Paul States the Case for Faith in Christ to the Galatian Churches

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” -Galatians 1:6-10 (ESV).

In Baptist adult Sunday School classes for the fall semester beginning Sunday, September 2, using the Explore the Bible quarterly from LifeWay, Nashville, the studies are in Galatians and James. We move from a semester in 2 Samuel when we studied biblical history, the reigns of King Saul and King David, to doctrinal studies as given to us in the New Testament books of Galatians and James.

As Paul opens Galatians, he addresses a serious condition existing in the Galatian churches he wants to discuss in his letter circulating to the churches he established in Galatia on his first missionary journey (read about his first missionary tour in Acts 13:1-14:28). After he and his fellow missionaries had established churches, instructed them as much as they could while there, and then gone on to further work, some trouble arose in the congregations. A group called the “Judaizers” began to teach the church members that not only were they to become Christians through faith in Jesus Christ, but because the new belief, based on the sacrificial death of Christ, His resurrection from the dead, His commissioning the disciples and other believers to tell the story of salvation “into all the world,” there was still something needed besides forgiveness of sins and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The men needed to go through circumcision if they had not already had that rite performed. Also, obedience to the Jewish canon of laws was necessary to salvation, so the Judaizers taught. Paul wrote the letter to the Galatian churches, scholars believe, before the Jerusalem Council was held in AD 48/49. It would have been most helpful to Paul could he have mentioned the decision of the Jerusalem Council—that believers did not have to go through the rite of circumcision to become members of the Christian faith/church. But no mention of the Council is made in the letter to the Galatians. Paul conducted his first missionary journey and established churches there in AD 47/48. Therefore, it seems plausible that AD 48 is the probable time that Paul composed and sent the letter to the Galatian churches addressing the serious problem there.

Paul wanted to make it clear that faith alone saves a person, not fulfilling the law to the letter, not “becoming a Jew” first, not works—faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ, and accepting God’s grace for forgiveness of sins and Christ’s sacrifice to restore the broken fellowship between a person and God. “Through Jesus Christ, salvation and justification come to both Jew and Gentile, fulfilling the promise to Abraham of blessing to the nations (Galatians 3:8; Genesis 12:3).” (p. 2242, Dr. Simon J. Gathercole, Univ. of Cambridge. In The Study Bible, ESV. Wheaton, IL, Crossway. 2008. P. 2242, note).

Even though Galatians follows the general New Testament form of letters, with a salutation, a body, a paraenesis (set of moral exhortations), greetings, and a benediction, there is no general thanksgiving. Paul gets directly into the problem: the serious theological questions the Galatians must become aware of and settle: Salvation is by faith, not by faith and circumcision; not by faith and works. Paul defends both himself and the gospel in chapter 1. He was recognized by the apostles in Jerusalem (especially by James, half-brother of Jesus Christ Himself.) In strong language, Paul states that even if an angel came from Heaven and preached a gospel contrary to what Paul himself preached to the Galatians, that angel would be accursed. What we believe is important. One of my favorite passages succinctly explaining salvation by faith is Ephesians 2:8-9. Please read those two verses, examine your own faith, and if you are seeking God’s grace by any other means that faith in the Lord Christ, confess, repent, and believe! Today is the day to seek Christ! -Ethelene Dyer Jones 09.02.2018

Paul States the Case for Faith in Christ to the Galatian Churches

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” -Galatians 1:6-10 (ESV).

In Baptist adult Sunday School classes for the fall semester beginning Sunday, September 2, using the Explore the Bible quarterly from LifeWay, Nashville, the studies are in Galatians and James. We move from a semester in 2 Samuel when we studied biblical history, the reigns of King Saul and King David, to doctrinal studies as given to us in the New Testament books of Galatians and James.

As Paul opens Galatians, he addresses a serious condition existing in the Galatian churches he wants to discuss in his letter circulating to the churches he established in Galatia on his first missionary journey (read about his first missionary tour in Acts 13:1-14:28). After he and his fellow missionaries had established churches, instructed them as much as they could while there, and then gone on to further work, some trouble arose in the congregations. A group called the “Judaizers” began to teach the church members that not only were they to become Christians through faith in Jesus Christ, but because the new belief, based on the sacrificial death of Christ, His resurrection from the dead, His commissioning the disciples and other believers to tell the story of salvation “into all the world,” there was still something needed besides forgiveness of sins and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The men needed to go through circumcision if they had not already had that rite performed. Also, obedience to the Jewish canon of laws was necessary to salvation, so the Judaizers taught. Paul wrote the letter to the Galatian churches, scholars believe, before the Jerusalem Council was held in AD 48/49. It would have been most helpful to Paul could he have mentioned the decision of the Jerusalem Council—that believers did not have to go through the rite of circumcision to become members of the Christian faith/church. But no mention of the Council is made in the letter to the Galatians. Paul conducted his first missionary journey and established churches there in AD 47/48. Therefore, it seems plausible that AD 48 is the probable time that Paul composed and sent the letter to the Galatian churches addressing the serious problem there.

