The Essence of Faith

 

Listen for God’s word to you from Galatians 6:11-18…

 

See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!

Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. Not even those who are circumcised keep the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your circumcision in the flesh. May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule—to the Israel of God.

From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.

 

Today we come to the final section of Paul’s letter to the Galatians. Paul always used a secretary to pen his letters for him. But at the end of each letter Paul would often add some words in his own hand. In this case, he gives us eight verses in his own hand. And he says, “See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!” I think, perhaps the reason why Paul wrote with large letters was because of the problem he had with his eyesight. Such a problem can often lead one to write with large letters if one can write at all.

 

In a sense, these last eight verses in Galatians, these large letters, sum up what the whole letter has been about. It’s all been about plugging into the power of grace. But how do we do that? How do we plug into the power of grace? We do it through faith. Faith is the conduit through which we receive the grace of God.

Grace is like a wonderful ice cream milk shake. It is delicious. But we only know how good it tastes once we get it into our mouths. And to do that we need a conduit, known as a straw. That straw is like the conduit of faith by which we receive grace into our souls.

 

Over the years I have heard many people utter the expression, “Thank God for your faith,” as though it is faith that saves us. But the more I have studied this, the more I have concluded that, in the end, ultimately, it is not our faith that saves us. Rather, it is the person in whom our faith rests, he is the one who saves us. We can have all the faith we want, but if that faith is not placed in the ultimate source of power and love, namely in Jesus Christ, I don’t think that faith will accomplish very much, if anything.

 

So, when Paul talks about grace, it is always the grace of God found in our Lord Jesus Christ. And when Paul talks about faith, he talks about faith in the person of Jesus Christ. And in these final verses to the Galatians, Paul talks about the essence of Christian faith. 

 

Outward or Inward?

 

First off, Paul addresses this unspoken question: is the Christian faith ultimately something outward or inward?

 

Paul has spent a lot of time, and a lot of ink in this letter arguing against the value of a mere outward show of faith. He writes in verse 12, “Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised.” Paul, obviously, does not think that circumcision, performed with the motive of impressing others, done with a focus on the flesh, on the outward show, is of any value at all. All that counts, in Paul’s book, is “the new creation”. And the new creation that Paul speaks about here and elsewhere is something that works from the inside out. As Jesus conveyed in his parable of the Sower, God plants the seed of his word in our hearts, and in that secret, inner place, the seed begins to grow—a new creation. On another occasion, Jesus said, 

 

Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.

 

We have seen Paul drawing this same contrast in this letter between flesh and Spirit, outward and inward.

 

But it is not as though faith never issues in outward signs. I don’t think Paul is saying or would ever say that. Certainly, Paul believes in the importance of baptism; that’s an outward sign of faith. But we must always keep in mind that the sacraments (baptism and holy communion) are outward signs of an inward reality, an inward grace. And I think what Paul is telling us is that the inward grace is what counts most. If that inward grace is a present reality, a grace accessed by faith in Jesus Christ, then our faith will issue in outward signs, especially in good deeds done in love for God and others. But it all works from the inside out, not the outside in. Outward expressions of so-called faith are without value, if the inward reality of faith is lacking. 

 

The relation between inward and outward can be seen in other dimensions of life just as it can be seen in relation to the spiritual dimension…

 

When I was in fourth grade, I had a wonderful teacher, Mrs. Ewing. She was the one who introduced me to The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis, and for that I will be eternally grateful.

 

Mrs. Ewing was also a stickler when it came to teaching us our times tables. She was insistent that we get those times tables memorized. When we came back to our classroom after lunch or recess, we would line up in a straight row and Mrs. Ewing would start calling out things like, “2 times 12.” Whoever came up with the right answer first would be the first to enter the classroom. 

I was often last. I simply had a very difficult time internalizing the times tables. I failed to retain the essence of multiplication deep down within my brain. But those who did have the times tables memorized in their minds, were able to shout out the answers with their lips which then led to the outward action of being able to walk into the classroom first.

 

Now, I don’t mean to suggest that the inner life of faith should be turned into some sort of outward competition. But there is this connection between the inward and the outward in many parts of our lives. 

 

Marriage is another example of the function of inward and outward. For many people, a lifelong relationship begins with falling in love. “Falling in love” is an inward feeling. But that inward feeling if allowed to grow eventually may result in a wedding, in the wearing of a wedding ring, and in a life of visibly caring for and loving one another in marriage.

 

Still, we all know of marriage where the inner reality has left the building. There is no more love. All that is left is an outward show of marriage. 

 

Just so, there are many aspects of life where the inner reality and the outward demonstration are both important. And nowhere is this connection between the inward and the outward more important than in the spiritual dimension. 

 

We can have spiritual answers borrowed or stolen from others expressed on our lips that make us look outwardly as though we are Christian, and very spiritual. Similarly, we can have the outward show of baptism, circumcision, or other outward religious observances. But if we do not have the reality of a relationship with Christ in our hearts, it does not really matter. 

 

On the other hand, if we have that relationship with Jesus, deep down in our hearts, we will have the answers to life’s most difficult questions when we face them, we will hear God’s voice within us saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.” And that inward reality of grace will be demonstrated in an outward way of living that is true to the reality of who Jesus is.

 

Human or Divine?

 

The second unspoken question Paul addresses in this final section of Galatians is this: is the essence of faith ultimately human or divine?

 

The “circumcision group” that Paul is writing against are clearly focused on religion as an outward and human act that human beings can carry out on their own power. Circumcision as a physical act is clearly human. It is not a difficult procedure, for one who is trained in how to do it. 

