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Go ahead and look first at Galatians 1 . See how God speaks to you individually. Then come back, if you wish, and see what God has put in my mind/heart.

Key Verse(s): Galatians 1:8

But 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!

Title: The Importance of Doctrine

Observation: Paul is furious with the Galatians. We will see him call them “foolish” in the next chapter. In every other letter written to a church he knew he would write at the beginning of the letter a paragraph or two of thanksgiving for them continuing in the faith. He can’t do that here. Even in highly flawed Corinth, he begins the letter with kind words. Here, he must confront.

And the issue that he confronts is the most serious one that can occur in a church. Its not evil behavior; we have a savior who died to bring healing and wholeness through repentance for that. No, the issue is trying to amalgamate the truth of God with human wisdom. These cults leave behind the truth of Jesus and worship a lie. They have no place in the Kingdom of God.

And this is what can kill the spirit, what can separate from God eternally. This is why Paul must be so stern. Their very souls, and those they share their misguided attempt at religion, are at stake. There were many things on which Paul was willing to compromise; on the person and truth of Jesus he was not.

Many churches have been on the slipper slope for along time. In an effort not to be Pharisaical, they rehabilitated those who had lived lives of sin and embraced them into the church. That’s exactly what we are called to do. But when a church then goes further and begins to say that what the New Testament calls sin isn’t sin, they have lost their way. And once you begin to question the authority of scripture you move toward universalism. In another denomination I was in, at their regional meeting they recently had scripture readings from both the Bible and the Quar’ran. And prayed to the God of Muhammad. I can’t imagine how Paul would have reacted to that in a denomination that still gives lip service to calling itself follower of Jesus Christ.

Application: We must never walk away from the truth of Christ or add or subtract from the teaching of the New Testament. We have a precious treasure, but as Jesus said, a little yeast works through the whole loaf. We need to be a people of redemption and forgiveness, but never lose sight of the teachings of Jesus and the gravitas of sin.

Prayer: Lord God, help me to be loving and forgiving. Help me to show the love of Christ to those who are struggling. But let me call sin sin and give me the courage and wisdom to be a defender of orthodox Christianity and to teach the authentic truth of New Testament scripture and not amalgamate it with human wisdom.

In Jesus Name,
Amen.