Christianity

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Remember the True Gospel


This is an exegesis of Galatians 1.1-10 for Hermeneutics, Fall 2008

REMEMBER THE TRUE GOSPEL

GALATIANS 1.1-10

Main Idea of the Text: There is only one true Gospel of Jesus Christ, and any diversion from that gospel demands condemnation.

I. Paul has both an authority and calling from God. 1.1-2

II. God’s grace and peace rescue us from sin and evil. 1. 3-5

III. The Gospel of Christ is the one, true Gospel. 1. 6-7

IV. Preaching a false gospel is an act worthy of condemnation. 1.8-9

V. Pleasing the world and pleasing God cannot be accomplished simultaneously. 1.10

Practical Application:

1. Remember that you are set apart and called by God.

2. Trust in God’s grace and power to rescue you from sin.

3. Compare all teaching you hear to the Gospel found in the Word of God.

4. Confront and expose false teaching.

5. Be a pleasing servant of Christ, even when it makes you an enemy of men.


Introduction

Described by scholars as “the standard example of Paul’s style and theology,”[1] all other Pauline writings are thus judged against this epistle to the Galatians. Paul visited the Roman province of Galatia with Barnabas on his first missionary journey. His journey through the cities of Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe is recorded in Acts 13 and 14. “Many scholars conclude that Paul’s Galatian Epistle is addressed to these congregations.”[2] There is debate, however, as to the accuracy of this assessment. Some argue that the letter was not intended for the churches Paul founded in the area of Southern Galatia, but was instead delivered to churches in Northern Galatia, an area comprised of ethnic Galatians. While this theory has support from several well known scholars, a majority of New Testament scholars support the idea that Paul wrote to the churches he had planted in Southern Galatia.

This debate over the recipients of the letter is important, because issues concerning the dating of the letter stem from it. The Epistle to the Galatians is tied closely to the accounts of Paul’s missionary journeys recorded in the book of Acts, and a consistent understanding of the location and time of Paul’s writing to the Galatians solidifies one’s understanding of the events recorded in Acts. While there are several arguments supporting the theory that Paul was writing to ethnic Galatians in the Northern part of the province, this writer agrees with Bruce: “But if they belonged to different ethnic groups (Phrygian and Lycaonian) what common appellation could he have chosen to cover them all except their common political denominator, ‘Galatians’?”[3] When subscribing to the S Galatian theory, the dating of the writing of the epistle to the Galatians should be placed just prior to Paul’s journey to the Jerusalem Council, which took place in 48/49 AD.

Paul wrote this letter to the churches of Galatia in response to news that they had become ensnared in a false teaching that was leading them to abandon the freedom of the true Gospel of Christ. It is recorded in Acts that there were “missionaries” who followed Paul from city to city, teaching new converts that they had to not only accept Christ but also subscribe to certain Jewish customs like circumcision and food laws.

Apparently these Jewish-Christian preachers, telling the Galatians that Paul had failed to instruct them properly in God’s Law, were finding a receptive audience among the Galatians…. Outraged by this development, Paul fired off this letter to dissuade the Galatian churches from accepting this revision—Paul calls it a perversion (1:7)—of the gospel.”[4]

In his desire to remind the Galatians of the one, true Gospel, Paul pens this treatise of Christian liberty. In his letter, Paul defends his own apostleship, apparently called into question by these false teachers; he defends the doctrine of salvation by grace and not works; he appeals to the teachings he left with them on his initial visit and reminds of them of all that he taught them; he confronts them with the freedom from the Law that they have in Christ, and closes by begging them to return to the true gospel of Christ. The argument of this entire letter is grounded in Paul’s opening statements, found in the first ten verses of chapter one.

I. Paul has both an authority and calling from God. 1.1-2

Paul begins his letter by establishing the grounds for which he has the authority to write the following discourse. Throughout his ministry there were those who spoke against Paul and tried to claim that he had no apostolic authority because he had not physically walked with Jesus or been called by Him. Paul refutes this both here and in Second Corinthians. He gives his experience on the Damascus Road, recorded in Acts 9, as his calling from Jesus. Jesus speaks first to Paul, then to Ananias, and tells Ananias that Paul is His “chosen instrument to carry my name to the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.”[5] Paul demands that his readers understand from the beginning that he is “one with personal, delegated authority from God to proclaim accurately the Christian gospel.”[6] The word apostle could be used at the time as a general term as one sent by another; it is used in this manner even within the New Testament.[7] This is why Paul immediately qualifies the word by specifying that he is not sent by men but by God Himself. Paul is establishing that he has been called and set apart by God to do a specific work. He is not writing as Paul, their dear friend, or as Paul, as former pastor, but as Paul, the messenger of God to the Gentiles. And in writing as such, Paul is declaring his words have the authority of God as their foundation and support.

It is interesting to also note that in no other letter does Paul include such a general group as “all the brothers with me” in his greeting. Occasionally he included one or two specific names of those who traveled with him, but here Paul generalizes as though he is including with this letter the support of a group of fellow believers too numerous to name individually. In his Homily on Galatians, Chrysostom declared, “Why does he do this?…So as to destroy their calumny, therefore, and to show that his opinions are shared by many, he adds on ‘the brothers,’ showing that what he writes he writes with their consent.”[8] Paul wants to begin with the understanding that this letter is not being written from hurt feelings or ego. Paul has tested his concern against a body of believers and he has their support for confronting the churches in Galatia.

