Inquiry. "You continually stress that if we believe that Jesus has paid the penalty for our sins and removed the condemnation of sin from us, we cannot, at the same time, believe that the penalty and condemnation for sin still remains as a threat over us. And I do recognize that this is absolutely logical. But now I am in a dilemma."

Answer. "Why?"

Inquiry. "The problem is there are just so many texts in the Bible that argue against what you are saying."

Answer. "There is not one single text in the whole of the Bible, which, when properly interpreted and understood argues against what I am saying. But I do recognize why you think that there are so many.

The problem is quite simple. Christianity has been, and still is plagued by so many teachers who do not believe the gospel of Jesus Christ themselves, so they continually oppose the gospel by incorrectly interpreting the Bible in an attempt to give weight to their own disbelief. And you have listened to their incorrect teachings for so long that you are now firmly convinced by them.

You must come to terms with this fact and be prepared to meet it head on. You will never find true peace with God while you allow yourself to be tossed to and fro by the false teachings and errors of other men who have not found true peace with God themselves.

Christianity has always been riddled from top to toe with teachers and preachers who do NOT believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. They call themselves Christians. They present themselves as Christians. But they ARE NOT! They say that they believe the gospel. They say that they believe on Christ. But they DO NOT. And because they do not, they have buried true Christianity and the true Christian gospel knee deep in error.

Unfortunately, your present interpretation of countless texts will have been directed and influenced by the things which other people have said and written. Your thinking is a direct result of their teaching. And as their teaching is incorrect, so your thinking is incorrect. And it is imperative that you recognize this fact, face up to it, confront it, and be ready to defeat it. This is no joke. It is a deadly serious matter!"

Inquiry. "But how can I determine what is true and what is false?"

Answer. "Some of the false teachings are easy to detect, but many are very subtle. But no matter how subtle they are, those who teach them always betray themselves in the end."

Inquiry. "How?"

Answer. "By the very words that come out of their own mouths.

They rarely oppose the true gospel with outright confrontation as happened 2000 years ago. They have learned to be far more subtle in their approach. Instead of being honest and coming clean about their own disbelief, they argue against and destroy the teaching of the gospel by adding other false teachings to it."

Inquiry. "What other false teachings?"

Answer. "Well, they would typically listen to the teaching that Christ has paid for sin and that God does not impute our sins to us, and even nod their heads in a most holy manner as if butter would not melt in their mouth. They invariably even throw in a few "Praise the Lord's" for good measure, thus pretending to agree with what has been said. And then, as soon as they get the opportunity, they counteract all that has been said by adding a clause.

Invariably their objection begins with the word - "But". And when we hear this word "but" spoken under these circumstances, what you are about to hear is the introduction of a clause. So we must prick up our ears real good and listen very carefully.

The clause that follows could be any one of a thousand possibilities, such as - "BUT we cannot truly expect to be accepted by God unless we endeavour to do our best and love one another."

Inquiry. "But, should we not do our best and love one another?"

Answer. "Of course we should! This is the duty of all men! Surely this is well understood. But this was not the wording of the clause. It was worded in such a way as to make our acceptance before God to rely on it. It was prefixed with the words - "BUT we cannot truly expect to be accepted by God unless..." This clause makes our eventual acceptance by God, and therefore our salvation to be dependant on our own good works and our own obedience to the law.

Would you like a real example of such a case?

Inquirer. "Yes."

Answer. "OK. Let's look at an example from John Wesley, the originator of the Methodist movement. This man's works are still in print and widely taught by many.

Now we know for a fact that John Wesley did not accept, neither did he believe that a man was justified before God by Christ's death for sin and resurrection alone. But he believed and taught that a man must also do good works in order to be justified. Many Methodists today will deny this fact. But we know that it is a fact, because John Wesley said so himself.

In 1770 after thirty one years of preaching and teaching, the recorded minutes of the conference which had just taken place were published, where John Wesley said -

"We have taken it for a maxim, that - A man is to do nothing in order to justification. Nothing can be more false. Whoever desires to find favour with God should cease from evil, and learn to do well."

All Methodists should sit for a while, and let the implications of these words sink into their brains. Wesley believed and taught that a man had to do something in order to be justified. He taught that we should cease from evil and learn to do good.

Very often when Methodists today are confronted with this fact, they rush to support the Wesley's good name by quoting from his sermons where he did teach justification by faith, such as -

"It is impossible, indeed, to have too high an esteem for "the faith of God's elect." And we must all declare, "by grace ye are saved through faith; not of works, lest any man should boast." We must cry aloud to every penitent sinner, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Wesley's Fifty Three Sermons p 353.

You see, Wesley was a tricky dicky. It is true that he did preach these words. He did declare that - "by grace ye are saved through faith; not of works, lest any man should boast." But as soon as he had said it, he introduced a clause, and the clause was -

"But at the same time, we must take care to let all men know, we esteem no faith but that which worketh by love; and that we are not saved by faith, unless so far as we are delivered from the power as well as the guilt of sin. And when we say "Believe, and thou shalt be saved," we do not mean. "Believe, and thou shalt step from sin to heaven, without any holiness coming between; faith supplying the place of holiness." but "Believe, and thou shalt be holy; Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt have peace and power together: thou shalt have power from Him in whom thou believest, to trample sin under thy feet; power to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and to serve him with all thy strength: thou shalt have power, by patient continuence in well doing, to seek for glory, and honour, and immortality; thou shalt both do and teach all the commandments of God, from the least even to the greatest: thou shalt teach them by thy life as well as by thy words, and so be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Wesley's Fifty Three Sermons p 353.

Do you see what I mean. He gives it with one hand and then he takes it back with the other.

If we slowly read what he said and dissect it, we find that he tells us -

1. "And when we say "Believe, and thou shalt be saved," we do not mean. "Believe, and thou shalt step from sin to heaven, without any holiness coming between; faith supplying the place of holiness."

2. "But "Believe, and thou shalt be holy; believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt have peace and power together: thou shalt have power from Him in whom thou believest, to trample sin under thy feet; power to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and to serve him with all thy strength: thou shalt have power, by patient continuence in well doing, to seek for glory, and honour, and immortality; thou shalt both do and teach all the commandments of God, from the least even to the greatest: thou shalt teach them by thy life as well as by thy words, and so be called great in the kingdom of heaven."

Herein lies the proof that Wesley did teach and believe, as he said in the 1770 conference - "We have taken it for a maxim, that - A man is to do nothing in order to justification. Nothing can be more false. Whoever desires to find favour with God should cease from evil, and learn to do well."

The way to examine and test Wesley's "but" clause, and all such "but" clauses is to put the clause itself into a loop. For instance, if anybody should say - "Oh yes, I do believe and teach that Jesus has died for our sins. And I do believe and teach that our sins are not imputed to us. I do believe that Christ's Righteousness is imputed to us, BUT we cannot truly expect to be saved or accepted by God unless we endeavour to do our best and love one another." Then we must immediately reply -

Hang on a minute. STOP! Is it not a sin if we do not endeavour to do our best and love each other?

Yes.

But you have already affirmed that you both believe and teach that Jesus has died for our sins. How can you both believe and teach that Jesus has died for our sins and our sins are no longer imputed to us, so that we might escape the condemnation of the law and be saved, and at the same time say that we must do the works of the law or we will not be saved? You cannot have it both ways! You are arguing against yourself.

You see, a person can argue for a lifetime, declaring how much they believe the gospel of sins paid for, but if they then declare that we need to keep ANY aspect of the law as well, to make us acceptable to God or fit to enter into eternal life, then the fact that they add such a clause is a denial that they truly believe in the gospel of sins paid for at all!

If they truly did believe in the gospel of sins paid for, they would not add any such clause, but would rather be overcome with the peace of God which passeth all understanding, by the knowledge that as sin has been paid for, there is nothing left to prevent us from entering into eternal life.

