Something Other Than

I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. (Galatians 1:6-7)

Paul set out to bring the Galatian church back into the fold. Someone came with something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ, and they went for it. With these two verses, we don't know whether it was the Judaizers with their doctrine of circumcision and becoming a Jew first, or the gospel of works fellowship with their work-to-save-yourself doctrine. What we know is that Paul saw a 'something other than' coming to pervert some of the Lord's sheep. Later in his letter, Paul sent a more shocking question:

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? (Galatians 3:1-4)

Foolish? Bewitched? Yow! Paul brings out the big guns to get the Galatians attention in a shocking way. I have experienced something like that at work a time or two back in the day. One memorable time began with the words, "What did you just do?" Paul wanted the Galatians in this same condition. "You just messed up! Hear my words and stand corrected!" We all have those times when we are just plain wrong. Correction can be tough, but it's tougher still when the teacher must use shocking words to get our attention. The Galatians had a letter from Paul, we have our teachers too, and all of us have Jesus and His Holy Spirit to guide us back into grace and His love.

God's grace to you! Watch out for those things that are something other than the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Bucky