II. God’s grace and peace rescue us from sin and evil. 1.3-5

Verses three through five still follow the standard format of Roman letters. Following his identifications of writer and recipients, Paul writes a greeting. He greets the readers in Galatia with the grace and peace of “God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Grace and peace are two separate qualities present in the life of the believer. The grace of God is what allows us to receive salvation; the peace of God is the result of being put into right relationship with Him in our salvation. Augustine explained it in this manner: “The grace of God, by which our sins are forgiven, is the condition of our being reconciled to him, whereas peace is that wherein we are reconciled.”[9] Simply put, it is by God’s grace that believers are able to experience peace with God.

He further elaborates on the work of Christ in the life of believers in verse four. There, Paul declares to his readers what Christ has done, “gave himself for our sins;” and why he did what he did, “to rescue us from the present evil age;” and the reason why it was necessary, “according to the will of our God and Father.” This is a description of the result of God’s grace in the life of the believer. Sinful, fallen humanity is separated from relationship with God, and there is nothing anyone can do to reconcile himself to God. In fact, in his letter to the Ephesians, Paul declares that “it is by grace you have been saved through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”[10] His grace gives man what is not deserved—salvation and peace. It is through the substitutionary work of Christ that we are able to become a part of the covenant promise of salvation. The early church father Jerome explained the work of Christ in the will of the Father in this way: “Neither did the Son give himself without the Father’s will, nor did the Father give up the Son without the Son’s will… the Son gave himself, that he himself, as righteousness, might do away with the unrighteousness in us.”[11] It is God’s will that His children respond to His grace in faith so that they can receive His peace. At this declaration, Paul breaks into a moment of doxology: this rich, undeserved grace and favor of God should lead all believers to join with Paul in giving glory to God for ever and ever!

III. The Gospel of Christ is the one, true Gospel.

In verse six, Paul transitions from his greeting to the body of the letter in a startlingly unique manner. In Paul’s other letters, he follows his greeting with a gracious prayer of thanksgiving for the people to whom he is writing.[12] When writing to the Galatian church, however, Paul launches directly into a sharp reprimand of the believers in Galatia. He declares they have deserted the one who has called them and have turned to a different gospel. Longenecker explains that the grammar of this sentence shows Paul is emphasizing that this new teaching is not an addition to or expounding upon the teachings he delivered to the Galatians. “In all likelihood the errorists were claiming that their message and actions should be seen as complementary to Paul’s preaching and ministry. As Paul views matters, however, theirs was ‘a different gospel—which is not at all the same gospel.’”[13] One of the indications that there is something awry in the Galatian churches is the presence of confusion or disturbance amongst the members. Paul wrote to the church in Corinth that “God is not a God of confusion but of peace….”[14] By contrasting the peace of God in verse 3 with the confusion found in the church, Paul is confirming to them that these new teachings cannot be of God. This word translated as “confusion” can also be translated as “instability, a state of disorder, disturbance.”[15] Paul points out the source of this confusion is the false teachings of those who are attempting to pervert the Gospel of Christ. Bruce describes Paul argument in the following statement:

Gospel it is not; it is a message of bondage, not of freedom. It is a form of the doctrine of salvation by law-keeping from which Paul himself had been liberated by the true Gospel he received on the Damascus road ‘by revelation of Jesus Christ.’ That was the gospel which he preached to others, including the Galatians, and there could be no other….its touchstone was the proclamation of salvation and life through the grace of God….[16]

IV. Preaching a false gospel is an act worthy of condemnation.

To these false teachers of a perverted gospel, Paul delivers the harshest words he writes in all of the New Testament.[17] Jesus told his disciples that “false teachers are children of their ‘father the devil, and… want to do the desires of [their] father,’ who ‘whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies’ (John 8:44).”[18] No doubt Paul had these words of Jesus in his mind as he quickly responded to the news that the Galatians were falling prey to the very false teachers they had been warned about. Paul does not disguise his disgust with these who were destroying the foundation of the faith for which he had nearly sacrificed his life so many times. He boldly declares them to be condemned, for they are indeed preaching a foreign gospel. He is so incensed, not only by the teachings, but by the fact that the Galatians had accepted it as truth, that he repeats himself to ensure they understand his great displeasure and even anger with their situation. Chrysostom says concerning this repetition: “Lest you should think that the words came from passion or were spoken hyperbolically or through a loss of self-control, he says the same things over again.”[19] Paul declares a curse against anyone who shares a false gospel. He also gives very specific instructions to the Galatians concerning how they should receive all future teaching.

Even if Paul or any of his associates were to change their teaching, then the Galatians should not listen to them but treat them like heretics, which they would then be…. The truth outranks anyone’s credentials, and every teacher or preacher must be evaluated on the basis of what he says, not who he is.[20]

“Here Paul showed once and for all that the issue at stake in Galatia was not in the messenger but in the message.”[21] MacArthur goes on to say, “False teachers not only should not be believed or followed but should be left God’s judgment to be accursed. Accursed is translated anathema, which refers to that which is devoted to destruction.”[22] What believers in all times and places must remember is that when sinless Jesus took the punishment for sin on himself on the cross, he took the curse of sin away. To take up a Gospel that requires anything other than the atoning work of Christ is to take that curse from Jesus and place it upon the one doing the false teaching.

V. Pleasing the world and pleasing God cannot be accomplished simultaneously.

After beginning his letter with a sharp rebuke of the report he have received concerning the Galatians, Paul shifts slightly and begins questioning these same believers. In verse ten he returns to discussing himself and his service to God. Paul does not mean in this question that he believes the approval of God can be earned; he has just chastised them for a false Gospel that includes a works-based salvation.

