Stop 9 Church
We want to share important pieces of our worship service with those who might not have been able to be there in person.
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Galloping Through Galatians - Part 2/6
Alright, we are on lesson number three out of seven. Normally I would have eight or nine if it was a five Sunday. Five Sunday, a couple of months, but it's only regular months. And then we have a week of, I don't know if it's Mission Sunday and so I won't be teaching then. So, anyway, seven weeks. This is week number three and we are galloping through Galatians. Galloping through Galatians.
Speaker 1:I was talking to Tacey earlier and she was saying do you actually gallop when you come into your class? No, I mean, come on, pull a muscle or something I could do. Limping through Leviticus, that might be more appropriate, right. Crutching through Chronicles, I suppose Something Alright. Crutching through Chronicles, I suppose something All right.
Speaker 1:Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying. You guys seen the Shawshank Redemption before Pretty good movie, eight or nine times. Well then, randy, you can teach class. For me. It's one of those movies. If it's on, I'm probably going to watch it, depending on if I pick it up halfway through. I want to see where we are and whether there's any good scenes coming.
Speaker 1:Just before he broke out of prison, andy Dufresne, on the left there, played by Tim Robbins, is talking with Red, his best friend there in prison and he'd been wrongly convicted. But he told him he either got to get busy living or get busy dying. And he intends to get busy living. So in 1966, andy Dufresne broke out of Shawshank Prison. Remember that which was filmed? Do you remember that was filmed? The old Ohio State Penitentiary up in Mansfield you can take a tour. So go up there and take a tour of the prison, unless you don't want to be in prison, in which case don't take the tour.
Speaker 1:All right, now let's go through a couple of galloping songs here real quick. See if you have heard of these before. Gene Watson you guys know who Gene Watson is. Okay, gene Watson, one of the best musicians of all time. He had a song called Chesapeake Bay, bay being a type of horse, very good song.
Speaker 1:I tried to look up different racing songs, galloping, so there aren't very many, but this one Race is On by George Jones. You guys know that one. Okay, yes, says the country music, loving minister in the back. What's that? The movie Burt Reynolds. The movie Burt Reynolds. You have to be a little more specific than that. Well, a race song. He was racing across the country. Oh, smokey and the Bandit. Smokey and the Bandit, that's a good galloping. Oh, eastbound and Down, eastbound and Down, there you go. Okay, that's more of a vehicle than a. If he had to go out with the Colorado on a horse, it was going to take a lot longer to get his Coors beer than it would to get his Coors beer than it would. Then he wouldn't be able to haul very much.
Speaker 1:And then this one, my old Kentucky home, that's coming up first Saturday in May the Kentucky Derby. You guys ever been? Who's been to the Kentucky Derby here? Anybody? Yes, mr Launder, you've been there. Did Sheila go with you? No, you didn't. You didn't wear one of those big hats. No, that was before your time. Okay, we won't ask what you did in the infield, randy. Good, I don't have a bucket list, but this is one of the things I would like to do go to the Kentucky Derby. You ever been to Churchill Downs? We've been to Churchill Downs, took the tour and all that. That is really cool, really something to see. And the University of Louisville band plays my old Kentucky home when it's post-time, which is really cool. All right, enough of that, let's move on.
Speaker 1:So we are in Galatians, chapter 2. And what have we seen so far in Galatians? What did we study last week? Do you recall what did Paul do? He talked about going to Jerusalem. And what was he there for? Sightseeing? See the Jerusalem Derby. See the Jerusalem Derby. Okay, so he went to Jerusalem to talk to some of the pillars of the church there and make sure that the gospel he was preaching to who the Gentiles, was in fact proper. They didn't have any objections to it. And did they have any objections to what he was preaching? No, they said everything was good. They approved. That's kind of where we left off last week.
