Sermon: Cradle and Cross

Would you take a copy of God's word This morning? We're gonna turn open to the book of Galatians, and this morning, if you wanna use a pew Bible, you can turn right there to page 9, 7, 5 in the pew Bible, 9, 7, 5, and the pew Bible this morning, Galatians six, the very end of it,

Galatians chapter six, and we're looking at verses 11 through 18 on this Christmas Sunday.

Let's pray before we open God's word together.

Our Father, we do thank you for the gift of your word. Even as we have heard it read this morning, as we have sung it, as we have heard it sung, we thank you that you are a God of truth. You are a God of promises, God who fulfills his promises. And this morning truly we celebrate the fact that you fulfilled the greatest of promises. As we turn to your word this morning, may you bring it to bear upon our minds and our hearts and our souls,

and may we find that we are rejoicing and you the God of our salvation and we pray this in the strong name of Jesus, the Christ. Amen. This morning, Galatians six, verses 11 through 18. This is the holy and errand sufficient word of God.

See, with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand, there's those who want to make a good showing in the flesh. Who would for you to be circumcised and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ, for even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. But far be it from me to boast except in the cross

of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God, from now on, let no one cause me trouble. For I bear on my body the marks of, of Jesus, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Be with your spirit brothers. Amen.

Though the grass withers and the flower fades, the word of God is forever. Thanks be to God. Amen.

For those of you visiting with us on this, uh, Christmas, Sunday morning, uh, we have been walking through going through the entire book of Galatians here at University Reform Church, and this is our final Sunday. We are at the end of the book of Galatians. And today as we come to the end, we come to the end. Paul says that he is picking up the pin himself. He is now going to write these final verses. At the time, it was very common for a scribe

and e mannu insist to take down the dictations of someone as they were speaking. But now Paul is picking up the pin himself, depressed home. What he wants them to understand, and what he is going to do is he's going to summarize the entire letter in these closing verses. So let's just review a little bit for some of us and then for some of you, this will be new information. But what was the reason for this entire letter

to the church in Glacier? And it was this, that teachers had come from Jerusalem, they had some kind of authority, they had the credentials, but they were false teachers and they were teaching a false gospel. In fact, it was no gospel. Gospel means good news. And what they taught was not good news. I want you to notice that Paul, these gentile Christians and these false teachers who we will call Judaizers, they saw a problem that they knew needed to be addressed.

And we would call this the bad news, that there is bad news that everyone needs to reckon with. It is bad news that faces all of us this morning. We celebrate Christmas, and as we come to Christmas, I love Christmas. Most of you love Christmas. Uh, you can't help no matter what season of life you've been through, no matter how many trials you've been through over the last year or the last months or the last weeks, Christmas just kind of feels different.

It speaks of hope, it speaks of stirring with thanksgiving.

But Christmas truly only makes sense. It only really grips the heart. When you have reckoned with the bad news,

it only really matters. Lastingly beyond the emotional moment of this morning or gathering with your family or opening presents when you reckon with the bad news first.

And the bad news is this, we are sinners. Or to make it more personal, every single one of us in this room should be able to say, I am a sinner.

Paul, these gentile Christians and these judaizers, these false teachers, they all agreed on this. And frankly, everybody in this room should be able to agree on this. Well, I, I'm not as bad as my neighbor. I'm not as bad as that person over there. I'm not as bad as that person on death row. Maybe not,

but you're still a sinner. You've confessed it this morning. You, you have not loved the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength. You've not loved your neighbor as yourself. If you're honest, you would say at times you've lied. You've stolen, maybe not from a bank vault, but you've stolen a little small something from the office or a little extra time on that lunch break, or we're just a little creative on that tax return.

You've said unkind things. You've slandered, you've gossiped, you've hated, you've cursed, you've envy, you've coveted, you've lusted, you've been a glutton. I know this because it's true of all of us.

We're all sinners. You've sinned because you are a sinner. That's the bad news. And they're all agreed on it. As sinners, the scriptures are very clear. You and I as sinners are alienated from God. We are born in this world hostile to God, and God is hostile towards us. The apostle will say, there is no one who does good. No, not even one all have fallen short of the glory of God. We should all be able to agree with Paul

and with the Gentile Christians and with these judaizers, there's a big problem. There's bad news. I'm a sinner.