There was a time when in fact Paul did indeed seek to please other human beings. Before his conversion to Christ, he was on the fast track toward the highest echelons of the Jewish rabbinic establishment. His entire career, including his persecution of Christians, was designed not only to justify himself before God but also to curry the favor of those in power so as to better advance his own ambitions. But this kind of self-serving… endeavor was forever shattered when Saul of Tarsus and Jesus of Nazareth collided outside Damascus. Serving Christ and pleasing humanity are mutually exclusive alternatives.[23]

This pair of rhetorical questions is meant to force the Galatians to peer inward for a moment and consider the motivations of their own hearts. By asking these questions of himself, Paul is indirectly asking these same questions of them as well. “It would be a great mistake, then, to interpret Paul’s two questions in 1:10 as the angry outburst of an egotistical preacher. What we have instead is a clear rejection of unworthy motivations for ministry.”[24]

Conclusion and Application

The meaning and intention of Paul in these first ten verses of his letter to the Galatians is as clear today as it certainly was to the original recipients nearly two thousand years ago. Paul intends to remind the believers in Galatia of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ while dispelling the false teachings of works and law-based salvation. As clear as his original intent was, the lessons he desired his original readers to glean from his writings are applicable to readers today.

First, believers should remember that we are all called and set apart by God. Just as Paul desired to emphasize his own election and calling, each believer has be called and set apart by Father God to do His work on this earth. As sure as Paul was of his calling, so too should each believer be today.

Second, believers must rely on the grace of God and not their own work to deliver them from their sins. As a Jewish-Christian, Paul most likely understood the temptation to return to the old habits of the life he led prior to his conversion to Christ. But Paul even more understood the costly yet free grace of salvation in Christ alone. No amount of work on the part of a sinful human will ever stack up to the righteous standards of a holy God.

Third, when confronted with teaching that causes confusion, believers must compare it to the Word of God. There is a difference between confusion caused by false teaching of the enemy and conviction caused by the Holy Spirit concerning sin in the life of the believer. Whenever a believers’ soul is in conflict, the thought must be taken captive and made obedient to the cause of Christ.[25]

Fourth, if it is discovered that the teaching is in violation of Scripture, that false teaching must be immediately confronted and cast aside.[26] There is no room in the church for twisted truth. In his commentary on Galatians, MacArthur declares that “Satan’s primary target for false teaching is the doctrine of salvation, because if people are confused about that they have no way of coming to God in the first place.”[27] There are enough stumbling blocks on the road to salvation without false teachings in the church being added to the list.

Fifth, believers must be willing to stand for the truth of Christ, even when it means making enemies of man. There is no approval of man that would give validity to making a concession in the gospel of Christ. The early church father Tertullian took a similar stand with his congregation in Carthage in the 3rd century. When confronting church members who were still practicing pagan customs to appease their employers, Tertullian asked them why. They responded that they did so in order to be able to work. He again asked them why they must to that, to which they replied, “Because we must live.” At this Tertullian, himself converted upon the witness of courageous martyrs of the faith, replied, “No! You don’t have to work, or eat and you don’t have to live. The only thing you have to do is be faithful.”[28] This is heart cry of Paul in his letter to the Galatians: above all else, remain faithful to the grace bestowed upon man in the true gospel of Christ.


Works Referenced

Bruce, F.F. “The Epistle to the Galatians.” New Bible Dictionary, 2nd Ed. InterVarsity: Downer’s Grove, 1982.

Bruce, F.F. “The Epistle to the Galatians.” New International Greek Testament Commentary. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 1982.

Carson, D.A. and Douglas J. Moo. “Galatians.” An Introduction to the New Testament. Zondervan: Grand Rapids, 2005.

Edwards, Mark, editor. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture. New Testament, vol. 8. InterVarsity Press: Downers Grove, 1999.

Elwell, Walter A. and Robert W. Yarbrough. “Galatians.” Encountering the New Testament. Baker: Grand Rapids, 1998.

Fung, Ronald Y.K. “The Epistle to the Galatians.” The New international Commentary on the New testament. Gordon Fee, ed. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 1953.

George, Timothy. “Galatians.” The New American Commentary. Broadman and Holman Publishers: Nashville, 1994.

Hansen, W.G. “Letter to the Galatians.” The IVP Dictionary of the New Testament. Daniel G. Reid, editor. InterVarsity: Downer’s Grove, 2004.

Hays, Richard B. “Galatians.” The New Interpreter’s Bible, vol. XI. Abingdon Press: Nashville, 2000.

Longenecker, Richard N. “Galatians.” Word Biblical Commentary. Word Books, Publisher: Dallas, 1990.

MacArthur, John. “Galatians.” The MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Moody Press: Chicago, 1987.

Robertson, A.T. “The Epistles of Paul.” Word Pictures in the New Testament, vol. IV. Richard Smith, Inc.: New York, 1931.

Strong, James. Strong’s Dictionary. New American Standard Verson. http://bible.crosswalk.com/ Lexicons/ Greek/grk.cgi?number=181&version=nas. Accessed November 27, 2008.

Wilkins, Tim. “Tertullian’s Advice to E-Harmony?” The Cross Examiner. http://www.crossministry.org/home. Accessed December 3, 2008.

[1]Hansen, W.G. “Letter to the Galatians.” The IVP Dictionary of the New Testament. Daniel G. Reid, editor. InterVarsity: Downer’s Grove, 2004. p. 396.

[2] Elwell, Walter A. and Robert W. Yarbrough. “Galatians.” Encountering the New Testament. Baker: Grand Rapids, 1998. p. 297.

[3] Bruce, F.F. “The Epistle to the Galatians.” New International Greek Testament Commentary. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 1982. p. 401.

[4] Hays, Richard B. “Galatians.” The New Interpreter’s Bible, vol. XI. Abingdon Press: Nashville, 2000. p. 184.

[5] Acts 9.15.

[6] Longenecker, Richard N. “Galatians.” Word Biblical Commentary. Word Books, Publisher: Dallas, 1990. p. 2.