Speaker 1:And the one thing I think Rob mentioned this last week that the one thing that the apostles there did want him to do was to remember who the poor. Remember the poor, I think, meaning the poor in Jerusalem, the poor in Judea, those who were suffering in that part of the world. And he does that. As we see later, he takes up a collection for the widows in Jerusalem and brings it back. So he did remember the poor. All right. So now he did all that and what he's going to talk about here. He does all this to kind of.
Speaker 1:We talked about what a curriculum vitae is your life story, your resume. He's setting this up for the Galatians to say listen, I am an apostle, just like these other guys are. What I've been telling you was approved by them and, in fact, when somebody doesn't live up to the gospel that I've been preaching to you, I'm not unwilling to confront them about it. So he again, he embarks on a journey here to tell them listen, I even talked to the apostles about some of the stuff one of the apostles that he was doing, that he shouldn't have been doing, and if I can do that with him, I'm going to do it with you too. So here's what he says. This is chapter 2, verses 11 through 14.
Speaker 1:When Cephas came to Antioch, however, I opposed him to his face because he stood to be condemned, For before certain men came from James. He used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they arrived, he began to draw back, and we learned last week about circumcision. Doug, are you up to it? No, okay, all right, if you don't know what that is, ask Tommy or one of the other. Those are the circumcision group. The others joined him in this hypocrisy so that by their hypocrisy, even barnabas was led astray. Now, who was barnabas? You guys wake. Maybe we need to do calisthenics. Paul's helper, the one who went with him on his missionary journey his first missionary journey right, very close friends. But even he gets led astray by this.
Speaker 1:Now we'll talk about this in a minute, about what's going on here. Where is Antioch? He said when they came, when Cephas now who is Cephas? Peter, okay, when Peter came to Antioch, where is Antioch South of Woodsfield? Well, maybe we should be more specific about which Antioch we're talking about. You know, there's one in every crowd and in this crowd there's more than one. So I've got to keep my eyes on all you people.
Speaker 1:Antioch is in modern-day Turkey. Now, at that time they would have considered it as part of Syria. I don't have my pointer here and it wouldn't do me any good even if I did. You can see this little inset here. That is where Antakia, which is the current name of the town, that's where it is Now. Paul's home in Tarsus is not far from there. See, if I can stretch, I had to do weed eating this week for the first time, so I'm like out of shape, you know. So I would tell you it's because of lifting weights, no, lifting the weed eater. So you got Antioch here in the far right corner, far right lower corner and Tarsus is up here in the top middle. So they're not very far apart. Antioch and Tarsus, who was from Tarsus? Paul or Saul before his name was changed? Okay, so they're not very far away. And Peter comes to Antioch.
Speaker 1:Now Antioch was probably other than Jerusalem, was the major center of Christian activity at that time. Jerusalem is like Nashville is to us, right. Oh, he's from a church in Nashville. Okay, so they would say he's from the church in Jerusalem. Antioch was second only to Jerusalem. It was a very important place, very important place, and apparently, from what we can read, the Jews and Gentiles in the Antioch church got along relatively well. They got along relatively well. Now, jews and Gentiles didn't always get along very well, but apparently they did in Antioch. You can at least infer that from that reading.
Speaker 1:Now he says that Peter used to eat with the Gentiles, implying what? Okay, he doesn't anymore. That's the most obvious. That's the most obvious. That's the most obvious. That's the easy answer. That's the slow pitch softball answer. Okay, let's speed it up a little bit. He was in fellowship with them. Okay, they believe the same thing.
Speaker 1:What are they eating? Arby's, I'm thinking Arby's. Hardee's I love Hardee's, mrs Frame not so much I like White Castle. I like White Castle. I like Crystal. Mrs Frame not at all. I like Skyline Chili too. I love Skyline Chili. Mrs Frame hates Skyline Chili.
Speaker 1:Anyways, we should have talked about this before we got married. What is he eating, do you think, based on what we read, what do you think? He's eating? Gentile food? Right, exactly, bev, he's eating Gentile food. That means food that does not conform to the Jewish kosher law. Yeah, we would call it kosher law. There were certain things that Jews were allowed to eat, certain things they were not allowed to eat, and very strict dietary laws. Very strict dietary laws, but Peter's eating with the Gentiles and not objecting to the food that they're eating and apparently eating with them.
