Fly 21—Gospel Power—Galatians 6:11-18
11 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. 12 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. 14 But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. 16 And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God. 17 From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. 18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen. (Galatians 6:11–18, ESV)
The three basic elements of a song are melody, harmony, and rhythm. I've heard that the melody—a succession of notes that are unique and easily recognized by the listener—is the most important part of all.[^1] Paul started Galatians with his melodic line when he stated he was astonished that there were some in Galatia who were turning so quickly from the grace of Christ to a different, and therefore false, gospel (Gal. 1:6-7). He said that if anyone, even an angel, added to the gospel of Christ in any way, they should be accursed (Gal. 1:8-9). And the apostle was willing to fall out of favor with others so that he could hold fast to the true gospel and be a genuine servant of Christ (Gal. 1:10). And all through the book of Galatians, Paul interjected that melody. But here, like a seasoned composer nearing the end of his piece, Paul closed his letter by returning to his initial melody.[^2]
And he did what he could to play it loud here at the end. Paul's custom was to dictate his letters to a scribe, but it was also his custom to conclude his letters in his own handwriting as trademark evidence that they were from him (2 Thes. 3:17). And here, Paul took the pen from his amanuensis and wrote his conclusion in large letters, probably as a way to capture the attention of his readers (11). This closing portion of his letter is Paul's ALL CAPS section. It's as if he selected these verses in his word processor and bolded, italicized, and highlighted them for emphasis. One last time, he emphasized that adding anything to the gospel is a distortion of the gospel.
There were those in Galatia who said one needed to add circumcision (and other Jewish ceremonies and customs) to Jesus. To be truly saved, they said, people need to keep the law (13). Now Paul thought the message of the cross, combined with the influence of the Spirit, would produce a dynamic life full of good works and obedience to God. But he hated legalism and saw it as completely useless for true life transformation. So, in these closing sentences, he returned to his main theme and contrasted legalism with the gospel one last time.
Legalism Is Ineffective (12-13)
First, Paul reminded his readers that legalism is ineffective because it is only for show. He peered into the motives of the false teachers when he said to the Galatians, "It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised" (12). It seems the legalizers wanted to look good to the religious Jewish community because they lived near and among the religious Jewish community. If they had been living in Rome, they might have offered up a different brand of legalism, perhaps something similar to our current culture, where you are considered a pariah if you don't celebrate the new societal norms. But the motivation was clear—it was legalism driven by show, a performance for others.
But why did they want to make such a good showing? Because they didn't want to be persecuted for the cross of Christ (12). These legalists didn't want to entirely deny Jesus, but they knew they could avoid some persecution from their fellow Jewish countrymen if they were seen promoting Jewish customs and religious laws to non-Jewish converts. If those laws were added to the cross, the offense of the cross would cease, and so would the persecution.
But the reality is that the pure and unadulterated gospel is offensive to every type of human heart because it says we are too weak, broken, and sinful to help ourselves out of our condition. We can do nothing to save ourselves. The gospel is offensive to those who think it's intolerant because the only way to be saved is through Christ's cross. The gospel is offensive to those who are morally good because it says that both "good" and "bad" people are condemned before God and in need of the cross. It is not a mere religion that offers some version of moral goodness to our world but news that announces the exclusive solution to our brokenness. And because this is what the gospel is, those who believe and preach it are often marginalized or persecuted.[^3]
Notice the motivation of the legalists—they wanted to be similar enough not to stand out. They wanted to water down the cross until everyone would leave them alone. They weren't prepared to be ostracized by society and live as exiles and pilgrims in a foreign land, so they distorted the gospel in an attempt to fit in.
It is here that we have a tremendous opportunity. We can come back to our roots as a people called out of the world and into God's church. We don't have to fit in. We won't ever fit in. The gospel makes us dual citizens, but our truest citizenship is in God's kingdom.
