WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.080 Well, good morning, church. Would you turn with me to Galatians chapter 2? We are looking at verses 1-10 today. 00:00:10.080 --> 00:00:17.500 ! As you turn there, I just want to express some thanksgiving for all the good things that have been happening lately in our church body, 00:00:17.500 --> 00:00:25.879 the three-week women's Bible study that just concluded, the men's breakfast yesterday. I also continue to hear about good things happening in small groups. 00:00:25.879 --> 00:00:34.700 How many of you, raise your hand, are part of a Trinity small group? It's like 90% of the church right here. 00:00:36.159 --> 00:00:44.879 So, you know, I'm sure there were lots of hands at home too. You know, it's encouraging to see the Word of God reverberating in our church fellowship 00:00:44.879 --> 00:00:53.379 as we build each other up in love, as Paul says in Ephesians 4. Well, let's go ahead and take a look at our passage in Galatians 2. 00:00:53.380 --> 00:01:03.580 As we come to this text, let me pray for us. Father, help us now as we come to Your Word. Lord, would we be edified by Your Spirit? 00:01:04.960 --> 00:01:11.900 Would we be built up in love? Would we be strengthened in our faith? Would we be renewed in our hope? 00:01:13.560 --> 00:01:15.300 We ask this in Christ's name. Amen. 00:01:16.300 --> 00:01:19.260 All right, Galatians 2, 1-10. Paul writes this, 00:01:19.260 --> 00:01:49.240 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, 00:01:49.239 --> 00:01:55.000 so that they might bring us into slavery, to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, 00:01:55.359 --> 00:01:58.500 so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. 00:01:59.879 --> 00:02:04.119 And from those who seemed to be influential, what they were makes no difference to me. 00:02:04.219 --> 00:02:05.459 God shows no partiality. 00:02:06.139 --> 00:02:08.939 Those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. 00:02:09.780 --> 00:02:14.579 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, 00:02:14.580 --> 00:02:18.300 just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised, 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:22.640 for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised, 00:02:23.040 --> 00:02:25.939 worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles. 00:02:26.740 --> 00:02:31.439 And when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, 00:02:32.300 --> 00:02:35.120 they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:39.760 that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 00:02:39.759 --> 00:02:47.439 Only they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do. 00:02:48.780 --> 00:02:56.199 So, our passage today is about unity in the gospel, gospel unity. 00:02:57.319 --> 00:02:59.819 Now, let's remember the context here. 00:02:59.979 --> 00:03:06.560 In these early chapters of Galatians, Paul is responding to false charges and criticism 00:03:06.560 --> 00:03:12.599 that he not only received his gospel message from the other apostles in Jerusalem, 00:03:12.599 --> 00:03:18.300 but also that he had been misrepresenting the gospel that the other apostles preached. 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:27.580 In other words, there were false teachers in Galatia saying that Paul's message was both derivative and deficient, 00:03:28.060 --> 00:03:32.819 kind of like a photocopy of a photocopy, all kind of blurry and darkened and faded. 00:03:33.240 --> 00:03:35.439 They were saying that his gospel wasn't the real thing. 00:03:35.439 --> 00:03:44.120 So, in response to these charges, Paul, in chapters 1 and 2 of Galatians, gives us some autobiography. 00:03:44.879 --> 00:03:49.879 In fact, if you're looking for a handy outline of the book of Galatians, chapters 1 and 2 are biography, 00:03:50.120 --> 00:03:54.060 chapters 3 and 4 are theology, and chapters 5 and 6 are ethics. 00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:57.079 And Paul's going to walk through each of those as we go through this book. 00:03:57.599 --> 00:04:00.460 But in these first two chapters, he's giving us some autobiography. 00:04:00.460 --> 00:04:08.379 In chapter 1, we heard Paul tell the story of how he received his gospel not from the other apostles, 00:04:08.560 --> 00:04:10.860 but directly from Jesus Christ himself. 00:04:11.939 --> 00:04:18.160 In chapter 1, verses 11 through 24, Paul tells the story of how his apostolic message and ministry 00:04:18.160 --> 00:04:26.220 were not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead, 00:04:26.220 --> 00:04:29.260 which is how the book starts in verse 1. 00:04:30.840 --> 00:04:36.180 So, last week we saw Paul respond to this false charge that his gospel isn't the real gospel 00:04:36.180 --> 00:04:40.660 by showing how he received it directly from Jesus independently of the other apostles. 00:04:40.660 --> 00:04:50.800 But today, in the passage we just read from chapter 2, Paul now argues that even though his gospel 00:04:50.800 --> 00:05:00.520 doesn't depend on the other apostles, it is in fact the same gospel that they preach. 00:05:02.100 --> 00:05:09.980 Here, Paul recounts how some of the apostles in Jerusalem, far from preaching a different gospel than Paul, 00:05:09.980 --> 00:05:13.939 affirmed and validated Paul's gospel as their gospel too. 00:05:15.740 --> 00:05:19.080 In other words, despite what the false teachers were saying to the Galatians, 00:05:19.460 --> 00:05:26.520 Paul's gospel and what we might call the one true apostolic gospel are one and the same. 00:05:26.519 --> 00:05:35.519 The gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the good news, that God justifies sinners, 00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:44.419 whether Jew or Gentile, by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, apart from our works. 00:05:45.399 --> 00:05:51.039 That is the one true apostolic gospel. 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:56.260 So, don't let anyone deceive you or mislead you, Paul says. 00:05:56.780 --> 00:05:59.140 This isn't just my gospel, Paul's saying. 00:05:59.300 --> 00:06:00.520 It's the gospel. 00:06:01.960 --> 00:06:03.860 God raised Jesus from the dead. 00:06:04.879 --> 00:06:06.700 He is Lord and Christ. 00:06:07.860 --> 00:06:12.259 And all who are united to the Lord Jesus by faith are released from all their guilt, 00:06:12.740 --> 00:06:14.980 accepted as righteous in God's sight, 00:06:14.980 --> 00:06:19.560 and become full members and participants in God's family and God's kingdom. 00:06:21.920 --> 00:06:24.280 So, what we have here in chapter 2, verses 1 through 10, 00:06:24.319 --> 00:06:27.960 is Paul recounting an episode from earlier in his life 00:06:27.960 --> 00:06:33.980 where this apostolic unity in the gospel was affirmed and established. 00:06:33.980 --> 00:06:41.400 And with the time that we have, I want to take a closer look at this gospel unity 00:06:41.400 --> 00:06:45.439 because I think there are a lot of things that we can learn from it today. 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:48.140 I want to pull out three lessons for us. 00:06:48.780 --> 00:06:49.600 The first one is this. 00:06:50.439 --> 00:06:54.080 Gospel unity is worth pursuing. 