The Plowman

Standard Podcast [ 38:54 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (959)

Galatians #05 – An exposition of Galatians 3:23-29. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, February 8, 2009.

Introduction:
Are you ever dissatisfied with your life?  Do ever wish things were different?  Do you find yourself daydreaming about a different life with different circumstances?  Let’s face it we are a society of discontents.  Our culture makes us that way.  You’ve seen the television commercials.  If you were to sit down and watch two hours of television commercials you would walk away convinced that nothing in your life is right!  You do not wear the right clothes; use the right toothpaste, the right deodorant or drive the right car.  You don’t even use the right kitty litter.  Your life stinks.  You can’t do anything right.  Of course the announcer is quick to point out that you can start down the right path by buying their product.  “Buy this book, this tape – take this course and you are on your way to a bright and happy future.”  Better yet, “use our toothpaste and you’ll be the toast of the town.”  Want to loose weight?  Drink this.  I bought some of those pills that help improve your memory…I can’t remember where I put them!

The problem with all these solutions is that they are not solutions.  They do not address the problems – they merely rearrange the problems.  If you really want things to be different you need an encounter with the living God.  You need a transformation from the inside out.  You need to discover Paul’s secret to a new you.  And it is found in Galatians chapter three beginning with verse twenty-three.

Text: Galatians 3:23-29

Thesis: The liberating power of the gospel grants the believer a new lease on life.

Sermon Outline

1. The liberating power of the gospel enables a new and living relationship with God.  (3:26-27)
2. The liberating power of the gospel shatters the barriers that separate us.  (3:28)
3. The liberating power of the gospel guarantees a glorious inheritance.  (3:29)

Conclusion:
Do you wish your life was different?  Do you wish you had the chance to start over?  In Christ you will find a new lease on life.

• Through a new relationship with God.
• One that shatters all the barriers that separate us.
• One that guarantees a glorious inheritance.
• It is all found in the gospel and it is yours by faith.

Standard Podcast Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (952)

Galatians #04 – An exposition of Galatians 3:1-29. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, February 1, 2009.

Introduction:
Without a doubt there is no greater joy than the joy of being set free.  Set free form bondage.  Liberated from the clutches of a tyrannical force.  But don’t take my word for it.  Ask anyone who has been freed from a P.O.W camp or one who has been held captive behind the iron curtain or been the slave of alcohol or drugs.   Ask any poor soul who has been a victim of endless demonic oppression who is now free of that awful, frightening influence.  But these are dramatic examples.  They bear little or no relation to where most of you are or have ever been.  There is another type of bondage.  A more subtle enemy that is every bit as deadly.  One that can choke the life out of you without your realizing it until it is too late.  The reason it is so dangerous is because it is disguised.  It presents itself as being spiritual.  But rather than being God-centered it is self-centered.  Rather than focusing on God it focuses on self.  It is the system of legalism.  A “faith” that says right standing before God demands meticulous adherence to a rigid set of rules and regulations.  A system that says you get salvation the old fashion way…you earn it!

Paul, in writing the Galatians hammers home the message of freedom and grace.  The over all message of the book is our freedom in Christ.  “It is for freedom that Christ has set you free,” Paul declares.  Paul, with the skill of a surgeon, cuts to the heart of the matter.  He waste no time with diplomacy.   From the opening verse he hammered away at the opposition.  In chapter one he establishes the fact that the gospel he preached was of divine origin.  It was no man-made fairytale; it was a revelation from God.  In chapter two he reminded us that we have a responsibility to maintain the integrity of that message.  We must maintain the truth, the wholeness and purity of the message of salvation by grace alone!  In chapter three Paul gets to the heart of the matter.  Paul presents a three-pronged argument to prove that salvation is by grace through faith.  I will grant you that Paul deals with some weighty matters in this chapter.  It is heavy in theology but stay with me.  This is the essence of the gospel.

Text: Galatians 3:1-25

Thesis: Right standing before God comes by faith in Christ alone.

Outline:

1. Your own experience of grace proves that faith is the basis.  (3:1-5)
2. The example of Abraham proves faith is the basis.  (3:6-18)
3. The purpose of the law proves the fact that faith is the basis.  (3:19-25)

Do you desire right standing before God?  Do you want to be right with God?  You will not find it in a set of rules and regulations.  You will not find it by working hard.  You will find it when you come to the end of yourself and graciously accept the free gift of salvation by faith.

Standard Podcast [ 42:58 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1000)

Galatians #03 – An Exposition of Galatians 2:11-21. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist church on Sunday morning, January 25, 2009.

Introduction:
It is a fairly common experience.  When inviting someone to church or talking about the Christian faith people will respond with, “I’m not interested in attending anyone’s church they’re all filled with hypocrites.”  I must admit I do not feel the need to argue with them on that point.  More often that not I feel the need to say a hearty, “Amen!”  I’m too aware of my own sin and shortcomings to try to deny such an obviously true statement.  The fact is we all believe better than we practice.  We speak a better faith than we live.  But does that mean we should ignore hypocrisy?  Should we write it off as the natural result of our stumbling toward godliness?  Or should we, in love, confront hypocrisy when we find it?  If we are to confront it, how often are we to confront?  Do we confront every false act?  Do we pounce on every failure?  Do we only worry about “major” offenses?  How do we determine major or minor?  These are important questions because our faith is something we live together.  No one is meant to live his or her faith in isolation but rather as part of the church, part of the family of God.  We need one another.  In the second chapter of Galatians we have this extraordinary account of Paul confronting Peter for an act of hypocrisy.  From this encounter we learn a valuable lesson.  Our text is found in Galatians chapter 2 beginning at verse 11.

