QUESTION: What are you counting on to make sure you count?
Some of us, when we hear a question like that, we instinctively jump to the list of accomplishments and network of relationships that give us a sense of pride in life. Some of us are wired in such a way that we instinctively jump to the list of failures and network of rejections that give us a sense of shame.
You want to know what’s ironic about this question? No matter how you’re wired to think about it, the answer to it can simultaneously explain why we do the stuff that people celebrate us for and why we do the stupid stuff we wish everyone would forget. I’m not kidding. The celebratory and the stupid are better understood the better you know the answer to this question.
Years ago, I was the new pastor on staff. I wasn’t the lead pastor, but I had a lot of responsibility and people who looked to me for leadership. It was a multi-site church. We were one church but had multiple locations. On this particular Sunday, I preached the first service at the main location, then hopped in a car and raced over to the other location and preached their service. Then I hopped back in the car, raced back to the first location just in time to preach before the song set was done. Three sermons, two locations.
After that, I taught an orientation for brand new small group leaders. That kept me at church another couple of hours. During the training, I noticed that I couldn’t sit, I had this pain that was growing in my lower back. I quickly figured out I was passing a kidney stone.
I called Heather, she and the kids came to my rescue to take me to the emergency room. But we’re new to this town and had no idea where the ER was. Google maps led us to the wrong location. By this time, I felt like I was giving birth to a rhinoceros. I’ll leave it to your imagination, but my young children learned new and colorful vocabulary that day.
Finally, we made it to the hospital, I got some morphine and delivered the rhinoceros. By the time we made it home, it was around 9pm. Do you know who the first person was in the office the following day? Me. When word got out about everything I went through and I was still the first one in the office, I was feeling pretty good about me. I felt like I counted for something.
During my senior year of high school, I once got expelled from a pep rally for physically fighting the entire freshman class along with another senior named Mike. The short version is that the freshman stole some of our posters. We couldn’t let that stand. Mike and I jumped into their student section to take them on and to take the posters back. The fun abruptly ended when security tackled us and drug us out of the gym. Stupid. It was a miracle no one got seriously hurt. But as an 18-year-old I thought it was worth it when I heard the senior class chanting, “Free Mike and Rick. Free Mike and Rick.”
[Pointing to the screen] The answer to this question explains both of those scenes from my life. I did both of those things because I wanted people to like me, to think good things about me, to approve of me. I wish this wasn’t true about me, but it’s true about me. There is something inside of me that wants to believe that if the right collection of people approves of me, then I can feel good about me.
THE SEARCH FOR SIGNIFICANCE by Robert S. McGee
This might be my all-time favorite book. It changed my life. It is so insightful that it could reduce my approach to life to a formula.
APPROVAL ADDICT: Self-Worth = Performance + Others’ Opinions
I don’t know if this describes you or not. I don’t want to make any assumptions about you. But I know this explains a lot of people. This is what many of us count on to make sure that we count.
Welcome to our new series on the New Testament book of Galatians. Over the next 8 weeks, we are going to read it and talk about it together. Will you grab a Bible and turn to this book? It’s in the second major section of the Bible called the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, then Galatians.
It’s totally fine to call it a book, but it was written as a letter. It was from a guy we know as the Apostle Paul. He’s widely considered one of the 15 most influential people in human history because of how successfully he spread Christianity. What’s confounding is that he started out his adult career trying to stamp out Christianity. He was such a zealous enemy of Christianity, he killed and imprisoned Jesus followers. His backstory is wild.
He wrote this letter to churches that were in a mess, and they were messing things up because they had a bad answer to this question.
QUESTION: What are you counting on to make sure you count?
It’s right in the middle of this letter that he gives us the answer.
GALATIANS 5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
I can’t believe how many times I’m going to have to say the word circumcision into a microphone during this series. Believe it or not, that’s something the Jesus followers in these churches were counting on to make sure they counted. Adult men were getting that procedure—and they didn’t have morphine. Trying to grow your church by convincing adult men to get the chop-chop seems crazy to us. What was going on? That will become clear over the course of this series. Right now, this is what we need to know.
Every single one of us…every single one of us will do stupid stuff, say stupid stuff, buy into stupid stuff if we’ve got the wrong answer to this question.
QUESTION: What are you counting on to make sure you count?
It will get strange in a hurry; it will get bad in a hurry when religious certainty and fervor get mixed in with a bad answer to this question. So, this will be our recurring theme.
SERIES THESIS: The only thing that COUNTS is FAITH expressing itself through LOVE.
- Is that how Christianity was introduced to you?
- Is that what you’re trying to introduce others to?
- Is this the framework through which you think about all the big and little decisions?
- Is this the framework through which you think about your dating life?
- Is this the framework through which you think about parenting, your work life, your social life—all of your life?
- Is it possible that the way you think about following Jesus is just a bit more complicated than that, and perhaps a bit more rigid than that?
Is this really it? The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. If that’s true, we owe it to ourselves to come to terms with what that means.