What they disagree about, and the reason that Paul writes this letter is, well, what's the good news in light of the bad news?

That's my great hope this morning, that as we sit here and we think through this text together and as we think through Christmas together, that you would truly be gripped in your heart of hearts by the good news that Christmas proclaims every single one of you.

First, let's understand the corruption of the good news that these false teachers were pedaling because it is a constant horrific teaching in the world. Maybe not the same ingredients as these judaizers offers, but the same general recipe that they offer for salvation. In fact, I I would argue it's the the natural inclination for sinners to, to gravitate towards this false recipe for salvation. The Judaizers were arguing that the Gentile Christians,

non-Jews, that they needed to observe the Jewish law in particular, they needed to observe circumcision to be justified. That is to be declared righteous before the throne of God, to be reconciled with God. They taught that the Jews act, these, these gentiles actually had to become Jews. Before they could become Christians. They had to observe the law to actually have peace with God. Now, did that mean that these false teachers didn't preach Jesus?

No. They preached Jesus. They preached about him.

One can believe about Jesus and that may be true. People in this room but not actually received Jesus.

His judaizers didn't, they believed that Jesus was man. They believed that Jesus was God. They believed that he was the God man. What we celebrate today, they believed that God, the Son, came into the world. They believed that he was born of the Virgin Mary, that he was born part of this creation so that he might live a sinless life, the sinless life that you and I cannot, so that he could die as our substitute upon the cross.

They surely believed that he took our death, that he took our guilt, that he took our shame, that he took the wrath of God for our sin so that we might have life and that we might have life and peace with God forever. They believed that they taught the cross of Christ.

And why was what they taught a false gospel. How did they turn that good news into bad news? What was wrong with their recipe for salvation?

They didn't teach that salvation is in Christ alone.

It's a loan in Christ. It was Jesus. They offered, but Jesus plus something you must do. For them, it was Jesus plus circumcision that the cross plus works, the cross plus the law. There were multiple ingredients in their recipe of salvation and thus they did not have good news.

There's no gospel.

Let's say we're at a wedding. We've had a lot of weddings at URC this year, and when we get to the declaration of intent in that groom and bride, just as I did Friday night, standing right down here and you get to that declaration of intent, and I ask the groom the question about his bride, will you love her? Will you comfort her honor and keep her in sickness and in health and forsaking all others? Will you bind yourself to her as long

as you both shall live?

We expect to hear, I do.

But let's say that the groom says more than I do.

I do promise to love her except if she wakes up cranky.

I, I, I, I do promise to cherish her

as long as she's honored me the last week.

Any exception, any adding to it undoes it.

Little pastoral advice. If you are standing at your wedding and your groom or your bride offers an exception to the vows you run,

and if anyone is ever teaching you that for salvation, you need, there's an exception. You need something else besides Jesus. You run,

it kills a marriage. It kills a soul.

If I must do for my justification, all is lost. I'm a sinner. And so my works, my Dewey, my obeying. It never merits anything before God for my right standing before him. Isaiah says it this way, we have all become like one who is unclean and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. Or as you know in the King James, many of you, they are filthy rags. Your righteous deeds, filthy rags got nothing to offer.

And why do people teach such things? Well, notice in our text these judaizers had two motivations. The first is that they wanted to verse 12, make a good showing in the flesh that they wanted others to think they were righteous. They were putting on a show for their Jewish friends back in Jerusalem, and it would be comical if it wasn't so incredibly sad. They wanted to be celebrated for getting others circumcised. Oh, Mordecai, you have done such a great job.

You got how many to cut off their flesh silliness.

And yet it's something that we are prone to do. That's the stinger, not circumcision, but but the same motivation. Is there just a different thing?

These false teachers wanted to be able to boast? Paul says, what? Whatever our legalism is, more often than not, it's just about us.

Legalism is dangerous. It's not only dangerous for the legalist, but for those around them. Because when we think that we can earn our reconciliation with God, that thinking never stays within personal limits. It's never simply a private obsession. It always runs over the brim of a life and it spills into the lives of others. Those around us, a haughty and a proud spirit can't help but subject others to that spirit

and legalism breeds that spirit to, so there will be a frown of disappointment. There will be the little innuendo here or there. There will be the rice smile that others don't quite measure up. There'll be the exhortation to do more.