Speaker 1:Now, in our time even I guess even today to a degree, but certainly at that time, if you're eating with someone, what does that imply? That you accept each other, right, your friend, there's hospitality there. There's I think the word was fellowship there. Now it says there were certain Jews who came from James Now, we talked about this earlier too. Which James is this? Is this James the brother of John? No, can't be him, he's dead. James the brother of Jesus? This is one of the people that Paul met with when he went to Jerusalem. As we saw previously, certain Jews came from James. Now, that raises a lot of interesting questions that I don't have any answers for. Why did these people come from James to Antioch? Hmm, they traveled together, but why to go to Antioch? That's a long way. Jerusalem was not even on the map I showed you there. That's a long journey.
Speaker 1:Why did these people show up? You ever ask yourself that From the circumcision group. What does that imply? What does that tell you these people are there to do? To spy them out? Let's see what they're doing. Are they circumcising the Gentiles or not? I think we talked about this before. For the Jews, this is a big issue Because circumcision was the sign that you are part of Abraham's covenant, you are part of the group that God loves and cares about and made his promise to. They're there looking to see what's going on. And that raises some interesting questions about James also, for which, again, I don't have any great answers. I don't know, I don't know, raises a lot of questions I don't have answers for.
Speaker 1:So they show up, and when they show up, what does Peter do? It says right on the screen, draws back and separates himself. Now again, this is the English Standard Version. I'm reading from and Paul says that's hypocrisy. You're a hypocrite, peter, and I opposed him to his face. You're a hypocrite. It's that one spot, and if I stand there it'll ring.
Speaker 1:What's hypocritical about Peter doing that? Why would he do it? Why would he eat with these Gentiles and eat whatever they're eating until these guys from Jerusalem show up? Do you think there might have been a little bit of? These people need to see my example. And then, when these fellow followers come, that he considers them above these other people. I don't want to be associated with them. I'll be around them. They need me above these other people. I don't want to be associated with them. I'll be around them. They need me. However, if they're also brothers in Christ, his attitude was how much they need him. They need to get it right. Okay.
Speaker 1:So if these guys hadn't shown up, the circumcision group hadn't shown up, do you think Peter would have kept eating with the Gentiles? Seems to be unanimous. It's almost like voting, you know. It's like 20% of the people show up to vote and then the other 80% complain about who got elected, right? So those of you who said yes, I'm going with your answer. If you disagree and didn't say anything, that's tough, like it or lump it.
Speaker 1:It was hypocritical. It's okay for me to eat with these guys and eat the stuff that they eat until these other guys show up, and then I'm not going to do it anymore. Because what do we know about Peter? What can he tend to be, if afraid, right, he can flip-flop. I'm afraid of these guys. I think that's what this really means. I'm afraid of these guys and I'm afraid what they'll report back to James.
Speaker 1:Remember, peter is a pillar of the church in Jerusalem. Oh my, will they say things about me that are bad? Will they maybe punish me in some way? So I'm going to stay away from these Gentiles while these guys are here. And Paul says no, no, and he says he called him out in front of everybody. So what was the effect of Peter's decision to draw back from these Gentile believers and not eat with them anymore? What was the effect on the other Jewish Christians in Antioch? They did the same thing, right, they did exactly the same thing.
Speaker 1:And Paul says no, this is not right. He says that they were not walking in line with the truth of the gospel. I'm going to go back and get that in context. That's my old Kentucky home. Okay, I don't even see it in there. Maybe I missed it. Did I not put it up there? Let me see. Hold on one second. Huh, yeah, there's that, but that's not what I was looking for. I don't think I put it up there. Verse 14 says I missed it. Verse 14 says but when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas, before them all If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews? That's what I was going for. He says they were not walking in line with the truth of the gospel. Now, we went through this the first time we had this class. We went through it the second time we had this class.