Our sin minus Christ's payment for our sin = no more penalty for sin."

Inquiry. "Then may I present you with a text which would seem to argue against what you are saying?"

Answer. "Most certainly."

Inquiry. "The most obvious and blatant of all texts appears in the Book of Galatians, where we are told - "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in times past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." Gal. 5:19-21.

Can we first agree that all of the things in this list are sins?"

Answer. "Yes! Without a doubt."

Inquiry. "But this surely proves that what you are saying is wrong? You continually emphasize that Christ has died for our sins, and that the sins which we do still presently commit are not imputed to us. But here, in this text, Paul would evidently disagree with you. Because, if our sins are not imputed to us, how can we be told that all who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God?"

Answer. "This text is a text of law. The whole purpose of the law being given was to shut every mouth and make the whole world guilty before God. ( Rom. 3:19.), and to be our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. (Gal 3:24)

But because of the way that this particular text of law was written and presented, it has been openly abused for centuries, and is still being abused today by some of the most prominent teachers within Christianity. They use it like a giant club to beat the poor in spirit to a pulp. They pluck this text out from its surround, load it like a magazine into a machine gun called their mouth, and open fire at anybody and everybody in sight, often with devastating effects.

The bullets which they fire, invariably, do not hurt or bother their own selves one bit. They are too hardened in hypocrisy and self-righteousness to come to any harm. But those same bullets wound the poor in spirit grievously. They stick in them like fiery darts, driving them to doubt, wavering, and suicidal despair.

You see, all despairing sinners, and the poor in spirit, know only too well that there are so many things in this list that they ARE guilty of. They might find some occasional light relief with the knowledge that they do not practice witchcraft. But such relief is extremely light and short lived, because they are immediately confronted with the rest of the list. What about adultery, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, and envyings? And then there are the terrible words "and such like", which allow the expansion of this text to include all manner of other sins. And of course, the concluding words - "that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God," are the very sentence of condemnation and death itself.

As far as the self-righteous hypocrites who continue to misuse this text and thus cause the suffering of those for whom Christ died, are concerned, the Bible makes it very clear, that they will, in the end, receive due recompense, unless they repent of their self-righteous hypocrisy."

Inquiry. "Why do you call them self-righteous hypocrites?"

Answer. "Because only a self-righteous hypocrite could look at a list like this one and NOT find something contained within it of which they ARE guilty!

But that does not solve the problem for the despairing sinner who is suffering right now with a conscience which is raw, sore and tender, and under constant attack by the misuse of this text, and the ensuing false teaching which drives them to despair. Neither does it answer your question. So let us examine the matter.

To do so, we must first truly understand the nature of the Galatian problem. Have you ever read the book of Galatians?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "Then there should be little doubt in your mind that the Christian Church in Galatia was in the process of making a very serious error. It was a big problem, and so very real, that when Paul wrote to them concerning it, his warnings were clear and precise. They could not have been more so. They were stark and deliberate warnings which, when we read them today, should hit us like a brick in the face. What worse news can any Christian hear than -

1. Christ will profit you nothing! Gal. 5:2.

2. You are falling from grace! Gal. 5:4.

Now the question is - why were the Galatians told that they were falling from grace? What were they accused of doing? You say that you have read the book of Galatians,

Answer. "So tell me, what was the problem that had arisen in the Galatian church?"

Inquiry. "They were being circumcised."

Answer. "So why were they warned that they were falling from grace by being circumcised?"

Inquiry. "I don't know. This has always been a puzzle to me. It all seemed to be a bit of a storm in a teacup on Paul's behalf."

Answer. "The fact that Paul used such strong words should show us just how serious he viewed their error to be. It should show us how he considered it to be of the greatest importance. This was no storm in a teacup!"

Inquiry. "But why were they warned that they were falling from grace because they were being circumcised?"

Answer. "As strange as it may initially sound, the warning was given, not because they were doing anything in particular against the law of God, quite the contrary. The warning was issued because they were trying to keep an aspect of the law! Circumcision was a work of the law. The warning was issued, not because they were deliberately breaking the law, but because they were trying to keep it!"

Inquiry. "And what was, or is, wrong with trying to be obedient to God's law?"

Answer. "If you believe that you must be obedient to God's law because God will reject you if you aren't, or if you believe that you are more acceptable to God by your doing it, then you are, in effect, rejecting the all sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice for sin.

Inquiry. "Why?"

Answer. "Because ANY and ALL who believe that they MUST do, or keep, any aspect of the law to be accepted by God, are, by their belief, denying that Christ's death for sin is good enough to save them.

The letter to the Galatians was not an argument over circumcision. Do not imagine that Paul was stupid. He knew very well that the act of circumcision was meaningless. He knew, that in itself, the act of circumcision made no difference at all. It was merely a cutting of skin, and it made not the slightest bit of difference whatsoever whether a man was circumcised or uncircumcised. It is he who tells us so in several places, for instance -

"For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision." Gal. 5:6.

And again -

"Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing." 1 Cor. 7:19.

In itself, being circumcised was as harmless and as benign as having a tooth capped, or having an appendix removed. From a Christian point of view it was immaterial, of absolutely no importance whatsoever. So the question that Paul wanted answered was - if it was of no importance, why were the Galatian Christians being circumcised? And the answer started to ring alarm bells in Paul's brain. He realized that the Galatians were drifting away from the all sufficient gospel of Jesus Christ.

We must understand without any confusion that Paul was NOT arguing against the act of circumcision itself, but against a far greater principle which lay behind it."

Inquiry. "What principle?"

Answer. "The re-building of law keeping as a necessary factor for salvation!

As far as Paul was concerned, the Galatians' decision to be circumcised was proof that they were rejecting ALL that Christ stood for. It was proof that they were rejecting Christ and the gospel.

Paul had spent a lot of time with the Galatians, explaining to them the teaching of the one, true, Christian gospel message. They had been told quite plainly that Jesus Christ had died for their sins, and the curse of the law, which was the strength of sin, a yoke of bondage, the means of condemnation, and the bringer of death to man, had been removed by Christ for them. They had been told that Christ's Righteousness was imputed to them, and they had been told that the sins which they did still commit were NOT imputed to them. They had been told that because Christ had already died for their sins they would be able to pass through judgement into eternal life. And they had been told that their salvation was a free gift, given to man by the grace of God.

All of these aspects of the gospel had been preached to them. The gospel of grace had all been carefully explained to them step by step, and they had originally told Paul that they accepted and believed it all.

They were supposed to be members of a Christian church. They were supposed to be following the faith of Christ, and preaching the gospel to others. But they were not! Far from it. And their decision to be circumcised was proof that they were following a false gospel."

Inquiry. "How?"

Answer. "Because the logical and obvious proof of whether they had truly accepted the gospel message of sins paid for, would be shown by their attitude concerning the necessity of keeping the law! It was obvious, that if the Galatians had decided to be circumcised, then they DID think that it was necessary. They must have believed that there was some benefit to be gained by doing it, or else they would not be doing it! After all, it was not the most pleasant act to undergo, so if they were putting themselves through the pain of having it done they must have believed that it was necessary.

Paul knew very well that there were many false disciples who claimed to believe the gospel when they did not believe it at all. He knew that the proof of the pudding was in the eating. He knew that no matter how much a man said that he believed the gospel, if his next words or actions taught or showed that he believed in the necessity of law keeping to be made acceptable to God, then it was proof that he did not believe in the gospel message of sins paid for at all!

Anybody, and I mean ANYBODY, who tells you that you must do any work of law, keep any commandment of law, or fulfil any good work according to the teaching of the law in order to be justified, accepted by God, saved, or rendered fit to enter into eternal life, does NOT believe the gospel of sins paid for. If anybody truly believes that Christ has wrought out their salvation by paying for their sins through His death, then their very belief itself means that they cannot subscribe to the belief that they must do ANY work of law to save them.