The superiority they think they possess. They want others to recognize and feel that they, they they want to boast.

The second motivation of these false teachers and often a motivation for those who would add to Christ is Paul says in verse 12, so they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. And what does Paul have in mind? Well, the early Christians, they face persecution from their fellow Jews. It, it was not Romans as we often think. It was not initially Romans. They would come later. It was initially Jews

and they are put in on a show for their Jewish fringe. You remember, Paul was one of these persecutor. He was a Jew that persecuted Christians and it was at his feet that those first murderers of Christians would lay their cloaks as they put Steve in the first martyr of the faith to death. It was Paul, and they were not Romans that laid their cloaks at Paul's feet. They were Jews. And these Judaizers were attempting to appease their fellow Jews, not, not just

to earn their respect, but they wanted to avoid their hatred. And usually one of these two motivations is present for the legalist. Earn respect, boasting or avoid hatred. They thought they could claim Christ and claim something else. And in that way they would avoid the offense of the cross of Christ. They would avoid hatred. Their fellow Jews would not be so upset with them. They uphold the law for salvation and they add to the cross.

And how many Christians will attempt to do that today? Yes, yes, I, I believe in the cross. But then we'll add all of these secular other things because we want to take away the offense of the cross,

but the offense of the cross can't be removed. Paul makes it clear in chapter five, verse 11 of this book that the cross is offensive. It offends our sensibilities.

How could the cross a man dying upon the cross? How could a, a ghastly execution like that, a tone for sin, make peace with God? It offends our sensibilities.

It offends our pride. We, we want to do something for our salvation. We want to do the law. We want to do enough good. Surely we can remedy to this if we are forced to admit that all we can do is rely upon the person of Christ and we have to admit that we're holy sinners and we're in need of a salvation outside of ourselves.

Our cross of Christ defends our sensibilities. It defends our pride. It also makes a wreck of our haughtiness. We like distinctions, especially among people, the privilege, the needy, the wise, the simple male female, barbarian ian, slave free Jew, Gentile. Really? I'm to be saved in the same way as that prostitute is that racist

as that man that just killed the family of four

of that abortion doctor that has killed many more.

Yeah, same means of salvation.

It is all for everyone found in the same savior, born into this world for sinners,

every type of sinner,

a child that was born to die.

But you and I are to realize about Christmas more than anything else, is that all of our salvation is found in that cradle

because it's all found in him.

It's found in him who was born to die upon that cross, it's found in him who was laid out, who had his hands pierced, who had his side pierced, who had his ankles pierced

from cradle to cross or salvations just found in this one. All in him.

Everything else is but filthy rags. It's not our smarts, it's not our education. It's not our societal standing. It's not our morality.

It's not what you've done or not done.

We either rely upon Christ alone or with we are without Christ and we're alone.

One is good news. The other is not. One is salvation, the other is not.

Paul is saying that they've sought to remedy the bad news with more bad news.

They're boasting, as Paul says in verse 13 in their own flesh. But they can't even keep the law themselves because there is no hope in our own flesh. It's an impossibility.

But notice the contrast. Paul makes no boast about himself. Verse 14, but far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. For him, there's one ingredient, one simple ingredient. Christ. Christ, born for us. Christ lived for us. Christ died for us Christ. That's it. No other boast.

He makes this especially clear in two Corinthians 11. There, Paul takes up the argument of those who want to de boast in the flesh and what they do or what or who they are. And he says this. He'll say, okay, I'll play your game for a little while. Let's play it. You wanna boast, let's boast.

And he says this, since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I'm a better one. And then he can't stop himself. He is so, oh, it's so churns him inside. He says, I am talking like a madman. But then he goes back to it with far greater laborers, far more imprisonments with countless beatings

and often near death. Five times I received the ha at the hands of the Jews, the 40 lashes les one. Three times I was beaten with rods once I was stoned. That's what he means in our passage by saying in verse 17, that he bears or holds the marks of Christ in his body. He has suffered for the sake of Christ. He has the scars. He continues. Three times I was shipwreck a night and a day I was adrift at sea on frequent journeys in danger

from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers in toil and hardship through many a sleepless night in hunger and thirst, often without food in cold and exposure and apart from other things, there is my daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. My What A pedigree you have, Paul, what great works you have done for Christ Paul?

And he says in verse 14, far be it from me to boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. He does not boast in his flesh because it means Nothing, nothing.

