GOSPEL TALK: A COUPLE OF ONES

[00:00:08] Podcast listeners, thank you so much for stopping by. Mark 827 this is Darrell. I am the producer and the host of the Mark827 podcast, and I just wanted to stop by for a little while this morning and share some things with you that I was inspired with during my morning devotion today. [00:00:35] And I'm hoping that you will grab your Bible and read a few Scriptures with me, and hopefully this word will be as much or more of an encouragement to you if that's at all possible, because it was tremendously inspiring to me. [00:00:53] So this morning I actually started reading afresh again. The book of Galatians and Galatians is one of my favorite books of the Bible. It's interesting that I say that, because I also say that about the book of Ephesians, but then also the book of Romans is a very favorite book of mine. But then also I just completed a reading through the Book of Hebrews, and it is one of my favorites also. So what does that mean? The entire Word of God, the entire Bible is my favorite, definitely. But it seems as though I get different and stronger messages in particular books, but they're all the Word of God and they are good for instruction and good for reproof and in improving our lives, improving our relationship with God, and improving our relationship with one another. So just all of God's Word is good. But I just so happen to have started this morning reading again through the Book of Galatians, and I just read that first chapter, and as I read that first chapter, it was impressed upon me of the thought of a couple of ones. [00:02:17] There's a little bit of a play on words there that I find interesting as well. But a couple of ones. You know, couple is plural and one is singular. So there's a play on the words there to say a couple of ones. So as I was reading through this first chapter of Galatians that that whole idea of a couple of ones was impressed upon me. Not as though these are the only ones that are mentioned in the Word of God. We're just going to look at a couple of ones. But there are many ones throughout the Bible. There's only one God, there's only one Messiah, there's only one Son of God, there's only one Holy Spirit, there's only one in many places in God's Word. But I want to look at a couple of ones today. So if you have your Bible by now, as I said before, I was reading in the Book of Galatians Chapter one. So if you'll Turn with me to the book of Galatians, chapter one. [00:03:26] I want to look at the first one that was impressed upon me there. [00:03:35] And look at chapter one beginning at verse one, where the Apostle Paul says, paul, an apostle not sent from men, nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead, and all the brethren who are with me. [00:04:01] Verse Verse 1 is completed with this phrase, to the churches of Galatia. So there it looks as though the church is a plural, that there are more than one church, perhaps churches. But if we continue to read, go down to verse 13, where the apostle Paul says, for I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [00:04:43] For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and try to destroy it. And so the church is accurately described as the church, as a singular church, because there is only one church. There's only one body of Christ, there's only one family of God. There's only one church. But the Apostle Paul did say in that final phrase of verse one that this book is being written to the churches of Galatia because the church, the singular church, the one church, has many congregations. There is only one church, but there are many congregations. There is only one church, but there are many fellowships of that one church. There's only one church, but there are many assemblies of that one church. And what you'll find, and we won't go into it in depth here, but at another time we will. But what you'll find is that during the Apostle Paul's day, those local churches, those congregations, those many congregations, were ordinarily formed, established, and performed within a house. They were called house churches. One that comes to my mind right away is the church in Chloe's house. So there's only one church, but there are many congregations, many fellowships, many assemblies. And one of those assemblies was in Chloe's house. Or you yourself may gather a fellowship of individuals who are the church at your home on a regular basis. And that would be the church in your home. So there is one church, and there are many assemblies. But then what is the other one? I said a couple of ones. [00:07:30] Let's. Let's look at verses 6 through 12 of that same chapter, chapter 1 of Galatians, verses 6 through 12. [00:07:51] And it says there that I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting him who called you, by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel, which is really not Another only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. [00:08:20] But even if we, or an angel heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed, as we have said before. [00:08:35] So I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed. [00:08:50] For am I now seeking the favor of men or of God? Or am I striving to please men? [00:09:00] If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond servant of Christ. And so listen to what he says. [00:09:14] There's only one gospel. He says, if anyone comes to you saying that they are preaching to you a different gospel, or that they are preaching to you the gospel, but