The Galatians had originally told Paul that they both understood and believed that their Salvation came by the grace of God, through Christ's death for sin. They had professed to believe that Christ's death for their sins meant that Christ had made the way clear for them to be accepted by God. They had expressed their belief in the fact that Christ's Righteousness was imputed to them, and they were in the blessed state of not having their sins charged to them any more. Now they were going back on themselves. They were like a dog returning to its vomit. For now they were being convinced by the false teaching that their salvation relied upon Christ's death for sin, PLUS their own obedience to the law.

And this is why, when writing to them, Paul immediately re-established his teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As soon as he has introduced himself and conveyed the greetings of the brethren who were with him, he says - "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." Gal. 1:3-5.

The words - "Who gave himself for our sins" are the gospel in a nutshell. They are the whole substance of the gospel message, and the foundation stone upon which ALL Christian belief is based. They tell us that Christ came for this very purpose - to die for our sins. He came to take our penalty for breaking the law. He came to effectively remove the curse and the condemnation which the law of sin and death pronounced on all mankind. But we have already covered this, haven't we?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "In that case, the question that both you and every professing Christian must always ask themselves is - Do I truly believe that Jesus Christ has done it? Do I truly believe that He did pay the price for ALL of my sins? And in effect this is the question that Paul was asking the Galatians. Because if they agreed that they believed that Christ had died for their sins, it was impossible for them to teach the necessity of circumcision at the same time."

Inquiry. "Why not?"

Answer. "Because the teaching of the gospel is a logical, step by step understanding.

1. Sin is the transgression of the law.

2. Christ has died for sin.

3. Therefore Christ has died for our transgression of the law.

4. So if Christ has already died for our transgression of the law, He has removed the penalty for our not keeping the law.

Is this not logical?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "So if the Galatians answered in the affirmative, and confirmed that they did truly believe that Christ had died, and by His death He had fulfilled the law, then they could not logically also believe that they had to be circumcised to be accepted by God, because circumcision was a work of the law!

On the other hand, if they believed that they DID need to be circumcised (a work of the law), they were in fact denying that Christ's death for sin had truly fulfilled the penalty and curse of the law.

I know that I keep on saying it, but you can't have your cake and eat it at the same time. You CANNOT say that Christ died to redeem us from the curse of death which the law demanded as payment for our sins, and also say that the law still remains over us, threatening us with its curse of death if we don't keep it. It is ludicrous nonsense. If we believe that we will can still be condemned because of our own sins then we cannot at the same time believe that Christ has taken our condemnation upon Himself, can we?"

Inquiry. "No."

Answer. "Right, so having established that these two things do not agree, it logically follows, that if we still uphold the belief that we must keep any single aspect of the law to be accepted by God, we are in effect denying that we do truly believe that Christ has already paid the price for our sins. And it also logically follows that if we still uphold the belief that in order to be accepted by God we must now cease from any single, solitary sin, we are, once again, effectively denying that we do truly believe that Christ has already paid the price for sin. And this is exactly what the Galatians were doing by insisting on the necessity of circumcision.

There was nothing wrong with circumcision. Circumcision was not the real problem. It was the wrong intention which only showed itself in the act of circumcision. It was the principle that Paul was fighting against.

The Galatians were following a false gospel. They were being convinced by the false persuasion that it was necessary to be circumcised in order to be accepted by God. Probably without even understanding what they had done, without even understanding how important a matter it was, they had moved one step backwards away from the understanding that they were justified by grace alone, through the faith of Christ alone, and they had started to turn back to the works of law in their life as being necessary for their salvation. They had turned grace into works and works into grace. They had turned the whole gospel upside down and inside out!

The new teaching that the Galatians had followed was absolute madness! It was utterly illogical and totally nonsensical! On the one hand, they claimed to believe that Jesus had died for their sins. They claimed that they did believe that He had taken the law out of the way, nailing it to His cross, so that it could no longer condemn them. But on the other hand they wanted to rebuild the law by doing the works of the law in an attempt to make themselves more acceptable to God.

These two things are absolutely contradictory. They are utterly opposed to each other. They fight and argue against each other, and in the end one must destroy the other. They cannot ever agree. It is impossible for any rational human being to believe both of these things at the same time. It is utterly irrational and illogical!

And Paul was deeply disturbed by the Galatian heresy. He'd had enough of their despising Christ's death for sin and grace, and he was not going to settle for any wishy washy, sit on the fence, luke-warmness. It was make your mind up time. It was crunch time, when they would be challenged as to whether they truly did believe the gospel or not. And to show them both the logic of the gospel, and the error of their own illogical thoughts on the way of salvation, he set a trap for them which was clear and precise, a trap which could not be argued against unless they totally rejected the gospel. He placed them into a loop similar to those which I have used, and he tells them -

"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law there shall no flesh be justified. But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor." Gal. 2:16-18.

There it is! A beautiful example of a typical loop system that Paul was so adept at using. His reasoning is not based on presumption, nor on mere speculation, but upon a reasonable, hard, logical argument, from which he leaves all who read it only one possible escape route - to either totally accept or totally deny the Christian gospel message."

Inquiry. "I'm sorry, but I hardly understand a word of that text. And for the life of me, I cannot see a loop in it at all."

Answer. "O.K. So let us go through it. He begins by stating several facts which no true Christian with any understanding can argue against, the first one being - we ARE NOT and CANNOT be justified by the works of the law!"

Inquiry. "Why not? I mean, I keep on reading this statement or similar ones. Paul often mentions it in his epistles. But I still do not understand why we cannot be justified by the works of the law."

Answer. "Because it is utterly impossible for such a thing to be. The very meaning of the word "justified" means - to be judged and pronounced righteous, or to be judged and pronounced free from guilt.

If we are accused of doing something which is unlawful and are judged for our action and subsequently justified, it means that we have been judged and pronounced not guilty. This means that to be justified by the law, or by the works of the law, we would have to be judged by the law of God on all points and found not guilty of breaking it. We would have to be totally without sin, totally without guilt, totally righteous or sinless.

Sin is the result of the law being broken. Sin is the transgression of the law. So, if we have ever broken the law, if we have ever, just once in our whole life committed just one single sin, and are subsequently judged according to the standard of the law, then the law must condemn us. It cannot justify us, because the very meaning of the word "justify" means - to be judged and pronounced righteous, or to be judged and pronounced free from guilt.

So are we? Are we perfectly righteous and without sin?"

Inquiry. "No. We are not righteous, for - "There is none righteous, no not one." Rom. 3:10. We are ALL sinful - "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Rom. 3:23."

Answer. "Right! Therefore, as breakers of the law, if we were to be judged by the law, we cannot be justified by the law. Such a thing would be impossible! This is logical, obvious, and self evident to anybody who understands the true meaning of the word "justification".

So having established that it is utterly impossible for any person to be justified by the law, Paul then proceeds to show us how we are justified - "but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Jesus Christ."

If it is impossible for us to be justified by the law, then we must be justified by another means. If there was no "other means" then we would all be doomed to condemnation and death.

We are ALL sinful, and the wages of sin is death! But the wonderful news of the gospel tells us that there is another means by which we are justified, and the "other means" is through Christ.

The faithfulness of God was put on display when He sent His Only Begotten Son to die for us, and when he raised Him again from the dead. And the faithfulness of Christ was put on display when He did the work of taking upon Himself the penalty for our sins and dying for them. The penalty for all of our sins which prevent us from being justified by the law were paid for by Christ. And by so doing, He totally removed out of the way all the condemnation of guilt which the law accused us of!

This is why He is our Saviour - because He is the one who wrought out our salvation. He did not do it for Himself, but for us, so that the credit of His death for sin might be imputed to us.