As Paul says in verse 15, for neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything.

Whatever you wanna put there in that little equation, you, you can put there.

Put put, put that thing on on one side and then put the equal sign, whatever you wanna put there. My, my, my church attendance, my being kind to people, my observing the law. Circumcision equals nothing.

But Paul says, here's the good news.

Put Christ in the front of that formula. And then you put the equal sign there

and the answer is everything

Christ equals everything for your salvation.

Friends, if you could be saved in any other way,

if the bad news could have been remedied in any other way, surely God would have chosen to do it.

The Father and son knew eternal love,

complete harmony, unfailing joy. And yet the Son willingly left that eternal glory to be born in a stable.

He had enjoyed angels attending to him and adoring him. And now he was to be surrounded by barnyard animals.

He knew no want,

no lack had all things. And now he's dependent upon the breast of his mother.

He knew perfect love and he came to be despised. He knew perfect peace and he became a man of sorrows. He was the recipient of unceasing praise in heaven. And here he became the object of scorn. He sat as judge over all of creation. And he came to be condemned as a criminal. He's the author of life, and he was born so that he might die.

My father, this is his only begotten son.

This is the object of his eternal love.

And yet he sent his son knowing what awaited him, born to die, and ultimately to receive his own hot wrath poured out upon him for us.

My goodness. If there was another way, God would've chosen it.

It's not just silly

and dumb, dumb

to think you have a better idea for salvation. It's offensive. He gave his son

to boast in anything else on this one born for us that he might die for us.

This foolish, silly, offensive.

It's the greatest of gifts. What do you do with a gift? Yeah. Oh, you just, you just receive it. That's all you do. Gift. Receive Jesus giving us gift. Receive. That's all you do. You receive him help by faith.

You just believe and entrust yourself to him. That's it.

And when you do, everything changes. Paul experiences a, an absolute radical change that the change that every Christian experiences. Verse 14, the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. When you embrace Christ, the the world wants nothing to do with you, but you also want nothing to do with the world. We're dead to one another. The world's agenda does not include the Christian and the Christian's agenda does not include the world

as was true of Paul. So it's true of every Christian, as he will say in Galatians two, as we saw earlier, for me to live is Christ

because he, he, he becomes my all in all.

He says in verse 15, for neither circumcision counts for anything nor am circumcision, but a, a new creation. And that's what we are when we receive Christ. What we're a new creation. In two Corinthians five 17, Paul will work this out even more. And he says, therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold the new has come. His point is that we are part of the new creation, the new world that was inaugurated when this baby was

born into the world.

It's a new world. And when he returns, not as a baby, but as king upon the clouds, with the angels and the archangels, that new world ordered, that new world, his reign, his kingdom over his people will be fully consummated. And Paul's saying, listen, when you receive Christ, you become part of that new creation.

Part of that,

it's a new life. He says, verse 16, all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God, peace is theirs. Peace in their heart no longer weighed down by the guilt of sin and ultimately peace with God as the very people of God. And where is it found? All of it is found in Christ. In Christ alone.

That's the good news of Christmas. That's the good news of the gospel.

You just receive him hope. That's what grips your hearts just today. If it's true today, it's true forever. Let me just read this from a w Tozier as a close. He said thousands each year find their desire for salvation and holiness becoming too acute to bear.

And they turn to the one who was born in a manger to die on a cross. Then the fleeting beauty that is Christmas enters their hearts to dwell there forever. For who is it that imparts such beauty to the Christmas story? It is none other than Jesus, the all together. Lovely. He's all together, lovely. And I pray that you have found him this morning, and he's yours for all of eternity. Let's pray together.

Father, we are thankful for so great a salvation in Christ. We're thankful that none of it is by our works, that we are justified before your throne. That there is no better news that we could imagine, no better news, that we could create no greater story in all the history of mankind than the fact that you very God of very God and light of light with sin. Your Son, very God of very God and light of light into this world to be born for sinners,

to live, for sinners, to die for sinners.

What a gift we have in your son. We pray for every soul in this place. We would receive that gift to your praise and to your glory, and for our eternal good forevermore. Help us to know the gift of Christmas today and for all of eternity. And we pray all of this in the strong name of Jesus Christ, the one mediator between God and men. Emmanuel God with us. Amen.