Keep In Step With the Spirit – Part Eleven
Two Kinds of Men (3)
Galatians 6:11-16

Todd Braye

All Scripture quotations from the ESV.

Introduction

For our benefit, the apostle, before completion of his epistle, describes two kinds of men. Both kinds of men had, and have, much in common. For example, both kinds of men are within the ranks of the professing church. Both make claims to be gospel men. And both, I would argue, are in some sense, at some level, zealous for the things of God. It isn’t as if rank godlessness marks one kind of man and godliness the other. Quite the contrary; both kinds of men do in fact have a zeal for God. Both might even be well versed in theology. Both press the need for righteousness and holiness. But despite their similarities, though they might appear to have much in common, there is a profound and fundamental difference between the two.

Why I make much of this is for one reason and one reason only. I do so because Paul makes much of it. Nothing less than eternity itself is at stake. Why this is so crucial to understand is Christ is of benefit to only one of these kinds of men. Paul makes this crystal clear by what he states in the second and third verses of chapter five. He writes that Christ will be of no advantage to the one who accepts circumcision (Gal. 5:2). Then, in verse three, he asserts that “every man who accepts circumcision…is obligated to keep the whole law” (Gal. 5:3). Translation: Submission to part obligates subjection to the whole. Submission to part of Mosaic Law obligates subjection to all of it. This is true not just for one’s justification, but for his sanctification as well. Careful study and exegesis shows that in the verses that immediately follow (5:4, 5), Paul makes it clear that, in the time between justification and the consummation of "the hope of righteousness," the same remains true. In sanctification, submission to part of Mosaic Law obligates subjection to the whole. And obligation to the whole places one under the law’s curse. He is “severed from Christ.” Christ is of no benefit to him … though he might think otherwise. Like Paul’s opponents, he may think he’s doing precisely what God requires of him. But, at the very best, he has “fallen from grace.” This is why it’s so crucial to understand there are two kinds of ‘gospel men.’ One is tethered to Christ. The other is severed from Christ. So, the question must be answered: Who is the man so tethered? Who is the man for whom Christ is of tremendous, saving, justifying, sanctifying, benefit?

Christ is beneficial only to the man who exults only in the cross of Christ.

That man describes himself for us in verse 14. The apostle writes: “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul sharply contrasts himself here with the kind of ‘gospel’ man he described in the previous two verses. What he tells us by this is that Christ is beneficial only to the man who exults only in the cross of Christ. Christ benefits only the one who rejoices over the cross, alone. The cross is what drives him. The cross is his confidence. The cross is that in which he glories. In matters of righteousness and salvation, he prides himself in nothing else. To the exclusion of everything else, he boasts in the Person & Work of Christ on a tree.

What Paul gloried in, what drove him, what incited him to rapturous rejoicing, was not himself. What Paul gloried in was outside himself. It really had nothing to do with him at all. It was not what he achieved, but what God accomplished. It was not his performance, but God’s provision. It was not even his obedience; it was Christ’s obedience. Nor was it the theological tradition in which he grew up, in which he was educated, and which defined him as a man, a God-fearing man, one with great zeal, though terribly misguided. One can only imagine how deeply entrenched Paul’s old theology must have been! It was all that he knew. He even bore in his body the sign of the covenant since infancy, i.e. circumcision (Phil. 3:5). What an astounding thing it is therefore, for him to now write things like “…in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything…” (Gal. 5:6). At one point, Paul perceived much gain in such things. He esteemed them to be worthy of much confidence before God, numbering himself amongst the favored few on account of such physical circumstances and inherited privileges.