Christ did not abrogate the law. He did not by-pass it nor did he diminish it. He fulfilled it! He made an end of it! The end of the law is death! And He fulfilled the law by being faithful unto death, even the death of the cross. By dying in our place, having the guilt of our sins laid to His charge, He took the law by the throat and overcame it. And He did it for us - that we might escape the penalty and be justified before God by His faithfulness. This is why we are told that we are justified by the faith of Christ.

Then, once more, he tells us yet again, so that there can be no mistake - "for by the works of the law there shall no flesh be justified."

In these three statements Paul has quite literally backed us into a corner by showing us the logic of the gospel. He is leaving us no escape route, no way of wriggling around, no way of turning back to the law so that we can reach out and grab it to try and justify ourselves. He has done this deliberately, and for a very important reason, because now in the next few verses he is going to tell us a most vital piece of information, the piece of information that he has been working up to tell us from the very beginning. He has tied everything up into a neat little package so that we cannot possibly escape from the logical understanding, then he takes us one step further into the loop in order to spring the trap which he has prepared, and he says - "But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor." Gal. 2:17-18.

What a gem! What a loop! What a beautiful example of logical preaching which NO Christian can argue against unless they totally reject Christ. Let all those who argue and fight against the gospel of grace read it and weep."

Inquiry. "I'm sorry, but I cannot see any similarity to a loop in that at all."

Answer. "I am sure that you are not on your own. Because of Paul's peculiar manner of writing, which is sometimes difficult to follow, there are a great number of people, who, when dealing with this text, most definitely do not understand what he is saying, and in not understanding what he is talking about, they do exactly what he tells them NOT to do - they make Christ the minister of sin. But this is not to be allowed, for CHRIST IS THE MINISTER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS - NOT SIN!"

Inquiry. "You are going to have to explain it, because I still do not see it."

Answer. "Right. Just stop for a moment and consider the matter in hand. Try and clear your mind from all distractions and concentrate upon Paul's logical teaching. Tell me, why was man condemned to death in the first place?"

Inquiry. "Because of sin."

Answer. "And what is sin?"

Inquiry. "Sin is the transgression of the law." 1 John. 3:4.

Answer. "So, following your own logical understanding, you are saying that the reason that man is condemned to death is because he is a transgressor of the law. Is this correct?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "It is the law, therefore which is the minister of death, as Paul tells us elsewhere - "But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones..." 2 Cor. 3:7. Would you agree so far?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "So, when Christ fulfilled the law by dying for sin, He became our Faithful High Priest, our Minister. He became the Minister of our Righteousness. He is, as we are told by Jeremiah - "THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." Jer. 23:5-6.

Christ is NOT the minister of sin and death! It is the law which is the minister of sin and death! But because Christ was faithful unto death, and was raised again from the dead by God, He became the minister of Righteousness and Life. Therefore, all who trust in Christ - THE LORD THEIR RIGHTEOUSNESS - even though they are still inherently sinful in themselves, are to understand and believe that His substitutionary death is put to their credit. As Paul says - "Likewise reckon ye also to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. 6:11.

If we are "in Christ", the way that God looks at us and treats us is radically changed! We are no longer under the curse of death which the law demanded for sin, because God has laid the penalty for our sins upon Jesus. Even though we are still are in all actuality committing many grievous sins, as far as our salvation is concerned, God treats us as if we are righteous because He has already treated Christ as if He was sinful. He has already caused His Son to die instead of us. Christ is the minister of Righteousness. He is THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

The law, the ministration of death, required death, and Christ died. His faithfulness in dying, and God's faithfulness in raising Him again from the dead was done so that it may be credited to us! He has fulfilled the law of sin and death for us. It is as if we had died unto sin and been raised again, baptism being the type of our being buried with Christ and reborn.

Now, if the way that God treats us is changed, in that He treats us "AS IF" we had died with Christ, and been raised again, then He DOES NOT and CANNOT treat us as if the penalty for sin still hangs over us. It is an impossibility! He cannot do it!"

Inquiry. "Why not?"

Answer. "Because these two things - sin and righteousness, death and life - are opposites! They both describe conditions which are the exact opposite of each other!

This is why the teaching of the true Christian gospel is based on the penalty for our sins being charged to Christ and His Righteousness being imputed to us. And this is why it is written that our sins are no longer laid to our charge. It was all accomplished by God so that God can look upon us as His adopted children.

Therefore, even though we are still actual sinners in reality, we are not treated as such by God. We are no longer people upon whom His wrath for sin must descend, but are redeemed from all such wrath, because Christ, who covers us is not the minister of sin, He is the minister of Righteousness.

This is the state of "grace" in which all true believers stand. Are you still following me?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "But let us not forget what it was that caused the problem in the first place. What was it that prevented us from being justified in our own right?"

Inquiry. "Our sins."

Answer. "And what is sin?"

Inquiry. "The transgression of the law."

Answer. "Right! So it was the law, the minister of death, which condemned us for our sinfulness, was it not?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "So if we re-build the law and say that we must do any single work of the law in order to be justified, all we are doing is re-building the law of sin and death.

"For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor."

What Paul is saying, is simply this - Christ died in our place to remove the curse of the law from us, but if we rebuild the law back up again, then all we are doing is rebuilding our own condemnation for our sins. Do you see what he is saying?"

Inquiry. "I think so."

Answer. "If we understand that sin is the breaking of the law. And that Christ came to die for our sins and thus remove the penalty for our breaking the law, then we must also understand that if we rebuild the law back up again after Christ has removed it, all that we are doing is rebuilding the guilt and penalty for sin! If we rebuild the law, then we rebuild the minister of death!

Let us get to grips with this! It is logical and plain.

The wages of sin is death! The law demands death as the punishment for all who break it. So it is, in effect, the law which condemns us to death. But - "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written - Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree." Gal. 3:13.

Christ has removed the curse of the law from us, by being made a curse for us. But if we rebuild the law back up again by looking back at it, and trusting in our own works of the law once more as a source of justification or acceptance before God, then all that we are in fact doing is throwing Christ on to the scrap heap and rebuilding the whole of the law, the curse, the condemnation, the strength of sin, and death.

We are effectively pushing THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS out of the way by not believing that His death for sin is good enough to make us acceptable unto God. By believing that we still have to fulfil any single part of the law ourselves in order to be accepted by God we effectively deny that Christ's death was sufficient! We are denying the gospel work of Christ and replacing it with salvation by our obedience to the law! We are denying our own salvation! We are rejecting Christ! We are going about to establish our own righteousness, and not submitting ourselves to the righteousness of God!

If we look back towards the law, and the works of the law in our life as being necessary for our salvation, then we are reinstating a law which CANNOT ever justify us because it condemns us to death every time we break it! We are putting our head back on the block of judgement and giving the law the opportunity to chop it off, because that is what the law is - the minister of death. We are effectively placing ourselves in the position where we reject what Christ has done!

And this was the error which the Galatians were in the process of making. They had started to reject the gospel of grace by believing and teaching that it was necessary to be circumcised in order to be accepted by God. They were turning back to the necessity of the works of the law for their salvation instead of trusting that Christ had done all that was necessary.

The loop that Paul had presented to the Galatians was very similar to the loops which I have used before. It was as if he was saying - Listen to me, you Galatians. Do you believe that Jesus has died for your sins and removed the power of the law to condemn you?

Yes.

Then what else do you need to make you acceptable unto God? What else do you need as your fitness to enter into eternal life?

We need to be circumcised.

STOP! Is not circumcision a work of the law?

Yes.

But you have already affirmed that Christ has died for your sins and removed the power of the law to condemn you.