Let’s start by reading chapter one. We’ll read the whole chapter, but we will stop along and along to unpack what’s happening. Then, once we’ve gotten our hands around it and once we’ve got a good grip on it, we are going to build a bridge from this very old letter, written to churches a long way away, a long time ago, we are going to build a bridge that connects it to the urgent, practical, and messy stuff of our own lives.
GALATIANS 1:1-24 Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead—and all the brothers and sisters with me, To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
This was Galatia. If you went there today, you’d be in Turkey. Paul planted a bunch of churches there. He led many people to become devoted followers of Jesus there. He’s a friend to these churches, but he’s more than that. He was the founder of these churches, but he’s more than that. Paul was an Apostle.
That’s not a Christian title. It’s not a Bible word. It was a common word that meant messenger or sent one. There were many, many apostles. Men and women were apostles. But, there were a certain group of leaders in the church who had unique, God-given authority. They were called Apostles. Anyone who was sent out as a missionary was a lower-case-a apostle. Then there was a small group of capital A Apostles. That was Paul. He wrote to them with that unique, God-given authority.
APOSTLE:
- Called by Jesus (Acts 9)
- Eyewitness of resurrected Jesus (Acts 1:22)
- Could perform signs and wonders on demand (2 Corinthians 12:12)
We don’t have capital A Apostles anymore. But we have what they wrote in the New Testament. If you and I disagree on something. We don’t just defer to what I say because I’m the pastor. That’s not how it works. We don’t look for who has the most authority in the room. We turn to the writing of the Apostles in the New Testament.
What we are about to see is that there was some turbulence. As an Apostle, Paul wrote to them to teach them, to rebuke them where necessary, to correct them and train them for life with Jesus.
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!
Can you feel the emotion? Can you feel the intensity? It’s fair to say that he is angry. Wouldn’t you be angry if someone manipulated, conned, exploited, and deceived people you care about. This is what was going down. False teachers convinced them that trusting in Jesus was good, but it wasn’t quite enough. You had to trust in Jesus and become culturally Jewish. And for the fellas, that meant getting circumcised.
Instead of enjoying a life of freedom, this church was descending in a spiral of religious absurdity. They started to live for approval from people, that was earned moral and religious performance. That is not the gospel.
Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Do you see it? Paul just diagnosed the root of the problem. When it came to the question, what are you counting to make sure you count, they stopped looking to Jesus and instead were looking around to other people for approval. And when we do that, we start doing stuff to impress others so that they will affirm us.
That need for approval runs so deep and so strong in every human soul, we will do the absurd to satisfy it. If we had the time and you had the courage, we could all tell our own stories about that.
I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
What we’re talking about today, what we’re trying to come to terms with—it is supernatural. It is heaven come to earth. If this is something that people came up with, we should ignore it. But if God really stepped into the human story, in the person of Jesus Christ. If he died on the cross to rescue us from sin and rose from the dead, that changes everything. It should utterly reorient our lives, permanently ending our need for approval. We have that fully in Jesus Christ.
For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
This is his backstory. He thought that religious zeal would earn him the approval of God and people. He hurt people. He put Christians in prison. The thing driving the behaviors that he would regret most in life was the pursuit of approval. He wanted to count.
But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being. I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went into Arabia. Later I returned to Damascus.
God graciously intervened. Go read about what happened in Acts 9. It’s an incredible story.
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. Then I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they praised God because of me.
You’re not going to find any credible scholars or historians who deny that Paul was a real figure from history who relentlessly persecuted the Chrsitian church, and then inexplicably did a 180, and became a leader of Christians. What happened? How do you explain that? The life of this man is serious evidence of the resurrection. What is the best explanation for this radical transformation? This is what happens when someone discovers Jesus. He changes everything. He makes us new. And one of the astounding things he does is that we no longer need to chase approval in life. We have it fully, 100% in him. And that gives a person freedom.
As we read this letter, there is strong emotion, his heart is breaking because people who he deeply loves are being confused and deceived and they’re losing sight of the gospel that set them free.
I want to encourage you today. I want you to walk out of here with hope. There is life-changing hope and freedom for you. But it does come with a warning label.
WARNING: We never lose our vulnerability to exchanging TRUTH for LIES.
We may not want that to be true, but it’s true. You might think I’m wrong. You should feel free to disagree with me. But to disagree with this is to say that you’ve reached a status where it’s impossible for you to be mistaken or misunderstand. If that’s your position—bold move!
But for the rest of us mortals, we should be humble and self-aware. Humble people who are self-aware people are able to admit that we have a complicated relationship with approval. To the degree that want or feel a need for approval of others, to that same degree we are vulnerable to exchanging the truth of the gospel for a counterfeit version of it.
The problem presents for us differently than it presented for them. Yet, the disease is the same. When we seek approval from people, and forget that we have it fully in Jesus, we exchange the real gospel for a fake one. I want to get messy and gritty and talk about some fake gospels that have trapped church people.
