December 08, 2020

Bible Reading – Galatians 1

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

In a letter to the churches of Galatia, Paul has to address something extremely important. Whether it was he who won these Christians to Christ or someone else, wavering faith was their reality. It is not a modern phenomenon that the Christian Faith is perverted from the Gospel of Christ to that of men. Quite possibly everyone reading this text can think of at least one name of an individual who uses the name of Christ for personal gain and manipulation rather than for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Paul was addressing this situation, encouraging the church to stay faithful to the Gospel of Christ.

First we must understand the motivation of Paul. He leaves no doubt that his aim is to please God and not men. In his opening sentence of his letter, he tells the Galatians he wasn’t called by men. He was chosen by God and Christ Who had proven His Deity. In verse five, Paul explains further that his purpose is to bring glory to God, not self. The glory of God should be all our motivation!

Another way the church at Galatia could know Paul was the real deal was through his message. Paul’s message was the cross of Christ. Paul had one of the best pedigrees in the nation of Israel, and he was incredibly educated. But even with such a significant resume, the focus of Paul’s message was the cross of Christ, ignoring his own relevance almost entirely. Paul also suffered incredibly throughout his life lived for Christ, yet he did not use his suffering for anything other than a means to relate to and point others to Christ. He was motivated by the Gospel of Christ which seemed to be the single message he cared most to preach.

And in verse ten, after sharing his motivation and message, Paul highlights his mission: to be a servant to Christ. The Gospel of Christ consumed Paul in nearly every aspect of his life. Perhaps we can see it best in his statement in Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Paul lived, suffered, and died by that Gospel, but above all, he was blessed eternally because of that Gospel. And as we look to spiritual leaders and try to be the spiritual influence those around us desperately need, may the Gospel of Christ be a unifying and motivating theme!

— Eli Faulds