Galatians
Galatians 1:1-10
January 5, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
Given that the year we are starting is 2020, it is hard to avoid the visual theme. It is in that spirit that the theme for our Galatians study will be “Seeing Christianity Clearly”. After having been with the Corinthians for about the last two years, I think you will find the “pamphlet sized” letter to the churches in the region of Galatia a welcome change of pace. The issues in the church that prompted Paul to write this letter have given the church through history a basic primer on what Christianity is, and what it is NOT! This will be Christianity 101 as we look at what really makes Christianity different from every other world religion and pseudo-christian cult. Grab your notebooks and bibles, invite a friend, and join me as we take a simple and clear look at what it means to be a Christian! View and See! Steve
Galatians 1:11-24
January 12, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
I am excited (nothing new) about this Message! “Why”? Well, I am glad you asked! This is one of those Sundays where there will be a few special surprises! “What are they”? If I told you, then they wouldn’t be surprises! But, I can tell you that we will watch a very special testimony. If you know someone who feels stuck or makes excuses…..or if that someone is you…then I believe the testimony will really touch and challenge you. You will also get to briefly meet a friend and fellow servant of God from Ghana who is visiting with us! And then of course, back into Galatians 1-2. This is one of those passages I have been looking forward to preaching. What a pleasure to help people see what is in God’s Word! Paul spends the rest of chapter 1 and all of chapter 2 defending the basic message of the Bible using his personal experience with Jesus and with the apostles. Question. Do you trust the message of the Bible? Can we know that Jesus really lived and died and rose from the dead? Is the Bible just a made up story that has been changed over the years? I think it will be fun to compare the historicity of Christ with that of Muhammad. Yes, there will be a little history lesson that I think you will find encouraging and fascinating! Grab your journal and invite a stuck or skeptical friend to……View and See! Steve
Galatians 2:1-10
February 2, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
In this message, we will pick up where we left off in Galatians. That means chapter 2, vs. 1-10. As we focus the beginning of 2020 on "seeing Christianity clearly", we see the Apostle Paul fighting to defend the idea/truth that acceptance by God is based on a willingness to trust Him and not adherence to tradition, as important as tradition may be. Every age has its spiritual battles to fight. In our own day the church is being tragically divided over same sex marriage and homosexuality. In the earliest days of the church, the issue was circumcision. For us, circumcision is for most a medical or hygiene decision made at birth for boys. But for the Jew, it was a matter of acceptance by God. The big question was, "Can a person be accepted by God without submitting themselves to ritually religious circumcision and all that it meant. Paul is willing to die on the hill of grace. For him there is no compromise on this issue. It is central to salvation itself. View and see how Paul defends both the message of grace and his authority to spread it to ethnic groups other than Jews! Steve
Galatians 2:11-21
February 9, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We continue making our way through Galatians as we learn to see Christianity clearly. The end of Chapter 2 recounts a situation that divided the thriving church in Antioch. Paul publicly confronts Peter about being a hypocrite! Have you ever been confronted publicly? How did you feel? Talk about socially challenging and awkward! Although we will talk a little about confrontation and hypocrisy, this is not the gist or the purpose for Paul to include this in the letter. Then what is the gist? You will see it in this video! But for now, we get one of the great and defining verses of the NT in Paul's lecture to Peter. Galatians 2:20 is worth memorizing. In that one sentence Paul lays out the Christian life apart from the law. With one swoosh of the pen, Paul reveals the way he thinks about his past and his present life and even includes the deep motives of his heart! View and See! Steve Galatians 2:20: I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Galatians 3:1-9
February 16, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We will open our Bibles to Galatians 3 on and read along as Paul continues to battle against a gospel that claims blessing from God is a reward for good behavior. After giving them the reason for his letter in Chapter 1, Paul has spent a good deal of ink describing his own personal experience with God's message of grace. In Chapter 3, he will ask them to consider their own experience of Christianity! Do remember when God came crashing into your life! Do you remember what life was like then? Do you remember how it felt? Remember, Paul is appealing to the non-Jews who have become "spellbound" by traditional Judaism and tempted to turn to rule-keeping to try to earn God's blessing! Have you ever had a bad day, difficult circumstance, or painful period, and during it you have wondered, "What have I done wrong? Maybe I should have prayed more, or tithed more, or served more!" Have you felt guilty like it was something you did or didn't do that brought the adversity from God? For this and many other reasons you will want to watch with an open heart and curious mind! VIEW AND SEE! Steve