00:06:54.620 --> 00:06:56.340 Gospel unity is worth pursuing. 00:06:56.439 --> 00:06:57.620 Look again at verses 1 and 2. 00:06:58.100 --> 00:06:58.480 Paul says, 00:06:58.480 --> 00:07:01.200 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, 00:07:01.259 --> 00:07:02.460 taking Titus along with me. 00:07:02.459 --> 00:07:05.379 I went up because of a revelation and set before them, 00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:07.959 though privately, before those who seemed influential, 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:10.339 the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles 00:07:10.339 --> 00:07:14.859 in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. 00:07:14.939 --> 00:07:19.479 Now, Paul here is most likely describing the visit 00:07:19.479 --> 00:07:25.419 that he and Barnabas made to Jerusalem at the end of Acts 11. 00:07:25.899 --> 00:07:29.740 If we pick up where our first Scripture reading left off this morning, 00:07:30.299 --> 00:07:31.539 we read this. 00:07:31.540 --> 00:07:32.379 It says, 00:07:32.379 --> 00:07:36.460 Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch, 00:07:36.920 --> 00:07:39.860 and one of them, named Agabus, stood up and foretold by the Spirit 00:07:39.860 --> 00:07:41.939 how there would be a great famine all over the world. 00:07:42.319 --> 00:07:43.800 This took place in the days of Claudius. 00:07:44.520 --> 00:07:47.439 So the disciples determined everyone according to his ability 00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:49.720 to send relief to the brothers living in Judea, 00:07:50.259 --> 00:07:55.280 and they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Sahal. 00:07:55.279 --> 00:08:02.079 So, we see there that Paul and Barnabas went up to Jerusalem because of a revelation 00:08:02.079 --> 00:08:06.159 that a famine was soon to come, and they brought relief to the churches in Judea. 00:08:06.879 --> 00:08:16.319 But while Paul is there, he makes an express point to go to the other apostles living in Jerusalem 00:08:16.319 --> 00:08:20.459 and to make sure that they are proclaiming the same gospel. 00:08:20.959 --> 00:08:24.339 Now, why does Paul go through the trouble to set up this private meeting? 00:08:25.599 --> 00:08:26.500 Well, he says, 00:08:26.500 --> 00:08:37.460 Now, Paul doesn't mean that he was worried over the accuracy or truthfulness of what he was teaching. 00:08:37.580 --> 00:08:42.500 He wasn't sort of checking in with the Jerusalem apostles to see whether he had gotten it right or wrong, right? 00:08:42.539 --> 00:08:45.139 He had been doing ministry for 14 years at this point. 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:47.360 According to chapter 1 of Galatians, 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:51.200 Paul was quite sure that the message he received was from Jesus himself. 00:08:51.279 --> 00:08:52.200 It was the true gospel. 00:08:52.200 --> 00:08:56.360 So, if Paul didn't have misgivings about his own preaching, what was he concerned about? 00:08:58.140 --> 00:09:02.900 Well, Paul realized that if he and the leaders in Jerusalem were not on the same page, 00:09:03.680 --> 00:09:07.460 then all his work among the Gentiles would be severely threatened. 00:09:08.780 --> 00:09:09.180 Why? 00:09:11.340 --> 00:09:13.540 Well, you know why, right? 00:09:13.640 --> 00:09:16.300 Imagine Pastor Matt got up one week and said, 00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:21.100 God saves sinners through faith in Christ, so believe in Him and be saved. 00:09:22.200 --> 00:09:23.960 And then the next week I got up and said, 00:09:24.680 --> 00:09:27.259 God saves sinners through faith in Jesus Christ, 00:09:27.480 --> 00:09:30.980 if you also get circumcised and keep the regulations of Moses. 00:09:33.160 --> 00:09:38.040 So, believe in Jesus, get circumcised, keep the law, and then you'll be saved. 00:09:40.300 --> 00:09:43.840 Well, everything that Matt had done the previous week 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:47.560 would be severely undermined by me the following week. 00:09:47.559 --> 00:09:51.979 And that's exactly what Paul didn't want to happen 00:09:51.979 --> 00:09:56.699 between his and Barnabas' ministry in Antioch at this point in history 00:09:56.699 --> 00:09:59.099 and the apostles' ministry in Jerusalem. 00:10:00.679 --> 00:10:03.759 So, their gospel unity was worth pursuing. 00:10:04.059 --> 00:10:04.339 Why? 00:10:04.459 --> 00:10:06.319 So that their labors wouldn't be in vain. 00:10:06.320 --> 00:10:14.180 As Paul and Barnabas pioneered the gospel work in Antioch among the Galatians, 00:10:14.260 --> 00:10:18.940 they knew it was vital to establish the unity of the gospel message. 00:10:19.420 --> 00:10:22.000 They needed to be proclaiming the same gospel 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:23.620 or else their labors would be in vain. 00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:26.400 So they took the time to meet together 00:10:26.400 --> 00:10:29.820 and to talk through what they believed and why 00:10:29.820 --> 00:10:34.320 to make sure that they held the most important thing in unison. 00:10:35.800 --> 00:10:38.160 Gospel unity is worth pursuing. 00:10:39.820 --> 00:10:41.700 Now, today, this is important still. 00:10:42.379 --> 00:10:45.480 It's important between local churches, right? 00:10:45.540 --> 00:10:47.860 We want to partner with other churches 00:10:47.860 --> 00:10:50.760 who believe and proclaim the biblical gospel. 00:10:50.900 --> 00:10:54.280 Of course, it takes time to get to know other ministries 00:10:54.280 --> 00:10:55.980 and other leaders in our city. 00:10:56.780 --> 00:10:59.640 It takes time to learn about church planting networks, 00:10:59.820 --> 00:11:02.300 with whom we're on the same page, right? 00:11:02.340 --> 00:11:05.920 It takes time to get to know other congregations 00:11:05.920 --> 00:11:08.460 throughout our region. 00:11:09.600 --> 00:11:13.220 But this unity in the gospel is worth pursuing. 00:11:14.760 --> 00:11:19.200 I'm incredibly grateful that Trinity can be a part of church networks 00:11:19.200 --> 00:11:21.200 that hold the gospel in common, 00:11:21.200 --> 00:11:24.380 whether it's our local Connecticut Baptist Association 00:11:24.380 --> 00:11:26.900 or whether it's our New Haven Network, 00:11:27.020 --> 00:11:29.320 Bridges of Hope with other gospel-preaching churches, 00:11:29.320 --> 00:11:32.379 or whether it's the gospel coalition nationally. 00:11:33.020 --> 00:11:35.340 We want to pursue this gospel unity. 00:11:35.540 --> 00:11:38.560 You see, local churches aren't meant to be just little islands 00:11:38.560 --> 00:11:41.260 pretending as if we can simply do it alone. 00:11:42.700 --> 00:11:45.440 We need to pursue unity in the gospel with other churches 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:46.900 so that we don't run the race in vain. 00:11:46.899 --> 00:11:52.019 But this isn't just true between local churches. 00:11:52.019 --> 00:11:56.000 It's even more true within a local church. 