Get it right! Either Christ has died for sin or He has not. He either removed the power of the law to condemn us or He did not. If he did not, then all men are doomed because no men can be justified by their own works of the law! But Christ DID die for sin! This is the gospel! So if He did, how can you now turn back to a law which can do nothing other than condemn you to death? "FOOLISH Galatians, who hath bewitched you?" Gal. 3:1.

No doubt the Galatians thought that they were doing a good and righteous thing by reinstating the law. But they were not. They were denying that Christ's death for sin was good enough! Likewise, there are countless thousands of professing Christians today who also believe that they are doing a righteous and correct thing by reinstating the law. They are not. They are denying Christ's death for sin was, or is, good enough !

I tell you that modern Christianity is riddled with teachers who teach this error. They try to trick us by claiming that their teaching is something which they call "The Full Gospel" It IS NOT a full gospel. It is a false gospel! Because their so called "full gospel" teaches that our salvation relies upon two things.

1. Christ's death for sin.

2. Our own ceasing from sin by becoming inherently more righteous people.

But in that they affirm that our committing less sin and becoming inherently more righteous is necessary for salvation, they flatly deny that Christ's death for our sin is good enough, and they rebuild the law, the minister of death as a means by which they are to attain a righteous standing before God.

But, to bring life was NEVER the purpose of the law. The law is the minister of death, not life! It is the law which condemns us every time we break it, for sin is the breaking of the law, and the wages of sin is death!

And as far as the gospel of grace is concerned, you cannot have it both ways! You cannot say that Christ DID die for sin, thus removing the curse of the law from us with one breath, and then, with the next breath, say that in order to be made fit to enter into eternal life we must also be obedient to any command of law, no matter how insignificant. The second statement negates the first statement.

We are told quite plainly that Christ has already removed the curse of the law from us! But if we look back to the law, or the works of the law in our life as being NECESSARY for our eventual salvation, we are denying everything that Christ did! We are making it all of none effect! Which is why Paul utters those terrifying words -

"Christ is become of none effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace." Gal. 5:4.

In the Old Testament we are given the story of Lot and his wife who were ushered out of the cursed city, and saved from destruction. But the order from God was - do not look back. Lot's wife did look back and was turned into a pillar of salt. The same thing is an analogy for what Paul is now telling us. Do not look back at the law. Do not rebuild the law. The condemnation of the law is finished with, it cannot harm you any longer. Its sting of death has already stung Christ instead of you. Its strength of sin has been made impotent. It was fulfilled by Christ for you. Do not even look at it any more, it is a dead law, a finished law, a DONE law. Why do you want to look back at it? It condemns you to death and hell. His teaching is as clear as crystal on this matter -

"For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law, you are falling from grace." Gal. 5:2-4.

It is as if he is saying - If you are so vain as to imagine that it is necessary to do one single work of law in order to be accepted by God, then I tell you that you are a debtor to do it ALL! Who gave you the right to pick and choose which aspect of the law you will keep and which you will not? The law comes as a whole! It is a complete package!

If you reinstate the necessity of keeping just one single aspect of it, to make yourselves acceptable unto God and to justify yourselves before Him, no matter how small an aspect it is, then you reinstate it all, right down to the last jot and tittle!

This is why Paul made sure that he had first established that we ARE NOT, nor in any way can be, justified by the law, but by the faith of Christ, and by Christ alone, without any work of the law.

It is of the most paramount importance that we understand this. If we are guilty of it, we must turn around and start walking down the right path once more. When Paul wrote to the Galatians he was not just playing around. He was not just writing for the fun of it, or for something to do because he was bored. He was writing to correct them, and to set their feet once more upon the straight and narrow path. It is essential that we understand what he was saying, because the whole core and essence of the gospel hinges on it.

Christianity might as well never have come into being if the truth of the gospel of grace is lost. The whole essence of the gospel is the message of Christ's death for our sins. Our justification before God comes by grace alone, and by the faith of Christ alone, without any works of the law in the believer's life. The whole purpose of Christ's life and death was so that we sinners might be justified.

And the error which Paul has exposed for us destroys the gospel of grace in one swift gulp, because it re-establishes the necessity of our law keeping, doing good works or ceasing from committing sin as a necessary part of our eventual salvation and acceptance by God, and in so doing it denies that Christ's faithfulness in dying for us, was sufficiently good enough to redeem us from death."

Inquiry. "Well, I take on board what you are saying. And when you put it like that it does make some sense. But this does not really answer my original question, because we are most certainly told - "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in times past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." Gal. 5:19-21.

Answer. "O.K. Let's get down to it. If we sit down and read the whole book of Galatians, it quickly becomes obvious that the entire book is dedicated to virtually one subject. You do not have to be the most astute reader in the world to realize that! If we read through the previous four chapters, it quickly becomes apparent that from the very beginning of chapter one, Paul has been presenting us with two sides of an argument, which very simply can be summarized in two opposing points.

1. We ARE NOT and CANNOT be saved by the works of the law.

2. We ARE saved because Jesus HAS died for our sins.

He shows us how Christ has died for sin. He shows us how the law is a curse. He shows us how we have been redeemed from the curse. He shows us how the law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. He uses the example of Abraham. And the reason for all of his writing is to show us that - we ARE NOT, and CANNOT be saved by doing the works of the law! Would you agree with this?"

Inquiry. "Actually, yes, I would agree with you, but this text does not fit in. It does not make sense."

Answer. "That is because you are taking it out of context, which is exactly what so many of the teachers which subvert Christianity have done for years. They do not truly believe the gospel of sins paid for in the first place, so they substitute their lack of belief with the necessity of law keeping for salvation.

They would have us believe that Paul suddenly has a massive brain storm and starts to teach quite the opposite to what he has previously said, and that he tells us that we are saved by doing the works of the law after all. They would have us believe that Paul gives us a list of sins (the breaking of the law), and tells us not to do any of them (keep the law), or we will not enter the kingdom of God. But if this was true, he would be teaching salvation by works, would he not?"

Inquiry. "Yes."

Answer. "And they would have us believe that this is indeed the case, that, having argued against salvation by works for four chapters, he suddenly goes stark raving mad, and starts to teach salvation by works himself in the fifth.

Come now, are we to believe that Paul has called the Galatians "foolish" and "bewitched", and has told them in no uncertain terms that they were falling from grace, so that he can now go back on himself and admit that we are justified by the works of the law after all? If we did this we would be accusing Paul of suddenly discounting everything that he has just spent the last four chapters establishing. We would make it seem that he was arguing FOR being justified by the works of the law, and not AGAINST it, as he has been doing since he first put pen to paper."

Inquiry. "Well, it does seem like it, doesn't it?"

Answer. "At first reading it might seem so. It might indeed seem that he has suddenly done an about turn, and is now telling us that that we are saved by our own works! But only if we take what he says out of context!

The simple answer is - he does no such thing!"

Inquiry. "Then what is he saying?"

Answer. "To understand this, we must look at exactly what he does say -

"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in times past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

Now, when we read this statement, a very large question mark should enter into our brain. We should say - hang on a minute, what did he just say - "of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in times past."?

Well, he might well have told them in times past, when he was living among them, but I do not remember him telling us this before in the book of Galatians, do you? Where has he told us this before? Where has he already told us that "they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." Quick, scan through the previous chapters and see if we can find it. In which chapter has he already told us this?

And to this I reply - never mind, in which chapter. This is what he has been talking about throughout the whole book! This is the whole point of the epistle!

He has already told them in Ch. 2:16-17, that if they rebuild the law they make themselves transgressors of the law, and the penalty for being a transgressor of the law is death! And he has already told them - "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them." Gal. 3:10

It is therefore, quite natural for him, in the fifth chapter to show them the result of what they were doing by rebuilding the law and trusting in a work of the flesh to save them.

So you see, it was not because they were sinful, nor was it because they broke the law by doing any of the things in this list which would be their downfall and prevent them from entering into the kingdom of God. Their sins had already been paid for by Christ's death for sin, and could no longer condemn them.

