“Straying from the Word”

Scripture: Galatians 1:1-12

During the month on May, we have been blessed by remembering the faithful actions of a few Godly Hebrews who were in exile. The trials came in many different ways and with many different faces. But through it all, these men of faith were not only blessed and saved and redeemed from the attacks, but the truth of their faith was not only raised up in glory by their God, but it was accepted as truth by the earthly kings.

These men never knew how God was going to work in their lives, and they didn’t even know if God would save them, but in faith, they never wavered from the knowledge that their God was the only true God, and that his power was infinite. And the miracles that came to them were so radical that the Babylonians and Persians came to show great respect, at least some did, to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Now that is evangelism at work!

Today, we move ahead some 600 years to the trials that came against the first century church. The Church was expanding and growing by leaps and bounds. Evangelists were fanning out from Jerusalem, and the word that Jesus Christ was the Living God was filling countless hearts. But as much as the true word was spreading throughout the world, there were other “false gospels” that were spreading nearly as fast.
Of course, there was no Bible that they could teach from or refer to, and there were few letters from the apostles and true disciples to share and learn from. There was a lot of evangelizing by word of mouth, and that wasn’t always as reliable as it should have been.

Read Galatians 1:1-5

The New Testament, with the exception of the four gospels, the book of Acts, and the Book of Revelation, is a collection of letters that the first evangelists wrote to churches that were being founded all across the landscape. Some are letters of encouragement, others are for correction, and a couple, such as Romans, are letters of introduction that contain a sampling of the gospel that will be coming to them in person very soon. Galatians is one of correction.

Remember that the early church was not an independent entity – it was a sect of Judaism. And some Jews weren’t quite ready to give up on many of the aspects of their historic faith – in particular, the understanding that was grounded in the complicated set of laws that they depended on so heavily. Laws that governed dietary requirements, laws governing the observance of Sabbath, and circumcision, and religious holidays, and the process for entry into the faith, and all the rest. They were having trouble letting go, and they believed that everyone else should hold on to the past, while just tacking Jesus on at the end.

So Paul writes this letter to let the churches know that there is a better way, and that is the way of Jesus. And so he begins his letter describing the basis for the letter – that it is not by his authority or that of any one else, but solely by that of God in Christ.
And he greets the people in the name of Christ, the one who surrendered to the world so that we might know victory, the one who glory rests upon and who glory comes from. It isn’t a letter that children might write – “Dear Church, I’m doing well, how are you? I hope you are well, too.” It’s much different - he begins to set the tone of the letter right from the start – that the things that are being written aren’t his ideas, aren’t his concerns, aren’t his corrections –they come, in truth, directly from the Lord Himself.
He also offers a thought on sin even before he begins to outline the reasons behind the letter – that Jesus gave himself up to evil, so that the people of Galatia, and all who believe, might be saved from evil. And then the specific purpose for the epistle is revealed.

Read Galatians 1:6-9

“Why are you turning away from the truth that we introduced you to, and toward the lies that others tell?” Paul offers no other words of grace to the Galatians – he jumps right into the meat of the issue – that they are straying from the faith. We can also infer from the words that faith in Christ hadn’t been part of their lives for very long. And he wants to know why the Way of Jesus is fading so quickly from their lives?

We get very few references to Galatia in the book of Acts (Acts 16:6-10; 18:23) and when we do, it seems that Paul and the others roamed throughout the region preaching the gospel, but, apparently, not spending much time beyond that. For many of the new churches, they would spend months and even years at a time with the people of an area, strengthening their faith, planting it well, and nurturing it into full blossom.
But Galatia may not have received such a solid introduction to Christ, that the leadership may not have been as grounded as they should have been, and when the false teachers came, the people weren’t ready to take them on. Each of Paul’s three journeys spent some time in the region of Galatia, the area that today is Southern Turkey, but it seems that his emphasis was more on the western areas of Turkey and up into Macedonia and Athens areas.

The churches weren’t strong enough to resist the incorrect teachings that others were bringing to the table. The New Interpreters’ Bible suggests that these false teachers may have had disagreements with Paul’s teaching that we read of in Ephesians 2:8-9 – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” The earliest churches still had many who hadn’t quite signed on to the concept of “salvation by grace through faith”, including the fact that salvation could never come through adherence to the law. Many still held to the belief, as an example, that anyone coming into Judaism must be circumcised, even though Paul taught otherwise.

And then the apostle takes his admonition to a whole new level – that if anyone preached a gospel that differed from the one that so many came to in Christ, that they would be condemned.

Author John W. Alexander writes:
Sin is the best news there is. Because with sin there's a way out. You can't repent of confusion or psychological flaws inflicted by your parents [or by anyone else, for that matter!] - you're stuck with them. But you can repent of sin. Sin and repentance are the only grounds for hope and joy, the grounds for reconciled, joyful relationships.
- John Alexander, quoted in Student Leadership Journal, Fall 2000, 23.

Paul told the church that others were trying to confuse them with false teaching, and that they were going to distort the gospel if this went on much longer. These words of Paul’s should make every Sunday School teacher, every Bible Study leader, every pastor and preacher extremely nervous! In James 3:1, Jesus’ brother writes “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” Maybe Paul’s use of the phrase “eternally condemned” is a bit harsh, but we know that if anyone convinces another, or others, of a false teaching, it is not only the sin of the teaching that must be answered for, but the teacher will also be held to account for the sin that comes from the incorrect teaching!
Not an especially pleasant thought, is it?!!

And there has always been a lot of this going around! Gnosticism, Mysticism, Universalism, Fundamentalism, and so many other “isms” that your head should be swimming! In my course on “Contemporary Theologies”, we considered the teachings of many modern thoughts. We took a look at those things in their teaching that were true, as well as those things that may not be true. For many, they have a ring of truth that is sufficient to lend a sense of validity to their understanding, but with most, the teaching will quickly fall to the full truth of scripture, and they will be revealed for what they are.
Many people buy into the teaching, and take it at face value - and they continue to do so today. They won’t do their own study to examine the scriptures – they simply accept the teaching that they receive as truth.

Read Galatians 1:10-12

When a teacher, and that includes preachers, tries to gain the endorsement of others, when they try to bring glory on themselves, when they want to hear the words “Well done, good and faithful servant” from their students, or their congregations, they will lose the authority that only Jesus can convey. Paul reminds the people that the gospel that they are now following was developed in the minds and hearts of humanity, and that the Lord will have nothing to do with it.

How do we know what is fully truth and what is not? Listen, Study, Read, Discuss, Listen and Ask. I submit myself to your examination, and if I introduce some thought that doesn’t quite ring true, if something doesn’t seem to match up with scripture, if something doesn’t make sense to you, study and read scripture to find the conflict, and then ask me to explain any apparent inconsistencies. Challenge me! If I have offered anything that isn’t true, anything that I can’t support with the word, I want to know what it is, and I want to correct it.

Straying from the word of God is not something that any of us can take lightly. And I believe that it is the responsibility of everyone in the Body of Christ to help others understand the truth of Christ. Paul took that responsibility very seriously, and he would not let the Galatians continue in ignorant thought.

I pray that each and every one of us will claim that responsibility, too, and keep each other from making the same mistakes that Galatia did.