00:11:57.199 --> 00:12:02.220 Our unity here at Trinity is grounded in one thing, 00:12:02.600 --> 00:12:04.759 the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:12:06.539 --> 00:12:11.059 If as fellow members of the church we don't hold the gospel in common, 00:12:11.679 --> 00:12:13.740 then surely all our labors will be in vain. 00:12:13.740 --> 00:12:19.120 I've actually witnessed churches where unity is not based on the gospel, 00:12:19.259 --> 00:12:22.000 but on family heritage or mutual friendship 00:12:22.000 --> 00:12:25.200 or on appreciation for a certain tradition 00:12:25.200 --> 00:12:27.779 or on a worship aesthetic 00:12:27.779 --> 00:12:31.919 or on similar, you know, interests in social causes. 00:12:32.120 --> 00:12:35.519 And eventually, friends, those churches fall apart. 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:41.059 Most churches that splinter and die 00:12:41.059 --> 00:12:43.860 or that wither in stagnation do so 00:12:43.860 --> 00:12:47.259 because they haven't done the necessary and hard work 00:12:47.259 --> 00:12:49.899 of pursuing unity in the gospel. 00:12:52.299 --> 00:12:55.879 So at Trinity, we ask every incoming member, 00:12:56.860 --> 00:12:58.840 tell me, what's your understanding of the gospel? 00:12:58.840 --> 00:13:03.800 In a nutshell, what is this life-saving good news? 00:13:05.639 --> 00:13:08.220 We want to ask that question and pursue it. 00:13:08.300 --> 00:13:11.360 We want to make it a point to put the gospel front and center 00:13:11.360 --> 00:13:14.560 because if we don't have unity in the gospel, 00:13:15.580 --> 00:13:18.259 then we're simply running in vain. 00:13:20.060 --> 00:13:22.160 And, you know, this isn't true just between local churches 00:13:22.160 --> 00:13:23.720 or within local churches. 00:13:24.139 --> 00:13:27.259 I mean, think about some of our most important relationships, right? 00:13:27.259 --> 00:13:30.879 I think we can also say that pursuing unity in the gospel 00:13:30.879 --> 00:13:33.740 is critical in something like marriage, for example. 00:13:34.480 --> 00:13:37.279 If you're considering a potential spouse, 00:13:38.139 --> 00:13:41.279 unity in the gospel is absolutely necessary. 00:13:42.299 --> 00:13:45.100 If you don't share a common understanding of the gospel, 00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:48.299 then your marriage simply won't have the foundation 00:13:48.299 --> 00:13:50.740 to support you through all the ups and downs 00:13:50.740 --> 00:13:52.519 and trials and joys of married life. 00:13:53.419 --> 00:13:54.980 And if you're already married 00:13:54.980 --> 00:13:57.240 and you find that you don't currently have this sort of unity, 00:13:57.259 --> 00:14:00.580 then make it your regular, earnest prayer 00:14:00.580 --> 00:14:02.100 that God would bring this about. 00:14:04.259 --> 00:14:05.439 Call out to God. 00:14:05.539 --> 00:14:07.039 Go to His throne of grace. 00:14:08.220 --> 00:14:09.620 He hears your prayers. 00:14:12.559 --> 00:14:14.879 So we see first that gospel unity here 00:14:14.879 --> 00:14:16.259 is worth pursuing. 00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:18.860 The next lesson we see is that 00:14:18.860 --> 00:14:21.819 in our pursuit of gospel unity, 00:14:23.179 --> 00:14:25.580 gospel truth must be defended. 00:14:25.580 --> 00:14:28.280 In our pursuit of gospel unity, 00:14:28.379 --> 00:14:30.200 the truth of the gospel needs to be defended. 00:14:30.560 --> 00:14:32.160 We see this in verses 3 through 5, 00:14:32.259 --> 00:14:32.920 where Paul says, 00:14:33.000 --> 00:14:34.480 but even Titus, who was with me, 00:14:34.900 --> 00:14:36.420 was not forced to be circumcised, 00:14:36.460 --> 00:14:37.360 though he was Greek. 00:14:37.940 --> 00:14:39.920 Yet, because a false brother 00:14:39.920 --> 00:14:41.220 secretly brought in, 00:14:41.300 --> 00:14:42.920 who slipped in to spy out our freedom 00:14:42.920 --> 00:14:44.020 that we have in Christ Jesus 00:14:44.020 --> 00:14:45.660 so that they might bring us into slavery, 00:14:46.280 --> 00:14:47.620 to them we did not yield in submission 00:14:47.620 --> 00:14:48.600 even for a moment 00:14:48.600 --> 00:14:49.879 so that the truth of the gospel 00:14:49.879 --> 00:14:51.160 might be preserved for you. 00:14:51.159 --> 00:14:54.679 You see, Paul knew that the very truth 00:14:54.679 --> 00:14:56.039 of the gospel was at stake 00:14:56.039 --> 00:14:58.299 when these false brothers slipped in 00:14:58.299 --> 00:15:00.079 to his meeting with the other apostles, 00:15:00.459 --> 00:15:01.860 and they began, presumably, 00:15:02.059 --> 00:15:04.459 to demand that Titus be circumcised 00:15:04.459 --> 00:15:06.740 if he was going to have fellowship with them. 00:15:08.519 --> 00:15:10.259 Now, why did Paul perceive 00:15:10.259 --> 00:15:11.939 that the truth of the gospel was at stake? 00:15:11.940 --> 00:15:14.840 Well, because they were adding 00:15:14.840 --> 00:15:18.720 a necessary requirement to salvation 00:15:18.720 --> 00:15:22.020 over and above what Christ had accomplished 00:15:22.020 --> 00:15:24.200 through his death and resurrection, you see. 00:15:26.220 --> 00:15:27.740 And whether these false brothers, 00:15:27.940 --> 00:15:28.700 as Paul calls them, 00:15:28.820 --> 00:15:30.020 thought of circumcision 00:15:30.020 --> 00:15:32.580 as an act of moral obedience 00:15:32.580 --> 00:15:35.540 or as an identity marker of being Jewish, 00:15:35.600 --> 00:15:36.700 it doesn't really matter. 00:15:38.160 --> 00:15:40.720 To require anything in addition 00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:42.220 to Jesus' person and work 00:15:42.220 --> 00:15:45.279 as a necessary condition of salvation, 00:15:45.840 --> 00:15:47.519 as a necessary condition 00:15:47.519 --> 00:15:50.300 to be accepted into God's family, 00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:54.740 to put any other necessary condition 00:15:54.740 --> 00:15:56.700 or requirement on top of what Jesus has done 00:15:56.700 --> 00:15:59.200 is to jettison the very heart of the gospel. 00:16:02.019 --> 00:16:06.519 So Paul here is unyielding, he says. 00:16:09.000 --> 00:16:10.519 Now, if you know the story of Acts, 00:16:10.720 --> 00:16:13.259 you know that in a little while 00:16:13.259 --> 00:16:14.879 after writing the book of Galatians, 00:16:15.759 --> 00:16:17.920 Paul actually does circumcise 00:16:17.920 --> 00:16:19.860 another one of his young partners in ministry 00:16:19.860 --> 00:16:20.660 named Timothy 00:16:20.660 --> 00:16:22.139 before they go off 00:16:22.139 --> 00:16:23.620 on another one of their missionary journeys. 00:16:24.820 --> 00:16:25.639 So what's the difference? 00:16:26.519 --> 00:16:29.100 Why be utterly unyielding with Titus 00:16:29.100 --> 00:16:31.360 but then be super flexible with Timothy? 00:16:32.080 --> 00:16:33.120 I mean, did Timothy sort of like 00:16:33.120 --> 00:16:34.680 draw the short end of the stick here? 00:16:34.840 --> 00:16:36.379 Like, what was going on? 00:16:36.379 --> 00:16:40.220 Well, the difference is obvious, right? 00:16:40.299 --> 00:16:42.700 The difference is that in the case of Titus, 00:16:43.580 --> 00:16:45.899 circumcision was being made a requirement 00:16:45.899 --> 00:16:46.720 for salvation. 00:16:46.899 --> 00:16:48.460 It was being made a necessary part 00:16:48.460 --> 00:16:49.580 of the gospel itself. 