Paul wanted to make it clear that faith alone saves a person, not fulfilling the law to the letter, not “becoming a Jew” first, not works—faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ, and accepting God’s grace for forgiveness of sins and Christ’s sacrifice to restore the broken fellowship between a person and God. “Through Jesus Christ, salvation and justification come to both Jew and Gentile, fulfilling the promise to Abraham of blessing to the nations (Galatians 3:8; Genesis 12:3).” (p. 2242, Dr. Simon J. Gathercole, Univ. of Cambridge. In The Study Bible, ESV. Wheaton, IL, Crossway. 2008. P. 2242, note).

Even though Galatians follows the general New Testament form of letters, with a salutation, a body, a paraenesis (set of moral exhortations), greetings, and a benediction, there is no general thanksgiving. Paul gets directly into the problem: the serious theological questions the Galatians must become aware of and settle: Salvation is by faith, not by faith and circumcision; not by faith and works. Paul defends both himself and the gospel in chapter 1. He was recognized by the apostles in Jerusalem (especially by James, half-brother of Jesus Christ Himself.) In strong language, Paul states that even if an angel came from Heaven and preached a gospel contrary to what Paul himself preached to the Galatians, that angel would be accursed. What we believe is important. One of my favorite passages succinctly explaining salvation by faith is Ephesians 2:8-9. Please read those two verses, examine your own faith, and if you are seeking God’s grace by any other means that faith in the Lord Christ, confess, repent, and believe! Today is the day to seek Christ! - Ethelene Dyer Jones 09.02.2018

An Offering Pleasing to God

“But the king (David) replied to Araunah, ‘No, I insist on buying it for I cannot present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing. So David paid him fifty pieces of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen. David built an altar there to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And the Lord answered his prayer, and the plague was stopped.” -2 Samuel 24:24-25 NLT

The context of these two verses from 2 Samuel is important to understanding the verses I have chosen for today’s devotional. David ruled for forty years, and brought the nations of Judah and Israel under one kingship. He ruled from about 1005 B. C. to 965 B. C. David going to Araunah’s threshing floor to worship God happened after David had greatly displeased God with the manner in which he took the national census. He did not follow the law, and he showed a sense of selfishness in wanting to know, through the census, how many men in the “united Kingdom” (Israel, north, and Judah, south) were able to serve in the military. This numbering of military-able men showed a sense of self-sufficiency instead of dependence on God. It also showed pride on the part of King David. We remember the adage: “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

Even though General Joab, head of David’s armies, told King David he was going about the census in the wrong manner, David still proceeded with his plans. The census revealed 800,000 able-bodied men of military age in Israel and 500,000 in Judah, or a total of 1,300,000 possible recruits for the army. Even with this great number of men who could serve in the King’s defense system, David began to feel great anxiety, for he sensed, possibly, that he had been selfish in seeking to find out how strong his military force could be. He could boast of military prowess to other nations and they would not dare invade Israel because they had a “sufficient king and a sufficient kingdom.” Although David was called “a man after God’s own heart” in I Samuel 13:14 and by Paul the Apostle in one of his sermons in Acts 12:22, Second Samuel 24 helps us to see David’s vulnerability. He began to feel anxious. His prophet, Gad, talked to him. God offered three choices, one of which David was to choose for punishment because of his mishandling of the census. And yes, the whole nation had to suffer because David had been disobedient. Our sins does affect other people. The choises were: (1) Three years of famine throughout the land; (2) Three months of fleeing from enemies; or (3) Three days of plague. David chose the third, possibly because of the lesser duration of the punishment God was to send. In the plague, 2 Samuel 24:15 reveals that 70,000 people in the nation died those terrible three days. But God put a stop to the death angel before the plague wiped out Jerusalem.

