May 21, 2001
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June 3 Lesson
God's truth always will win out over that of men
___Galatians 1:6-24
___6I 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--7which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! 9As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!
___10Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
___11I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. 12I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
___13For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. 14I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 15But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, 17nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
___18Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. 19I saw none of the other apostles--only James, the Lord's brother. 20I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. 21Later I went to Syria and Cilicia. 22I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23They only heard the report: "The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy." 24And they praised God because of me.
___By Don Guthrie
___One of the sad facts of the Christian faith is controversy! As much as we would like for it to be different, Christians do not always agree with each other, and no generation is ever safe from the tensions and confusion of theological debate. While many Christians prefer neutrality in these "collisions of conscience," the gospel is always under attack (both from within the church and without), and our loyalty to Christ must be expressed in the courage to defend the truth.
___The book of Galatians is one of the most useful parts of the New Testament for the contemporary church because it deals with controversy. Written in the heat of theological conflict, it provides a practical guide to those of us who find ourselves in similar situations.
___Predictable patterns
___In times of conflict, all of us find ourselves acting and reacting in predictable ways. The first chapter of Galatians clearly pictures these unchanging patterns. Some are disturbers of the truth, some are defenders of the truth and some are deserters of the truth. All of us find ourselves and our reactions in this story.
___Disturbers of truth
___Soon after Paul founded the churches in Galatia (see sidebar), opposing teachers followed who convinced the young believers he had not told them the "whole truth." Teaching that Christians also had to be Jews, these Judaizers (as Paul would later call them) insisted Gentile converts submit to Jewish legal observances (circumcision, kosher food laws, Sabbath observances, etc.) as a requirement for salvation. They were successful in persuading many of the impressionable new believers to "switch sides."
___Paul's reaction to this challenge was to write an angry, urgent letter expressing his disappointment with the Galatian believers for so quickly deserting their former beliefs, v. 6. He also aimed his missiles at those who were "disturbing" the Christians by "distorting the gospel," v. 6.
___Students of the Bible will notice the blunt tone of the Galatian letter and the contrast it presents to Paul's other letters (compare the praise of Ephesians and the personal warmth of Philippians). Vernon Magee says that Paul was "on the warpath" and his mood shows in every word.
___Rejecting the notion that this new idea was just another version of the truth (note verse 7, allos,--Greek, "another of the same kind"), Paul calls it a "different" gospel (heteros, Greek--"another of a very different kind"). Whenever the gospel is diluted or substituted, the church is weakened. We are as troubled by error as by evil, and Paul is quick to confront this dangerous drift toward legalism.
___In every generation, there are people who call themselves Christian but teach truth that advances their own political or emotional agenda. Rather than reaching forward to Christ, men in Paul's day (and our own) twist truth in order to suit their own preferences.
___Defenders of truth
___Paul was willing to defend the truth, but it required courage to do so. Theological disagreement often turns into personal attack. In a blatant attempt to damage Paul's reputation, his opponents had turned to character assassination. Note in verse 10 Paul's attempt to block these unfair personal attacks. Apparently they had questioned Paul's authority. "He is not one of the original 12 and therefore not a real apostle." Additionally, they had questioned his motives. "He preaches grace to Gentiles because he desires to be popular with men." The whole book is written against the background of these unfair, dishonest charges.
___Defending the truth can be unpopular. Nothing is less welcome in a generation with a preference for pluralism than to stand for truth. Most people consider it pride or intolerance to hold unbending truth. Jesus had the same problem! Think how often he was opposed or unfairly criticized. As painful as it may be, malice and misunderstanding may be part of the territory for those who will defend the truth. "Woe be to you when all men speak well of you, for that is the way they treated the false prophets," said Jesus, Luke 6:26.
___Deserters of truth
___Paul, however, had reserved some of his strongest language for those who surrendered the truth to error without a fight. "I am amazed," he said in verse 6, "that you are so quickly deserting him who called you." Like children lured into danger by the offer of candy from a stranger, the gullible Galatians were a disappointment to Paul. His commitment was to summon them to think clearly and act courageously in the face of error.