00:16:51.240 --> 00:16:52.480 Whereas with Timothy, 00:16:52.919 --> 00:16:55.019 it was done in freedom. 00:16:55.240 --> 00:16:56.159 It was done willingly 00:16:56.159 --> 00:16:58.500 in order to lower barriers 00:16:58.500 --> 00:17:00.679 between himself and unbelieving Jews. 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:04.039 The one case threatened the gospel. 00:17:04.980 --> 00:17:07.259 The other case was an expression of love 00:17:07.259 --> 00:17:09.940 for the lost flowing out of the gospel. 00:17:12.440 --> 00:17:13.839 That's a big difference. 00:17:15.240 --> 00:17:17.000 And Paul saw the difference. 00:17:17.359 --> 00:17:18.319 And in the case of Titus, 00:17:18.379 --> 00:17:21.599 he was unwilling to yield at all 00:17:21.599 --> 00:17:23.659 so that the truth of the gospel 00:17:23.659 --> 00:17:24.740 might be preserved. 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:29.480 Friends, are we also willing 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:31.519 to be unyielding 00:17:31.519 --> 00:17:34.519 when the truth of the gospel is at stake? 00:17:36.859 --> 00:17:37.759 And like Paul, 00:17:37.839 --> 00:17:40.859 are we motivated to be unyielding? 00:17:41.579 --> 00:17:43.279 Not for the sake of our pride, 00:17:43.460 --> 00:17:44.940 not for the sake of our reputation, 00:17:45.579 --> 00:17:47.339 but for the sake of others. 00:17:48.900 --> 00:17:49.839 Notice, Paul says, 00:17:50.319 --> 00:17:51.920 so that the truth of the gospel 00:17:51.920 --> 00:17:54.700 might be preserved for you. 00:17:54.740 --> 00:17:58.319 In that moment in Jerusalem 00:17:58.319 --> 00:17:59.680 with Titus and Barnabas 00:17:59.680 --> 00:18:00.579 and the false brothers 00:18:00.579 --> 00:18:01.740 demanding circumcision, 00:18:02.059 --> 00:18:03.799 it wasn't Paul's pride 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:04.759 that was on the line. 00:18:05.500 --> 00:18:07.099 It wasn't about Paul being right 00:18:07.099 --> 00:18:08.200 and then being wrong. 00:18:09.480 --> 00:18:11.200 It was all about 00:18:11.200 --> 00:18:12.859 the Gentile believers 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:16.599 and whether they would be assured 00:18:16.599 --> 00:18:17.519 and grounded 00:18:17.519 --> 00:18:19.440 in the real freedom of the gospel. 00:18:21.279 --> 00:18:22.599 Paul's heart in that moment 00:18:22.599 --> 00:18:24.539 was beating for the men and women 00:18:24.539 --> 00:18:26.960 who had turned to God from idols 00:18:26.960 --> 00:18:28.740 to serve the living and true God 00:18:28.740 --> 00:18:30.879 and to know the liberating grace 00:18:30.879 --> 00:18:32.139 of the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:18:32.379 --> 00:18:34.220 to be free from guilt and shame. 00:18:34.920 --> 00:18:35.779 His heart was beating 00:18:35.779 --> 00:18:37.420 for those who were once far off 00:18:37.420 --> 00:18:38.899 but had been brought near. 00:18:39.059 --> 00:18:39.519 How? 00:18:39.599 --> 00:18:40.799 By the blood of Christ. 00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:44.440 If Titus was forced 00:18:44.440 --> 00:18:45.399 to be circumcised, 00:18:45.480 --> 00:18:46.819 if Paul went along with it, 00:18:46.819 --> 00:18:48.839 then the gospel of grace 00:18:48.839 --> 00:18:51.159 for all people would be lost. 00:18:53.619 --> 00:18:55.159 Do we see the truth 00:18:55.159 --> 00:18:56.559 of the gospel in this way? 00:18:58.099 --> 00:18:59.439 It's not just about 00:18:59.439 --> 00:19:01.619 winning theological points 00:19:01.619 --> 00:19:04.199 or being a part 00:19:04.199 --> 00:19:05.559 of a certain tribe. 00:19:09.279 --> 00:19:10.879 It's about the souls 00:19:10.879 --> 00:19:12.159 of men and women 00:19:12.159 --> 00:19:14.579 really coming to know 00:19:14.579 --> 00:19:17.119 the life-changing power 00:19:17.119 --> 00:19:18.740 of the gospel of grace. 00:19:20.839 --> 00:19:22.659 It's about really knowing 00:19:22.659 --> 00:19:24.299 the finished work of Christ 00:19:24.299 --> 00:19:25.679 and the freedom from guilt 00:19:25.679 --> 00:19:28.539 and dominion of sin 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:29.099 and the law. 00:19:30.480 --> 00:19:32.000 So when we are unyielding 00:19:32.000 --> 00:19:35.179 about central things, 00:19:35.779 --> 00:19:37.319 the authority of Scripture, 00:19:38.039 --> 00:19:39.619 the exclusivity of Christ, 00:19:39.740 --> 00:19:41.500 the substitutionary work 00:19:41.500 --> 00:19:42.140 of the cross, 00:19:42.579 --> 00:19:44.339 justification by faith alone, 00:19:44.400 --> 00:19:45.559 the bodily resurrection, 00:19:46.000 --> 00:19:49.240 these core gospel truths, 00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:51.539 when we are unyielding 00:19:51.539 --> 00:19:52.359 on those things, 00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:54.759 it's not because 00:19:54.759 --> 00:19:56.319 we're being doctrinaire 00:19:56.319 --> 00:19:57.799 or because we relish 00:19:57.799 --> 00:19:59.339 a good theological fight. 00:20:01.140 --> 00:20:03.420 It's because we love 00:20:03.420 --> 00:20:05.960 the people for whom Christ died 00:20:05.960 --> 00:20:08.559 and we don't want anything 00:20:08.559 --> 00:20:10.579 to keep them from knowing 00:20:10.579 --> 00:20:11.799 Christ crucified 00:20:11.799 --> 00:20:13.359 and the real glory 00:20:13.359 --> 00:20:15.419 of the gospel of grace. 00:20:17.199 --> 00:20:19.619 So as we pursue gospel unity, 00:20:20.539 --> 00:20:21.879 yes, the truth of the gospel 00:20:21.879 --> 00:20:23.500 must be defended at times. 00:20:25.500 --> 00:20:28.259 There can be unity in the gospel. 00:20:29.299 --> 00:20:30.460 There cannot be unity 00:20:30.460 --> 00:20:31.159 in the gospel 00:20:31.159 --> 00:20:33.539 without the truth of the gospel. 00:20:34.939 --> 00:20:36.079 So we don't yield 00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:37.199 when the gospel is at stake. 00:20:37.200 --> 00:20:41.019 And now we come to our last point. 00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:43.039 We've seen that gospel unity 00:20:43.039 --> 00:20:44.200 is worth pursuing 00:20:44.200 --> 00:20:46.000 and we've seen that 00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:47.500 in our pursuit of gospel unity, 00:20:47.580 --> 00:20:48.539 the truth of the gospel 00:20:48.539 --> 00:20:49.420 needs to be defended. 00:20:50.360 --> 00:20:51.660 The last point is this. 00:20:52.500 --> 00:20:54.420 In our pursuit of gospel unity, 00:20:54.420 --> 00:20:56.180 not only must gospel truth 00:20:56.180 --> 00:20:56.759 be defended, 00:20:57.819 --> 00:20:59.360 but gospel love 00:20:59.360 --> 00:21:01.160 must be expressed. 00:21:01.920 --> 00:21:04.000 The love of the gospel 00:21:04.000 --> 00:21:06.019 must be expressed. 00:21:07.220 --> 00:21:08.019 Look again with me 00:21:08.019 --> 00:21:09.059 at verses 6 through 10. 00:21:09.960 --> 00:21:10.299 Paul says, 00:21:10.680 --> 00:21:11.720 and from those who seem 00:21:11.720 --> 00:21:12.640 to be influential, 00:21:13.420 --> 00:21:14.000 what they were 00:21:14.000 --> 00:21:15.079 makes no difference to me. 00:21:15.220 --> 00:21:16.380 God shows no partiality. 