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Paul's Autograph
Galatians 6:11-18 This week I was very
blessed with a 40th birthday gift from the church of an autographed copy of
George W. Bush's book, Decision Points.
I'm #175 of 1000 special edition recipients and I hope its $300 price
only increases over the years as I expect his legacy will be vindicated by
the hand of history. To think
the hand of the president touched that page!
How much better the hand of the Apostle Paul?! Three handwritings are
mentioned in this final section. The first is Paul's own handwriting. Ye see how large a letter I
have written unto you with mine own hand [Gal. 6:11]. "How large a letter"
doesn't mean a long letter. This Epistle to the Galatians is only six
chapters, while his Epistle to the Romans (which deals with practically the
same subject) is sixteen chapters. This could not be called a long letter.
But Paul is saying that he has written with large letters, which is
characteristic with those who have poor vision. This, I believe, bears out
the theory that Paul's "thorn in the flesh" was eye trouble (see 2 Cor.
12:7). As you recall, he had said to them earlier, "...I bear you record,
that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and
have given them to me" (Gal. 4:15). I am sure that Paul had a serious visual
problem. When Paul wrote his Epistle
to the Romans, he dictated it to a secretary. And at the conclusion of the
letter, Paul said to the secretary, "Now if you want to put in your
greetings, go ahead and do it." So in Romans 16:22 we have the secretary's
salutation: "I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord." However, when Paul wrote to
the Galatians, he was angry. He had heard that they were mixing the gospel
with law -- and when that is done, the gospel of the grace of God is
absolutely destroyed. He couldn't wait for a secretary to arrive -- he just
sat down and wrote to them himself. Because he didn't see clearly, he wrote
with large letters, and since he was angry, he may have used ALL CAPS
sometimes! Paul's Testimony (6:12-18) As many as desire to make a
fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they
should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ [Gal. 6:12]. By exerting pressure and
stressing circumcision among the Gentiles, the Judaizers hoped to escape the
anger and wrath of Jews who were not believers. The Judaizers were the
legalists of the day. Actually, you never get in trouble preaching legalism.
It appeals to the logical, natural man because law is given to appease him.
Most of us certainly feel that the old nature of some other guy should be
curbed. We can spot sin right
away as long as it's not in our own life. Most lost people are
legalists too. They see a
teenager zip thru an intersection or blow by a school and they want the cops
to come arrest them. They aren't
for God -- but they are for legalism. Every man wants the other man to obey
the law. Frankly, we also like a law
we can obey. When I was in school, I and my friend did some high jumping. In
those days we started off with a three and one-half foot jump. When I jumped
four feet, I had some difficulty. So when I practiced jumping, I always kept
the bar at the four foot level. That is the way most people are about
legalism. They want to be able to clear the hurdle, but they don't want it
to be too high for them. Legalism is popular. The grace of God is unpopular.
The human heart finds it repulsive. It is the offense of the Cross. For neither they themselves
who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that
they may glory in your flesh [Gal. 6:13]. By forcing the Gentiles to
be circumcised the Judaizers would gain the credit for bringing them under
the Law. It is interesting that
those who claim they live under the Law are not actually living by the Law.
Many people who say that they live by the Sermon on the Mount or 10
Commandments are hypocrites. They mean they 'try' to
live by them. But the law says
nothing about trying but about keeping.
If you break any at all you are guilty of all! Paul mentions that with
this tremendous statement: But God forbid that I
should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world
is crucified unto me, and I unto the world [Gal. 6:14]. Between Paul and the world
there was a cross. That should be the position of every believer today. That
will have more to do with shaping your conduct than anything else. You will
not boast about the fact that you are living a good life, or that you belong
to a certain church, or that you are a church officer, or a preacher, or a
Sunday school teacher. You will not be able to boast of anything. You will
just glory in the Cross and the One who died there. For in Christ Jesus neither
circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature
[Gal. 6:15]. This brings us to the
second kind of handwriting mentioned in these final verses... Circumcision was the
handwriting of religion and the Law. It was sort of a handwriting on the
body. It served as a badge signifying that you belonged under the Abrahamic
covenant. It never availed anything. Wearing a button or a pin, signifying
that you belong to a lodge or a fraternity can become almost meaningless.
"In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor
uncircumcision" -- uncircumcision is of no value either. These things carry
no value whatsoever. There are some today who like to boast of what great
sinners they were before their conversion. Well, whether or not you have
been circumcised -- whatever was your state -- is of no importance. The
essential thing is: Has the Spirit of God come into your life and made you a
new creature in Christ Jesus? This can come about only through faith in
Christ. You see, Paul would never
have had any difficulty with the legalism of his day if he had presented the
gospel as only a competitor in the field. Let me illustrate what I mean. We
have an abundance of soaps on the market. Those who promote them tell us
they will make you smell good or make you feel good or are kind to your
skin. So let's you and me get out a new brand of soap, and we'll call it
Clean, since getting you clean is the purpose of soap, and that seems to be
the one thing the advertisers have forgotten. We'll start advertising it by
claiming that it is the only soap that will make you clean. Our slogan will
be "Buy Clean and get clean." Now that will get us in trouble immediately
when we claim that it is the only soap that will get you clean.
Manufacturers of other soaps will really begin to howl. But this is what
Paul was claiming for the gospel. If he had said, "Judaism is good but
Christianity is better," he wouldn't have been in trouble, because that's
what advertisers say today -- our product is better than other soaps on the
market. That's competition. No one would dare say that their soap is the
only soap that would do the job. Notice that Paul is not
claiming that his soap is only a little better than the soap of Judaism; he
is saying that Judaism is nothing, that circumcision is nothing, that
whether you are circumcised or not circumcised is nothing. He is saying that
only the writing of the Holy Spirit in your life, giving you a new nature,
is essential. Now that is putting it on the line! Now we come to the third
and final handwriting presented to us in this section... And as many as walk
according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of
God. From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks
of the Lord Jesus [Gal. 6:16-17]. Notice the word marks. Paul
is saying, "I bear in my body the 'marks'" -- the Greek word is stigmata --
meaning 'scar marks.' If you want to see the handwriting of Jesus, look upon
Paul's body. In 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 he tells us, "Are they ministers of
Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes
above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five
times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once
was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in
the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers,
in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the
city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among
false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger
and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness." The stigmata were the
sufferings of Paul which he endured for the sake of the Lord Jesus. In Paul's day stigmata was
used in three ways. When a runaway slave was found and brought back to his
master, he was branded on the forehead. Also soldiers who belonged to famous
companies had the names of their commanders tattooed on their foreheads.
Then, too, devotees of a pagan goddess (and there was much of this in Asia
Minor and throughout the I lived as a boy in There's a 4th kind of
handwriting we can recognize in our text, in our world, and in our own
lives. It's the signature of
Satan. You can spot his
handwriting a mile off. He wants
to steal, kill, and destroy. We
need to stop complaining about life when things go wrong and recognize the
clear signature of our enemy, a roaming lion.
Then we can compare that to the handwriting on the wall...our God's
hand at work in life to get us through it and bring glory to Himself. Brethren, the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen [Gal. 6:18].
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NOTICE! Our sermons are free to download, copy and paste, edit and use as you see fit...but only our free subscribers get the newest messages, featured sermons, and some free gifts we shower on them from time to time! Help keep this service free by recommending it using the links above the sermon
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