it is different than the original true gospel that we have preached to you, that individual, even if it is an angel, should be accursed because there is only one gospel, and that is the gospel that Jesus Christ revealed to me when I was converted. There's only one gospel. And so there's not a couple of gospels. There's only one gospel. There's not a couple of churches. There's only one church. So listen, there is one church and many congregations. There is one gospel, but many counterfeits. Now, the longer you listen to me, especially going into this next season of 2025 for this podcast, you're going to notice that one of the things that we will focus on a lot is a lot of times people perceive something that is different than what is true. [00:10:38] And so a lot of times we're going to find that people perceive that the gospel is something different than what it is, or that they even perceive that our Lord Jesus Christ is somebody different than who he actually is, or that people perceive that God is somebody different than who he is. The Apostle Paul here in the book of Galatians is going to reveal to us through the work of the Holy Spirit what the real gospel is all about so that we won't be subject to victims of a counterfeit gospel. And I'm excited to get into it, and I hope that you all are excited about getting into it with me. Basically, as I'm reading through the book of Galatians, I'm going to be reading a chapter a day or more if I'm inspired to. And then I'm going to try to get back with you all on Saturdays and Sundays when I do most of my podcast recording and share with you some of the things that I learned during my daily devotion and as I've said to you all many times before, if you don't already have a personal devotion, you ought to get one. You have a particular time that has been set aside for other things in your life, such as eating breakfast or eating lunch or eating dinner, such as bathing, such as what time you go to bed and what time you get up, such as what time you arrive at work and what time you leave work. If you have specific times for those activities that are nowhere close to as important as the activity of strengthening your relationship with God, your Father, through listening to him by studying His Word, that is more important than anything else is. That is more important than going to work. That's more important than eating dinner. The Bible itself says that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Father. So you ought to have a particular time set aside, whether it be 15 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour, two hours, three hours, whatever God blesses you to have available as far as time goes, to spend time with God through His Word. And so I'm going to be reading a chapter a day, weekly. I'll try to get back with you and share with you some of the things that I have gained in this study. And if you will do it with me, then that will be a great collaboration between us. That will be a great community. I think of us who are being enlightened in the same way during this time of studying the book of Galatians. Now, before I let you go, there were a few other things that I considered as I was looking at this couple of ones in the first chapter of Galatians. So listen, there's only one gospel, but there are many counterfeits. The real gospel is the gospel of reconciliation. Let's take a look at that a little bit more. Go to Romans, chapter five, and I'm going to read verses six through 11. Romans, chapter five. And I'm reading verses six through 11. And we are considering that that one gospel is a gospel of reconciliation. There the Apostle Paul says, for while we were still helpless at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. [00:14:46] For one will hardly die for a righteous man, though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates his own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then having now been justified by his blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through him. For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more having been reconciled we shall be saved by his life. And not only this, but we also exalt in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Wow, that's good news. No wonder the Gospel is called the good news of God about Christ, because as this passage just details for us that the Gospel is a gospel of reconciliation. That is, the gospel is the fact that Christ came and gave his life, shed his blood, he died in order to reconcile us to God. Our relationship with God had been diminished, destroyed by sin. Sin separates from God because God is holy, God is righteous, God is the ultimate good. The Bible says that no man is good, only God is good. God cannot stand sin. And man, being so laden with sin, was separated from God by that sin. And Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, came and died on our behalf and in our instead in order to reconcile us back to God. And as we study more about the Gospel, you'll be able to understand the dynamics that are involved in why Jesus's death reconciled us to God. But at this point, just be excited about the fact that your sin, the sin of mankind, has separated us from God. And Jesus came in order to reconcile us to God. So God is not some far away distant being. You've been reconciled to him, you've been reconnected with Him. You can have, and hopefully do have a strong relationship with Him. Do you see how our faith is not about religion, but our faith is about