[7] John 13.16; 2 Corinthians 8.23; Philippians 2.25

[8] Edwards, Mark, editor. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture. New Testament, vol. 8. InterVarsity Press: Downers Grove, 1999. p. 3.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Eph 2.8-9

[11] Edwards, 4.

[12] Ro 1.8-9; 1 Cor 1.4-9; Eph 1.15-19; Phi 1.3-6; Col 1.3-8; 1 Thes 1.2-3; 2 Thes 1.3-12; Phil 4-7

[13] Longenecker, 4.

[14] 1 Cor 14:33

[15] Strong, James. Strong’s Concordance. New American Standard Version. http://bible.crosswalk.com/Lexicons/Greek/grk.cgi?number=181&version=nas. Accessed November 27, 2008.

[16]Bruce, F.F. “The Epistle to the Galatians.” New Bible Dictionary, 2nd Ed. InterVarsity: Downer’s Grove, 1982. p. 87.

[17] George, Timothy. “Galatians.” The New American Commentary. Broadman and Holman Publishers: Nashville, 1994. p. 97.

[18] MacArthur, John. “Galatians.” The MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Moody Press: Chicago, 1987. p. 10.

[19] Edwards, 7.

[20] MacArthur, 16.

[21] George, 97.

[22] MacArthur, 17.

[23] George, 100.

[24] Ibid., 101.

[25] 2 Cor 10.5

[26] Eph 5.11

[27] MacArthur, 11.

[28] Wilkins, Tim. “Tertullian’s Advice to E-Harmony?” The Cross Examiner. http://www.crossministry.org/home. Accessed December 3, 2008.

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Obedience: A Loving God Demands a Loving Response


This is a paper I wrote on Deuteronomy 10.12-22 for Introduction to Old Testament, Fall 2008:

Introduction

Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the Pentateuch, so named for the Septuagint title Deuteronomion, or “second law,” can be considered the last will and testament of Moses. After leading the people of Israel out of Egypt and through the subsequent forty year wandering in the wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula, Moses and the Israelites arrive just over the Jordan River from the long awaited Promised Land. Before the Israelites cross into the Promised Land, Moses has some final words for the people to remember as they begin their lives serving God in the land He had promised their forefathers.

Deuteronomy is comprised of a series of speeches or “sermons” delivered by Moses just prior to his death. Internal evidence suggests Moses himself wrote the majority of Deuteronomy, while there is also internal evidence pointing to the use of a final editor. The most obvious proof of work separate from Moses is the inclusion of his death at the end of the book.

“Recent studies have…detected a five part concentric pattern known as a chiasm. The speeches of Moses may thus be described in the following fashion:

A The Outer Frame: A Look Backwards, chapters 1-3

B The Inner Frame: The Covenant Summary, chapters 4-11

C The Central Core: Covenant Stipulations, chapters 12-26

B` The Inner Frame: The Covenant Ceremony, chapters 27-30

A` The Outer Frame: A Look Forwards, chapters 31-34”[1]

Ancient cultures were formed on tradition of orality; this led to much of the writing preserved from this time period having a notable poetic structure, especially in didactic sections. This was specifically designed to aid the hearer in memorization and understanding. This paper will argue that Deuteronomy 10.12-22 forms a chiasm similar to that of the book as a whole, and thus emphasizing the importance of this passage as a summary of the law in its entirety.

Context

Chapters 4-11 comprise a historical review of Israel’s journey from Egypt to the plains of Moab. Moses is reminding the people of all the Lord has done for them on this journey. From chapter four through 10.11, Moses recounts in narrative form the giving of the law, the rebellious response of the people, and God’s gracious forgiveness and restoration of His people “so that they may enter and possess the land that I swore to their forefathers to give them.”[2] God is setting the people up for a transition from discussing His faithfulness to Israel to discussing their own faithfulness to Him. “As has been noted repeatedly, covenant relationship between the Lord and Israel had to be expressed in both a vertical and horizontal dimension. To love God is to love one’s neighbor, and to serve God necessitates societal obligation.”[3] This specific passage is designed to point the reader to examine his own heart in light of the requirements of a holy and righteous God.

I. The Lord’s Requirements of His People 10. 12-13

The word in Hebrew translated “‘and now…’ marks a transition from history (9:7-10:11) to the moral religious lesson that is to be drawn from it.”[4] These words are essentially saying to Israel, “In light of all that I am and all that I have done for you, let me explain how you are to respond.” “The opening words of v 12 are among the most familiar in the Hebrew Bible, partly because of their use in Mic 6:8—‘what does Yahweh require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?’”[5]

God’s will for his people is not clouded in obscurity. While there are multiple ways God’s will may come to fruition in the life of a faithful follower, these are the essential elements God requires of his people. There are five listed specifically within this section: (1) to fear God, (2) to walk in all his ways, (3) to love him, (4) to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and (5) to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees. One observation can immediately be made regarding the state of these commands. They are neither passive, nor is there an allowance for someone to accomplish these tasks for another; each command of God requires an active response of obedience from the individual. The first command in this list, to fear God, is the spring from which the other actions can flow. The verb used here, which is translated “fear” speaks not only of terror, but of reverential awe, which “motivates one to worship and obedience.”[6] Only when one has a right attitude and perspective toward God can right walking, love, service, and respect for His decrees follow.

