Believing the Word

Week 4

1 Then fourteen years later I went back to Jerusalem again, this time with Barnabas; and Titus came along, too. 2 I went there because God revealed to me that I should go. While I was there I met privately with those considered to be leaders of the church and shared with them the message I had been preaching to the Gentiles. I wanted to make sure that we were in agreement, for fear that all my efforts had been wasted and I was running the race for nothing. 3 And they supported me and did not even demand that my companion Titus be circumcised, though he was a Gentile.

4 Even that question came up only because of some so-called Christians there—false ones, really—who were secretly brought in. They sneaked in to spy on us and take away the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to enslave us and force us to follow their Jewish regulations. 5 But we refused to give in to them for a single moment. We wanted to preserve the ruth of the gospel message for you. Galatians 2:1-5 NLT

This week we’re heading into the first part of chapter two of Galatians, where Paul continues to explain his authority as a servant of Christ and of the true Good News. He is up against steep criticism and powerful leaders. The Judaizers were not only preaching a false doctrine based on living by the Jewish law and customs, but they were also claiming that Paul’s message was wrong. This scenario presented an interesting dynamic of he said, they said. Who should the Galatians believe?

Paul offers a number of reasons for the Galatians to accept his message. He explained that fourteen years after his conversion, he returned to Jerusalem—because God revealed to him that he should go—to meet privately with leaders in the church in order to have the message he was preaching to the Gentiles confirmed and approved (v. 1-2). Talk about humility and integrity in his leadership! Paul recognized the need to be held accountable by other leaders in the faith, and also deeply valued their input.

The leaders affirmed his work, even though spies sneaked in attempting to take away the freedom in Christ Jesus by forcing Jewish regulations on the Gentile Christians (v. 4). Paul declared in verse 5, “But we refused to give in to them for a single moment. We wanted to preserve the truth of the gospel message for you.”

I can’t help but wonder how many times we face the same scenario that the Galatians experienced. We hear the truth of the Gospel from a servant of Jesus Christ. We take it into our hearts and begin to live it out. But then we hear another message, which initially seems similar, by those that call themselves Christians. Yet it is perverted with a theological bent that departs from the truth of Scripture. How do we know what is right and true? How do we know whom to believe?

Paul gives sound advice to the Galatians: Believe only the true Gospel message (v. 5). Where do we find that message? The Bible. Even though we can receive the Gospel message from pastors and Bible teachers, it is ultimately our responsibility to open up the Bible and read the Word of God personally. We can, and often should, come under the teaching of a pastor, Sunday school teacher, Bible study leader, and even devotional writer (although I quiver at the thought of putting myself in this category), but we are each responsible for taking what we hear and discerning it in light of Scripture.

Man is fallible, but God is infallible. Even a good-willed and God-loving person can misalign the truth of the Gospel. Paul is inherently aware of this fact, which is why he puts himself under the authority of the leaders in the faith back in Jerusalem. In doing so, he provided an example of what to look for in a messenger of the Gospel.

Therefore, the question we must also consider is whether the preachers and teachers we are listening to are coming under the authority of others in the faith and looking for confirmation of their message from other respected Christian leaders. No matter whom we appoint as our spiritual leader, we must remember that we, personally, must come under the authority of Christ and the word of God. Our goal should be like Paul’s: To preserve the truth of the gospel message. If we stay true to Scripture, we shouldn’t find ourselves wandering slowly off-course.

Heavenly Father, thank you for the example of Paul in his pursuit to spread the Gospel of truth. It never ceases to amaze me how relevant your Word is to us today, and how you’ve provided every instruction and encouragement we’ve ever needed in the Bible. Lord, I pray you would reveal to each of us today ways in which we need to preserve the truth of the Gospel.

Faith Walking

• What has been your primary source of learning Scripture and how to live a Godly life?
• Do you depend on the teaching from a pastor, friend, devotions, or even family member in order to understand Scripture?
• Do you think it is important to study the Word of God on your own in addition to listening to the teachings from other Christians?

The Next Step

Take time to today, or sometime this week, to read Galatians chapters 1-3. Pray for the Lord to take you back in time and picture the lives of people in Galatia and Paul. Look deeply into God’s Word, searching for relevancy. If you have some extra time, head over to Oneplace.com and browse the listings of sermons. Click the Faith Talk button to listen to the current broadcast or pick one from the list of titles. Use this time to practice listening with discernment followed by searching the Scriptures for confirmation. Pray for God to confirm the message in your reading of Scripture over the next week. (P.S. A great time to listen to sermons is while folding laundry—it is portable, even if your computer is not!)

Faith Walking Challengers…
How can we pray for you this week? What praises can we join you in? Leave a link to your blog post or drop a comment below. We love to hear from you!

Galatians Devotional 4 in Word

Galaians Devotional 4 in PDF

This devotional is downloadable and printable for your personal use. However, It may not be reprinted for distribution with out permission from Elisa. You may contact her at extragrace (at) gmail (.) com.

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