Posts by Josh Moody
Galatians 5:1-12: Don’t Be a Legalist!
2 Samuel 20-21, Psalm 116, Mark 15:33-41, Galatians 5:1-12 Galatians 5:1-12: If—as Paul has been arguing—it is true that the gospel of grace and peace is the one true gospel, and the legalistic, ritualistic gospel of the false teachers in Galatia was heretical, how then do we ensure that we guard our “freedom” in this gospel? First, remember…
Read MoreGalatians 4:21-31: Two Ways to Live
2 Samuel 18-19, Psalm 115, Mark 15:16-32, Galatians 4:21-31 Galatians 4:21-31: Paul is continuing with his argument that the Old Testament teaches the gospel of grace and peace that he has been preaching to the Galatians. He makes one consistent argument through this section, and it comes with a compelling exhortation. The consistent argument is that the promise that…
Read MoreGalatians 4:1-20: Characteristics of the True Gospel
2 Samuel 16-17, Psalm 114, Mark 15:1-15, Galatians 4:1-20 Galatians 4:1-20: Paul’s concern that the Galatians are deserting the one true gospel for an entirely different, and false, gospel continues to animate his prose with passion and conviction. What are the characteristics of the true gospel? First, you are no longer a slave but God’s child. The gospel…
Read MoreGalatians 3:15-29: Christ!
2 Samuel 14-15, Psalm 113, Mark 14:66-72, Galatians 3:15-29 Galatians 3:15-29: Paul is making the case that the way we are saved and grow as a Christian is through the power of Christ by his Spirit—the gospel at work in us as received through faith. This is a critically important lesson for us to understand: it is the preventative…
Read MoreGalatians 3:1-14: The Power of God
2 Samuel 13, Psalm 112, Mark 14:53-65, Galatians 3:1-14 Galatians 3:1-14: Where does the power come to live for God? Is it through true grit, personal determination, clever human tactics—or is it the power of the Spirit received and accessed through faith? According to Paul, there is only one answer to that question! Here are five key principles…
Read MoreGalatians 2: The Grace of God
2 Samuel 11-12, Psalm 111, Mark 14:43-52, Galatians 2 Galatians 2: Paul is continuing to establish his authority as a real apostle. He does it in the following ways—each of which allow us to put our trust in the authority of the Bible: First, Paul tells the story of his own visit to Jerusalem, making clear that he…
Read MoreGalatians 1: No Other Gospel
2 Samuel 8-10, Psalm 110, Mark 14:32-42, Galatians 1 Galatians 1: The church of Galatia was experiencing false teaching that had come to them under the guise of the authority of Jerusalem—men claiming to be sent “from James”—and were disturbing the faith of these Galatians. They were saying that you had to be circumcised, and thereby obey all…
Read More2 Corinthians 13: Confrontation and Blessing
2 Samuel 5-7, Psalm 109, Mark 14:12-31, 2 Corinthians 13 2 Corinthians 13: Paul comes towards the end of this letter and towards the end of his defense of his own ministry and the defense of the gospel itself. Here we can glean some principles from which we can learn as we seek to guard the gospel today:…
Read More2 Corinthians 12:11-21: Christian Service
2 Samuel 3-4, Psalm 108, Mark 14:1-11, 2 Corinthians 12:11-21 2 Corinthians 12:11-21: Paul’s defense of himself—which, as he clarifies at the end of this section, is really a defense of the gospel—continues. You sense here especially the deep emotion, the pain, and indeed some of the frustration that Paul carried in his relationship with the Corinthians. What…
Read More2 Corinthians 12:1-10: The Power of Christ
2 Samuel 1-2, Psalm 107, Mark 13:32-37, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 2 Corinthians 12:1-10: As Paul continues to defend himself, his ministry—all for the purpose of defending the gospel—he now continues to turn the tables on his opponents. He is “boasting” about his achievements and abilities, but in the final analysis, the boasting takes on a distinctly cross-shaped…
Read More