It was by despising the grace of God of which they had been once enlightened that would be their downfall if they returned not into grace.

Their failure to accept that Christ's death for their sins was good enough, by insisting on the necessity of law keeping also, meant that they were rejecting Christ's death for sin. And by rebuilding the law over themselves they rendered themselves open to condemnation and death, because the law demanded their death!

The law DID NOT and COULD NOT justify them! And if they continued to insist on rebuilding the need of law keeping for salvation, then they must also DO THE THINGS OF THE LAW! They must DO ALL OF THEM, down to the last jot and tittle! They must DO THEM perfectly and without error! And as Paul knew that to do such a thing was utterly impossible, he simply shows them the end result of their false belief. It is as if he is saying - if you rebuild the necessity of law keeping to make you good enough to enter into the kingdom of God, and do not perfectly DO ALL that the law commands you to do, then the law will condemn you!

By doing it in such a way, he shows EVERYBODY, both then and now, who insists on rebuilding the law exactly what God will expected of them - DO IT ALL! Knowing what you must do is not good enough. Trying to do it is NOT good enough! You must DO IT perfectly, fully, without fault, without error!

It is as if he is saying - I will show you what it means TO DO the law, you foolish people! Cease from ALL of these, in action, word and thought - Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like.

He was using the harsh dominion of the law to show the Galatians just why they COULD NOT be justified by the law. He has been telling them the same thing from the beginning of chapter one, and in a final surge, in a final effort, in a final attempt to get them to see sense, he hits them right across the head with the most awful condemning statement that he can hit them with.

Their error lay in the fact that they were insisting on the necessity of circumcision in order to be made acceptable unto God. But CIRCUMCISION WAS A WORK OF THE LAW! IT WAS A WORK OF THE FLESH! I mean, you could not get a much better example of a work of the flesh than circumcision.

So he uses this fact to his advantage, and coins the phrase "works of the flesh" to show a list of other works of the flesh. He shows us some other ministrations of the law, the minister of the flesh and death, starting off with adultery - "Thou shalt not commit adultery", being one of the ten ministrations of the law.

He has already told them that if they insist on being circumcised to make themselves acceptable or more acceptable unto God, then they are debtors TO DO the whole of the law. So now he takes his chance to give them a little taste of just what will be required of them if they continue to insist that ANY SINGLE work of the law is necessary, to wit - ALL of it will be required of them!

He has been continually hammering home his teaching that we cannot be made acceptable unto God by our own keeping of the law, that the end of the law is death. The law has nothing good to offer us! All that the law offers is condemnation, the curse, enmity with God, sin and death. The end of the works of the flesh is death, for it is all sin and unrighteousness. And if you trust in the works of the flesh - you will die because we cannot be justified by the law of sin and death. And now he shows them why!

It is as if he is saying - here you are! This is why the law CANNOT ever justify you. This is why you need Christ's death for sin imputed to you! This is why you need grace! This is why God has promised NOT to impute your sins to you! Because these are the works of the flesh - Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like. Now tell me that you are not guilty of any of these things, IF YOU DARE!"

Inquiry. "I have never understood it like this before."

Answer. "I am sure that you have not. But then again, you have got the enormous problem of the countless, self-righteous, false shepherds that pervade Christianity, and teach you exactly the opposite.

These false teachers continually insist on wanting to take this passage right out of its true context and make it stand alone, without the rest of the chapter, indeed, without the rest of the book. They stand there as if butter would not melt in their mouths, banging with their fists on the pulpit, breathing hell fire and damnation, continually telling us that this list still stands over those who are in Christ as a warning that we will not enter into the kingdom of God if we are guilty of doing any of it.

If only they had the sense to realize how much they condemned themselves.

It is they who need to look very closely at this list of the works of the flesh and such like, and they had better begin to understand that the words "flesh" here cover ALL actions, ALL words and ALL thoughts.

Where is the man who is not guilty of any of these things? Paul knew it! Which is why he used it with such great effect to convict the Galatians of their own error, that they might return to grace.

This text MUST NOT be taken out of context! Neither must we allow it to stand on its own! If we do, we must think very little of Paul's sincerity and sanity. What do you think he was, a fool?

Not a fool, I can assure you, but a very clever man. You have just read the gem to beat all gems. You have just read a most beautiful example of his razor sharp mind and understanding of the gospel. For what he has just done is to present the Galatians with the MOTHER of all loops. I do not think there is a greater example of a loop in all of Paul's writings."

Inquiry. "How do you mean?"

Answer. "We must use this text in the form of a loop, as we have previously done, like this -

Do you believe that Jesus Christ has already died for your sins and removed the condemnation of the law from you?

Yes.

Then what can keep you from entering eternal life?

I need to fight against the works of the flesh for "the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like, because they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

STOP! Are these works of the flesh not sins?

Yes.

But you have already declared that you DO believe that Jesus Christ has died for your sins. How can you believe that He has died for your sins, and still believe that you must die for your own sins? These two things do not agree! Your very words betray you, for it is quite evident from what you say that you do not truly believe that Christ has died for your sins at all!

Inquiry. "I think I am beginning to understand."

Answer. "Good, because when texts like these are not understood correctly, they are the cause of much heartbreak, anguish and despair to the poor in spirit.

Paul tells us in many places, in no uncertain terms that Christ took the law by the throat and strangled the death out of it. He rendered it harmless and incapable of condemning ANY and ALL who accept Him as the One who is their Righteousness. He met this condemning law face to face, this law which said - Do or die, and He did and died, not for Himself, but for us, so that the fulfilling of the law - judgement, condemnation and the penalty of death might be removed from us.

So when he presents this text to the Galatians, who were teaching the necessity of law keeping for salvation, it is as if he is saying - But you Galatians, you who reject Christ's sacrifice by insisting on rebuilding the law, you who continue to walk in the flesh and put your trust in the flesh, take a good look at what you are putting your trust in.

"For the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like. And I have told you before, as I have also told you in times past, that ANY who trust in one, single, act of law, or one, single, good work in their life, to make themselves acceptable unto God, rebuild the WHOLE of the law! They must therefore be utterly guiltless of ALL things in this list, and such like, to be able to be justified by the law. Indeed, they must be SINLESS! But I know that this is not the case with you, or any other man. You are all guilty of doing the things in this list! You are ALL guilty of breaking the law! Therefore your own common sense should tell you that you will ALL fail to be justified before God by the works of the law.

Paul's whole intent on writing was NOT to blot out the gospel of Christ, but to re-establish it. There is not another book in the New Testament where he berates his pupils in such a way as he does in Galatians, calling them "bewitched", and "foolish".

In modern parlance, it is as if he was saying - You lousy bunch of hypocrites! You really think that by being circumcised (a work of the law) you will be justified? You really think that cutting a bit of skin is all that it takes? You shallow, stupid, self-righteous bunch of hypocrites! Here, cop for this! If you really want to know what it means to keep the law, try these for starters. Stop doing this little lot - adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and do not forget the words "and such like". And remember it has all got to be done in action, word, and thought, for this is what the law commands us to do. And if you insist on rebuilding the law, then remember - "Cursed is everyone who continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law TO DO THEM."

Here, you who want so badly to put your confidence in the works of the flesh, these are the works of the flesh, Adultery, fornication, etc. Seeing that you want to put so much confidence in your own works of the law, here they are - take a good hard look at them. Take a good hard look at what it is that you are putting your confidence in, because this is a true picture of what you are like!

Do not stand there with open mouths declaring your innocence in these matters. Do not try telling me that this is not what you are like! Who do you think that you are trying to kid? Do you think that I have lived in a body of flesh all of these years and yet I still do not know what it is all about? You whited sepulchres, which put on a great show and appear to be so white and pure without, but within are full of hypocrisy, rottenness, corruption, and dried up old bones.