Merrill suggests this list should be viewed as “fear” and “walking rightly” working in conjunction with one another to produce the next three: love, service, and obedience. He also suggests that the word love should be viewed as a technical term describing Israel’s reaction to the covenant relationship they have with God.[7] Craigie describes this initial list of God’s requirements of Israel as a description of “allegiance to the God of the covenant.”[8]

The closing statement of verse 13 is often overlooked in discussions concerning the law. While the emphasis tends to be placed on man’s ability (or inability) to successfully keep these laws, rarely is there a discussion concerning the reason behind the laws given by God. The law of God, handed down to Israel through Moses, is not a collection of laws designed solely to isolate Israel from a surrounding pagan society. In fact, this passage specifically describes how the Israelites are to appropriately interact with outsiders. But God himself qualifies these laws as statutes that are “for your own good.” The law of God is not an irrational set of decrees arbitrarily handed down by a distant deity. Rather, they are guidelines established by a loving Father, designed to bring success and safety to His children.

II. The Owner and Creator of the universe chose a people for Himself to love 10.14-15

Verses 14-15 further elaborate on the reason God has provided this law under which his chosen people are to live. God is described in these verses as being the owner of heaven and earth and everything in the earth. This is a theme drawn from the creation account of Genesis 1 and 2, and is carried throughout the remainder of the Old Testament writings. The Psalms especially emphasize the fact that all things belong to God. Yet, in spite of the fact that He owns all things and could have chosen any people in any place at any time, He chose to set His affections upon Israel. “A sharp disjunctive and restrictive adverb of which Deuteronomy is especially fond… makes the contrast vivid between the whole universe and the one people…Why God had this desire to love the patriarchs is never stated, because God’s election is always a mystery of His grace.”[9] God’s love for the patriarchs can be seen in fruition by the fact that He called the Israelites out of Egypt and brought them to the plains of Moab so that they could take possession of the land He had promised to Abraham. Just as God had demanded love in action from the Israelites, He modeled love in action by fulfilling the promises made to the patriarchs. God demonstrates His love by fulfilling His covenant with His people. God is again showing that the requirements He sets down for the Israelites are a reflection of His holy character and not a collection of arbitrary rules.

III. Those receiving the blessing of God’s covenant love must respond in obedience 10.16

Verse 16 serves as the crux of this chiastic description of God’s covenantal stipulations for His people. God gives His people instruction as to how they are to carry out the command He has given them in verses 12 and 13. The commands set down in 12 and 13 cannot be fulfilled in the human heart alone. Jeremiah describes the heart of man in this way: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? ‘I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.’”[10] This is what God is confirming in this verse. Circumcision was initiated as an outward symbol for man of the covenant made with God. “God’s requirement was that his people love him, but to do this, they required a particular attitude of heart or mind, which—like circumcision—involved decision and action symbolizing allegiance.”[11] In this chiasm, God gives Israel instructions as to what do—fear, love, obey—and why they should do these things—he’s the great God of the universe who chose to love them—but in verse 16, God provides for them the means by which they will accomplish these tasks. “Circumcision of the heart connotes being open, responsive, and obedient to the Lord.” While circumcision denotes the responsive heart, “throughout the Old Testament ‘stiffnecked’ is a metaphor for stubbornness and recalcitrance (cf. Job 9:4; 2 Chr 30:8; 36:13; Neh 9:16-17, 29; Jer 7:26; 17:23; 19:15). In the present context it denotes a lack of compliance to the covenant requirements.”[12] These two attitudes—a circumcised heart and a stiff neck—illustrate the choice Israel must make: to uphold their portion of the covenant or to rebel and go their own way. The remainder of Deuteronomy is set up in such a way that they are constantly reminded of this choice. God gives them a law, then explains the blessings of obeying and curses of disobeying. The choice to live in blessing or in curse hinges on the attitude in which the Israelites approach God. “In view of God’s election-love, one must be humbled so that he can be submissive to the guidance of God. Otherwise, love of God is impossible.”[13]

IV. The All-Powerful God loves and protects the weak and powerless 10.17-19

In keeping with the chiastic pattern, verses 17-18 reiterate the character and nature of God in relation to loving people. God has just laid before Israel the mutually exclusive choices of serving Him or serving themselves. He now reminds them one more time of His power, love, and compassion.

His greatness is portrayed by the names ascribed to him as well as by the characteristics and acts attributed to him. “God of gods” and “Lord of lords” (v. 17) are Hebrew superlatives. The designations do not suggest that there are in reality other divine gods or lords over whom God rules. Rather, as God and Lord he is supreme over all.[14]

This description of God’s power and sovereignty place him in comparison to earthly kings who often make such claims for themselves. But the second portion of the description of God found here places him in direct opposition to most earthly rulers. God is also described here as being impartial and unaffected by bribes. It is God alone who knows the heart of man, and he cannot be swayed by insincere pledges of allegiance. The status and position of man is inconsequential to God. Not only is he not swayed by those in powerful positions, he defends and cares for those who have no means of protecting themselves. God does not exploit the needy; rather, He lifts them up to a position of being worthy of love. During this time, there were no legal rights for widows or orphans.[15] In most cultures, they were left to fend for themselves, but usually with no legal means of doing so. God declares here that he is the one who cares for those who cannot care for themselves. This is a practical picture of the love God provides in salvation for his people. Israel could nothing to protect and provide for itself; they had to totally rely on God. And here God is again saying that it is he who protects the powerless.

God also tells them that he loves the alien. The word used here for alien or sojourner is

a technical term for the foreigner who has left his own people and has taken up residence in Israel. Though especially liable to injustice and oppression, he was a member of the covenant…. As God loves the sojourner, so Israel is to love him, remembering they were once in the same position in Egypt—whence they were delivered from oppression (cf. Lev 19:34).[16]

V. Fear and worship the Lord, for He has greatly blessed his people 10. 20-22

The chiasm of 10.12-22 is completed with a return to the expectations God lays out for the Israelites. After the descriptions of God’s great power and love, Israel is again reminded to fear and serve the Lord. “The theme of this part of the address is repeated here for emphasis.”[17] The Israelites are given another key to covenantal love; only if one “holds fast” to the Lord will he be able to walk rightly with him. This phrase, also translated “cleave” or “cling,” “indicates a very close and intimate relationship. The same verb is employed to describe the relationship between a man and his wife.”[18] God is to be trusted by his people as a wife trusts her husband for love and protection. He further declares Israel’s ability to trust him by declaring they are to take their oaths in his name. He is unchanging, and the promises he makes are to be trusted without question.