Galatians 3:10-18
February 23, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
I think many in and around CCF are feeling and sensing the Lord working through our study of Galatians and the grace of God. We will continue to wrap our heads around law, grace, and the experience of Abraham. We can study about grace, talk about grace, and even know about God's grace, but how do you know when you really "get it"? How do you know when you begin to LIVE grace. Has grace invaded your mind so that it affects your relationships, marriage, parenting, and work life? In Galatians 3:11, Paul states that "the just shall live by faith". That statement shows up four times in the Bible! I bet you would like to know where, right? Well, for that you will have to view this message. However, I will remind you that Paul only had the OT and that is where Paul quotes it from! It's a pretty obscure and short OT book with an interesting context. Are you curious? Then view and see. Steve
Galatians 3:19-28
March 8, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We have spent a lot of time discussing "the law" -- those regulations and rituals and stipulations that govern behavior and relationships. Paul has been pretty negative about the law in favor of the Spirit and grace. He's all about Abraham and ignoring Moses! This inevitably brings up some really important questions -- questions Paul will address in this next section! What Questions??? If it has always been by faith, then why did God bother to give the Law! What purpose does the Law serve if not to demonstrate our righteousness by keeping it?? If you continue to struggle with feeling like love is something you -- and others -- have to earn, then you cannot miss this! If you wonder how a person is supposed to live if they can't turn to the rulebook for directions, then this message is for you Steve
Galatians 4:1-11
April 26, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
I hope we can begin to regain some of that momentum as we roll back into Galatians, picking up where we left off at the beginning of Ch 4! For now, the question I want you to think about is: "How many different relational terms are used to describe our relationship with God?" For instance, we are the bride of Christ. That's one. Can you think of others? Is there one that you tend to think about most often? In Galatians 4, Paul uses some super important relationship illustrations that may be deeply impactful -- maybe even liberating -- to you, especially if you have come from a very "rules oriented" church background. The bottom line question is, "When it comes to your relationship to God, do you feel more like a slave or a son (daughter)? Do you even know the difference? Why is the difference important? Watch and see. Steve
Galatians 4:12-20
May 3, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
Let's be honest. There are times when we read the Bible and we say, "I wish I had a little more information!" Well, this study in Gal 4:12-20 may just be one of those times! As Paul does, he has been "bringing the heat" and communicating his concern for the future of the people in Galatia. After having heard and embracing the grace of god, they are being brainwashed and trading the slavery of paganism for the slavery of legalism! In v 11, Paul is afraid that all of his hard work would have been for nothing if they effectively convert to Judaism from Christ! This next section is a little pause to get personal. Paul is not just a theologian. He is a pastor with a huge and loving heart! He is not distant, aloof, or superficial. He is personable, transparent, and genuine as the day is long. Now the part we wish we had more info about! Paul takes them back to when he first came to their region to share the news of Christ. He makes reference to the weakness of his body and what a trial that was for him. Was that a physical illness? Some say, NO! Was it an eye disease? Others say, YES! We know they understood the references perfectly, but they are a little obscure for us 2000 years later. But don't you worry! There is plenty for us to discuss that we can be sure about! WATCH AND SEE.... Steve
Galatians 4:21-31
May 10, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We will finish chapter 4 of Galatians and yet another angle Paul takes in his attempt to rescue the people who are being coerced back into a rules-based, immature, slave-type relationship with God! His last approach is an "allegorical" look at a well known OT account from Genesis. "But http://pastor......it's MOTHER'S DAY! Are you going to do a message about mothers?" Well, in fact the Lord has arranged an interesting passage that centers on not one, but two very important women (moms), their sons, and what their lives represent! Who are the women? Hagar and Sarah. Who are the sons? Isaac and Ishmael. What do their lives represent? To tell you that would be to spoil the message for tomorrow! But I think by now you might be able to guess -- or you can read ahead and discover it for yourself! Beth and Jason are leading worship for everyone and we will have about 10 people in the sanctuary for the sermon. We are praying and working through our approach to church life over the coming weeks. We will take a cautious approach and keep you all informed along the way. Don't forget about the post sermon Zoom meetings for questions, greetings, and prayer. WATCH AND SEE, Steve