 

By contrast, Paul is much more interested in faith as a supernatural divine act. He draws a contrast between circumcision and the cross of Christ. Jesus’ death on the cross was, according to the New Testament, something that Jesus, as the divine Son of God, did for us. This is the essence of the Good News that Paul talks about in 1 Corinthians 15, namely that “Christ died for our sins.”

 

And in Ephesians 2:8-9 Paul says, “By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

 

We all know the worldly, secular perspective on faith, that it is merely a human construct. But Paul begs to differ. He sees faith as a divine gift. Faith is ultimately trust in another gift, the gift of grace and salvation won for us through Christ and his death on the cross.

 

Just as the inward gift of a relationship with Christ issues in outward action, so too the divine gift of faith issues in human demonstration of that faith. Believing, trusting in Christ, is something we do as human beings, but we do it only by the power of the Holy Spirit in us.

 

Just as we believe that Jesus was and is fully human and fully divine, so we also believe that God’s divine Spirit can continue to work in us today. As my friend, Tim Hansel, used to say, God decided two thousand years ago that a human being was a good conductor for the electricity of his Spirit, and he hasn’t changed his mind since.

 

We see what theologians call “dual agency” at work in the Scriptures. The Bible is undoubtedly filled with the words of human beings, but I believe it also contains and conveys the word of God.

 

So, the essence of faith is something inward that demonstrates itself in things outward. And the essence of faith is that it is a divine gift operating in human persons.

 

But the essence of Christian faith is not merely something that operates in the individual. Faith operates ultimately in the whole body of Christ, the whole family of God, the Church. And Paul concludes his letter to the Galatians with three truths about the Church.

 

Three Truths about the Church

 

The first truth that Paul articulates about the Church is that it is the Israel of God. 

 

According to Paul, the Christian church enjoys a direct connection back to God’s people in the Old Testament. Paul views those who are in Christ in his time as being “the true circumcision” (Philippians 3:3). He also calls the church, “Abraham’s offspring” (Galatians 3:29) and here he calls the church, “the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16). In Romans 11 Paul pictures the church as being like one olive tree with both Jewish and Gentile branches, the Gentiles being grafted into the Jewish tree. 

 

Secondly, Paul tells us that the church has a rule to direct it.

 

The Greek word for “rule” is canon, which means a measuring rod or rule, “the carpenter’s or surveyor’s line by which a direction is taken”. (Lightfoot) The Church (Big “C”) long after Paul’s time, began to speak of the Canon of Scripture, in other words: which books would be included in what we now call the Old and New Testaments. The Canon of Scripture is what guides the Church to this day.

 

But what did Paul mean when he talked about the church having a rule, or canon, to guide it? As always, we must answer this kind of question according to context. Paul says, “Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule…” It makes sense that Paul would have told us, in context, what the “rule” is that he’s talking about. And I believe he does that in the immediately preceding verse where he says, “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation.” The new creation is the rule which guides the Church. We become a new creation when the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us and causes us to be born again. The Holy Spirit living in us, the new creation within us, that is our guide for living.

 

The third thing that Paul tells us about the Church is that it enjoys peace and mercy only when it walks by this rule. When the Holy Spirit is reigning in our hearts, we will know peace and mercy. Conversely, whenever we lack a sense of peace, or a sense of God’s mercy, we need to return to our center in Christ, we need to focus on those Scriptures that speak peace and mercy to our souls. 

 

One of my favorite prayers of the Church, which I have mentioned before, is called the Jesus Prayer. It goes like this: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” The short form of the prayer is either: “Christ have mercy,” or “Lord, have mercy.” The Jesus Prayer has become an almost daily mantra for me. Whenever I pray it, I find God’s peace and mercy flooding my soul in a fresh way.

 

Conclusion

 

Paul concludes this important letter with two vital reminders. The first is a reminder of suffering. He says, “From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.”

 

I believe the marks of Jesus that Paul bore in his body were the marks of suffering for the faith which he endured: imprisonment, beating, stoning. Paul makes it clear in this last section of this letter that he believed he was being persecuted because of his devotion to the cross of Christ. To follow Christ is to go against the flow of this world, and when you go against the flow, that usually result in pain of some kind.

 

Growing up in Southern California I was not a board surfer, but I did grow to love body surfing. Playing around in the big waves never bothered me, once I learned how to handle them.

 

Some waves are very powerful indeed and can knock you down if you try to stand up when they are coming at you. Where I grew up in La Jolla, there is a wave they call “The Womp” that breaks right on to the beach. That kind of wave can really hurt you if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time. But I also learned that when a big wave was coming at me, I could just swim under it and then pop up on the other side of it without any adverse effects. 

 

I think the same is true in the Christian life. We are often going against the flow, going against the waves of this world. But when suffering comes at us, if we swim deeper than the waves, and thus closer to our Savior who is always in the depths, then we can come through waves of suffering without experiencing spiritual harm.

 

The second and last reminder Paul gives us is a reminder of grace. This entire letter has been about grace that is accessed through faith. So, it is no accident that Paul concludes with these words: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.”

It’s as if Paul is saying, “If you forget everything else that I have said, don’t forget about grace.” 

 

And what is grace? 

 

It is God’s unmerited, unearned, favor. 

 

Grace is God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense. 

 

Grace is the essence of our faith. 

 

Plug into the power of grace by faith, a faith that is inward more than outward, divine more than human, and corporate more than individual, and your life will never be the same again, it will be changed forever for the better…