Because of this unchanging reliability, verse 21 declares that Israel is to see God as their praise. Due to grammatical ambiguity, this phrase can be translated two ways. One, this can mean that God is to be the sole recipient and object of praise. This is fitting, for the previous verses fully provide reason for God to be the sole object of worship by Israel. Two, this phrase can also mean that God’s provision for Israel is the foundation on which Israel is praised by surrounding nations.[19] Though weaker contextually, this translation can also work here considering the previous discussion concerning God’s care for and love of the aliens in Israel. Either way, the object and purpose of the worship is unchanging; the Lord God of Israel is worthy to be praised.

Verse 22 serves as a final illustration to the Israelites as to why God is worthy of this praise. He has performed mighty works before their eyes, and the care and protection he provided to the patriarchs on their journey into Egypt, as well as the care and protection he provided to this generation of Israel on their subsequent journey out of Egypt are to serve as markers, reminding them that their God is the God of covenant love and faithfulness.

Conclusion

Though the Israelites of Deuteronomy are separated from us by millennia, we are closely connected to them by our covenant relationship with God. Even the stiff-necked rebellion and subsequent exile of Israel proves that God is trustworthy—He is trustworthy to not only provide blessing for obedience, but also discipline for disobedience. The character of God is one of absolute consistency and reliability. In Malachi 3, God describes to the people a time when they will be restored to Him as His covenant people. Though they have disobeyed and abandoned God, He will not abandon them. Throughout Israel’s spiritual adultery, God holds to the covenant he made with the patriarchs. “So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me,” says the Lord Almighty. “I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.”[20] Because the Lord does not change, we can assured even today that by following the commands laid down in this passage—by fearing God, walking in his ways, by loving, serving, and obeying him—he will be faithful to defend us who are weak people, incapable of saving ourselves.


Works Referenced

Arnold, Bill T. and Bryan Beyer. “Deuteronomy,” Discovering the Old Testament. Baker: Grand Rapids, 1999.

B., D.R. “Deuteronomy.” Harper’s Bible Dictionary. Paul J. Achtemeier, editor. Haper & Row: San Francisco, 1985.

Buttrick, George A. The Interpreter’s Bible. Abingdon: New York, 1953.

Christensen, Duane L. “Book of Deuteronomy.” Mercer Dictionary of the Bible. Watson E. Mills, editor. Mercer University Press: Macon, 1991.

Christensen, Duane L. “Deuteronomy 1-11.” Word Biblical Commentary. Nelson: Nashville, 1991.

Craigie, Peter C. “The Book of Deuteronomy.” New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 1976.

Easton, M.A. “Deuteronomy.” Easton’s Bible Dictionary. Online version. Accessed September 12, 2008.

Kalland, Earl S. “Volume 3: Deuteronomy- 2 Samuel.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Zondervan: Grand Rapids, 1992.

Lienhard, Joseph T., ed. “Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.” Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture. InterVarsity: Downers Grove, 2001.

Luther, Martin. Lectures on Deuteronomy. Jaroslav Pelikan, editor. Concordia: St. Louis, 1960.

Merrill, Eugene H. “Deuteronomy.” The New American Commentary. Broadman and Holman: Nashville, 1994.

Phillips, Anthony. Deuteronomy. University Press: Cambridge, 1973.

Thompson, J.A. “Book of Deuteronomy.” New Bible Dictionary, 2nd Edition. InterVarsity: Downers Grove, 1962.

Weinfeld, Moshe. “Deuteronomy 1-11.” The Anchor Bible. Doubleday: New York, 1991.

Weinfeld, Moshe. “Deuteronomy.” The Anchor Bible Dictionary. David Noel Freedman, editor. Doubleday: New York, 1992.

[1] Arnold, Bill T. and Bryan Beyer. “Deuteronomy,” Discovering the Old Testament. Baker: Grand Rapids, 1999. p. 143.

[2] Deut 10.11

[3] Merrill, 201.

[4] Weinfeld, 435.

[5] Christensen, Word Biblical Commentary, 205.

[6] Merrill, 202.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Craigie, 204.

[9] Buttrick, 400.

[10] Jeremiah 17.9-10

[11] Craigie, 205.

[12] Merrill, 203.

[13] Buttrick, 400.

[14] Kalland, 86.

[15] The expansion of the law concerning the care of widows, orphans, and aliens can be found in De 24:17-22.

[16] Buttrick, 401.

[17] Craigie, 207.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Christensen, 207.

[20] Mal 3.5-6

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Thinking of Ourselves Less


“The Christian gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued that Jesus was glad to die for me. This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling. I cannot feel superior to anyone, and yet I have nothing to prove to anyone. I do not think more of myself nor less of myself. Instead, I think of myself less.”
–Tim Keller, The Reason For God

It just doesn’t get any more simple nor straightforward than the above quotation. The point of life is not to develop great self-esteem so that we think the world owes us a favor, nor is it to deny ourselves so much that we become  door mats to the rest of humanity. Rather a Christian’s one purpose is to follow in the steps of John the Baptist, who proclaimed, “I must decrease, He must increase.” When we die to self; when we remember who we were are as hopeless sinners; when we remember the greatness of our holy God and our utter inability to be in relationship with Him; when we think of ourselves less and our great God more, our lives begin to fall miraculously into place. Suddenly “the things of this earth will grow strangely dim/ In the light of His glory and grace.”

