HEELCATCHER

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.

I would say that Paul is pretty worked up in this passage! He has labored among the churches, preaching the good news of salvation by grace alone, and now he has heard that many in these churches are returning to a legalistic, works-based “gospel.”

There is something inside of us that wants to work for our salvation, that wants to earn it. We feel uncomfortable receiving an unmerited gift.

Have you ever received a Christmas gift from someone that you didn’t expect to give you one? Immediately you think, “Oops, I didn’t get them anything. I better go get something real quick!” To us, even a gift has to be earned to some extent.

However, salvation is by grace. Not our works. It is a gift from God. This is good news. We can stop trying to prove ourselves and measuring ourselves against others. Instead we humbly and gratefully receive and live in the love of God through the forgiveness that is found in Jesus Christ.

This sounds too easy. Paul was accused of cheapening the gospel to win the approval of men. He responds, If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Powerful statement…and hard to swallow. When I am trying to please men, when that is my aim, then I am not a servant of Christ. Of course, Paul is not talking about being rude or purposely seeking to displease men. Love is not rude (1 Cor. 13:5) and we are called to live peaceably with all men, as much as we are able (Rom 12:18). But it is easy to shift focus. To work hard at winning the approval of others. To live by the expectations of others. To measure our lives by the accolades and “high fives” of other people. Popularity is enticing…especially in our image-based, media-saturated culture. Success is often measured with “face time” or the number of friends you have on Facebook.

Having people-pleasing tendencies myself, this is a good passage for me to meditate on. I must remember that my goal is not to please men but to serve Christ. I must walk with Him. I must seek the leading of His Spirit. I must know my limitations. I must realize the fickleness of popularity. I must be willing to face opposition and feel the disappointment of others.

The spiritual life is daily communion with Jesus. It is taking His yoke upon us. And, praise God, His yoke is easy and His burden is light!

²⁸“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

We begin with Galatians, the Magna Carta of Christian liberty. Galatians was perhaps the first letter written by the apostle Paul, around AD 48-49. It sets forth the key Christian teaching that we are delivered from sin by grace through faith.

¹Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— ²and all the brothers with me, to the churches in Galatia:

³Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, ⁵to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

In Galatians, Paul not only has to defend the gospel but also his authority. That’s why he starts off with such a bold statement. “I am an apostle–a representative of Christ send out by God’s authority and not by the authority of men.” Right off the bat, Paul makes it clear that he is delivering God’s message, validated by the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. Hence it is wise to listen…and to listen carefully.

Grace and peace to you… This is Paul’s customary greeting and it conveys a simple truth. Grace and peace go together. Peace– shalom, wholeness, inner contentment and serenity–comes when we receive and live in the grace of God. Knowing God loves us unconditionally, knowing our sins are forgiven, knowing that God cannot love us more and will not love us less…gives us freedom. We don’t have to struggle and work our way into God’s favor. We don’t have to try to prove ourselves or measure up. We don’t have to fight for our image, impress others, or live in guilt or fear. We can simply rest in God’s love. And trust Him. And experience His peace.

Who gave Himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age. Interesting. I have heard that we are saved from our sin, saved from eternal condemnation, saved from bondage to Satan…but not so much about being saved from the present evil age. We live in an age of evil. I looked up the Greek word for “evil.” It is poneros. Here is the definition on www.blueletterbible.org:

1) full of labours, annoyances, hardships

a) pressed and harassed by labours

b) bringing toils, annoyances, perils; of a time full of peril to Christian faith and steadfastness; causing pain and trouble

2) bad, of a bad nature or condition

a) in a physical sense: diseased or blind

b) in an ethical sense: evil wicked, bad

So we live in an age of hardship, opposition, moral evil. The world does not encourage our walk with God. We struggle against it. Distractions are everywhere. Lusts entice us. Fears surround us. Burdens weigh us down. Temptations abound. Christ died to deliver us from our sins and free us from the lusts and burdens of this world. We don’t “get saved” to wait for heaven. Christ saves us in the present. He saves us from our sins, from ourselves, from our incessant pursuit of temporary things, from our need for man’s approval, from the bondage of addiction, from the idols of our heart.So we can live in freedom and share that freedom with others.

I think Titus 2 captures this thought perfectly…

¹¹For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. ¹²It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, ¹³while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, ¹⁴who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

Lord, help me to live self-controlled, upright, and godly in this present age. May I be filled with your Spirit today and eager to do what is good.