In the two verses selected for this devotional, David had gone to the threshing floor of a citizen named Araunah near Jerusalem to offer sacrifices. Araunah offered the place free and also wanted to provide oxen for the sacrifice, but David bought both for fifty pieces of silver (an ordinary workman earned 10 pieces of silver for a whole year’s work). David affirmed that a sacrifice would not be a sacrifice if he had put nothing into it that belonged to himself. David confessed his sin. He offered prayers and sacrifices for his misconduct. Being a man after God’s own heart, he confessed his sins, shaped his life again into God’s plan, and cemented his recommitment to God by offering sacrifices. God had promised David that his kingdom would last forever. He was an ancestor of the Lord Jesus Christ who came to earth in human form to be a sacrifice for the sins of all people who will believe in Him and accept God’s forgiveness. Someone has said that G-R-A-C-E stands for God’s redemption at Christ’s Expense. And Christ’s kingdom will be forever, thus fulfilling God’s promise to David that someone in his line would be king forever and ever. David, as sinful as he was at times, always asked and received God’s forgiveness. And he was an ancestor of the Lord God who through grace, forgives all who turn to Him in faith.

No longer do we have to offer burnt offerings of oxen and sheep for our sins. Christ made the once-and-for all sacrifice for us. But our love offerings—something we put ourselves into—should be our own pleasing-to-God sacrifice. - Ethelene Dyer Jones August 26, 2018

Listening to Wise Counsel

“Then a wise woman called from the city, ‘Listen! Listen! Tell Joab, ‘Come here that I may speak to you And he came near her, and the woman said, ‘Are you Joab?’ He answered, ‘I am.’ Then she said to him, ‘Listen to the words of your servant’ And he answered, ‘I am listening.’ Then she said, ‘They used to say in former times, ‘Let them but ask counsel at Abel,’ and so they settled a matter. I am one of those who are peaceable and faithful in Israel. You seek to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why will you swallow up the heritage of the Lord?’ Joab answered, ‘Far be it from me, far be it, that I should swallow up or destroy! That is not true, But a man of the hill country of Ephraim called Sheba, the son of Bichri, has lifted up his hand against King David. Give up him alone, and I will withdraw from the city.’ And the woman said to Joab, ‘Behold his head shall be thrown to you over the wall.’ “ -2 Samuel 20:16-21 [Read 2 Samuel 20

King David, although restored to his throne in Jerusalem after the revolt led by his own (third) son Absalom, and the son’s death at the hands of Joab, commander of King David’s army, the nation was still in chaos. Jealousy, strife and contention were on every hand. In 2 Samuel 20, we see the unusual interference by a brave, wise woman to help the situation and prevent more fighting and bloodshed.

The situation, briefly, is that a man named Sheba, a Benjamite was leading a rebellion against King David.. We are told in 1 Chronicles 5:13 that Sheba was from the tribe of Gad. He wanted to take advantage of the factions between what was the “Southern” Kingdom (Judah, that lay between the Dead Sea and ended at the border of the city of Jerusalem; and the “Northern” Kingdom of Israel, which was northward from just beyond Jerusalem through to Mt. Herman in the north and eastward across the Jordan River that cut the northern area in half to the land of Aram-Damascus in the northeast, Ammon in the east, and Moab in the south. It is interesting to note this division on a map of Old Testament lands.

Sheba tried to gain a foothold against King David and “dethrone” him. But Joab, still a commander in King David’s army, met up with an unlikely person to give advice, a woman at the town of Abel where the rebel, Sheba was hiding out. She dared to approached Joab with the adage, “They used to say in olden times: Let them ask counsel at Abel.” When Joab and his army were besieging and about to tear down the town of Abel with battering rams, this brave lady came out to talk to the army commander. She asked a probing question: “Who will swallow up the heritage of the Lord?” She definitely counted her city as “the heritage of the Lord” and did not want it destroyed by war.

It seems in 2 Samuel the name of the town was shortened to Abel. Scholars hold that the full name of the small town was Abel-Beth-Maachah, known for its wisdom; and hence a dear place to the woman who dare to approach and beg Commander Joab for mercy on her town. She was able to get the citizens of her town to deliver the head of Sheba to Joab, and hence prevent a massive war destroying the city of wisdom, peace and non-war-like people. Her example strongly indicates that God uses believers to accomplish His purposes, even though sometimes it takes great bravery and determination to approach someone with much more power than the person making the appeal. God averted another war with much bloodshed, as just shortly before this incident, in the Forest of Ephraim, David and his retinue had exiled to Mahaniam east of the Jordan River in the hill country of Gilead because of his son Absalom’s rebellion. To be able to avert a full-scale war is an achievement on any level. Thank God that this wise, brave woman was concerned enough to make a plea for peace.