00:21:16.460 --> 00:21:16.920 Those, I say, 00:21:16.980 --> 00:21:18.160 who seemed influential 00:21:18.160 --> 00:21:19.839 added nothing to me. 00:21:20.880 --> 00:21:21.240 That is, 00:21:21.279 --> 00:21:22.279 they added nothing 00:21:22.279 --> 00:21:24.180 on top of the gospel, right? 00:21:25.440 --> 00:21:26.240 On the contrary, 00:21:26.319 --> 00:21:26.880 when they saw 00:21:26.880 --> 00:21:28.000 that I had been entrusted 00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:28.839 with the gospel 00:21:28.839 --> 00:21:29.779 to the uncircumcised, 00:21:29.859 --> 00:21:31.079 just as Peter had been entrusted 00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:31.660 with the gospel 00:21:31.660 --> 00:21:32.619 to the circumcised, 00:21:32.619 --> 00:21:33.939 for he, 00:21:34.039 --> 00:21:34.639 that is God, 00:21:34.699 --> 00:21:35.899 who worked through Peter 00:21:35.899 --> 00:21:37.279 for his apostolic ministry 00:21:37.279 --> 00:21:38.759 to the circumcised, 00:21:39.019 --> 00:21:40.559 worked also through me 00:21:40.559 --> 00:21:41.799 for mine to the Gentiles. 00:21:42.559 --> 00:21:44.319 And when James and Cephas, 00:21:44.399 --> 00:21:45.219 that's Peter, right, 00:21:45.339 --> 00:21:46.079 and John, 00:21:46.139 --> 00:21:47.319 who seemed to be pillars, 00:21:47.519 --> 00:21:48.679 perceived the grace 00:21:48.679 --> 00:21:49.619 that was given to me, 00:21:50.719 --> 00:21:52.319 they gave the right hand 00:21:52.319 --> 00:21:52.979 of fellowship 00:21:52.979 --> 00:21:53.979 to Barnabas and me 00:21:53.979 --> 00:21:55.379 that we should go 00:21:55.379 --> 00:21:56.179 to the Gentiles 00:21:56.179 --> 00:21:57.719 and they to the circumcised. 00:21:58.599 --> 00:21:59.439 Only they asked us 00:21:59.439 --> 00:22:00.419 to remember the poor, 00:22:00.420 --> 00:22:01.860 the very thing 00:22:01.860 --> 00:22:02.779 I was eager to do. 00:22:04.200 --> 00:22:04.800 So you see, 00:22:04.860 --> 00:22:06.340 the gospel produces 00:22:06.340 --> 00:22:09.000 not just courage 00:22:09.000 --> 00:22:10.360 that refuses to yield, 00:22:11.320 --> 00:22:13.580 but it also produces love 00:22:13.580 --> 00:22:16.180 that refuses to be partial 00:22:16.180 --> 00:22:17.039 or partisan. 00:22:19.120 --> 00:22:20.200 You see that here? 00:22:21.320 --> 00:22:22.720 Notice how often Paul says, 00:22:23.420 --> 00:22:24.600 what they were 00:22:24.600 --> 00:22:25.900 makes no difference to me. 00:22:27.180 --> 00:22:28.900 Yes, the apostles in Jerusalem, 00:22:29.060 --> 00:22:30.019 James and Peter and John, 00:22:30.019 --> 00:22:31.440 they seemed influential. 00:22:32.720 --> 00:22:33.299 After all, 00:22:33.400 --> 00:22:34.220 wasn't James 00:22:34.220 --> 00:22:35.579 Jesus' brother? 00:22:37.059 --> 00:22:38.079 Weren't Peter and John 00:22:38.079 --> 00:22:39.759 part of Jesus' inner group 00:22:39.759 --> 00:22:41.000 of the disciples 00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:42.720 during His earthly ministry? 00:22:44.000 --> 00:22:44.980 People, it seems, 00:22:45.039 --> 00:22:46.119 had been looking up to them, 00:22:46.240 --> 00:22:47.079 respecting them, 00:22:47.579 --> 00:22:48.500 viewing these three 00:22:48.500 --> 00:22:49.379 as pillars 00:22:49.379 --> 00:22:50.579 in God's new temple, 00:22:50.680 --> 00:22:51.180 the church, 00:22:53.420 --> 00:22:54.099 viewing them as 00:22:54.099 --> 00:22:55.759 more significant 00:22:55.759 --> 00:22:56.720 than the other apostles. 00:22:56.720 --> 00:22:56.839 apostles. 00:22:58.600 --> 00:22:59.440 And as humans, 00:22:59.519 --> 00:22:59.940 don't we have 00:22:59.940 --> 00:23:00.900 a natural tendency, 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:01.200 right, 00:23:01.259 --> 00:23:02.519 to kind of elevate 00:23:02.519 --> 00:23:03.279 personalities 00:23:03.279 --> 00:23:05.059 and then to create 00:23:05.059 --> 00:23:05.799 kind of tribes 00:23:05.799 --> 00:23:06.480 or cliques? 00:23:08.839 --> 00:23:09.880 But Paul says, 00:23:09.980 --> 00:23:10.200 look, 00:23:11.400 --> 00:23:12.079 what they were 00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:13.180 makes no difference to me. 00:23:13.539 --> 00:23:14.960 God shows no partiality. 00:23:16.160 --> 00:23:16.860 To some, 00:23:16.960 --> 00:23:17.559 they might have seemed 00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:18.460 more influential 00:23:18.460 --> 00:23:19.519 than the other apostles. 00:23:20.059 --> 00:23:20.600 To some, 00:23:20.640 --> 00:23:21.480 they might have seemed 00:23:21.480 --> 00:23:22.600 like the real pillars 00:23:22.600 --> 00:23:23.259 of the church. 00:23:23.259 --> 00:23:25.559 But Paul says, 00:23:25.700 --> 00:23:27.019 their apostolic message 00:23:27.019 --> 00:23:29.460 and their apostolic ministry 00:23:29.460 --> 00:23:30.859 was in reality 00:23:30.859 --> 00:23:32.200 no different than His. 00:23:33.299 --> 00:23:34.799 Before the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:23:35.019 --> 00:23:35.720 they were equal. 00:23:36.379 --> 00:23:37.859 There was no partiality. 00:23:39.619 --> 00:23:40.759 And that is what 00:23:40.759 --> 00:23:41.740 the apostles affirm 00:23:41.740 --> 00:23:43.299 in this moment. 00:23:44.099 --> 00:23:45.379 They see that God 00:23:45.379 --> 00:23:47.740 had given His empowering grace 00:23:47.740 --> 00:23:49.680 both to Peter 00:23:49.680 --> 00:23:51.079 and Paul alike 00:23:51.079 --> 00:23:52.160 and to all the apostles. 00:23:52.160 --> 00:23:53.340 Yes, 00:23:53.420 --> 00:23:54.160 they may have had 00:23:54.160 --> 00:23:55.400 different mission fields, 00:23:56.019 --> 00:23:56.820 Peter primarily 00:23:56.820 --> 00:23:57.500 to the Jews, 00:23:57.640 --> 00:23:57.740 right, 00:23:57.820 --> 00:23:58.500 Paul primarily 00:23:58.500 --> 00:23:59.320 to the Gentiles, 00:23:59.360 --> 00:23:59.840 although of course 00:23:59.840 --> 00:24:00.660 there was lots 00:24:00.660 --> 00:24:01.440 of overlap there. 00:24:02.480 --> 00:24:02.840 But, 00:24:03.019 --> 00:24:04.820 they have the same message, 00:24:05.480 --> 00:24:06.980 the same empowering grace, 00:24:07.080 --> 00:24:08.100 and most importantly, 00:24:08.220 --> 00:24:09.019 the same Lord, 00:24:09.660 --> 00:24:10.380 the Lord Jesus. 00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:12.019 And that means 00:24:12.019 --> 00:24:12.700 they can put 00:24:12.700 --> 00:24:14.460 personality aside. 00:24:15.019 --> 00:24:15.759 They can put 00:24:15.759 --> 00:24:17.840 partisanship aside. 00:24:18.980 --> 00:24:19.519 They can put 00:24:19.519 --> 00:24:20.140 the opinions 00:24:20.140 --> 00:24:21.120 of others aside. 00:24:21.119 --> 00:24:22.879 and they can extend 00:24:22.879 --> 00:24:23.519 the right hand 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:24.019 of fellowship 00:24:24.019 --> 00:24:24.739 to one another. 00:24:26.399 --> 00:24:27.259 They can reach out 00:24:27.259 --> 00:24:28.419 across all of that 00:24:28.419 --> 00:24:29.239 and give each other 00:24:29.239 --> 00:24:29.939 the embrace 00:24:29.939 --> 00:24:31.019 of gospel unity. 