I have told you that you cannot be justified by the works of the law, because they are all the works of the flesh. And this is why you cannot be justified by the works of the law! Do you honestly believe that you can be judged and accounted righteous by the law when this is what you are guilty of?

You stupid people, what is the matter with you? Do you not understand that when you put your hope in your own good works as having anything to do with your salvation, that this is what you are putting your hope in - in this load of sin, evil and unrighteous garbage. How can you ever be justified by this load of sin?

Never! This is why you are justified by the faithfulness of Christ, who was delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification, and NOT by the works of the flesh. It is just like I told the Romans - "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no FLESH be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." Rom. 3:20.

I told them the same thing, and now I am telling you. Wherever I go to preach I always tell them the same thing! I told them in another place also - "So then, they that are in the FLESH cannot please God." Rom. 8:8.

And I have told the Corinthians the same thing - "Now this I say, brethren, that FLESH and BLOOD cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. 1 Cor. 15:50.

I told the Phillipians the same. - "If any other man thinketh that he hath wherof to trust in the FLESH, I have much more...But all these things I count but loss, and do count them but dung, that I might win Christ. And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ. The righteousness which is of God, by faith." Phill. 3:4-9.

How many times have I got to tell you? Your flesh is full of sin! Read Romans chapter 7 if you want to know how much I feel it myself! There is nothing in your flesh that is worth a light. We are riddled with unrighteousness and sin. And this is what you want to put your confidence in? You must be mad! You are bewitched! How can I get through to you? All of you, who teach and follow this perverse belief that it is by the keeping of the law that you will be accepted by God. I am telling you that you are living in a dream world.

YOU DO NOT KEEP THE LAW!

And I tell you this - anybody who trusts in their own good works, in their own fulfilling of the law to make them acceptable unto God, has got to DO IT ALL, perfectly, right down to the last jot and tittle! You cannot pick and choose! The law comes as a complete package. If you insist on ONE SINGLE work of flesh or law, then you must DO IT ALL! You cannot choose what you will take and what you will leave.

What Paul was doing in the Galatians 5 passage was really very simple. He was putting into practice what he had already told them in Galatians 3:24 - "THE LAW IS OUR SCHOOLMASTER."

He had already told them that the law was their schoolmaster. Now he was using the law as their schoolmaster! He was using the law to show them a true picture of themselves, so that they might run back to Christ and trust in His death for their sins.

In the beginning of chapter three, in an attempt to get through to them, he even leaves off from presenting them with the logic of the gospel, and appeals to their own experience, and he says -

"O FOOLISH Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified! among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" Gal. 3:1-3

This question is very pertinent to the matter in hand, and Paul is using the Galatian's own experience as a way of proving what he has been telling them. It is as if he is saying to both them and us -

Listen to me, you who claim to have been converted, have you really been converted? Or are you just kidding yourself? Are you trying to kid me? Have you ever undergone the experience of conversion? If you have, you will be able to answer me this. Just one question, that is all. Just one simple question that any who have truly been converted will be able to answer, and it is this - Do you remember when you were first converted? Think back to when you heart first leapt with joy. Remember when, for the first time in your whole life you first discovered your salvation, and for the first time in your life you found the peace of God which passeth all understanding. Do you remember the experience? Then tell me, how did that experience come upon you, was it by hearing the gospel message that Christ had died for your sins? Or was it by hearing how much of the law you had to keep?

It is the simplest of all questions, and one, which if you truly have ever been converted you will be able to answer. So, tell me, when, for the first time, your spirit found comfort and peace with God, when, for the first time you lay down beside the still waters, when your soul was restored for the very first time, did it come about by your being told how much good works of the law you had to accomplish, or did it come about by hearing the gospel of grace? I will answer the question for you. I will tell you how it came. It came by the Spirit of GRACE, which showed you that your salvation was secure in Christ because He has paid for your sins and removed out of the way all condemnation which the law accused you of.

You know very well that the peace of God which passeth all understanding came upon you by the Spirit showing you Christ crucified and the gospel of grace! Are you then so foolish, having begun in the Spirit, are you now to be made perfect by the works of the flesh?

Your experience is nothing unique. I have experienced it, as has every true Christian who has ever been and ever will be. We all know in our heart of hearts what brought about our conversion. We all know just when and how for the first time our spirit was enlightened, and for the first time we cried out unto God - Abba, Father. We all know just when and how the weight and guilt of sin was first lifted off our shoulders, when our spirit first found the light of the glory of God streaming into our mind as the chains of darkness fell away.

So let us not be stupid. Let us not be bewitched. Let us not be foolish. Having begun in the Spirit let us not now turn back to the law of sin and death and start to imagine that we are made perfect by the works of the flesh!"

Inquiry. "So, you are saying that it does not matter whether we are guilty of doing the things in this list, and that those who are guilty of doing such things SHALL inherit the kingdom of God?"

Answer. "It is not a question of "does it matter whether we are guilty or not." We ARE GUILTY! Every single human being who ever was, now is, or ever shall be, IS GUILTY! Anybody who claims that they are not guilty of such things is either a downright liar, or they have absolutely no comprehension of how great their sinfulness is.

Therefore, I am saying that Christ has died for our sins, so as far as our salvation, acceptance before God, or fitness to enter into the kingdom of heaven is concerned, our being guilty of doing such things shall not prevent us."

Inquiry. "And you are surely aware that there are many teachers within Christianity who would disagree with you, and say that this text must stand as a threat and a warning to all who live carelessly?"

Answer. "Only those who are suffering from self-righteous hypocrisy, believing themselves to have a quality of righteousness within themselves which sets them apart from other men. If ANY human being looks at a list like this one in Galatians, and does not find within it things that they are guilty of, they are self-righteous. They are either kidding themselves that they are something that they are not, or they have no real comprehension of the true meaning of sin, and the depths to which it goes.

The people who abuse this text and insist that it must remain as an everlasting threat over those who have been redeemed, declaring that unless we cease from ALL such sins and keep the law or we will not inherit eternal life are teaching exactly the opposite of what Paul was teaching. They are not fighting against the Galatian error. They are compounding it! They are like the Pharisees in Christ's day. They lay grievous burdens upon others, while they will not raise their own little finger to carry that same burden themselves. While allowing themselves all manner of excuses, they deny others the same excuses. If it was not such a serious matter it would be a joke! They make an absolute mockery out of grace, and the righteousness of God. Understanding not what they say, they show themselves to be what they really are - without understanding, the blind leading the blind.

If we argue against the gospel of grace, by saying that Christ did not pay for all of our sins, then we have no alternative but to say that there is still some sin that we will have to pay for ourselves. And as the wages of sin is death, we are admitting that we are doomed.

Likewise, if we argue against the gospel by saying that it is not right to teach that our sins are no longer imputed to us, then I reply - if just one single sin is still laid to our charge we are left with the same result - the wages of sin is death. We are admitting that we are doomed.

Either Christ died for our sins or He did not! Either our sins are still charged to us or they are not! We are either accepted in Christ, or we are not! We are either covered by Christ's Righteousness, or we are still naked! We are either acceptable in the sight of God because we have Christ's Righteousness imputed to us, or we are still unacceptable in the sight of God. And if Christ did not die for our sins, and our sins are still charged to us, then we are doomed to having to pay the penalty for being unrighteous, because NO man is righteous in, or of himself.

And if your present understanding of ANY text denies the validity of Christ's death for your sins which renders you perfectly acceptable unto God, then you are interpreting it incorrectly. ALL Bible interpretation, ALL Christian doctrine, dogma and teaching must be judged as to whether it denies, downgrades, or blots out the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ's payment for our sins. If it does - you had better look at it again, because you are not interpreting it correctly!