Speaker 1:What was the truth of the gospel? What was the gospel that he preached to the Gentiles, which was approved by the church in Jerusalem, including James? What was the truth? What was the good news? What was the truth? What was the good news? What was the gospel? Do you remember? We went through this. It was two parts. Jesus Christ fulfilled the prophecies about the Messiah in the Old Testament, and salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ and nothing else. Through the grace and mercy of God. That's it. That's the gospel he preached.
Speaker 1:Now he says they were not walking in line with the truth of the gospel. What are these guys who came from James, what are they trying to do to the gospel? Add to it? What are they adding to it? You got to be circumcised to be a Christian. You think you're saved, but you're not. I'm sorry. You might have good intentions, you might believe in Jesus, but there's more you got to do. Let's see, let's see. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Peter has his vision before he went to Cordelius that he said hey, god has accepted the Gentiles, because God in his vision said kill and eat. He said, no, I don't eat any unclean thing. And he said don't call unclean, but I've called clean. That's what you're talking about. Right, he's been through all that before.
Speaker 1:Does knowing what's right? This raises an interesting question. Does knowing what's right? Oh my goodness, oh my goodness. This raises an interesting question.
Speaker 1:Does knowing what is right and what is true make you do what is right and what is true? No, it's one thing to know. It's another thing to actually live it. We live that every day, don't we? I know what I'm supposed to do, but I don't do it. Is Peter any different? No, he knows this, but because he is human, because he's Peter, he's he's willing to compromise a little. He's willing to compromise a little. He's willing to cut corners here and there, he's willing to. Okay, I'll go along with you. Do we have to know what the truth is? Yes, but just because we know something doesn't mean that we do it Right. And he's no different. So he was not walking in line with it. He was adding something to the gospel. You have to do this in order to obtain salvation. Paul says no, absolutely not. That's not the gospel that I preach and that's not the gospel that the folks in Jerusalem agreed with.
Speaker 1:If you, who live like a Jew, if you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews? That's where I was headed. So what's the answer to the question? What's the answer to that question? Well, it's a rhetorical question. Obviously, he doesn't expect an answer, because there is no answer. He just wants him to think about this. He wants all of his listeners to think about it too. How can you compel somebody to do something you're not even doing? And isn't that kind of a hard of the issue? How can you tell somebody to do something that you're not even doing? Now here's where it starts to get a little tough.
Speaker 1:Suppose you're one of these Gentile Galatians, okay, and these guys from James show up and say you've got to be circumcised. If you accept that, if you say, okay, all right, you've convinced me, it's following me. They're everywhere. By the way, you can listen on Spotify. If you get on Spotify the Stop Dying Church of Christ blog page, you can listen to this stuff again. I don't know why you would Stop Dying Church of Christ blog page. You can listen to this stuff again. I don't know why you would want to, but if you wanted to, you can.
Speaker 1:If the Galatian Gentiles, the Gentile Christians in Galatia, accept the demands of this circumcision group and get themselves circumcised, what happens next? Should there be the question and the answer to the question, why? What happens next? Why do you think that is Lonnie? Yeah, yeah, from Mount Sinai. Yeah, but they forgot or they didn't hear well enough or didn't see Him, that Jesus fulfilled that, so we don't need to go back, we're moving forward.
Speaker 1:Now Suppose you're a Jew who follows Christ. We talked about this before One of my pet peeves Got to put the marker back. We talked about this before One of my pet peeves Got to put the marker back being a Jew is not just religion, it was also culture. It was your identity. This is who you are. To say to somebody you don't have to do that anymore. You don't have to do that anymore. But what? That's the way I've always done it.
