The Apostle Paul’s letter to the believers in Galatia is a fervent appeal to hold fast to the true gospel of grace and to resist any teaching that would add to or distort this message. The Galatians had deviated from what Paul himself had taught them.
Galatians is a passionate and bold message defending the gospel of grace against the perversion of the gospel that was being taught by Judaizers. These Judaizers were teaching that Gentile Christians needed to adhere to traditional Jewish customs, including circumcision, to be saved. Paul argues vehemently against those who were teaching that Gentile believers needed to be circumcised and adhere to the Jewish law to be truly saved.
Paul urges the Galatians to get back on course because they had deviated from the gospel he preached to them, which is salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone, not by works of the law.
1 This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.
2 All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter to the churches of Galatia.
3 May God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. 4 Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. 5 All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.
6 I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News7 but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ.
8 Let God’s curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you. 9 I say again what we have said before: If anyone preaches any other Good News than the one you welcomed, let that person be cursed.
10 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 1:1-10 (NLT)
In his opening verses, the Apostle Paul draws attention to his apostolic calling given not by human means but by Jesus Christ Himself and God the Father. Paul’s opening volley underscores the divine truth and imperative of his message. Paul is surprised by how quickly the Galatians had turned away from the gospel of grace toward a “different gospel”—which is no gospel at all. Paul’s words echo through the centuries to us today, calling believers to hold fast to the core of our faith: salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ, and Christ alone.
Today, Paul’s writings serve as a steadfast reminder to us of the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice for our salvation and the transformative power of living by the Spirit. Paul’s words are a stark reminder to us of the importance of discernment and the dangers of distortion of the true gospel.
How can you guard yourself against contemporary “different gospels” that try to distort the true message of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and grace?
You are loved.
Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™
The Devotional Guy™ 
A great message. In our culture, there are so many ways we can be led astray. It’s important to keep God’s Word close to our hearts so we can discern between right and wrong. I also love verse 10 here where Paul says, “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.” A good reminder that we need to do everything for an audience of One.
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Amen. Yes, indeed. People deviate from the Gospel nowadays just like they did in Paul’s day. Thanks for reading!
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