“This, then, is the gospel. It is not a general instruction about the Jesus of history, but a specific proclamation of Jesus Christ as crucified. … Christ’s work was completed on the cross, and that the benefits of His crucifixion are forever fresh, valid, and available. Sinners may be justified before God and by God, not because of any works of their own, but because of the atoning work of Christ; not because of anything that they have done or could do, but because of what Christ did once, when He died. The gospel is not good advice to men, but good news about Christ; not an invitation to us to do anything, but a declaration of what God has done; not a demand, but an offer.” —John Stott
We are not only justified by faith in Jesus Christ but we are also sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ; therefore, we must never leave the gospel behind.
1. Paul asks the Galatians about their own personal experience of God’s grace.
2. Paul asks the Galatians what the Scriptures teach about God’s grace.
3. Paul teaches us there are two types of people.
“To love God wholly, we would have to obey the law wholly. To be blessed by God instead of cursed by Him, we would have to look at the law and satisfy its every demand. And that cannot be done. Objectively, attempting salvation-by-law-observance means we are cursed.” —Tim Keller
“Salvation means much more than forgiveness. We do not simply have our slate wiped clean; we also become perfect in God’s sight. And we stay perfect in God’s sight. We do not begin by trusting in Christ’s curse-becoming, blessing-giving death for us, and then continue ‘by human effort,’ as though we must now earn ongoing blessing. That is ‘foolish.’ We go on as we began, having our hearts melted and molded by knowing and trusting Christ crucified. We never move on from the gospel—we never can, and never need to.” —Tim Keller