Prayer concerns: Pray for our country and its leaders. God’s leadership of King David and his kingdom, of whom God had promised “a decendant of David on the throne forever,” and made David an ancestor of our Lord Jesus Christ, is an excellent case study in the truth that God is the Lord of all nations, even ours; and even if our leaders do not always acknowledge God. Pray! - Ethelene Dyer Jones 08.05.2018

Honoring Our Earthly Father

“Honor your father and your mother that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.” -Exodus 20:12, KJV.

The fifth of the Ten Commandments and the first with an expressed promise teaches us that we are to honor both our parents. “Honor” involves love, respect, appreciation, looking up to them and accepting their instruction and leadership.

Parents, in turn, are to lead lives that command our love and respect. Statistics report that there are more than 70 million fathers in the United States today. Many of these are responsible, caring adults and are seeking to rear their children well. But many, however, are what we term in today’s definitions, “Absentee Fathers,” those who have abandoned their children to others’ care. I pray that any father now reading this will examine how well he loves his child (children) and how he is seeking to rear each one in parental love, with goals and initiatives, and certainly in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

A brief history of Father’s Day in America reveals that it was begun in Washington state in the year 1910. It is reported that a lady named Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington talked to her pastor about setting aside a day to honor Fathers as the one in May honored Mothers. Sonora’s mother had died in childbirth, giving birth to her, the seventh child. Her father, William Jackson Smart, had been a Civil War Veteran. When his wife died, he wanted to do the best he could to rear his six sons and the new baby daughter. He kept them together, managed to operate his small farm to make a living, and loved his children and reared them “in the fear and admonition of the Lord.” A day in June was set aside to honor her father and the word was spread abroad by word of mouth and small-town newspapers. President Woodrow Wilson pushed the idea of Father’s Day, as did President Calvin Coolidge. It began to be observed in a more wide-spread area. However, it did not become a nation-wide, consistent observance until President Lyndon Johnson gave his presidential proclamation in 1966 for the day during his administration. Then when President Richard Nixon was in office, he set the day officially as the third Sunday in June and signed that proclamation. Since then, Father’s Day has been observed consistently in America on the third Sunday in June. It is a time when families gather to give tribute to the father in the family, thank him for his leadership of the family, and bestow gifts upon him. Usually in our churches, fathers are asked to stand, and we often hear a sermon both praising fathers and admonishing them to hold high the torch of faith before their children

Like Sonora Smart Dodd, I had a wonderful father who reared his children after their mother died.

My father was not a veteran of any war, but he was truly a veteran as a father. Godly and seeing that his children read and learned the King James Version of the Bible and went to Sunday School and Church regularly, we knew what our father expected of us. His life was not easy, but none of his children embarrassed him or went away from our strict but happy and dependable upbringing. Today, I thank God for a godly father, one who loved each child unconditionally, and taught us how to love others. Praises for fathers such as mine! - Ethelene Dyer Jones. June 17, 2018

Finding Strength through God’s Grace

“But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” -2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV)

These words from Paul the Apostle were written to the struggling church at Corinth, one he loved dearly but that church had questioned Paul’s “authenticity” as a missionary and leader because he had suffered so many hardships. Did not God take care of those who loved Him? Why, then, had Paul suffered, and was he really a “true apostle” of the Lord Jesus Christ? If so, why then had he endured near-death, shipwreck, beatings, and why would he suffer eventual imprisonment (after this letter to the Corinthian Church was written)? Paul wanted the Corinthian Christians to know assuredly that being a Christian did not guarantee that one would escape suffering and persecution. But through it all, the Christian can find strength to be faithful to the Lord and keep working as a servant in the church, leading others to know the“grace of God that passes all understanding.” I like one of my friend’s explanation of God’s grace, using the letters in the word: “GRACE: God’s (gift of) Redemption At Christ’s Expense.”

Compare Paul’s sufferings with this statement of suffering from “The Greatest Preacher in the English-speaking World”—Dr. John Henry Jowettt (1863-1923), who served churches both in England and America, and back in England again: “You seem to imagine that I have no ups and downs, but just a level and lofty stretch of spiritual attainment with unbroken joy and equanimity. By no means! I am often perfectly wretched and everything appears most murky.” (quoted from The Wiersbe Bible Commentary. NT. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook Publishers. 2007, p. 502).

Think of Christians, even in our present day, who are undergoing severe persecution for their faith and are either being killed on sight or placed into terrible prisons because they will not stop preaching when that is what God has set them apart to do. There is a growing unrest and severe treatment of Christian believers going on in many places in the world today. Even in America, a nation founded on principles of liberty and as a place to worship God freely without persecution, today there is a strong and growing anti-Christian movement. On National Day of Prayer, May 3, 2018, President Donald Trump pledged to launch and support a “Christian Initiative” in America. Pray earnestly that Christians in America will turn again to God’s grace for help in our time of grave trouble and unrest.

