Continuing on from my previous post about a Gospel of grace, Paul wrote a warning to the churches in central Turkey. Speaking with apostolic authority, he pronounces judgment on Jewish preachers who were perverting the Gospel of grace. They were mingling grace with the Law of the Old Covenant. It was a fake “gospel’ and not true.

Paul was so passionate for the true gospel that, should he pervert it in any way, he would desire that God’s judgment fall on him. He said that even if he or an angel appeared preaching a false gospel, no matter who it was, let them be condemned and cursed. He repeats himself to make his message clear (see Galatians 1:6-8). 

Paul continued: “Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant” (Galatians 1:10).

Thayer’s Greek lexicon defines this word “cursed” as “something devoted to God, but doesn’t live in the hope of being redeemed. This is a person accursed and devoted to the direst of woes; doomed and separated from Christ.” If we live under the law, we live under a curse. 

God’s judgments are good because they have a redeeming purpose. Like Paul, we too are to judge what is false and evil versus what is good and true in our own hearts and within the Church. Issuing a word of judgment would be tough for any person, leader, or follower alike, but it’s a matter of life and death in the spiritual realm. The work of Jesus’ redemption and the destiny He has for every soul would be at stake. The approval of people matters not; only what matters to God matters.

Under the law, we live under a curse. True justice requires that if we break one iota of the law, it carries a death sentence. Jesus, the perfect sacrifice, became a curse to pay for our rebellion and sin. One drop of His blood was enough.

We must ask some important questions. Who or what do I trust to save me? Do I trust in my efforts to save myself by practicing godly principles or being disciplined enough, or praying and fasting more, or doing one more thing to prove my worthiness to receive God’s love? If so, I am believing a lie. My actions tell Jesus and those who listen to us that Jesus’ sacrifice was not enough. 

Those important practices bring blessings and peace only because of Jesus. I must consecrate all my life to Jesus and rest in the finished work of His Cross. I can entrust myself to Him. I must learn to live with Him as my only Source of life. He is my strength, my breath, and my everything. All my efforts should be to seek Him, receive what He’s already given me, and follow Him. 

As Paul began his letter to the Galatians, he noted those who were deceived and distorting the gospel of grace. We need to pray and bless each other so that none of us will believe a lie: 

Father, through Your Son, Jesus, who offered His soul as a sacrifice for our sins. You have released into us a flow of Your blessings of undeserved kindness, peace, health, prosperity, and well-being. This is a wholeness only found in You. May all our efforts turn us to You, to seek You, receiving what You’ve already given to us, and then choose to follow You, bringing everything in our lives into obedience to You. Deliver us from a false gospel, Lord. May every word we speak be drenched with grace and tempered with truth and clarity (see Galatians 1:3-5 & Colossians 4:6).