God made sure the recipients of this letter would understand that this letter was not about story time. This was not a nursery rhyme. This was a letter sent by God through the apostle Paul. God also wanted the recipients to understand that the only way saints can be saints and serve as saints is through God’s grace and peace.
In verse 6 Paul was directed to address a serious problem within the churches in Galatia. They were saved by hearing and responding to the Gospel. Paul talked of being called into the grace of Christ. Yet these people were turning to a false Gospel now. The Judaizers were busy trying to persuade people that circumcision was necessary for salvation. These people had been saved by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for their salvation. They had turned to God in repentance and believed that Jesus Christ was the only Saviour and the only way to the Father.
They were not feeding on the truth and thus they were being swayed in a wrong direction.
In verse 7 Paul made it clear that what they were believing was not another Gospel. It was a lie. It was a fraudulent message. It would be good for people to read and meditate on this passage today. There are so many false gospels out there. So many people are willing to buy into the lie. So many people who should know better are not willing to call out the lie but shrug it off through ignorance. Too many pastors are not taking heed to the Word of God and are not carefully reminding the people of the need to follow the truth. There needs to be a steady diet of doctrine taught and reviewed. False doctrine needs to be addressed and warned against.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is clear in the Bible. We have talked much about that. It changes the recipient.
Paul stated that those who seek to spread the false gospel are trouble makers. They come around and use subtilty to try to gain a following. We have witnessed that it is not that difficult for them to be able to gain a following. Paul further stated that these people are perverting the gospel of Christ. To pervert is to corrupt or to turn around. They change the Gospel of Christ into a works gospel.
In verse 8 Paul warns the people of the importance of rejecting any false gospel. He even stated that if he were to preach another gospel, they should reject it. These saints had already heard the truth. They had responded in obedience to the truth. They were born again. They knew what was the truth. There can be no variations of the truth.
Paul was directed by God to state that the perverters were accursed. The word translated as “accursed” speaks of being excommunicated. There is not room in the membership of a true church for those who want to twist the Gospel message. Those involved all need to know that the promotion of a false gospel is not of God. Lost people can attend a true church. They need to hear the truth. However, they cannot be in the membership of a true church.
A while back we had a person in our church that was trying to promote Calvinism. He was being subtle and trying to do it without my knowledge. I was told about it by another member. I addressed the matter with the person involved. I also told him that he needed to stop trying to promote his heresy in our church or among our people. I told him he could come and listen, but he was not allowed to spread his heresy. I also did some teaching on the lies of Calvinism in our church. I also told our church people that we would not allow anyone to spread the heresy of Calvinism in our church in any way.
False teaching cannot be allowed to undermine the truth. Paul showed us that we do not just sit back and allow heresies to be taught and trust that people will figure things out for themselves. Pastors must teach the truth and must also put a stop to false teaching. Thus pastors must know the truth and be firm about the truth. This does not need to be mean-spirited. It is loving to protect the sheep from the wolves.
In verse 9 Paul repeated his words from verse 8. It was important for the saints to pay attention to what he was saying. He could not be with them all the time. He was an apostle and thus was called by God to travel from place to place. There were pastors in each church and they needed to be strong in the Lord. They needed to take care of the flock that God had given them.
In verse 10 Paul asked an important question. He knew God can not be persuaded to change. God is always right and He does not need to change. However, men may need to change. If a man is teaching a lie, he needs to be confronted. Paul also noted that he was not a people pleaser. The truth is far too important to try to play politics with it. Paul reminded the recipients that if he was a man pleaser, he could not be a servant of God. This is important to understand. You cannot serve God and mammon. A person must choose whom he will follow. It is necessary for the true child of God to follow God. We must honour Him in all that we say and do. We cannot waffle on this. Those who are genuinely saved will appreciate a pastor who cares about their souls. They will be thankful for the man of God who will seek to guard them from false teachers and false teaching.
Those who are lost will take offence to a godly pastor. They will try to cause trouble if they can. That is why the pastor needs to know his calling. If he wants to play politics with God’s Word, he should find something else to do. God’s truth is far too important to play around with.
Pastor Bartel