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Reading - First Things First (Galatians 1)
This passage speaks to me of all the strange ideas that get into Christianity from time to time. Sometimes a different gospel is abroad within our own churches and we need to be on our guard against such things. This is not a new thing and we simply need to be careful to follow the truth - and to do that we have to study to know what it is. We are told in 2 Timothy 3:16 that:
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful
for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so
that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
Scripture is a corrective, amongst other things, and it is to Scripture we look for correct teaching. Galatians is often referred to as "Luther's book" because Martin Luther depended on it so much in his writings etc. What message did Luther find here that so inspired him?
The authority of Paul's Gospel
Paul goes to some lengths to establish his authority for writing as he does and this is important since so many claimed to speak for God that his qualifications must stand up to scrutiny. How many claim to speak for God today but don't speak according to His written Word?
v.1 Paul was sent by Jesus Christ and God the Father, not by man - so we know he can be trusted.
v.10 Paul does not try to please men, but God - so we know he will not distort the message.
vv. 11&12 Paul was called by God - he didn't make up the gospel or even
get it from the church leaders, he received it by revelation from Jesus
Christ - so we know it is accurate and true.
Ch.2 v.7 Paul was endorsed by the Jerusalem church.
All this gives us confidence to trust everything Paul says.
No Other Gospel
In verses 6-7 we read something about this other gospel:
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting
the one who called you by 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."
vv. 8&9 Tells us that these people who pervert the truth will be condemned
eternally -because the gospel is so precious and is the way of salvation,
to deceive someone into thinking they are saved when they are not is
a capital offence.
Establish the important things first
A perversion of the gospel is a twisting of the established and accepted truths of Scripture. Paul proclaimed the following to be true and worked his whole life against those who would add to or take away from these things:
1. v.1 God raised Jesus from the dead.
The good news we have is that Jesus broke the bands of death and won for all who trust him life eternal.
2. v.4 Jesus gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age.
The good news we have is that Jesus broke the bondage of sin and delivered us from slavery to sin.
3. v.4b&5 All this is done according to God's will and to the glory of His name.
4. v.6 How easily we turn away to false teachings!
Anything more or less than this is "another gospel" and, tragically, some are very easily turned from the truth, looking to add to or take away from the finished work of the Cross
In summary, this chapter teaches us to put the important things first
in our lives, to make sure that those who teach us are sound and have
authority from God, and to make sure that we check out every teaching
against the truth. As we go into this week may we walk in the light of
His truth, neither adding to nor taking away but growing in His grace
as Scripture teaches.