relationship. And that relationship had been destroyed by sin. But Jesus Christ came and reconciled. Hallelujah. That relationship. And that's good news in every way. That is good news. But not only is the Gospel a gospel of reconciliation, but the Gospel is a gospel of redemption. Redemption. Look at Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 7, Ephesians chapter 1 and verse seven. [00:18:45] And I hope, as I said before, that you are flipping the pages of your Bible with me. I just think that we can perhaps get more out of it when you're not just listening to me reading, but you're actually participating in this time in the Word. So Ephesians chapter one and verse seven. And there it says, in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace which he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight. He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his kind intention, which he purposed in Him. And so listen, the Gospel is a gospel of redemption. And what is redemption? It tells you right there the forgiveness of our sins through the blood of Jesus Christ. [00:19:59] Redemption and let me tell you even further than that. As I said about reconciliation, you're going to learn more about it as we go, more studying the word of God about the Gospel. But quite simply, redemption is that we were lost and that it took a price to find us and a price to reconnect us to God. And Jesus paid that price in order to reconcile us. He paid the price in order to redeem us from a place of being lost to a place of being reconciled. He paid the price for it. So listen, let me tell you this also, and I hope you'll be excited about this, because nobody wants to be owned by another man. That's unacceptable. That, that, that. That was what was going on with slavery. It's unacceptable for a man to own another man. But let me tell you this, and that is that once you accept Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, once you accept the sacrifice that he made in order to purchase you out of the clutches of Satan, you no longer belong to yourself. The apostle Paul says elsewhere, but now you belong to God. Now you belong to Christ. [00:21:31] The Apostle Paul even says in certain, in many places, that I am a slave of Christ. But don't be offended by that. Because you see, the problem with the slavery that you and I are accustomed to knowing about is a slavery that involved wicked men. It is an institution that was designed by and executed by wicked men. And so. But to be a slave of Christ, Christ is loving, Christ is kind, Christ is merciful, Christ is a provider. [00:22:15] It's different to be a slave of Christ than to be a slave of wicked men. So, as the young people would say, don't get it twisted and don't. Don't put upon Christ and his provisions the ugliness of man and their derision, that there's a difference between man and God, man and Christ. [00:22:47] And don't accuse Christ of what man is guilty of. [00:22:54] And so he redeemed us. And how did he redeem us? What was the price for that redemption? It says it right here in Ephesians, chapter 1 and verse 7, and that it was his blood. [00:23:10] Let's look again at some more about redemption. [00:23:13] Hebrews, chapter 9, verse 11. But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, he entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood. He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. [00:23:44] For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctified for the cleansing of the flesh. How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And so it's a gospel of redemption, it's a gospel of forgiveness. It's a gospel of cleansing from ugliness, cleansing from sin, cleansing from what separates from God. Look, this thing is going longer than what I thought it was. So I'll try to hurry, hurry, hurry. But it is important, I think stuff. Now let's go to Colossians chapter 1 and verse 14. In fact, I'm going to start reading at verse 13. Where the apostle passed. The apostle Paul says, for he rescued us from the dominion of darkness, transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. Listen, if anybody ever asks you what is redemption, we've just read it at least three times here that redemption is the forgiveness of sins. That is the forgiveness, the cleansing of the very thing that would separate you from God and prevent you from having a relationship with God. Redemption is what allows us to be reconciled to God. [00:25:35] Now let's look at the fact that not only is redemption or the gospel gospel of reconciliation and a gospel of redemption, but the gospel is finally a gospel of propitiation. What is that long, difficult to pronunciate word, the gospel of propitiation. Well, let's look a look. Take a look at First John. [00:25:58] That's towards the end of your Bible. First John, chapter 2 and verse 2, First John, chapter 2 and verse two where John says, my little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not see sin. And if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, going on to verse two. And he himself is the propitiation for our sins. And not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world. [00:26:41] I'm hearing a word, satisfaction as far as defense defining propitiation. That it's a satisfaction for our sins, that it is a price for our sins, that it is a, if you will, the punishment for our sins. That Jesus Christ actually received the wage for our sins. The Bible says elsewhere that the wages of sin, sin is death. But instead of us