Text: Galatians 2:11-21

Thesis: It is not enough to merely understand and accept the gospel or even to defend it.  You must live the gospel allowing it to inform, shape and direct your life.

Outline:

1. Gospel living demands consistency.  (2:11-14)
2. Gospel living is rooted in faith.  (2:15-16)
3. Gospel living finds its identity in Christ.  (2:17-21)

Conclusion: It is not enough to merely understand and accept the gospel or even to defend it.  You must live the gospel, allowing it to inform, shape, and direct your life.

Standard Podcast Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (884)

Galatians #02—An exposition of Galatians 2:1-10. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, January 18, 2009.

Introduction
What are we to do when we disagree?  How are we to handle problems that arise within the church?  Is every issue the same?  Is there “a” way to approach every situation?  What is “the” governing issue?  Is it truth?  Is it love?  Is it the integrity or wholeness of the gospel or is it fellowship and harmony among the members?  These are not merely rhetorical questions.  I don’t know if you are aware of this but Baptists have a reputation for well, “spirited” disagreement.  If you put three Baptists together in a room you will have 5 different opinions!  It is no surprise that the number one means of new Baptist church starts is the church split.  This group gets upset and goes down the street and starts a new work “to the glory of God.”  I know Baptists who think it a badge of honor to stand over the bruised and bleeding body of some misinformed brother whom they have just bludgeoned with the truth.  I know others who would never rise in opposition to any wrong for fear they might disrupt the fellowship.  Both these extremes are patently unbiblical.  They are both unbiblical for the same reason.  They have created a false dichotomy.  They believe you must choose either truth or love.  But the two are not mutually exclusive.  The two go together.  We are told in John chapter 1 that grace and truth have their being in Jesus Christ who is the Word made flesh.  Our Lord was full of both grace and truth.  Biblical truth is grounded in the love of God.  And genuine love is firmly rooted in biblical truth.

The apostle Paul finds himself in a difficult position.  The churches of Galatia have been infiltrated by a group of false teachers who are distorting the gospel.  They are preaching a Jesus plus gospel.  In doing so they are endangering the whole church because if not stopped the gospel itself will be lost.  It is both Paul’s passion for the truth and his love of the brethren that inspire him to respond.  His language is strong and direct but inflamed by his love for Christ, the gospel and those for whom Christ died.  Paul cannot and will not stand idly by while the church is enslaved to a false gospel.  Christ has set us free and we must stand firm in that freedom.  The whole of his letter to the Galatians is about gospel freedom.  And in our text this morning found in the second chapter we discover a powerful principle that must guide us in dealing with disputes within the body of Christ.

Text: Galatians 2:1-10

Paul is still speaking of those who he referred to back in 1:9.—Those who have questioned his apostleship and his gospel.—He gives some autobiographical information for a little historical perspective.—His approach in responding teaches us a valuable lesson about gospel freedom.

Thesis: Gospel freedom seeks a sound biblical balance between a passion for the truth and a genuine love for the brethren.

Both truth and love are essential to our life together.—To be unbalanced in either direction is to hinder the work of God.

Such a balance is not easy to maintain.  It demands that we often walk a fine line.  And one slip in either direction could prove disastrous.  Let me point out three essential principles that must guide us in our application of gospel freedom.

Gospel freedom is concerned about unity as well as truth.  (2:1-2) The gospel has been entrusted to us and we in turn are to hand it to the next generation in its completeness.  We are not to add to it or take away from it.  We are to give to the next generation the faith once and for all delivered to the saints.  Thus truth is not a luxury it is an essential.  I think Paul has demonstrated that rather forcefully in the first chapter!  (1:6-9)

But what is clear in the opening verses of chapter two is that his commitment to truth is not to the exclusion of unity.

2:1-2: Why did he go? Answer: 2:2 – the result of a revelation, to set before them the gospel he was preaching, in order to make sure he was not running in vain. What does that last phrase mean?

If he was not concerned about the truthfulness of his message what was his concern? He went out of his way in order to demonstrate his unity with the 12. This is the message of the church. There is not one message for the Jews and another for the Gentiles. And the gospel does not demand that Gentiles become Jews in order to be saved.

We discover in 2:6 and 2:9 that they were in agreement.

Does doctrine matter?  Absolutely!  Should we address false doctrine and confront those who distort the truth?  Certainly.  But we must be equally concerned for the unity of the body.  We must be willing to swallow our pride and deal openly and honestly when questions are raised about us and what we teach and believe.  We must not arrogantly assume that we are always right and are infallible.

Gospel freedom refuses to compromise truth for the sake of unity.  (2:3-5) While we are concerned for unity it is not a unity at all cost.

This principle guards against the attitude that it is always wrong to disturb/trouble the waters.  There comes a time when the waters must be stirred.  There is a point at which it would be a sin to remain silent.

There was a genuine search for unity in 1-2. But there is a line that must not be crossed. Note 2:3.

Note how Paul describes his detractors – 2:4 Paul’s response and that of the leaders in Jerusalem?  2:5.

At issue was the preservation of the gospel.

A unity at the expense of truth is not a unity worth having. It will not stand up under fire. It is a house built on sand.

Integrity demands unity and truth.

Gospel freedom readily rejoices in the diversity of God’s work.  (2:6-10) There is an important underlying principle here – unity is not uniformity. The gospel does not demand lock-step agreement. The great work is done when we free one another to pursue our passion and rejoice in what God is doing.

I cannot and must not insist that you share my passion and you must not demand that I share yours.  We must allow the freedom for each of us to pursue our God-given passion in serving and glorifying Him.

Now, careful that is not to be taken as an unqualified statement. Is the passion biblical? Is it in keeping with what God has revealed? Does it glorify God? Then rejoice in it.  Pray for it.  Encourage it.