There are so many times when I take the focus off of him and I place it on myself. Those are the times I slide into thinking things like, “I’m doing alright. At least I don’t sin like so-and-so. I’m doing pretty good compared to her.” But our goal is not to be better than we were yesterday or to be better than the people around us. Our goal is to be holy as He is holy– a pretty tall order for a bunch of sinners.

In this journey to Christlikeness, I must remember that the fastest way to stay close to Christ is to remember the great sacrifice He made for me on the cross, and to remember how sinful I still am and how sinful I will remain without His grace and help. Praise to Him who loves enough to not let us stay in our sinful state, but instead made a way for us to be holy as he is holy!

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Philippians 1.7-8– Christian Affection in a Love-Starved World


It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. Phil. 1.7-8

I. Confidence in the Gospel:

Paul closes out the welcome of his letter by continuing his conversation about his love and affection for the people in the Philippian church.

Throughout these first verses Paul has repeatedly expressed love and affection for these people. There are few things that would bond Paul to these people by our modern day standards for friendship.

In his sermon “A Rebel’s Guide to Joy in Lonliness,” Mark Driscoll talks about relationships today usually being based on two things: affinity and location. We are friends with people because we are in the same place as us or they like the same things as us. This sort of friendship is based on shallow things that do not last the test of time or trials. When people move or activities change, our friendships end. There are simply not many lasting, abiding relationships around today. In our consumer society, all things are expendable. Love is not a commitment—it’s equated with personal feelings of happiness and contentment.

Paul and the people of Philippi had little in common on the surface. Paul was a single Jewish man; most of the Philippians were married Gentiles. Paul was a tentmaker by trade; most of the Philippians were merchants and soldiers. From the lists of converts given, women were most likely a majority in this church. Paul was in jail in Rome; the Philippians were free in their province. There were few things in their lives that would have brought them together in deep relationship. Yet this congregation seems to have had one of the closest relationships with Paul of any of the churches he planted. Why is this?

It’s because their relationships were not based on affinity or location. They had nothing in common and they were not in the same place, yet their friendship and love for one another stood the tests of time and location. This is all because their relationships were built on something more solid than a shared love for a football team or a hobby: they recognized that their love for one another was grounded in the self-sacrificial love of Christ.

This is a situation that makes itself known in our lives today. We live in such a transient society that it is rare for people to stay in the same place for long. I have moved around quite a bit in the last few years, and my lasting friendships have become very precious to me. Those who I keep in contact with regardless of where I live are the friends I treasure most because I know the relationships have deep roots and are based on something more than just convenience.

Paul proclaims to them in verse seven that regardless of the situation in which he finds himself, he holds them in high regard. To Paul, these people are his brothers and sisters, co-members of the body of Christ. They are family, a part of his very body, and no situation can really remove someone from a family. Why does he feel this way about them? The answer is back in verse 5: he is confident in his affection for them because of their partnership. He doesn’t love them because they have spouted out empty words of love and affection to him. He is confident in their actions.

Christian love and partnership in the Gospel is defined by our actions, not our words.

How do you show love for the body of Christ?

Paul says in verse 8 that God Himself knows how genuine Paul’s love is for them. The word translated “affection” refers to the innermost parts of a person. Scholars tell us this is the strongest word in the Greek language to indicate compassion and affection. Paul loved the Philippians with the deepest love possible, and this is how we are to love one another. Already in this letter, Paul has emphasized over and over again the love that passes between him and the congregation, and he tells them repeatedly that he is confident of their partnership in the Gospel because of their active love for one another.

All of this sent me again to think about how I show my love for my brothers and sisters in Christ. Do I have fellow believers in my heart? Do I reflect Christ in such a way that people would want to keep me in their hearts? What does the affection of Christ look like practically?

Please post your suggestions of practical ways we can show the affection of Christ to those around us!

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Philippians 1.6


“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Paul has just had a moment of prayerful thanksgiving for these friends of his in Philippi. He is thankful for their partnership in the Gospel, and in verse 6 he further explains to them why he is so confident in his thanksgiving to God. In this one sentence, Paul sums up the entire Christian life.