And so the question almost poses itself: Who among us is like that? Who among us glories in some inherited theological tradition, one that was given to us, taught to us, of which we are convinced, and now defines us? If you’ve grown up in the church, this will be true of you, at least to some extent. The tradition given me was the oil of social gospel and Wesleyan holiness burning in the flames of free will. “How on earth,” somebody questions, “did you end up a flaming Sovereign Grace Baptist?” “Well,” I say in reply, “I like to think it happened on account of the Scriptures themselves. It didn’t happen all at once and overnight. But over the course of days and months and years of study, I am what I am. The result is that I no longer rest in that which was given me, but I now own that of which I myself have become convinced (even if it flies in the face of John Calvin or Charles Spurgeon).” Do you understand what I’m getting at? Don’t misunderstand. I am not saying everything Calvin or Spurgeon said is to be questioned, not for a nanosecond. Those men gave us much for which we can and should be thankful. Nor am I remotely suggesting that one assume the posture of those given to destroying the faith, questioning everything, like Rob Bell. What I’m saying is if one’s confidence is Calvin or Wesley or Spurgeon to the point that those men are never questioned, then the question of all questions must be posed: In what does that one truly glory, the cross, or a particular theologian, emblematic of some theological tradition? Remember: Christ is beneficial only to the man who exults only in the cross of Christ. The cross is his only confidence. The cross is that in which he alone glories. The cross is that upon which he alone relies.

But what is the cross? And why make much of it? Why exult in and rejoice over it?

The Cross: The Ground of Justification

We need not leave this epistle to reply. At the outset, in the very first chapter, Paul states that the cross is the instrument by which Christ effected redemption. Christ “gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age” (1:4). On the cross, Christ died and paid for every sin every one who would ever believe would ever commit. True of everyone who trusts Christ is this: Their past sins are paid for. Their present sins are paid for. And their future sins, those they shall commit, are paid for. Christ “gave himself for our sins.” And He did so, Paul writes, “to deliver us from the present evil age.” Forgiveness of sins is not the only reason for the cross. God’s designed the work of Christ to effect a far bigger result. By the cross, believers are transferred from one age, or aeon, to another. They are rescued from ‘the present evil age’ dominated by all that is godless and wicked. They are placed into a new aeon, a new age, one not ruled by evil and wickedness. They can and indeed must live lives in keeping with this new age. They are no longer subject to the powers of this present darkness, but under a new power, one which causes righteousness, things against which ‘there is no law,’ things in keeping with the doctrine of Christ and of godliness. Remember: There was never a time Paul was not religious. There was never a time in his life when God was not a concern. But there was a time in which he did not glory in the cross! It is possible to be religious and concerned about God and not glory in the cross! I say this to underscore the fact this epistle was written, not to those outside the church, but to those inside the church. Paul wrote to the “churches of Galatia.” It is possible therefore that you yourself are in the same boat. You might be religious (which is not necessarily a bad thing). You are concerned for the things of God (which is a good thing). But you do not boast in the cross. If this is true of you, you must know this: Christ is beneficial only to the man who exults only in the cross of Christ.

Moreover, Paul states that the cross is the means by which one has a righteous standing before God. In chapter 2:21, Paul says that he does “not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” The fact that Christ died will never change. Christ died. Period. That is objective, historical truth. It is a death which cannot be undone or revoked in any way, shape, or form. Therefore, nothing can shake the ground upon which, or the means through which, the believer is counted righteous. Sinners are justified “by His blood.” How does God count us righteous? By the cross. Why does God count us righteous? Because of our faith? Because of our repentance? Because we’ve obeyed him enough? Absolutely not! God counts believing sinners righteous because of the cross, alone. He counts the unrighteous righteous on account of the Righteous One dying for the unrighteous. This is sure and solid ground. Nothing can move this. No “earthquake,” no matter how powerful, could ever shake the ground upon which salvation rests. No “tsunami” will ever destroy the economy of God’s saving purpose. The cross of Christ guarantees the righteous standing of everyone for whom Christ died. This is why the apostle boasted in the cross. He knew that, unlike his faith, his repentance, or whether or not he felt godly, the cross was solid ground.

“Seeing, hearing, feeling; what are these? Given or withheld as He shall please. I believe in Him and what He says; I have faith in Him, not in my faith. That may [wane/fade/dwindle], tomorrow or today; Trust may weaken, feeling pass away, Thoughts grow weary, anxious or depressed;”[1] [I look to the cross, and tis there I’ll rest].