“In Times Like These,” goes the gospel song, with words and music written by Ruth Caye Jones in 1944 when the world (and the USA) was in the midst of World War II. Barry Pickens (location/state unknown) wrote on the “Google” listing of the hymn: “No matter what you may be going through, the answer to all life’s problems is to grip the Solid Rock, Jesus.” May we pray daily for His grace to overcome, as Paul said of his problem, “the thorn in the flesh,” whatever our difficulties might be. “In times like these I have a Savior,/In times like these I have an anchor/I’m very sure, I’m very sure/My anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock!/This Rock is Jesus, Yes, He’s the One;/This Rock is Jesus, The only One!/I’m very sure, I’m very sure/My anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock!” - Ethelene Dyer Jones. May 27, 2018.

Giving to Others, A Christian's Privilege

"By this we know love, that He laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk, but in deed and in truth." - 1 John 3:16-18 (ESV)

I have noted that many church congregations do not always like sermons on tithing and giving. Comments may be heard from parishioners such as, "All you hear from pastor and leaders at the church is give, give, give to this cause and that cause; or tithe, tithe, tithe." Could it be a guilty conscience on the part of those who do not tithe and give that causes them to complain? Because pastors sense that it displeases some in their congregations to hear preaching on tithing and giving , they may refrain from exploring the subjects in their sermons, even if it might be appropriate at times to pursue these teachings. It is well, then, that we have a lesson on giving, as in the adult Sunday School lesson for May 20 2018, entitled, "Giving Faithfully," with scripture from 2 Corinthians 9: 1-15.  God often uses money to reveal the real love and motivations of our heart. In Matthew 6:21, Jesus taught: "...where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (ESV).

Defined, the tithe is the tenth part of one's earnings (or goods) set aside and given for the work of the Lord. And offering, then, would be that given beyond the tithe. Briefly, here is a review of some of the Bible's teachings on tithing and giving: Abraham gave 1/10 (a tithe) of the booty he had taken in a war to the Priest Melchizedec of Salem (see Genesis 14:18-20). When Jacob was sent by his father Isaac to Paddan-aram to his Uncle Laban's to seek a wife from among his mother Rebecca's people, he had a dream the first night out. He realized from t he dream that God was in every place, not just in Israel. He promised, upon a safe return, to tithe a full tenth of his possessions (see Genesis 28:18-22). The Old Testament gives many stipulations for the tithe. Here are some of them: a tithe of the agricultural products harvested was to be used for a harvest feast celebrating God's provision (see Deuteronomy 14:22-27). The third year's tithes from crops were to be set aside to provide for the Levites (priests), widows, orphans and foreigners in Israel (see Deut. 14:26-29). Malachi 8:8-12 teaches that failure to bring the tithe into God's storehouse is robbing God. Faithfulness in presenting the tithe, on the other hand, will bring blessings to those who are faithful in tithing. "Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need" ((Malachi 3:10. ESV).

In the New Testament, the Rabbis taught that there were to be three separate tithes: one for support of the Levites, one for special religious celebrations, and one for charitable causes (for example: widows and orphans). Jesus taught that we should consider more important aspects of the Christian life than just strict tithing. He urged us to tithe and to give, but importantly, to live justly and to love mercy. In Matthew 23:23 Jesus said, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: Justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!" He stated this truth again in Luke 11:42: "But woe to you, Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God." The central truth for the adult Sunday School lesson for May 20, 2018 is stated succinctly: "Believers show trust in God by using their resources to meet the needs of others." (-Rev. Micah Carter, writer of the "Explore the Bible" lesson on 2 Corinthians 9:1-145 for Sunday, May 20, 2018. Nashville: Lifeway, 2018. p. 109).

I believe firmly that it is both an obligation and a privilege for a Christian to tithe and to bring offerings to present at the church regularly and faithfully. We gratefully remember that Christ through His sacrifice made possible salvation, an abundant life on earth as we live for Him, and life everlasting in Heaven. All of these privileges are for us who believe in Him. He gave; therefore, we can give of our means. By our giving, we can help our church and others. God loves a cheerful giver. He blesses us as we seek to bless others by being obedient in gladly and faithfully presenting God's tithe and our offerings. - Ethelene Dyer Jones. May 20, 2018.