00:24:31.979 --> 00:24:32.979 They can be genuinely 00:24:32.979 --> 00:24:35.839 for each other's ministry 00:24:35.839 --> 00:24:37.019 because they know 00:24:37.019 --> 00:24:38.099 that they serve 00:24:38.099 --> 00:24:38.939 the same Lord 00:24:38.939 --> 00:24:40.339 and the same kingdom 00:24:40.339 --> 00:24:41.679 and the same mission. 00:24:43.699 --> 00:24:44.239 You know, 00:24:44.279 --> 00:24:45.359 this is why we pray 00:24:45.359 --> 00:24:46.519 for other local churches 00:24:46.519 --> 00:24:48.019 regularly in our services. 00:24:48.019 --> 00:24:49.740 praise God 00:24:49.740 --> 00:24:50.160 that Trinity 00:24:50.160 --> 00:24:51.579 isn't the only local church 00:24:51.579 --> 00:24:52.039 in New Haven 00:24:52.039 --> 00:24:52.660 that proclaims 00:24:52.660 --> 00:24:53.519 the biblical gospel. 00:24:54.599 --> 00:24:55.339 We couldn't even fit 00:24:55.339 --> 00:24:55.859 that many people 00:24:55.859 --> 00:24:57.019 in our sanctuary, right? 00:24:57.700 --> 00:24:59.319 It's got to be more than us. 00:25:00.259 --> 00:25:00.980 So, we pray 00:25:00.980 --> 00:25:02.480 for other faithful churches 00:25:02.480 --> 00:25:03.619 because we serve 00:25:03.619 --> 00:25:04.400 the same Lord 00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:04.859 and we preach 00:25:04.859 --> 00:25:05.680 the same message 00:25:05.680 --> 00:25:06.259 of grace 00:25:06.259 --> 00:25:07.240 and we serve 00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:08.119 the same kingdom 00:25:08.119 --> 00:25:09.279 and we serve 00:25:09.279 --> 00:25:10.059 the same king. 00:25:11.519 --> 00:25:12.480 Just as Peter 00:25:12.480 --> 00:25:13.019 and Paul 00:25:13.019 --> 00:25:14.059 weren't in competition 00:25:14.059 --> 00:25:14.920 with one another, 00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:16.400 so we aren't 00:25:16.400 --> 00:25:17.240 in competition 00:25:17.240 --> 00:25:19.700 with Christ Presbyterian Church 00:25:19.700 --> 00:25:20.920 or with Vox Church 00:25:20.920 --> 00:25:22.440 or with Christian Tabernacle 00:25:22.440 --> 00:25:23.300 or St. John's 00:25:23.300 --> 00:25:24.200 or Elm City Vineyard. 00:25:24.259 --> 00:25:25.759 If any church 00:25:25.759 --> 00:25:26.600 proclaims 00:25:26.600 --> 00:25:27.580 the biblical gospel 00:25:27.580 --> 00:25:28.640 faithfully, 00:25:29.080 --> 00:25:31.420 then we can extend 00:25:31.420 --> 00:25:31.960 the right hand 00:25:31.960 --> 00:25:32.460 of fellowship. 00:25:34.660 --> 00:25:36.120 Now, that doesn't mean 00:25:36.120 --> 00:25:37.900 that what we might call 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:39.100 our secondary doctrines 00:25:39.100 --> 00:25:39.759 and practices 00:25:39.759 --> 00:25:41.019 are completely irrelevant, 00:25:41.200 --> 00:25:41.460 right? 00:25:41.460 --> 00:25:44.779 I think there are 00:25:44.779 --> 00:25:46.079 really good reasons 00:25:46.079 --> 00:25:47.360 to preach 00:25:47.360 --> 00:25:48.460 expositionally, 00:25:49.579 --> 00:25:50.779 to practice 00:25:50.779 --> 00:25:51.779 believer's baptism, 00:25:52.000 --> 00:25:53.380 to sing old hymns 00:25:53.380 --> 00:25:54.779 and contemporary songs, 00:25:54.940 --> 00:25:55.900 to have a plurality 00:25:55.900 --> 00:25:56.340 of elders, 00:25:56.720 --> 00:25:58.019 to prioritize meeting 00:25:58.019 --> 00:25:58.620 in person 00:25:58.620 --> 00:25:59.759 rather than virtually 00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:01.960 when it's not a snow day, 00:26:02.079 --> 00:26:02.299 right? 00:26:04.460 --> 00:26:06.039 I think I can give 00:26:06.039 --> 00:26:07.779 some really good reasons 00:26:07.779 --> 00:26:08.519 why churches 00:26:08.519 --> 00:26:09.759 should do these things. 00:26:09.759 --> 00:26:12.779 And I think it's good 00:26:12.779 --> 00:26:13.740 to attend a church 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:14.740 that does these things. 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:17.359 But you know what? 00:26:19.099 --> 00:26:19.940 Those things aren't 00:26:19.940 --> 00:26:20.420 the gospel. 00:26:22.420 --> 00:26:23.559 They aren't matters 00:26:23.559 --> 00:26:25.240 of first importance. 00:26:26.279 --> 00:26:27.319 Are they important? 00:26:27.960 --> 00:26:28.440 Absolutely. 00:26:28.700 --> 00:26:29.059 Some of them 00:26:29.059 --> 00:26:29.700 are very important. 00:26:30.460 --> 00:26:31.940 Are they of first importance? 00:26:32.759 --> 00:26:33.259 No. 00:26:33.259 --> 00:26:36.180 So we can extend 00:26:36.180 --> 00:26:37.900 the love of the gospel 00:26:37.900 --> 00:26:39.480 and the right hand 00:26:39.480 --> 00:26:40.000 of fellowship 00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:41.400 to our brothers 00:26:41.400 --> 00:26:42.019 and sisters 00:26:42.019 --> 00:26:43.799 with whom we may 00:26:43.799 --> 00:26:45.019 disagree 00:26:45.019 --> 00:26:47.160 about secondary issues. 00:26:48.859 --> 00:26:49.879 We can partner 00:26:49.879 --> 00:26:50.900 in ministry together 00:26:50.900 --> 00:26:51.519 like we do 00:26:51.519 --> 00:26:52.339 through Bridges of Hope. 00:26:52.700 --> 00:26:53.599 We can pray 00:26:53.599 --> 00:26:54.660 earnestly for each other. 00:26:54.960 --> 00:26:55.619 We can worship 00:26:55.619 --> 00:26:56.319 and work together 00:26:56.319 --> 00:26:57.220 for Christ's sake 00:26:57.220 --> 00:27:00.700 because we hold 00:27:00.700 --> 00:27:01.039 the matters 00:27:01.039 --> 00:27:02.039 of first importance 00:27:02.039 --> 00:27:02.519 together. 00:27:05.019 --> 00:27:05.920 But love doesn't 00:27:05.920 --> 00:27:06.480 stop there. 00:27:08.059 --> 00:27:08.880 Paul ends the passage 00:27:08.880 --> 00:27:09.460 by saying, 00:27:10.660 --> 00:27:11.339 only they asked us 00:27:11.339 --> 00:27:12.240 to remember the poor, 00:27:13.319 --> 00:27:14.120 the very thing 00:27:14.120 --> 00:27:15.059 I was eager to do. 00:27:17.720 --> 00:27:18.539 You see, friends, 00:27:18.620 --> 00:27:19.220 we are saved 00:27:19.960 --> 00:27:21.220 by faith 00:27:21.740 --> 00:27:23.480 in Christ alone. 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:27.539 But saving faith 00:27:27.539 --> 00:27:29.140 is never alone. 00:27:31.360 --> 00:27:32.180 The faith 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:33.120 that unites us 00:27:33.120 --> 00:27:33.640 to Christ, 00:27:33.759 --> 00:27:34.380 the living Lord, 00:27:35.079 --> 00:27:35.599 is a faith 00:27:35.599 --> 00:27:36.559 that inevitably 00:27:36.559 --> 00:27:37.579 issues forth 00:27:37.579 --> 00:27:38.759 in love and good deeds. 00:27:40.019 --> 00:27:40.640 In Christ, 00:27:40.759 --> 00:27:41.759 we're a new creation. 00:27:42.599 --> 00:27:43.579 The old has passed away, 00:27:43.660 --> 00:27:44.460 the new has come. 00:27:45.120 --> 00:27:45.599 Paul will say 00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:46.059 a little later 00:27:46.059 --> 00:27:46.559 in this chapter, 00:27:46.900 --> 00:27:47.559 it's no longer 00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:48.180 I who lives, 00:27:48.240 --> 00:27:49.440 but Christ who lives in me. 00:27:49.440 --> 00:27:49.559 Amen. 00:27:53.480 --> 00:27:55.839 All his heavenly riches 00:27:55.839 --> 00:27:56.759 and became poor 00:27:56.759 --> 00:27:57.700 in our place, 00:27:58.240 --> 00:27:59.500 he emptied himself 00:27:59.500 --> 00:28:00.380 so that we, 00:28:00.620 --> 00:28:01.559 through his poverty, 00:28:02.140 --> 00:28:02.740 might become 00:28:02.740 --> 00:28:03.819 spiritually rich. 00:28:05.980 --> 00:28:06.819 And so, 00:28:06.980 --> 00:28:07.839 having received 00:28:07.839 --> 00:28:08.700 such a gift, 00:28:09.500 --> 00:28:10.599 how could we not 00:28:10.599 --> 00:28:11.599 now turn 00:28:11.599 --> 00:28:12.519 to those in need 00:28:12.519 --> 00:28:14.480 and seek 00:28:14.480 --> 00:28:15.380 to meet their needs? 