Paul's understanding and preaching was plain and clear - "For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God." Gal. 2:19

He explains this matter to us many times, and he is telling us the cold, hard facts of the real situation. He is showing us quite plainly how belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ kills any trust that we might put in the law, for he is saying this -

I do not care how many good works you have done, or not done, nor do I care how much of the law you have kept, or not kept. In order to live unto God, you must become dead to the law.

By "dead" he does not mean as a rule of life, nor does he mean that we should willingly break it as often as we can, but we are to become "dead" to the law as far as our conscience for salvation is concerned.

Our conscience before God must be pure and guiltless, not because we are pure and guiltless, but our conscience is cleansed because we believe that Christ has died for our sins, taking all the condemnation of the law upon Himself. Only then, when as far as our conscience is concerned we say - "Law? What Law? The law is dead!" can we even begin to live unto God.

This is in total contrast to what many of the false shepherds teach today, for they say just the opposite. They say that unless we do the law, and are born again under the law, that is, unless we are born again back into the house of bondage where the law truly rules, in that we must do it in order to be accepted by God, then we cannot possibly be known unto God, nor live unto God, nor have any inheritance in everlasting life.

Paul, here tells us quite the opposite. Not so, he says. We must become dead to the law, dead to a conscience which declares that such things ought to be done as an aid to our salvation, or else we cannot live unto God at all.

The emphasis here for the despairing, guilt-ridden soul is very important. You must get it right, or you will never find true peace with God, but will rather always be fearful.

Why do you cling on to this dead law when all that it does is rise up in your conscience and cause you to doubt Christ. The purpose of the law is to lead you to Christ, not away from Him. It is your schoolmaster, to show you your unworthiness, your sin, your guilt, and your need for salvation. A salvation which has already been accomplished, because Christ has already died for your sins! So put your eyes on to Christ and keep them there, not on a dead law. Trust in His death for your sins, and in perfect Righteousness, which is imputed to you.

The law killed Christ in your place, and when He arose from the dead He arose with the victory over the law. Therefore, let not the law reign in your conscience.

Its power to condemn you is gone, its power over you is dead. It still remains, and always will remain as a guide to how we should carry out our daily living, how we should behave, and love each other. It still remains as a constant reminder of what we should be, and therefore it shows us just how much we need Christ's death for our sin, but in your conscience Christ is to reign, not the law!

THE LAW OF SIN AND DEATH IS DEAD!

Remember - "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 6:11.

"I am crucified with Christ," (Gal. 2:20) says Paul, but these words mean absolutely nothing to the person who has no guilty conscience, who does not feel sin, nor the power of the law's condemnation. These are the ones who jump up to defend the law.

"Never!" the hypocrites shout. "We must never remove the law from our conscience. It is blasphemy."

Not so, says Paul - "I am crucified with Christ."

These are powerful words of comfort to the despairing soul. This is why you are dead to the law, because you are crucified with Christ.

That is to say - that by entering into Christ's death, it is as if you died. And the law has no more power over one whom it has already killed. The penalty for our breaking the law was imputed to Christ, and He was crucified in our place. He did it, so that His Righteousness could be imputed to us. Therefore, reckon yourselves to have been crucified with Him.

The law which condemned all men to death and Hell was taken out of the way by Christ, and He overcame it for us. It was the death of death. Death was overcome, destroyed, and taken out of the way. So reckon yourselves to be dead to sin also! Reckon yourselves to have been crucified with Christ so that the law has no more power to condemn you. Remove this law. Cast it out with the bondwoman, (Gal. 4:30.) It has no place in the conscience of one who seeks to please God.

Look at this law, this powerful awesome law of love which condemns you to death, which causes you to quake and tremble in fear and hide yourself from God, and say - You are dead, law. You cannot hurt me any more. Your threatening of death are no longer a threat. You have been fulfilled by Christ, and His fulfilling of you is imputed to me, so get thee behind me, for you will not reign any more in my conscience to cause me to fear God. I put my trust in God. He is my salvation from your threatening and your curse. Go away, and leave my conscience alone. You are to reign over my flesh, for I cannot be rid of you as long as my flesh survives. You are there to keep my body under control, to show me how to act and react towards my fellowman. You are there to show me what I should be, to be my example of love and perfection, but do not presume to rise into my conscience and cause me to doubt and despair my salvation, for this is not your job. Leave my conscience alone, for in truth you are dead. I will use you as a guide as far as my daily living is concerned, but you go no further than this.

Just as God said "Let there be light" and divided the light from the darkness, let it be so. Let there indeed be Light, and let the light and the darkness be divided. Let the Light of Christ reign in my conscience, and the darkness of the law rule over my flesh, but let them be divided, and let not the darkness creep into my conscience and extinguish the light. Get thee behind me Satan, and tempt me not to doubt God's goodness and mercy. Enter into my heart Holy Spirit, and show me afresh the glory of Christ, that I might find rest unto my soul.

The law was given to be our schoolmaster, to beat us, to cane us, to teach us, to drive us forever forward, forever onward, that we might seek out Christ.

The law does not suddenly jump from being the thing which condemns us to being a saviour. This is not the purpose of the law.

The gospel, on the other hand, always tells us what has been done for us. It does not include any work done by us, done through us, or done within us. The gospel is concerned with one thing and one thing only - that which Christ has done for us, without our help, without our aid, without any assistance from us.

It tells us that whosoever we are, whatsoever we are, whatsoever we have done, none of these things make any difference. For Christ was sent into the world to die for our sins, to take the guilt and condemnation off us, that we might receive the adoption of sons, that we might be accounted righteous in Him. He is THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Do you worry about your salvation? Are you concerned that maybe you will not pass through judgement? Do you think that God will reject you in the end? Why? Why do you think such things? Ask yourself and determine the answer.

Is it because you think that you are not good enough to enter into the kingdom of God? Is it because you still see yourself to be the terrible sinner that all men are? Is it because you know only too well that you are not as good as you ought to be? that you are not righteous? that you are not as loving as you ought to be?

If these are the reasons that you doubt that God will accept you then you are still looking towards the law for your salvation, and it is no wonder that you still feel despairing and despondent, because that is the very purpose of the law. This is what the law is designed to do - to cause you sorrow, fear, and dread.

If you are searching for true peace with God you will never, I repeat, NEVER find it while you are still clinging to such a false belief that you can be justified by your own good works. But I tell you in all truth, that whatever you think you need, has already been provided. Whatever you think you must do, has already been done for you. Whatever you think you lack, has already been supplied. Whatever stands between you and God has already been removed. Jesus Christ has already fulfilled the law perfectly and completely for you. This is the essence of His Righteousness which is imputed to you by faith, and by faith alone, without any works of your own, of any kind or description.

The gospel declares that Christ has paid the price for sin, taking the guilt and condemnation of sin on to Himself. And if this is a fact, then what remains to cause you to fear God and judgement? You cannot say that sin still remains, if sin has been paid for.

The law says "You must do", but the gospel says "It has been done".

The law says "You must obey", but the gospel says "It has been obeyed".

The law says "You must fulfil", but the gospel says "It has been fulfilled".

The law says "You will die", but the gospel says "Christ died instead".

The law says "You must be righteous", but the gospel says "Christ is all the righteousness that you need."

The law says "You are a sinner", but the gospel says "Christ took your sins upon Himself."

The law says "You must do or die!" but the gospel says "Christ has done and died."

Do you need to be Righteous? Christ is your Righteousness!

Do you need to be sinless? Christ is your sinlessness!

Do you need to stand perfect before God? Christ is your perfection.

Do you need the victory over sin? Christ has already won the victory for you.

Do you need to be blameless before God? Christ has already removed the blame from you.

Whatever you can possibly think of that can separate you from the love of God has been broken down. Whatever you can possibly think of that stops you from entering into eternal life has been moved out of the way. So, enter into "His Rest" and find rest unto your soul."