So legalism is ineffective because it's all for show, but Paul also reminded his readers that legalism is ineffective because it does not produce true change. He wrote that " even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law" (13). True transformation does not happen by legalism. True transformation comes from the Spirit as we walk with God. As Paul said to the Corinthians, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit" (2 Cor. 3:18). As we fellowship with our Father God, we are changed by God's Spirit to become more like God's Son.
When I say that legalism does not produce real change, I'm alluding to all forms of legalism. Theologian Wayne Grudem breaks legalism into four categories.[^4] First, there is legalism regarding justification. This form of legalism says that we must add something to our belief in the cross to be truly saved. Second, there is legalism that adds to the commands of Scripture. For instance, I recently heard of a homeschool curriculum that described biblical characteristics of womanhood with various verses but had no verse at all when saying that godly women are "dainty." OK—that's an add to Scripture. Third, there is legalism that occurs in our heart attitude toward one another. When a spirit of policing or a critical spirit of judgment takes over, we have capitulated to this form of legalism. And finally, there is the legalism of overemphasis on pet topics. This type of legalism takes secondary (or less than secondary) positions and puts treats them as if they are first priority. All these forms of legalism produce momentary levels of fear or pride-based performance but not true heart-based transformation. On the outside, they looked good, but their insides were full of death and decay.
Recently, our middle school ministry held a human scavenger hunt at the Del Monte Shopping Center. A bunch of youth leaders and high school students disguised themselves and wandered around the mall while groups of middle school students tried to find them. My freshman daughter decided to go as a millennial mom—athleisure jacket, running leggings, sneakers, stylish frames, fanny pack, and a Starbucks in hand. To top it off, she wore a sling with a fake baby inside. It was such a good disguise and, as she cruised the stores, one elderly couple even approached her and asked to see the baby! She had to break it to them—I'm 15, and I'm playing a group game right now, so this is a fake baby!
Legalism does the same thing; it makes fake babies. The Galatians might've thought adopting all the rules and regulations made them holier or more spiritual. It might've looked that way, but none of those things changed them from within. In another place, Paul said circumcision is not outward and physical but "a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter" (Rom. 2:28-29). True change comes when the gospel touches you and sets you free and when you continue walking in the Spirit so that he can continue to transform your life.
The Cross Is Powerful (14-16)
So Paul reminded the Galatians of the weakness of legalism, but then he celebrated the power of the cross. First, Paul reminded his readers that the cross is powerful because it sets us free. He wrote that it was by the cross that the world had been crucified to him, and him to the world (14). When Paul mentioned "the world," he was not talking about people or the planet—both are an object of God's love. "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son" (John 3:16). Instead, Paul was talking about a system that is entirely opposed to God. It is insidious and pervasive. Sometimes it stands in obvious contrast to God, but often it acts like an incrementally slow conveyor belt carrying you away from God and his ways.
In past centuries and even decades, the church has railed hard against the world so that everything in culture received the label "worldly." Soon, movies, dancing, art, entertainment, sports—pretty much anything—were called worldly. And when that happened, generations of Christians stopped talking about the world because it was embarrassing to be connected to such extra-biblical teaching. But when we stopped talking about it, we began falling prey to it, and pretty soon, many of our lives became indiscernible from the world; its network of relationships, educational systems, entertainment agendas, consumeristic economics, and polarizing news cycles massaged many of us into a way of life that was worldly. So we should get back to thinking about the world, not as legalistic hacks who berate anything in the culture so they can get a following of their own, but as people seeking to live as pilgrims for our Lord. We should seek to "not be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Rom. 12:2).
And Paul knew that the cross set him free of the world. He was no longer in need of man's praise, and he no longer feared man's persecution. When Jesus died on the cross, it was as if the world died with him to Paul, and Paul died with him to the world. And if you are a believer in Jesus, the same thing has happened to you. The world system does not matter. It is dead to you, and you are dead to it. Don't live in obedience to its ways any longer.
Second, Paul reminded his readers that the cross is powerful because it makes us new. He said, "Neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation" (15). Legalism cannot change us, but the cross can. Through belief in Jesus, we become brand new, receiving a new nature as we become new creatures in God's sight.