Speaker 1:I can't, in good conscience, not follow the dietary laws. I can't, in good conscience you list it out for yourself. I can't, in good conscience, eat meat sacrificed to idols which he covers in another book. I can't, in good conscience, do these things. That's the way I was raised. We go from that to because I can't do it. I don't think, lonnie, you should do it either. We go from I can't do it because, in good conscience, I think I would be violating what I consider to be something sacred from God, to looking at you and saying and I don't think you should do it either, because and I'll give you all sorts of good reasons why, okay, and they'll sound really good, and I'll give you all sorts of good reasons why, okay, and they'll sound really good. None of them are true for me as a Gentile. But I'm the new Gentile guy. I don't know anything. I don't know anything about anything, I'm just trying to love Jesus. And these guys come along and say, yeah, but this is the way I do it and you should do it that way too. And in fact, not only should you do it, you have to do it. What do you think these guys? Let me cover this real quick. I'm never going to get through this.
Speaker 1:What do you think these guys from James look like, these guys who came from Jerusalem, from James? What do you think they look like? Huh, snooty, snooty, I'm sure what a snooty person looks like. I'll tell you what they look like. I don't know what they look like Okay, I don't have a picture of them or anything like that, but I can tell you in our own day and age, okay, when I was growing up, here's what they would have looked like Well manicured, three-piece suit, nice tie, knotted, perfectly well-shined shoes carrying the Bible. Hi, how are you Good to see you? I'm Brother Frame, so nice that you're here. No, no, they would not dress like Burke, I'm not going there. Yes, I checked to make sure that my shirt was straight in his shoes. Okay, here's the point.
Speaker 1:These people from James were very persuasive. They came dressed for the part. They had about them, I am certain, an air of authority. They look religious and if you're a new guy and I'm not sure what I'm doing exactly, these Jewish guys told me about Jesus and I believe it and I want to follow him and I love him. But gosh, here come these guys and boy, they seem to know what they're talking about. I'm going to tell you something Some of the most dangerous teaching you will ever hear comes from people who are dressed for the part, people who are dressed for the part. The wolf in sheep's clothing. They sound so good, they look so good, and yet they preach a gospel that is no gospel. Barnabas was led astray and Peter was led astray.
Speaker 1:If you are in this Galatian Gentile group and you accept their demand that you become circumcised, what happens next? Exactly, right Another rule's coming. Well, you know. Now just one second here, mr Gentile believer, I want you to understand. You also have to keep the Sabbath. God worked six days, rested on the seventh. Don't you think you should do that. Don't you think a good Christian would do that? Don't you think it's written right there in the law? Don't you think that's a good idea for you? I think you should do that too, and I'll show you some rules as to how you can figure out what it means to break the Sabbath. Oh, by the way, some of the things you're eating you know pork and bacon and that sort of thing. I'm sure it tastes real good to your Gentile taste, but you really ought not be eating that. A good Christian wouldn't do that. Do you see how this adds up? If you're a Gentile and Paul sees this coming a mile away, all right. They used to say that Ted Williams, you know who Ted Williams was played for, the Boston. If you're a Gentile and Paul sees this coming a mile away, all right. They used to say that Ted Williams, you know who Ted Williams was Played for the Boston Red Sox, one of the greatest hitters of all time, in fact demanded to be introduced as the greatest hitter of all time. He had an ego the size of Mount Rushmore. In fact, he probably thinks they should have got rid of Lincoln and put Williams up there. But anyways, they used to say he could read the stitches on the fastball. He knew what was coming. He could see the stitches on that ball coming in. He knew exactly what pitch was coming. Paul sees the stitches on this fastball. He knows what's coming next.
Speaker 1:Because if these people have their way, they're going to make the Gentiles do all sorts of stuff. That is not gospel, is not gospel. He's going to talk to him repeatedly here about freedom. You are free in Christ. Don't make yourselves a slave to the law. Now he does not tell the circumcision group, the Jews who came from James you have to start eating pork. You have to start eating seafood, you have to. He doesn't tell them anything. If they want to observe the dietary laws, that's totally up to them. Right, that's fine. Nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 1:I'm not asking you to violate your own conscience, but don't think that that makes you righteous and don't try to put it on the Gentiles. See, when I have a rule for myself, that's perfectly fine. If I want to think to myself, I don't want to do this, or I do want to do it, that's my business. Hey, this is Easter Sunday, okay, growing up to me, easter was just another day. You know Sunday, okay, growing up. To me, easter is just another day. You know, for some people it's a very big day, it's very important to them. That's perfectly fine.