00:28:17.640 --> 00:28:18.240 Now, 00:28:18.339 --> 00:28:18.940 think about it. 00:28:19.400 --> 00:28:19.759 Of course, 00:28:19.880 --> 00:28:21.240 if I think 00:28:21.240 --> 00:28:22.920 that my salvation 00:28:22.920 --> 00:28:23.720 before God 00:28:23.720 --> 00:28:24.560 is based 00:28:24.560 --> 00:28:25.320 on something 00:28:25.320 --> 00:28:26.400 I've done 00:28:26.400 --> 00:28:27.400 to deserve it, 00:28:28.220 --> 00:28:28.920 whether that be 00:28:28.920 --> 00:28:29.920 my circumcision, 00:28:30.060 --> 00:28:30.759 like the false teachers 00:28:30.759 --> 00:28:31.180 in Galatians 00:28:31.180 --> 00:28:31.600 we're teaching, 00:28:31.920 --> 00:28:33.080 or my moral efforts, 00:28:33.160 --> 00:28:33.680 or my regular 00:28:33.680 --> 00:28:34.380 church attendance, 00:28:35.279 --> 00:28:36.019 if I think 00:28:36.019 --> 00:28:36.980 my salvation with God 00:28:36.980 --> 00:28:37.759 is based on something 00:28:37.759 --> 00:28:38.180 I've done 00:28:38.180 --> 00:28:39.300 to deserve it, 00:28:39.560 --> 00:28:40.660 then I am much 00:28:40.660 --> 00:28:41.320 more likely 00:28:41.320 --> 00:28:42.980 to view the world 00:28:42.980 --> 00:28:44.460 through the lens 00:28:44.460 --> 00:28:46.680 of who does 00:28:46.680 --> 00:28:47.740 and doesn't 00:28:47.740 --> 00:28:48.560 deserve 00:28:48.560 --> 00:28:49.900 my help. 00:28:51.820 --> 00:28:52.740 After all, 00:28:52.920 --> 00:28:53.460 if God 00:28:53.460 --> 00:28:54.400 only saves 00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:54.779 those who 00:28:54.779 --> 00:28:55.460 do something 00:28:55.460 --> 00:28:56.500 to deserve it, 00:28:56.560 --> 00:28:57.080 shouldn't I 00:28:57.080 --> 00:28:57.640 treat others 00:28:57.640 --> 00:28:58.380 the same way? 00:29:01.140 --> 00:29:01.620 And, 00:29:01.779 --> 00:29:02.580 if I think 00:29:02.580 --> 00:29:03.060 I've actually 00:29:03.060 --> 00:29:04.400 done something 00:29:04.400 --> 00:29:05.060 good enough 00:29:05.060 --> 00:29:06.200 or smart enough 00:29:06.200 --> 00:29:07.240 or spiritual enough 00:29:07.240 --> 00:29:07.960 to earn 00:29:07.960 --> 00:29:08.860 God's salvation, 00:29:09.019 --> 00:29:09.700 then how could 00:29:09.700 --> 00:29:10.779 I not expect 00:29:10.779 --> 00:29:11.580 others to be able 00:29:11.580 --> 00:29:12.380 to pull themselves 00:29:12.380 --> 00:29:12.980 up by their 00:29:12.980 --> 00:29:13.500 bootstraps 00:29:13.500 --> 00:29:13.880 and help 00:29:13.880 --> 00:29:14.360 themselves? 00:29:17.779 --> 00:29:18.259 But, 00:29:18.320 --> 00:29:18.500 friends, 00:29:18.500 --> 00:29:19.720 that's not 00:29:19.720 --> 00:29:20.420 the gospel. 00:29:22.539 --> 00:29:23.059 The gospel 00:29:23.059 --> 00:29:23.680 says that you 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:24.240 and I 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:25.880 are sinners. 00:29:27.259 --> 00:29:27.859 We've made 00:29:27.859 --> 00:29:28.720 a wreck 00:29:28.720 --> 00:29:29.519 of things 00:29:29.519 --> 00:29:30.059 with God 00:29:30.059 --> 00:29:31.500 and we can't 00:29:31.500 --> 00:29:32.140 earn our way 00:29:32.140 --> 00:29:32.480 out. 00:29:34.680 --> 00:29:35.640 God's rescue 00:29:35.640 --> 00:29:36.420 is completely 00:29:36.420 --> 00:29:37.539 and totally 00:29:37.539 --> 00:29:38.380 by grace. 00:29:39.420 --> 00:29:40.220 When we were 00:29:40.220 --> 00:29:41.940 dead in our sins, 00:29:42.279 --> 00:29:42.940 Christ made us 00:29:42.940 --> 00:29:43.380 alive. 00:29:43.380 --> 00:29:46.140 In other words, 00:29:46.180 --> 00:29:47.140 if you believe 00:29:47.140 --> 00:29:47.920 in justification 00:29:47.920 --> 00:29:49.380 by faith alone, 00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:51.180 there's no way 00:29:51.180 --> 00:29:51.760 you should view 00:29:51.760 --> 00:29:52.180 the world 00:29:52.180 --> 00:29:52.680 through the grid 00:29:52.680 --> 00:29:53.580 of deserving 00:29:53.580 --> 00:29:54.380 and undeserving 00:29:54.380 --> 00:29:56.820 because you 00:29:56.820 --> 00:29:57.220 and I don't 00:29:57.220 --> 00:29:58.180 deserve anything 00:29:58.180 --> 00:29:59.000 good that we've 00:29:59.000 --> 00:29:59.400 received. 00:29:59.660 --> 00:30:00.620 It's all of grace. 00:30:02.920 --> 00:30:03.860 And that changes 00:30:03.860 --> 00:30:04.420 how you see 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:05.140 those in material 00:30:05.140 --> 00:30:05.600 need, 00:30:06.420 --> 00:30:07.260 especially fellow 00:30:07.260 --> 00:30:07.760 Christians. 00:30:08.500 --> 00:30:09.340 The poor here 00:30:09.340 --> 00:30:09.900 in verse 10 00:30:09.900 --> 00:30:11.100 probably referred 00:30:11.100 --> 00:30:12.540 specifically to 00:30:12.540 --> 00:30:13.180 those suffering 00:30:13.180 --> 00:30:14.340 churches in Judea 00:30:14.340 --> 00:30:15.460 that Paul and 00:30:15.460 --> 00:30:15.980 Barnabas and 00:30:15.980 --> 00:30:16.680 Titus had gone 00:30:16.680 --> 00:30:17.320 there to help 00:30:17.320 --> 00:30:17.680 in the first 00:30:17.680 --> 00:30:18.100 place. 00:30:18.480 --> 00:30:18.980 And Paul says 00:30:18.980 --> 00:30:19.700 he was eager 00:30:19.700 --> 00:30:20.440 to help them. 00:30:21.120 --> 00:30:21.660 And when we 00:30:21.660 --> 00:30:22.259 read the rest 00:30:22.259 --> 00:30:22.700 of Paul's 00:30:22.700 --> 00:30:22.980 letters, 00:30:23.100 --> 00:30:23.560 we see that 00:30:23.560 --> 00:30:24.279 a large part 00:30:24.279 --> 00:30:24.980 of his ministry 00:30:24.980 --> 00:30:25.500 among the 00:30:25.500 --> 00:30:26.220 Gentile churches 00:30:26.220 --> 00:30:27.480 was organizing 00:30:27.480 --> 00:30:28.019 a financial 00:30:28.019 --> 00:30:29.960 collection that 00:30:29.960 --> 00:30:30.519 would then be 00:30:30.519 --> 00:30:31.840 sent back to 00:30:31.840 --> 00:30:32.539 help those 00:30:32.539 --> 00:30:33.240 Jewish Christian 00:30:33.240 --> 00:30:33.700 churches in 00:30:33.700 --> 00:30:34.240 Judea who 00:30:34.240 --> 00:30:34.880 were materially 00:30:34.880 --> 00:30:35.480 in need. 00:30:36.640 --> 00:30:36.880 You see, 00:30:36.940 --> 00:30:37.420 the gospel 00:30:37.420 --> 00:30:38.080 of grace 00:30:38.080 --> 00:30:39.299 cuts across 00:30:39.299 --> 00:30:40.000 racial, 00:30:40.180 --> 00:30:40.440 ethnic, 00:30:40.600 --> 00:30:40.960 national, 00:30:41.080 --> 00:30:41.680 socioeconomic 00:30:41.680 --> 00:30:42.180 lines. 00:30:42.180 --> 00:30:42.860 It creates 00:30:42.860 --> 00:30:43.380 a whole new 00:30:43.380 --> 00:30:44.400 humanity that's 00:30:44.400 --> 00:30:45.220 bonded together 00:30:45.220 --> 00:30:45.779 in love. 00:30:47.660 --> 00:30:48.539 So we're 00:30:48.539 --> 00:30:49.420 eager to help 00:30:49.420 --> 00:30:49.900 when we hear 00:30:49.900 --> 00:30:50.440 of needs. 