“Faith or Works”
Galatians 3:1-18
Sermon Series: “Choice”
Main Idea: Jesus alone is the only way to God, and the only way to receive Jesus is by grace alone through faith alone.
The idea of grace is that we are on the DONE plan instead of the DO plan. Salvation is through what Jesus alone has done for us. There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation. However, we must receive salvation by faith alone. We are not saved by our works or by faith plus works. Romans 4:4 says, “Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.”
Why choose faith alone instead of works?
1. The nature of our personal spiritual experience demonstrates that we are saved through faith instead of works (v. 1-5).
A. The experience of hearing the proclamation of Jesus crucified (v. 1)
B. The experience of receiving the Holy Spirit (v. 2-5)
C. The experience of God doing miracles (v. 5)
Each of these experiences decisively demonstrates that we receive Jesus only by faith. The cross rules out any and all human ability to save. No one has ever earned the presence of the Holy Spirit. We cannot bribe God into doing a miracle by what we do.
2. The Old Testament example of Abraham demonstrates that we are saved through faith instead of works (v. 6-9). Abraham was saved by faith hundreds of years before the giving of the Law, and he serves as the model for all who have a relationship with God. Genesis 15:6 says, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”
3. The fact that we are cursed by failing to completely keep the law demonstrates that we are saved through faith instead of works (v. 10-12).
A. Perfection is necessary for us to save ourselves. That is God’s standard, and anything less than that places us under a curse (v. 10).
B. The righteous live by faith instead of the law (v. 11).
C. The law and faith are opposite and mutually exclusive (v. 12).
Since none of us is perfect and perfection is God’s only standard, our only hope is trusting the perfect righteousness of Jesus.
4. The reality that Jesus became a curse for us to deliver us from the curse of the law demonstrates that we are saved through faith instead of works (v. 13-14). The curse is God’s punishment upon disobedience. Jesus undeservedly (because He never sinned) took that curse upon Himself in order to deliver us from the curse and give us the blessing of God. He took God’s wrath as our substitute so that we receive the blessing of Abraham and the promise of the Spirit.
5. The truth that we possess the promises of God in Jesus demonstrates that we are saved through faith instead of works (v. 15-18). We should trust Jesus because all the promises of God are given to Him and when we trust Him and are in Him then all the promises of God belong to us through Him.
Conclusion: As we have been talking about through the course of this series, faith is expressed by resting in the finished work of Jesus alone and acknowledging Jesus as Lord (Romans 10:9). Are you trusting in Jesus alone for salvation? Are you trusting solely in the grace of God or attempting to add some of your own efforts to the equation?