Speaker 1:But Paul says don't bind that on me and don't think you're super righteous for observing it. You're no more righteous than I am. Does that make sense? This stuff, this happened 2,000 years ago. This relates to us today 100%, but we refuse to see it. Because I could touch some raw nerves right now, and I may, before the class is over. Touch some raw nerves Because we do exactly what these Judaizing Christians, these Jews that came from Jerusalem and James.
Speaker 1:We do exactly the same thing to people.
Speaker 1:I had it done to me as a kid and we do it to people today. And Paul says it's wrong, Don't do it, let's keep going. Verses 15 through 21. We, who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners he puts that in quotation marks or just using a form of speech here know that a man is not justified by works of law but by faith in Jesus Christ. Okay, he says listen, I'm a Jew, but I'm also a Christian and I know that I'm not justified by doing the works of the law. We're justified by faith in Christ. That's the gospel. Right, that's the gospel.
Speaker 1:So we too have believed in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. Not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, does that make Christ a minister of sin? Certainly not. If I rebuild what I've already torn down, I prove myself to be a lawbreaker, for through the law I died to the law so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me, the life I live in the body. I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, christ died for what? Nothing? Listen, these guys are telling you oh, I'm glad you believe in Jesus, that's great.
Speaker 1:Now I got some sharp instruments here, let's get on to the circumcision. And he says no, no. If you could be justified through the law, of which circumcision is a part, if you could be justified by that. Christ didn't need to come here. Just keep, keep the law right. Just you, gentiles, just become Jews. He says no, no, no, that's wrong, that is absolutely wrong, because if that was true, christ died for nothing. He didn't need to go to the cross at all.
Speaker 1:We who are Jews by birth know, do all the Jews by birth know this birth, know this? We are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners. No, the man is not justified by works of the law. Do all the Jewish Christians believe that? Apparently not, because some came from James thinking that there was more to it, right? Does the circumcision group know that? I would say not. I think what he's trying to say here is if you really stop and think about this, if you really stop and think about this, if you're willing to accept the freedom that Christ offers, then you know this is true. So if Jewish Christians know this, if they know you can't be justified by keeping the law, then why are these Gentile Christians being tempted by the law of Moses? What is so tempting about that? If I can only be justified through faith in Jesus, then why, as a Gentile Christian, am I being tempted to start keeping the law of Moses. Okay, so you're saying they would want to be in that group? Okay, what did we say about these guys who came from James? They were very persuasive. They looked the part right.
Speaker 1:Don't you like to be with confident people? Don't you like to be with confident people? Don't you like to be with people who are confident? I hate to inject politics into something and I don't really mean to do that. I think this is one of the reasons Mr Trump is so popular. He's not always right, but he's never in doubt. He may say absolutely opposite things in the same press conference, but he's never in doubt. Confidence breeds confidence. So you get these guys who show up from James and they say, hey, here's the way we have to do it. Remember, they've got the three-piece suit, they've got the white shine shoes and all that, and they're carrying the Bible with them. And, my goodness, who wouldn't want to be a part of that? Right, maybe they're right, but the other thing that the law provides to you is something concrete, something solid, or at least it seems solid. Well, I know I'm okay because I did this and I did this and I did this and I did this and I did this and I did this and I didn't do that and I didn't do that and I didn't do that, so I think I'm okay.