00:30:52.620 --> 00:30:53.539 But not 00:30:53.539 --> 00:30:54.039 just, 00:30:54.340 --> 00:30:55.299 not just 00:30:55.299 --> 00:30:55.700 for our 00:30:55.700 --> 00:30:55.920 fellow 00:30:55.920 --> 00:30:56.400 Christians. 00:30:58.259 --> 00:30:58.900 Historically, 00:30:59.039 --> 00:30:59.660 Christians have 00:30:59.660 --> 00:31:00.400 cared for the 00:31:00.400 --> 00:31:01.440 poor whether 00:31:01.440 --> 00:31:02.080 they're Christians 00:31:02.080 --> 00:31:02.660 or not. 00:31:03.940 --> 00:31:04.580 Why? 00:31:06.080 --> 00:31:07.120 Because again, 00:31:07.920 --> 00:31:09.259 is this not 00:31:09.259 --> 00:31:10.140 the very 00:31:10.140 --> 00:31:10.940 logic, 00:31:11.460 --> 00:31:11.799 the very 00:31:11.799 --> 00:31:12.500 heartbeat 00:31:12.500 --> 00:31:12.920 of the 00:31:12.920 --> 00:31:13.220 gospel. 00:31:13.619 --> 00:31:14.079 Grace. 00:31:15.859 --> 00:31:17.079 Amazing grace, 00:31:17.220 --> 00:31:17.720 how sweet 00:31:17.720 --> 00:31:18.400 the sound 00:31:18.400 --> 00:31:19.900 that saved 00:31:19.900 --> 00:31:20.299 what? 00:31:20.740 --> 00:31:21.119 A pretty 00:31:21.119 --> 00:31:21.480 good guy 00:31:21.480 --> 00:31:21.960 like me. 00:31:22.359 --> 00:31:22.779 No, 00:31:23.180 --> 00:31:23.759 a wretch 00:31:23.759 --> 00:31:24.420 like me. 00:31:26.180 --> 00:31:27.039 I once 00:31:27.039 --> 00:31:27.879 was lost, 00:31:28.039 --> 00:31:28.339 but now 00:31:28.339 --> 00:31:28.839 I'm found. 00:31:29.000 --> 00:31:29.779 I was blind, 00:31:29.900 --> 00:31:30.160 but now 00:31:30.160 --> 00:31:30.559 I see. 00:31:33.079 --> 00:31:33.980 When I was 00:31:33.980 --> 00:31:34.839 an outsider, 00:31:35.599 --> 00:31:36.200 Christ left 00:31:36.200 --> 00:31:36.859 everything to 00:31:36.859 --> 00:31:37.440 bring me in. 00:31:37.440 --> 00:31:38.740 when I was 00:31:38.740 --> 00:31:39.400 far off, 00:31:39.480 --> 00:31:40.059 he went out 00:31:40.059 --> 00:31:40.420 into the 00:31:40.420 --> 00:31:41.059 far country. 00:31:41.840 --> 00:31:42.380 I was 00:31:42.380 --> 00:31:42.820 condemned, 00:31:42.940 --> 00:31:43.559 so he was 00:31:43.559 --> 00:31:43.820 condemned. 00:31:44.019 --> 00:31:44.680 I was dead, 00:31:44.759 --> 00:31:45.519 so he died. 00:31:45.880 --> 00:31:46.640 I was poor, 00:31:46.740 --> 00:31:47.600 so he became 00:31:47.600 --> 00:31:48.019 poor. 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:50.920 And through 00:31:50.920 --> 00:31:51.519 his death 00:31:51.519 --> 00:31:51.880 and his 00:31:51.880 --> 00:31:52.480 poverty and 00:31:52.480 --> 00:31:53.620 his condemnation, 00:31:54.019 --> 00:31:55.140 through that, 00:31:55.480 --> 00:31:56.140 he rose 00:31:56.140 --> 00:31:56.920 victorious 00:31:56.920 --> 00:31:58.820 and rose 00:31:58.820 --> 00:31:59.299 me with 00:31:59.299 --> 00:31:59.539 him 00:31:59.539 --> 00:32:01.140 and rose 00:32:01.140 --> 00:32:01.779 you with 00:32:01.779 --> 00:32:02.059 him 00:32:02.059 --> 00:32:03.440 if you've 00:32:03.440 --> 00:32:03.740 put your 00:32:03.740 --> 00:32:04.180 trust in 00:32:04.180 --> 00:32:04.400 him. 00:32:06.519 --> 00:32:06.940 And do you 00:32:06.940 --> 00:32:07.320 see that? 00:32:07.319 --> 00:32:07.599 Do you 00:32:07.599 --> 00:32:08.019 see then 00:32:08.019 --> 00:32:08.299 that the 00:32:08.299 --> 00:32:09.079 way to 00:32:09.079 --> 00:32:09.839 life, 00:32:10.720 --> 00:32:11.460 to real 00:32:11.460 --> 00:32:12.039 lasting 00:32:12.039 --> 00:32:12.439 resurrection 00:32:12.439 --> 00:32:12.879 life, 00:32:13.059 --> 00:32:14.359 isn't through 00:32:14.359 --> 00:32:15.000 amassing 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:15.700 wealth for 00:32:15.700 --> 00:32:16.220 myself, 00:32:17.119 --> 00:32:18.059 but through 00:32:18.059 --> 00:32:19.079 giving out 00:32:19.079 --> 00:32:19.339 of any 00:32:19.339 --> 00:32:19.939 abundance that 00:32:19.939 --> 00:32:20.359 I have 00:32:20.359 --> 00:32:20.720 to those 00:32:20.720 --> 00:32:21.099 in need. 00:32:22.019 --> 00:32:22.619 The way 00:32:22.619 --> 00:32:23.039 to life 00:32:23.039 --> 00:32:23.419 isn't through 00:32:23.419 --> 00:32:24.139 ignoring the 00:32:24.139 --> 00:32:24.559 poor or 00:32:24.559 --> 00:32:24.980 the needy 00:32:24.980 --> 00:32:25.259 or the 00:32:25.259 --> 00:32:25.720 suffering of 00:32:25.720 --> 00:32:26.159 this world, 00:32:26.240 --> 00:32:27.039 but remembering 00:32:27.039 --> 00:32:27.559 them. 00:32:28.759 --> 00:32:29.259 And together 00:32:29.259 --> 00:32:29.839 with all the 00:32:29.839 --> 00:32:30.099 church, 00:32:30.179 --> 00:32:30.619 letting our 00:32:30.619 --> 00:32:32.359 resources meet 00:32:32.359 --> 00:32:32.819 their needs 00:32:32.819 --> 00:32:33.379 wherever we 00:32:33.379 --> 00:32:33.720 can. 00:32:33.720 --> 00:32:37.299 the very 00:32:37.299 --> 00:32:37.740 thing I 00:32:37.740 --> 00:32:39.039 was eager 00:32:39.039 --> 00:32:39.620 to do, 00:32:39.980 --> 00:32:40.480 Paul says. 00:32:41.480 --> 00:32:42.299 Of course, 00:32:42.640 --> 00:32:43.259 of course. 00:32:44.900 --> 00:32:45.620 How could 00:32:45.620 --> 00:32:46.160 the gospel 00:32:46.160 --> 00:32:47.920 not make 00:32:47.920 --> 00:32:48.759 you eager, 00:32:50.140 --> 00:32:51.220 eager to 00:32:51.220 --> 00:32:51.779 live out the 00:32:51.779 --> 00:32:52.440 love of the 00:32:52.440 --> 00:32:54.339 gospel because 00:32:54.339 --> 00:32:55.180 we have first 00:32:55.180 --> 00:32:55.680 been loved? 00:32:57.180 --> 00:32:57.980 Let's pray. 00:32:57.980 --> 00:33:01.120 Father in 00:33:01.120 --> 00:33:01.319 heaven, 00:33:01.720 --> 00:33:02.420 help us 00:33:02.420 --> 00:33:03.559 to live 00:33:03.559 --> 00:33:04.960 out this 00:33:04.960 --> 00:33:05.720 gospel unity. 00:33:07.039 --> 00:33:07.720 Unite us 00:33:07.720 --> 00:33:08.299 as a local 00:33:08.299 --> 00:33:09.039 church together 00:33:09.039 --> 00:33:09.920 around this 00:33:09.920 --> 00:33:10.500 wonderful, 00:33:10.759 --> 00:33:11.319 life-saving 00:33:11.319 --> 00:33:12.000 message of 00:33:12.000 --> 00:33:13.339 Jesus crucified 00:33:13.339 --> 00:33:13.920 and risen. 00:33:15.160 --> 00:33:15.380 Lord, 00:33:15.460 --> 00:33:15.940 help us to 00:33:15.940 --> 00:33:16.819 forge good 00:33:16.819 --> 00:33:17.480 relationships 00:33:17.480 --> 00:33:18.099 with other 00:33:18.099 --> 00:33:18.819 like-minded 00:33:18.819 --> 00:33:19.620 gospel-preaching 00:33:19.620 --> 00:33:20.279 churches that 00:33:20.279 --> 00:33:21.440 we might advance 00:33:21.440 --> 00:33:22.059 your gospel 00:33:22.059 --> 00:33:23.000 all the more 00:33:23.000 --> 00:33:24.059 winsomely and 00:33:24.059 --> 00:33:24.519 effectively 00:33:24.519 --> 00:33:25.140 together. 00:33:26.860 --> 00:33:27.240 And Lord 00:33:27.240 --> 00:33:27.500 Jesus, 00:33:27.660 --> 00:33:28.240 help us 00:33:28.240 --> 00:33:28.720 to be a 00:33:28.720 --> 00:33:31.160 church of 00:33:31.160 --> 00:33:32.099 unyielding 00:33:32.099 --> 00:33:32.700 commitment to 00:33:32.700 --> 00:33:34.799 truth and 00:33:34.799 --> 00:33:35.559 passionate, 00:33:35.920 --> 00:33:36.599 compassionate, 00:33:37.079 --> 00:33:39.440 eager love for 00:33:39.440 --> 00:33:40.039 those in need. 00:33:40.480 --> 00:33:41.259 We pray this in 00:33:41.259 --> 00:33:41.819 Jesus' name. 00:33:42.099 --> 00:33:42.359 Amen.