work of the Holy Spirit, and it is the work of the Heavenly Father.  And we yield ourselves to Thee and ask that Thou wilt continue to do Thou mighty transforming work in each and everyone of our lives. This we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

SERMON OUTLINE

• I. Remember the work of Christ
• II. Remember the work of the Holy Spirit
• III. Remember the work of the Father

THE BOOK OF GALATIANS

A Letter To The Galatians

A Letter To The Galatians

Galatians 1:1-5

The Danger of Preaching Another Gospel

The Danger of Preaching Another Gospel

Galatians 1:6-9

Be a God-Pleaser, not a Men-Pleaser

Be a God-Pleaser, not a Men-Pleaser

Galatians 1:10-12

But When It Pleased God

But When It Pleased God

Galatians 1:13-24

Standing for the Truth of the Gospel

Standing for the Truth of the Gospel

Galatians 2:1-5

One Gospel, Different Ministries

One Gospel, Different Ministries

Galatians 2:6-10

The Need to Confront Sin (Part 2)

The Need to Confront Sin (Part 2)

Galatians 2:14-16

The Need to Confront Sin (Part 3)

The Need to Confront Sin (Part 3)

Galatians 2:17-19

Dead, Yet Alive!

Dead, Yet Alive!

Galatians 2:20-21

Remember How You Were Saved!

Remember How You Were Saved!

Galatians 3:1-5

Saved by Faith

Saved by Faith

Galatians 3:6-9

The Age Old Promise of the Gospel

The Age Old Promise of the Gospel

Galatians 3:6-18

Christ Bore Our Curse

Christ Bore Our Curse

Galatians 3:10-14

Will God Keep His Promise?

Will God Keep His Promise?

Galatians 3:15-18

Why Then Have the Law?

Why Then Have the Law?

Galatians 3:19-22

What the Law Meant to Us?

What the Law Meant to Us?

Galatians 3:23-29

The Son of God Became the Son of Man

The Son of God Became the Son of Man

Galatians 4:1-7

No More a Servant and Child, But a Son

No More a Servant and Child, But a Son

Galatians 4:1-7

Until Christ Be Formed In You

Until Christ Be Formed In You

Galatians 4:8-20

Freedom in Christ or Bondage to Works

Freedom in Christ or Bondage to Works

Galatians 4:21-5:1

By Faith Or By Works!

By Faith Or By Works!

Galatians 5:2-6

The Dangers of False Teachers

The Dangers of False Teachers

Galatians 5:7-12

The Christian Freedom

The Christian Freedom

Galatians 5:13-15

The Works of the Flesh

The Works of the Flesh

Galatians 5:19-21

The Fruit of the Spirit (Part 2)

The Fruit of the Spirit (Part 2)

Galatians 5:22-25

Restoring the Sinning Brother

Restoring the Sinning Brother

Galatians 5:26-6:5

Restoring the Sinning Brethren

Restoring the Sinning Brethren

Galatians 5:26-6:6

You Shall Reap What You Sow

You Shall Reap What You Sow

Galatians 6:7-10

Living for the Praise of Men

Living for the Praise of Men

Galatians 6:11-13

Living for the Glory of God

Living for the Glory of God

Galatians 6:14-18