A friend of mine from India came to the States for college. Far from his home, friends shared the gospel with him, but he was uninterested. One night, however, he had a vision of Jesus and began to believe. And he was radically changed. Tendencies he could not master under his old religion soon came under the power of Christ. He was different because he was a new creation. As Paul said, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Cor. 5:17). So what makes us new? The gospel of Jesus Christ. Through it, God puts a new nature within us.
So the cross gives us a brand new identity. We are free from the world and its pressures. Now we are free to be transformed by the Spirit (as opposed to legalistic rules). And, as Paul said, "For all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God" (16). The path to true peace and God's favor is only found on the cross. It is not found in our works. And, even though the Jewish legalizers Paul dealt with didn't understand this, the true people of God do (16).
Conclusion
Famous financial advisor Suze Orman tells a story from her childhood that she says shaped her view of money. Her dad was never a wealthy man, and one day his business, a small chicken shack, caught fire. Everyone in the family escaped safely, but he quickly realized all the money they had was still inside the cash register. So he risked his life and ran back in, but when he couldn't open the register, he picked up the scalding metal box with bare hands. He ran outside with the cash box but suffered third-degree burns. She said it was then that she began to believe "money is more important than life itself."[^5]
The book of Galatians shows how Paul was willing to run into the fires of controversy and persecution, all so that he could save the gospel. This letter should jolt us into an understanding that the gospel is more important than life itself. Without it—or if it is distorted—we are lost. But with it, we have life. It is our boast. As Paul said, "Far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (14). Legalism, dead religion, leads us to boast in ourselves. But true Christians know their boast is only in what Christ has done.
If we boast in our works, we have uncovered the heart of our religion. If we boast in our politics or own perspectives, we have uncovered the heart of our religion. If we boast in our performance or are decimated by our failures, we have uncovered the heart of our religion. But if we boast only in Christ and what he has done, we have the Christian religion.[^3] It is only faith in Christ's work that saves us, and it is only through submission to the Spirit's power that we can be changed, and Paul did whatever he could to convince us of these truths.
And Paul hoped that the matter was settled. He said, "From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus" (17). This aging apostle had been beaten and scarred for standing up for the gospel. And he had stood up for that same gospel once again here in Galatians. He defended his preaching of the gospel, showed the biblical reasons the gospel is true, and explained the radically good life the gospel will generate. And now he is done.
It's all so on-brand for Paul. I recently watched The Old Man and the Gun, the last movie of Robert Redford's long and storied acting career. I don't want to give away too much, but I'll just say the final scenes are iconic Redford. On a horse, alone, riding off into the sunset. It was a nod to his illustrious career. In a similar way, Paul is on brand to the very end, preaching the gospel, hoping and wishing, and praying that his hearers would let the gospel do its work in their lives. He gave them one last prayer that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ would overcome their spirits, suffocating legalism in the process, before ending with "amen" (18).
We agree with the apostle. Amen: so be it. Let's allow the gospel of grace to have first place—by a mile—in our hearts and minds. Let's keep ourselves from the all-to-pervasive tendency to add to the gospel various works or viewpoints that we think justify us. Let us fly up into the life only the gospel provides for us, free and accepted by God because of Jesus' work, not our own, responding in love to all he's done for us.
[^1]: N.d. Stevenmeloneyrecording.com. Accessed May 15, 2023. https://www.stevenmeloneyrecording.com/post/writing-powerful-melody-lines.
[^2]: Helm, David. 2022. Expositional Preaching: How We Speak God’s Word Today. 9Marks.
[^3]: Keller, Timothy. 2013. Galatians For You. New Malden, England: Good Book Company.
[^4]: Grudem, Wayne. 2018. Christian Ethics: An Introduction to Biblical Moral Reasoning. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
[^5]: Dominus, Susan. 2009. “Suze Orman Is Having a Moment.” The New York Times, May 14, 2009. https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/magazine/17orman-t.html.