The Cross Guarantees Sanctification

But the cross is not only the ground of justification. The cross also guarantees a believer’s sanctification. Christ did not die only to free us from divine condemnation. He died also that we become more and more conformed to His image and likeness. In Galatians 3:13 Paul speaks of the cross. In the very next verse he gives reason for the cross. Just look at it (beginning with the 13^th verse):

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us – for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree…”

This is tremendous. Here is Christ on the cross, getting what we deserve, in our place. He was cursed by God that we might be blessed of God. Part of that blessing is justification, the imputation, or the transfer of Christ’s righteousness to the believer’s account. Without this righteousness you go to hell. This is justifying righteousness. But there’s more. In verse 14, Paul continues with the stated purpose of verse 13. Christ redeemed us on the tree (verse 14) “so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”[2] The cross secures our justifying righteousness. But it also secures the Holy Spirit for our sanctifying righteousness.

The Cross: The Everest & Continental Divide of Redemptive History

Furthermore, the cross is the Mount Everest of redemptive history. The person and work of Christ on the cross is the apex (not consummation, but apex), the highest point on the Bible’s landscape. Just listen to what Paul writes in 3:19-

“Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, UNTIL the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made…”

Then, in 3:24, he writes:

“So then, the law was our guardian UNTIL Christ came…”

Galatians 4:4-

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law…”

Law was for a time. But the time of the gospel was the fullness of time.[3] With the redemptive work of Christ on the cross came the end of an era, namely “the present evil age.” And with it also came the start of a brand new age, namely the one put into effect by the New Covenant. Christ on the cross is therefore both the Everest and Continental Divide of redemptive history – Everest because the cross is the fullness of time, that is, the fullness of redemptive history.[4] And it’s a continental divide because, like the Rockies which divide North America, the cross divides redemptive history in two: Old and New, Law and Gospel, Moses and Christ, condemnation & righteousness, flesh and Spirit. Any talk of an overarching Covenant of Grace effectively erasing the great divide between the two covenants is simply without Biblical warrant. Erase the divide, flatten the Rockies, and the cross is diminished (at best). The cross in which Paul gloried is a cross that ended one covenant and effected another, better covenant. This is part and parcel of why he boasted in it. The New is to the Old what iMac is to the typewriter! The Old could never do, in fact it was never designed to do, what the New does effectively and without fail, namely save you from your sins so that one day you see the face of God in the New Heavens and New Earth. Now we’re cookin’! This is the cross in which the apostle gloried and exulted! Rejoice in this cross and Christ will be of tremendous benefit to you. Lean on this cross and Christ will be an eternal advantage for you.

The Cross, The Christian, & The World

What Paul says next is key to what it means to be a Christian and to ‘keep in step with the truth of the gospel.’ It is key to understanding what it looks like to glory in the cross and keep in step with the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ. Still in verse 14: “But far be it from me that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” There are three crucifixions here: Christ on a cross, the world to Paul, and Paul to the world. And what Paul is saying here is simply this: the cross in which he gloried is the cross by or through which the world died to him and he died to the world. Translation? You cannot love the world and be attached to the world and, at the same time, remain tethered to Christ. The cross of Christ, if you exult in it, will radically impact your life. By it, the world will be dead to you. Through it, you will be dead to the world. It will have no attraction to you. And it will not pull you into its grip. As the dead is removed from the living, so is Paul from the world.

But what does the apostle mean by “world?” Here’s my short answer: The world is the realm or sphere in which all that is aligned with the flesh operates. Let me begin to unpack that.

First, man’s religions belong to the world. Paul makes reference to this back in the 4^th chapter. He refers to the time when the Galatians were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. Perhaps they were made from wood or some other material. In one of the many videos I viewed from Japan, I saw amongst the debris of a devastated neighborhood, the glitter of a golden Buddha[5]. This is precisely the kind of thing Paul describes as ‘weak and worthless elementary principles of the world.’ The many countless household idols and icons of the world’s religions are all rubbish. Perhaps you’ve heard of ‘Pastor’ Rob Bell. He’s about to release a new book called “Love Wins.” In his video promo for the book, Bell questions the assertion that Ghandi, a devout Hindu his entire life, a man who believed that all religions were equally valid, is in hell. If there is any doubt in this room, if anyone is waffling on the exclusivity of Christ, hear this: Paul calls Hinduism ‘weak and worthless,’ it operates in the realm of the world and even ‘the present evil age,’ AND Paul has made it abundantly clear that Christ is beneficial only to the man who exults only in the cross. Ghandi did not. Bell certainly isn’t. And Paul declared unequivocally that by the cross such religious weirdness was dead to him. It had no attraction for him. He treasured the cross of Christ and was thus satisfied with it. So, he had no reason to be on a quest for an emerging ‘truth,’ one that questioned the plain revelation of God.

