From where does the impulse to seek salvation come? Is it from within ourselves, or does God call us? How can we obtain salvation? Through our own efforts, or by the grace of God? In his letter to the followers of Christ in the Roman province of Galatia, the Apostle Paul emphatically insists that it is God who calls us and we are saved, not by our own efforts to keep a law, but by the grace of God. No doubt we have a responsibility to respond to God’s call; no doubt we must live holy lives, but we can never earn salvation. Because we are saved by God’s work, and not our own, it is extremely important that we not change the message of salvation, that is the gospel, in any way. To change the message is to turn away from the offer of salvation which God grants us.
Some people came to the churches in Galatia and began to teach a different message than the one Paul had given. They said that Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf was not sufficient. In order to obtain salvation it is also necessary to obey the Law of Moses. This teaching threw the churches into confusion and caused many to question what they had been taught. Paul responded very forcefully to this situation. In Galatians chapter 1, verses 6 through 10 he writes, “I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”; and there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you, and want to pervert the Good News of Christ. But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed. As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed. For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ.”
To turn away from the gospel, that is the good news, which Paul preached is, in reality, to turn away from the Person who calls us to salvation through that gospel. The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes the truth that it is God who calls us. For example, in 1 Corinthians 1:9 it says, “God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.” (NIV) What Paul is saying is that to reject the gospel which he preached, is to reject God.
In view of this, Paul was astonished that the Galatians not only were at the point of turning away from the gospel, but that they were doing so, so quickly after the gospel had been preached to them. How could they turn from the gospel of salvation to some other gospel? In reality, as Paul points out, this other message is not ‘good news’ at all because it is not premised on the grace of Christ.
Since this other message is not based on God’s call to the grace of Christ, why were people beginning to listen to it? The basic reason is that they were being deceived. Paul writes that false teachers, who themselves were not part of the churches in Galatia but had come to them from the outside, were troubling or confusing the followers of Christ. These teachers called their message the gospel even though it was not a gospel at all. This was not an honest mistake. Paul writes that these false teachers wanted to pervert the gospel, that is change the gospel into something else. It is worth noting that these teachers had not yet succeeded in their schemes. However, the situation in the churches was critical.
It is probable that these teachers were Jews from Judea or Jerusalem. Since the church came into being in Jerusalem, these people probably claimed that, in contrast to Paul, they knew the true gospel and represented the true church. This is very similar to the situation recorded in Acts, chapter 15, verse 1, “Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.”” (NIV) When the church in Jerusalem found out what these men were doing, it repudiated them. It wrote to the church in Antioch, “We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.” (Acts 15:24 NIV)
But even if a teacher’s claims about his qualifications and authority are true, Paul points out that is not the messenger, but the message which is important. He writes that even an angel from heaven is not authorized or justified in promoting a false gospel. Should anyone do so, even if he is an angel from heaven, that person is condemned.
It does not matter what family or heritage a teacher has. It does not matter what seminary he went to or how many degrees he has. It does not matter whether he holds a prestigious position or title. If his message does not agree with the gospel of Christ, then he is a false teacher and is under God’s condemnation. We all need to ask ourselves, “Are the teachers and the message I listen to in harmony with the gospel of Christ?”
It appears that one of the accusations which was being made against Paul was that he had simplified and softened the gospel in order to make it more appealing to people. Paul points out that if he were trying to win the approval of people, he would not write as he has. Instead of strong condemnation, he would have used conciliatory language. But winning the approval of people was not Paul’s purpose. Instead he wanted the approval of God. It should be obvious that one does not win the approval of God by changing or distorting His message.
In verse 10, Paul repeats what he said in verse 1, that he is a servant of Christ. If Christ is our Master, then it follows that we will do what He wants even at the cost of displeasing men. On the other hand, as Paul says, if our goal is to please men we cannot serve Christ. Who is our Master? Is it Christ? Are we faithful to Him and His message, or are we controlled by the desire to do what will make people happy with us? Is it our desire to be faithful to Christ, or to be popular?