Galatians 5:1-10
May 17, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
In this message we will chew on Galatians 5:1-10. Chapter 5 represents a transition from the first four chapters that were highly persuasive and theological regarding our relationship to God the Father. In Ch 5, Paul shows the Galatians what freedom really looks like and how truly free people really live by the Spirit and Love -- not by law. In the discussion of "religious freedom", Paul's concern was the Christian would be free from legalistic religion and free to love people. Legalistic thinking had hindered their progress in Christ! What about you? Do you still hold on to the mindset --maybe subtly or not so subtly -- that Christ is not enough? Do you feel obligated to tithe, read a certain Bible translation, wear certain clothes, worship on a certain day? What if you were to fail to do those things you consider essential? What would change? Your answers to these questions is essential to a solid understanding of genuine Christianity! Join me in one of the available formats! Watch and see the grace of God with fresh eyes! Steve
Galatians 5:7- 15
May 24, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We are systematically making our way through Galatians 5 and will look at nine verses (7-15). The argument for the need for the church to have rules to govern behavior is that if people are told they are free, they will just indulge sin! http://pastor.....people need rules and guilt and pressure or they will just do whatever they want! http://well....people who haven't experienced real transformation might need rules and consequences to constrain behavior, but the Spirit-filled believer has something much more powerful! As of right now, it looks like this section outlines about ten or eleven reasons why legalism is unhealthy (I am still thinking it through) and inappropriate for the church! What controls our behavior? Why is legalism so detrimental to a vibrant Christian life? Watch, and see! Steve
Galatians 5:16-26
May 31, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
You don't want to miss this last section of Galatians 5! Although the Bible is not a psychology book, it has much to say about the soul and the inner life of a human being. And when the Bible speaks about those subjects, it is profound. Galatians 5:16-26 is one of those passages! The BIG question Paul has to answer is this: "Without law, how do we deal with those nagging inner cravings and drives for forbidden or immoral things? Law is the best thing we have to control people's behavior, right? And the answer to immorality is more laws, right? Paul says... WRONG! Law is all the world has to try to cope with the hurtful and hateful drives of human nature. Have you watched the news recently? If law worked, we wouldn't need "law enforcement" and prisons. Prisons are full past capacity and despite all of our sophisticated laws, humanity doesn't seem to be improving. God has something far superior to law for managing -- and transforming -- human behavior. http://pastor.....your killing http://me....what is it??? That will be the subject of our discussion . Steve
Galatians 6:1-10
June 7, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
The last chapter of Galatians is super practical and answers some important questions about Godly communities and healthy families! Grace and law couldn't produce more different community dynamics! Paul explains that healthy, Godly, grace-based communities include people who can honestly and gently address sin, know their value is from God, understand consequences, and know actions speak louder than words. How do we address destructive behaviour without enforcing law and punishment? How do we avoid tribalism and division? How do we see the church make a real and lasting impact in the community? All of this and more so just view and see! Steve
Galatians 6:11-18
June 14, 2020 • Pastor Steve Feden
We will finish our study in the Book of Galatians tomorrow as we get a grip on Paul's closing remarks. We have followed his argument and appeal to the young Christians in the region of Galatia -- stand firmly in the freedom from religious performance that Christ brought, and walk in the Spirit! That's a basic summary. Taking the pen from his scribe, he ends with a few pointed remarks about the troublemakers in the Galatian congregation. Their actions are connected to very impure motives. How does Paul know? They are just like he used to be. Paul lobs a well placed "truth bomb" just before he closes the letter. He reveals the truth about the thing that has mattered most to him and the thing that his whole life and identity are built on. Join me for the gripping and powerful conclusion of Galatians and be challenged.