___Christians cannot afford to accept truth without careful and biblical consideration. Months before, Paul had witnessed a larger courage in the Berean Christians. "These were more noble-minded than those at Thessalonica searching the Scriptures "to see if these things were so," Acts 17:11. "Reprove, rebuke and exhort with great patience and instruction" says 2 Timothy 4:2. We must act with courage even when it is difficult; even when it is unpopular.
___A truth worth defending
___As an answer to his critics and in a brilliant stroke of strategy, Paul tells (or retells) the story of his own conversion and call, verse 11 and those following. A powerful testimony is often the most potent defense of the truth. Paul's story would have been particularly persuasive to the Galatians. Since he was the first one to preach the gospel to them, they were prone to trust him. Through his story, Paul helps the Galatians see the characteristics of truth that make him willing to defend it.
___God as its source
___Paul's truth had God as its source! His gospel came from God and not men. Note verse 12: "I received it by revelation." Whether this refers to the Damascus Road (Acts 9) or to subsequent encounters is not clear.
___Paul's point is the gospel is not subject to change, because it came from heaven. Christians teach truth that is not a product of man's thought. To hold it without compromise or apology is not arrogance but humility before God. When God speaks to us and reveals his truth, then we are obligated to defend it.
___Righteousness is its result
___Paul's truth had righteousness as its result. Part of the proof of the gospel was the transformation of Paul's own life. In verse 13, he reminds the Galatians of his former life. What else can explain this dramatically different life than the work of the true gospel? His conversion from persecution to preacher was evidence that his gospel was genuine. Only Christ can transform people from self-righteousness, anger, resentment and immorality into loving, godly witnesses. Christians defend the truth because it is the only way for a person to be made right with God. "I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe it," Romans 1:16.
___Cooperation as its pattern
___Paul's truth had cooperation as its pattern. Carefully drawing a picture of voluntary cooperation with the other apostles, Paul reveals a pattern of New Testament thought. "I did not go to Jerusalem ... I went away to Arabia," verse 17. His dependence (from the first day) was on God and not people.
___All believers are independent of each other but commanded to cooperate with one another. Even the word "cooperation" suggests the uncoerced action of independent, equal parties. Baptist churches are autonomous. We cooperate freely because it is God's wisdom to do so. But our freedom can never be surrendered to a few who claim a larger authority or attempt to control our consciences. Freedom for Baptists is not so much an equal truth as it is a means by which we discover the other truth. The truth worth defending rises in a free heart and then causes us to cooperate with others who share our convictions.
___How willing are most Christians to "take the heat" for the truth? From private conversations to public meetings, our great temptation is to take "the path of least resistance"; to say nothing in the face of false teaching. Fearing the disapproval of others or the reputation for being argumentative, we deny the Lord by cowardly silence.
___As we study the book of Galatians, we will reflect on Paul's courage and his tenacity as he defends the gospel from error. Are we not called to the same task? May God use his life and the words recorded here to develop in us a love for truth that is ready to defend it! God bless you as you study!
___Don Guthrie is pastor of First Baptist Church in San Antonio.
Who were the Galatians?
___Scholars dispute the meaning of the word "Galatia" (verse 3) and the churches to which Paul addressed this letter. Confusion is caused by the dual use of the word in the ancient world. Galatia was a specific section of Asia Minor (the north central part), but the Bible has no record of a visit by Paul to this area. Galatia also refers a larger Roman region that included cities where Paul visited on his first missionary journey. Paul's letter, therefore, may have been sent to Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe (cf. Acts 13ff). Neither of these two interpretations impacts the basic meaning of the letter, so it is mentioned for interest rather than significance. These two theories are known as the North Galatian Theory and the South Galatian Theory and do have some bearing on whether this was Paul's first letter (South Galatian Theory) or one that came later.
For thought and discussion
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