having to die for our sins, Jesus Christ died in our stead for our sins. And so he was the propitiation for our sins. He was the payment for our sins. He was the satisfaction of God's anger and wrath. [00:27:37] Towards sin. He was the satisfaction of that so that God could be kind to us and gracious toward us and merciful for us toward us. And then look at the fourth chapter of First John, still in that same book, the book of First John, and that fourth chapter, and go down to verse 10. And in verse 10 it says in this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. [00:28:25] Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. [00:28:30] Wow. I'm telling you, God loved us so much that he sent his only begotten Son to do for us what we could not do for ourselves, to be the satisfaction for our sinfulness toward God. Look at Romans chapter 3 and verse 21, Romans chapter 3 and verse 21, romans chapter 3 and verse 21. [00:29:09] And there it says, but now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe, for there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by his grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in his blood through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness, because in the forbearance of God he passed over the sins previously committed for the demonstration, I say, of his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus Christ. [00:30:32] Christ has been out the propitiation to satisfy the requirement of God to be holy and to be righteous. And because Christ was the propitiation for our sins, then God is just in calling us righteous, in declaring us righteous, in justifying us. You are not just in and of yourself, but God has called you justified because of the propitiation that Jesus Christ provided by shedding his blood on the cross. Wow. Isn't that good news? Isn't that good news? So just out of that first chapter of Galatians, that's how God spoke to me today, and that's how God will speak to you. Out of that I gained the fact that there is just. [00:31:35] There are a couple of ones that jumped out at me and meant so much to me. And that is that there is only one gospel. There are many counterfeits. But learn and know the one gospel. So that if someone presents to you a counterfeit gospel, you can say to them quite simply, that is not true. I know Differently from the Word, from the word. There's only one gospel and there is only one church, although there are many congregations. And I definitely hope you have the fellowship of the church in some type of a local expression of the church, whether that is in your own home, whether that is in someone else's home, whether that is through an online platform, somehow or another, whether that's over the phone with a friend or two. The Bible says that where there are two or three. So it doesn't take a big crowd, it doesn't take what is called these days a megachurch. [00:32:46] It just takes where two or three are gathered together in my name. I am there in the presence. And man, what a good time. When you are able to collaborate with Jesus Christ, when you are able to have community with Jesus Christ and with others who believe in him. And so a couple of ones, one gospel, many counterfeits, and one church, many congregations. We've defined the gospel that it is a gospel of reconciliation, it is a gospel of redemption, and it is a gospel of propitiation. But who is the church, this one church with many congregations? Well, quite frankly, the church is the church of the redeemed, those who've been redeemed. It is the church of the reconciled, those who have been reconciled. It is the church of the forgiven, those who have benefited from the propitiation. [00:33:49] A church is God's body, God's family, God's people who are redeemed, reconciled and forgiven. As Paul said in multiple locations that we read today, that is given to us because of our faith, by faith alone. That's all it takes. [00:34:14] Not because you were good enough. Because if it were, because you were good enough, forgiveness would not be required. Reconciliation would not be required. Redemption would not be required. Not because you've always made the right decisions and that you continue to always take the rights steps and you never make the wrong steps. That's not true. Because if that were true, you would not need to be redeemed, you would not need to be reconciled, and you would not need to be forgiven. I mean, if that were true, the blood of Jesus that reconciled us, the blood of Jesus that redeemed us, the blood of Jesus that was the propitiation for our sins would be wasted. And it has not been wasted. [00:35:08] Hey, listen, it's been wonderful having this conversation with you today. And we are definitely going to be having more conversations like this throughout the remainder of this year of 2024 and definitely into and throughout the next calendar year of 2025. I'm looking forward to it. I'm so excited about it. Hey listen, wherever you are listening to this podcast episode, you should definitely click on the Follow button or the subscribe button, whatever it is that you see there so that you will be notified each time I produce a recording such as this. 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Well, until the next time, please be blessed because he has blessed you so. Now the only thing that you have to do is just allow yourself to be blessed. Be blessed and stand out not because of your wrongdoing or because of your mean spiritedness, but stand out because of your excellence.