FALSE GOSPELS:
- Progressive gospel
This causes Jesus followers to see themselves as allies with culture. Authentic believers get sucked in because of they care about real gospel values like love and empathy. That is good! We should all care about that. It’s never wrong to be empathetic, compassionate, merciful, and loving. What the progressive false gospel does is that it confuses accepting and embracing people with affirming behaviors and lifestyles. It’s a counterfeit version of love because it’s divorced from the authority and commands of Jesus. We don’t define what it is to be loving by our own feelings or even the demands of others. Jesus is love. He is the authority, and he defines it.
SERIES THESIS: The only thing that COUNTS is FAITH expressing itself through LOVE.
The problem with the progressive gospel is that it’s replaced allegiance to Jesus with allegiance to self. In the end, it’s neither faithful nor loving. The progressive gospel is a blight on churches in America. And it has taken hold because people anchor their worth in the approval from other people.
- Regressive gospel
This causes followers of Jesus to see themselves as enemies of culture. These are the culture warriors. Christian nationalism is a branch on this tree, but it’s not the only branch. Authentic believers get sucked in because they care about gospel values like family, sexual ethics, and truth. They are rightly disturbed by the nonsense that our culture calls good. It’s never wrong to hold up truth.
This group goes wrong by trying to push and impose their values and their views on others. It’s controlling, rigid, fearful, and mean. If you listen closely, this crowd is constantly giving you excuses why you don’t have to love and embrace people. Recently, when our Vice President said, “There’s a Christian concept where you love your family and then you love your neighbor, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens in your own country, and then after that, you can focus [on] and prioritize the rest of the world.” He was expressing this. If you think we’re now talking about politics, you may not understand the gospel. The gospel is the only thing we’re talking about.
SERIES THESIS: The only thing that COUNTS is FAITH expressing itself through LOVE.
As a pastor, it’s my job to call balls and strikes. I’m convinced that there are a lot of churches and lot of Christians who are in a mess and who are making a mess because they have lost sight of where their approval comes from. When that happens, have a tendency to ignore the commands of Jesus or to try to impose the way of Jesus and it’s all fueled by trying to getting other people to affirm us and tell us we’re good enough. The progressive and regressive crowd look very different on the outside, but they’re the exact same rock bottom. Both are attempts to earn acceptance and approval. Neither is the gospel. We are all vulnerable to getting confused on what really counts. When that happens, not only do we compromise faith, but we also compromise love.
We’ve got to hold on to the gospel. When we do, we won’t be allies and we won’t be enemies of culture. We will be ambassadors to our culture, representing and reflecting Jesus. That will always look like full devotion to him and generously investing in the well-being of all others—even if it hurts or costs us. The way that we hold on to this clarity is to be Gospel Fluent.
GOSPEL FLUENCY
- Know the content of the gospel
- Understand the Implications of the gospel
- Apply the motivation of the gospel
Let’s start with the content of the gospel.
GALATIANS 1:3-5 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Paul is reminding us of reconciliation. By trusting in Jesus, we are fully accepted, fully approved—forever. It’s not based on anything we do. It’s 100% based on what he did for us. We receive that as a gift, by faith.
GOSPEL FLUENCY
- Know the content of the gospel
- Understand the Implications of the gospel
- Apply the motivation of the gospel
What’s the implication? While I’d like for other people to think well of me, I don’t need others to approve me so that I feel like I count. That need is 100% fulfilled in Christ. So, I’m free. That doesn’t make me aloof or distant from people. It doesn’t mean that I don’t hurt when rejected. Not at all. And yet, this is what makes it possible for me to truly love others.
This is what motivates and enables us to love all others, without ranking them or excluding anyone. We can love people, happily serving their best interest, without needing anything in return. Even if they don’t love us back. Even if they despise us in return.
The command of Jesus to love our enemies, I mean really love them and serve them and seek their good, will always seem absurd to us until we learn what it means to not need the approval and acceptance of others. When we are filled with approval of Christ, only then are we free to love without needing or demanding anything in return. Only then can you love someone who can’t give you anything.
At some level, without the gospel, without experiencing reconciliation, our attempts at love will be transactional or have conditions attached to it. It’s only when we are free from needing the approval of the other that we can love them unconditionally.
QUESTION: What are you counting on to make sure you count?
If you are a follower of Jesus, remember the Gospel and be Gospel Fluent. If that feels daunting to you, I want you to breathe and relax. I want to invite you to this ongoing class.
I don’t care how long you’ve been a follower of Jesus, if what I’m talking about feels new or too slippery to grab a hold of, check this out. David and Sue and profoundly kind and joyful people. I think you’ll love it.
If you wouldn’t consider yourself a follower of Jesus, what are the obstacles, what are the unanswered questions or concerns that are standing in your way? Would you be willing to take an honest look at the Apostle Paul? What happened that explains the radical transformation in his life? This is a room full of people who would tell you, Jesus has given me life that is truly life.
How are you attempting to answer this question?
QUESTION: What are you counting on to make sure you count?
The gospel means good news. We are far more guilty, sinful, and morally messed up than we can dare admit. But in Christ, we are far more loved, forgiven, accepted, and delighted in than we dare hope.