Second, the world is the realm in which the flesh operates. It is the realm of wickedness and evil, of sinful desires and passions. It is the realm of sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, pornography, homosexuality, idolatry, sorcery, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, theft, self-boasting, conceit, self-glory, and things like these (cf. Gal. 5:19-21). If it fits with the present evil age, if it’s ‘all the rage’ and ‘in vogue,’ then it’s the world. If it doesn’t honor Christ, it’s the world. If it isn’t in conformity to Christ, it’s the world. And the one who exults in the cross is dead to it. It doesn’t interest him. Sin, in other words, has lost its grip. What becomes clear to us then, is the way of holiness. How are we to pursue holiness? By looking to Law? Not on your life! Law arouses the desires of the flesh (Romans 7:5)! Law is the power of sin (1 Cor. 15:56)! But the cross? The realm in which the flesh operates is crucified by the cross! Yes, there is an objective aspect to this. The Gospel is grounded in history. The cross delivers us from one age to another. But the cross work of Christ has personal impact. Christ died to deliver us from this “present evil age,” after all. What Paul introduced in chapter one, he crystallizes for us in chapter six. The cross is the very instrument by which the world was crucified to him and he to the world. So, in your pursuit of holiness, behold the glory of the cross (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18).

Third, the Mosaic Law as covenant belongs to the realm of the world. I won’t take the time here to show how this is in great detail. But a quick look at a few verses will show this to be in fact the case. Beginning with 3:23 – “Now before faith came, we (i.e. Jews) were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came.” So, see the picture Paul paints here. Jews were held captive in jail, tethered to a ball and chain called the Law of Moses. Verse 25- “But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian…(4:1) I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the time set by the father. In the same way, we also, when we were children (i.e. when we were Jews living under the guardian of the law, held captive by it, imprisoned) were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world.” It cannot be denied. Paul makes a distinct connection between slavery to the Law and enslavement to the ‘elementary principles of the world.’ To be enslaved to one is to be enslaved to the other.

So, let’s put it together. Paul says, “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world (i.e. the Mosaic Law) has been crucified to me, and I to [the Mosaic Law].”

Paul says that he’s dead to the Law and the Law is dead to him. As the dead is removed from the living, so is Paul from the Law. They can have nothing to do with each other. Now compare this man to the other kind of man described in the previous verses. Paul boasts in the cross. They boast in the flesh. Paul, by the cross, is crucified to the law. They, on the other hand, force the law on others, even after the point of conversion. Never forget that submission to part of the law obligates subjection to the whole. Whether one is a believer or not, it makes no difference! Submission to part obligates subjection to the whole.

Finally, a distorted gospel belongs to the world. The gospel is distorted in countless ways. But the distortion Paul addresses in Galatians is the dilution, or watering down, of the complete sufficiency of the cross. The cross, the full and complete work of Christ in the atonement, is all that is required for our righteousness. The cross, all that Christ purchased for us on that tree, does not need any supplementation. Law is not required. To compromise the Gospel with Law is to nullify the grace of God. To add Law to the Christian life is to mix that life with ‘the elementary principles of the world.’ And that flies in the face of Christ.

Two kinds of men, both religious, both profess Christ, but only one exults in the cross. Only one is dead to the world. And only one is tethered to Christ who is his eternal benefit. And only one is keeping in step with the Spirit, thus obeying Paul’s exhortation in 5:25. I pray you are one and not the other. And I hope you are influenced by one and not the other.