  1. We can have confidence in one thing in life.
    1. Possessions will come and go. People will always fail us. Paul is joyful that the Philippian church is faithful, but he does not place his confidence in them. He places his confidence in the one Person who will never leave us nor forsake us: Jesus Christ.
    2. Our confidence is found in the work of Christ in our salvation. In this one verse, Paul explains the three parts of our salvation in Christ. There are theological terms for each aspect of salvation; look them up, study them, and consider how God is still working out your salvation, even today.
  2. God began a work in us—this is justification. This is the moment that you receive salvation from the Lord. In Baptist circles, this is when you “get saved.” J There’s a handy book you can buy or order from Lifeway called Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms. It’s helped me tremendously when I have been in classes and didn’t understand the conversation because I didn’t know the terms being used. It’s very handy, and I would encourage you to pick one up!
    1. The Pocket Dictionary gives this definition of justification: A legal term related to the idea of acquittal; refers to the divine act whereby God makes humans, who are sinful and therefore worthy of condemnation, acceptable before a God who is holy and righteous.
    2. The simple fact that God even chose to begin a good work in us should cause us to praise Him! Paul says in Romans that humanity is the enemy of God when we are in our sin, yet “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5.8).” We would never choose God on our own. There is nothing good in us; even the best things that we do with the best of intentions are but filthy rags when compared to the holiness of God. Paul described our situation this way to the church in Ephesus: “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked, according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of the flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1-3). Sounds like a great place to be: dead people, walking in indulgence and wrath and lust. Lost humanity is a pleasant group to be around. We weren’t in a neutral spot, we weren’t good people who just needed a relationship with God to be complete. WE WERE DEAD. And then comes the greatest transition in all of Scripture: “But God.” We were those things, but God was rich in mercy, and because of his great love for sinful dead humanity, made us alive in Christ Jesus!
    3. Justification means that the penalty for our sin, which is death (Romans 6.23), was paid for by Jesus, and we are now seen as sinless and forgiven, debt free in the eyes of God. All of that was done for us, through no work or merit of our own.
  3. The work God began in you will be completed—this is sanctification.
    1. Again, from the Pocket Dictionary: From the Hebrew and Greek, “to be set apart” from common use, “to be made holy.” The nature of sanctification is twofold in that Christians have been made holy through Christ and re called to continue to grow into and strive for holiness by cooperating with the indwelling Holy Spirit until they enjoy complete conformity to Christ.
    2. If you are a Christian, if you have surrendered your life to the calling and work of Christ, this is where you are in your walk of salvation. Sanctification is the hard part of salvation. While our justification is a work done by God, sanctification requires our participation. We are enabled by the Holy Spirit to conform to Christ’s image, but we must daily choose to die to self and become like Christ in word and deed.
    3. So often, we spend our time focused on thanking God for our justification and then looking forward to our glorification—that time when we will be with Christ for eternity. But hear this and think about it carefully: God did not save us just so we could go to heaven when we die! If that were the sole purpose of salvation, he would take us the moment He saved us! But He leaves us here to do a work for Him. We are to be His ambassadors; we are to take time to learn about Him and to teach others about Him as well. Our purpose is not to just make it through this life so we can get on to eternal life. Our purpose is live abundantly to the glory of God! We are to laugh and love and serve and sacrifice and LIVE for Jesus! Our Christianity should not be compartmentalized into Sundays and Wednesday nights. Instead, our Christianity should permeate every part of our lives. We should eat and drink and do everything to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10.31). This means we should scrapbook to the glory of God. We should play ball to glorify God. We should care for our children or our grandchildren or our parents for God’s glory. We should have coffee with our friends and God should receive glory through what we do and say. As we enjoy life on earth (which is what God intended for us to do here), we are to enjoy it in a way that points a lost and dying world to its Creator.
    4. The bulk of the New Testament is devoted to letters written to churches, explaining to them how to walk in this life in a manner that is set apart and holy in the eyes of God. There is a two fold reason for striving for sanctification: 1) a life set apart from this world brings glory to God, and 2) anything that brings glory to God will be a light for a lost and dying world.
    5. I know in my own life, I have looked at sanctification as a list of things to mark off of a To-Do List. My To-Do List inevitably becomes a prideful list of the things that I have accomplished. Sanctification is not about us and how good we become. Rather, it is about pouring ourselves out as a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise to the God who loved us enough to save us from ourselves and an eternity in Hell.
  4. The day of Christ Jesus will come—this will be our glorification.
    1. One more time from the Pocket Dictionary: The last stage in the process of salvation, namely the resurrection of the body at the second coming of Jesus Christ and the entrance into the eternal kingdom of God. In glorification believers attain complete conformity to the image and likeness of the glorified Christ and are freed from both physical and spiritual defect. Glorification ensures that believers will never again experience bodily decay, death or illness, and will never again struggle with sin.
    2. I don’t know about you, but that’s the first time in my life that a dictionary entry has caused me to rejoice! It’s no wonder that we spend so much time pining away for heaven and glory. Paul says later in Philippians that our citizenship is in heaven. He told the church in Corinth that “now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13.12).
    3. Our glorification is a work of God that is worthy of our praise. It is an act of His grace and mercy that we do not deserve. It is something to look forward to. But never let a preoccupation of what is to come distract you from the work He left you here to do! While our citizenship is in heaven, we are ambassadors of Christ in this world, and as a good ambassador, you are to do the work of the One who sent you until He calls you home again. Paul was torn when he thought about this: He wanted to stay and do the work of an ambassador, but he desired to be with his Lord. He says in Philippians 1.21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” We love to talk about the gain we will receive when He calls us home. No more dying, no more pain, no more sin. But we miss the first part of that statement so often—to LIVE is Christ! We are to live for Him powerfully and victoriously for as long as He has on this planet.

So here’s what I want you to think about the next few days:

1. Take a few minute and think about your justification. When were you saved? How would you share that experience with another person? How is your life different now than it was before you surrendered your life to Christ? While remembering the exact date and time is not that important, you should be able to tell about a time when you realized that you were a sinner who was separated from a holy God and that you knew that trusting Jesus to save your sins was the only way for you to be reconciled to God. For some people, it was an instantaneous moment and they can give you the exact date, time and location. For others, like me, it was a journey, a process of learning truth and trusting God slowly. But think about how you would share your story of salvation with another. First Peter 3:15 says: “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

2. The above verse goes along with the next question: in view of God’s command that we live lives set apart for the Gospel, since we are to be working towards sanctification, what about you will cause people to ask you about the reason for the hope that you have? Do you live a life that is set apart from the world? Would your co-workers be surprised if they found out you go to church? What do you intentionally do to keep you walking in a direction toward Christlikeness? Sanctification will not happen passively. It is an active, intentional process; what’s your plan?

3. Do you think about your glorification? Take some time in your “sanctified imagination” and picture what it might be like when we finally see our Savior face to face. Write a prayer of thanksgiving to God for His mighty love and grace and mercy. Think about what it is that He has called you to accomplish before that day. More than anything else, as a way of thanking Him for what He has done for me, out of love and gratitude, I want Him to be able to say to me, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25.21). He gave His life for us, as a ransom. What more can we give Him but our very lives in return?