Friday, August 15, 2014

Today's Bible reading is the 1st chapter of the Book of Galatians. You can find it here at Bible Gateway: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=NASB&search=Galatians%201

Before his conversion, by his own admission, the Apostle Paul "used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it". But he came to learn that he had been set apart, even from his mother's womb, and that when God "was pleased to reveal His Son" in him, by grace He did so in order that Paul might preach "the faith which he once tried to destroy" . He had received this gospel message of Christ, the gospel of grace, not from men, but "through a revelation of Jesus Christ". So sure was Paul of the gospel message, he wrote the following in this first chapter to the Galatian believers: "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed." The apostle then repeats himself and says, "As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed." Paul had already stated that "a different gospel" was in deed no gospel at all. But as had been the case with the Galatian's, Paul knew the tendency within man to pervert the true gospel message. He was so assured by the Spirit of that which had been "once for all handed down to the saints", that he purposely included himself in his warning. I am convinced that he wanted them to know, that even if he were to return one day preaching a different gospel than that which they had received, different than the gospel message Paul had preached to them, that he was not to be believed and that he too would then be counted among those who should "be accursed". Praise God for the surety of the gospel of grace, the gospel of Christ!