Speaker 1:Having a list of rules and a checklist of things to do and not do can be very comforting, can't it? Before we go on vacation, mrs Frame has a checklist of things to do and not do. Can be very comforting, can it? Before we go on vacation, mrs Frame has a checklist of things to pack, and I'm glad she does, because I have walked out the door many times. Oh, I forgot my socks. I guess we'll be stopping at the store. Oh, I forgot. You know she packs my medicine for me, because I would totally forget that too me, because I would totally forget that too. It's nice to have a checklist, right, I know. So before we leave, we look at the checklist. Do we have everything on here? Yes, we do 90% of which we never use, but there it is, right, there it is. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to do that religiously? Hey, I've got a checklist of stuff here and if I do this stuff, I know I'm okay. Except, do you really know you're okay?
Speaker 1:One of the Ten Commandments was remember the Sabbath and keep it holy, right, isn't that what it said. I'm quoting from it Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. What did people do with that? You're shaking your head, kevin. What did people do with that? You're shaking your head, kevin. What did people do with that? You name it.
Speaker 1:They had a list of rules. These were traditions, traditions of the elders. They came up with all these ways to make sure you didn't violate that commandment. You're only allowed to walk this many steps. You can open the door, but only if it's unlatched. If it's latched, you can't open the door. That's considered work. I mean, I'm just throwing this stuff out here. It became crazy. And here's the thing it became more important to keep the traditions of the elders, which were not the law, than it was to keep the law itself. You must do this. This isn't just advice to you on how to keep the law. This is the law itself. You must do this. I'll give you an example. All right, I'll start stepping on some raw nerve endings. I'll send you home in a bad mood.
Speaker 1:When I was a kid, all my good stories start with when I was a kid. Okay, when I was a kid, it was a sin to dance. I defy you to find that in the Bible? It isn't there. But what were they concerned about? Lust? Lust, human contact, that's right. If we lived in a bubble, things would be much better. I'm starting to gravitate in that direction, by the way.
Speaker 1:Yes, okay, lust was a bad thing. I don't disagree with that in any way. But in order to keep you away from the bad thing, we had to put some buffers between you and the bad thing, which means you can't dance with anybody. But there's even a buffer for the buffer, because not only can't you dance with anyone, you can't go to the dance. And if you went to the dance, buddy, you're in big trouble. I am not joking here. This is how I grew up. You are in big trouble if you go to the dance. Have I done anything wrong? I just showed up. I didn't have a girl with me, I just wanted to go. You know it's a very bad thing you've done there. Son, do you see how this works? The rule that makes you feel so good because you kept it suddenly becomes an out-of-control monster that you can't control and you can never satisfy.
Speaker 1:We used to have a tract rack. You know what a tract rack is? A rack that holds these religious texts, religious tracts Kevin's laughing. We had them at Philly and I used to get them and read them sometimes for fun. We didn't have creed, we had a tract rack. Yeah, no creed with the Bible, except we do have a tract rack. We don't like you to look through and read and adopt for your own.
Speaker 1:One of them was about dancing. It had been written probably in the 1920s, but we still had it in the 1980s, and it said that dancing was the number one cause of women going into prostitution. Now, in the 1920s, this is. This is at a time when in the saloon, in the dance hall, you could buy a dance for a nickel, you know, and you would dance with the pretty girl who was probably in the soiled dove, you know, and that sort of thing, and it had no relevance whatsoever. No relevance whatsoever to my life.
Speaker 1:But I only illustrate that so that you will know how out of control this gets when I start adopting rules for myself and for you.
Speaker 1:Your rules are not the same as my rules. So which one of us is righteous? Your guess is as good as mine, and now we start fighting with each other and we start breaking apart from each other, and I can't worship with you because you go to dances and I don't go to dances. What's the matter with you? Obviously a sinner of some sort. I'm not sitting in the same church building with you. Do you see where this leads? And Paul knows this and he's telling these Galatians if you give in for one second to these people, you are in for a world of hurt. In for a world of hurt. All right, people are coming in. I'm going to have to get out of here and I'm going to pick up with this next week, and I worked real hard to say happy trails to you until we meet again. All right, read the rest of chapter two and all of chapter three for next week and we'll see you then. You've been a good class.