As always, here’s my fairly literal translation of this passage:
6I am astonished [continually] that you are so quickly transferring from the One who called you in [the] grace of Christ into a different gospel, 7which is not another except some [are] agitating you and wishing to subvert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we or an angel out of Heaven should be preaching to you [something different] from what we preached to you, let him be anathema. 9As we said before and I am now saying again, if someone is preaching [to] you [something different] from what you received, let him be anathema.
As I said before, this isn’t necessarily the book I would choose to study, but I am excited to in fact study it just for that reason. I love when the Lord leads me to think about things I wouldn’t choose to think about, to show me things I would not have looked for.
Even in this opening passage, there a couple of things that “surprise” me and one that is a very pleasant thought.
The first thing that surprises me arises out of Paul’s statement, “I am astonished that you are so quickly transferring …” Robertson laments, “It is a continuous amazement today that so many are so silly and so gullible to modern as to ancient charlatans.” I agree. But it surprised me how much I agree. His words were like salt in a wound. “Astonished” is hardly strong enough. Sickened. Shocked. Disappointed. Incredulous. It has long been a grief to my soul to watch the human race and see this so true. A man can do an excellent job preaching and teaching straight from the Bible and gather no following at all, but the miserable charlatan televangelists garner followers by the millions year after year after year. And no matter how many of them go down in disgrace, the same people flock to listen to the chicaneries of the next one.
And it isn’t just in religion. Politics is no different. We have in Washington now beyond a doubt the worst, most grossly unqualified president in US history. Yet polls continue to say about 50% of the people approve of his performance. What?????? Every time he gets up to speak I personally hear very clearly that he is telling people what they want to hear. He’s pandering. There’s no substance whatsoever to anything he says. He just says “all the right things.” But I can also hear that he does it in that familiar smooth way that I already know will in fact appeal to the masses. Pied piper. It is a crying shame that there are so many people who could do an excellent job, but we would all say, “They’re probably not electable.” Why not? Because they aren’t “Hollywood” enough. What does Hollywood have to do with choosing the best person to serve as the President of the United States (or any other office for that matter)? Gullible masses. That’s what Hollywood has to do with it.
And what really drives me crazy is that too many times I’ve known these people. I would take them for reasonably sensible, intelligent people. And then to hear them fall headlong for the chicanery just utterly befuddles me.
Now here’s my rub: I don’t like the “way” all of that bothers me. I sense that somehow I’m simply “bothered” by it. Irritated. Not a godly thing, you understand. Some kind of personal thing. Which is not good. Like I said earlier, “like salt in a wound.” Paul goes on to write a whole book to these people. God commits one whole book of Scripture to Paul’s appeal. I haven’t studied very far yet, but already commentators note how loving and gentle he is considering the seriousness of the offense. I don’t think I’d be that way. I would just be fed up and go spend my time with someone else. Have said for years I wish I could charter a Mayflower and sail to the new world. Hmmmmmm. Obviously have something to learn here. As I study through the book, I hope to learn some things from Paul’s heart. Hope to learn how he clearly could keep on loving and not get fed up. Hmmmm. Always fun to study Scripture. Challenges my mind right down to the depths of my heart.
Now here’s a second thing that surprised me as I began to study: It surprises me to realize how much I don’t know how to balance a couple of things. Obviously, Paul is lit up about the Galatians defection from the Gospel. He sees the need to pounce on their embracing “another gospel, which is no gospel.” Obviously, within the church there is a time to confront error, to affirm truth, and obviously, this Judaizing of the Gospel is one of those times. On the other hand, in my experience, there has been way, way, way too much witch-hunting in the church groups I’ve been involved in. “Standing for the truth” has meant cutting off a young man from mission support because he’s decided maybe the rapture will come in the middle of the Tribulation. That’s “worth” pulling a couple off the mission field? Once I knew of two Baptist churches in the same (very) small town. I asked a member of one congregation about the other and they replied, “Oh, they’re kind of funny on the Holy Spirit.” That’s worth the complete disgrace of two Baptist churches in the same (very) small town? From my reading of history, I strongly suspect that witch-hunting was the destruction of the English church. In the 1500’s, 1600’s, 1700’s and even somewhat into the 1800’s, there was an enormous amount of profoundly sound teaching from many, many truly godly people in England. How then could that nation turn almost completely godless? The one thing that I read that does NOT impress me is how viciously the various Christian groups attacked each other. And that over such important issues as how to organize the leadership of the church – to which the Bible actually says very little. I strongly suspect their constant in-fighting completely destroyed their credibility with a watching world until today when English people want nothing to do at all with “church.” The Reformers themselves were shockingly vitriolic toward each other. Calvin hated Luther hated the Anabaptists hated … Every time any one of them learned anything from the Bible they pronounced an anathema on anyone who disagreed with them.
I could go on. But I hope you see my point. How does one balance the safeguarding of “truth” without becoming a carping witch-hunter? I can’t say I know the answer except that I think there ought to be an enormous amount of humility and prayer invested before we do anything less than openly love other professing Christians. “They’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
At this point, I don’t know if I have any answers. Once again, I don’t like the way it bothers me. I think there may be some things the Lord wants to teach me. And I hope, again, I can learn something from the heart of Paul to change my own. Hmmmmm.
Finally, I want to note something encouraging I see in this passage. Paul says he’s astonished how quickly they are transferring “from the One Who called you …” Note he doesn’t say “from the Gospel.” It’s “from the One Who called you …” I’m continually blessed by the fact that real Christianity is not just a “belief system” but rather an intensely personal relationship. I wonder how arresting it was to the Galatians to have it suggested they were transferring “from the One Who called you …”? It’s one thing to change one’s opinion on a matter. It’s an entirely different thing to cut off a relationship! One of the earliest delights of my own Christian experience was realizing that it wasn’t just a “belief system” but rather a matter of “knowing God.” Early on I ran across John 17:3, “For this is eternal life, that they might know You …” And I, of course, consumed JI Packer’s book, “Knowing God.” From the very beginning, He has been very personal with me. Without any doubt, I can say that what I treasure most about it all is this personal relationship with Him. The rest of life swirls about my head, profoundly important questions pummel me for answers, uncertainties and doubts and fears surround me, but I can honestly say I find a refuge in Him. He is, in the end, really truly all that matters. And the worst thing that could happen to me is not that I would get something wrong in my belief system, but rather that somehow I’d lose my connection with Him. I wonder sometimes how much I’ve offered to other people a belief system and how much I actually offered them a relationship(?). I wonder how many people supposedly embrace Christianity but only as a belief system, and never really ever get to enjoy the simple soul-pleasure of a relationship?
Great start to the book. Already has me thinking on some things and encouraged by others!
No comments:
Post a Comment