There is No Other Gospel

There Is No Other Gospel              Rolling Hills Church

Gal 1:6-12[1] 23 May 2010

 

Gal 1:6-12

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel--

7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.

9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel.

12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

I think we can see the text in the light of four words today; astonished, accursed, approval, and authority. These are strong words, and this is strong language. Let's pray, and dig in.

Astonished and Accursed, vs 6-9. I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel-- not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Astonished. Astonished that you are turning so quickly from God. Deserting God; "him who called you in the grace of Christ". God is the gospel here; it is God who is contrasted with "a different gospel"! The truth that the Galatian churches had heard must be understood and valued in order to rightly grasp the depth of Paul's concern; these people had seen God in the glory of Christ! 2 Cor 4:4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Looking to, believing in, and receiving Christ is to look to, believe in and to receive God Himself! So troubling new believers, offering them a different, distorted, or contrary gospel was opposed to believing God Himself. Serious. or offering a gospel, It was relationship with God that Christ brought the Galatian churches, as Paul preached Him crucified, buried, risen and coming again.  So what Paul is astonished (and this is a strong, strong word here; amazed, or to be astounded) about is that they were so quickly deserting God for another gospel, which is no gospel at all. God, in all His glory, majesty, and splendor, is Who these circumcision teachers were robbing the church of. Paul was astonished because this was a grave issue; a life and death issue.

Deserting. This isn't a term we take lightly, even today. Throughout history in any organized military the punishment for deserters has been death; often immediately inflicted without the benefit of courts or trials. As late as WWI desertion was still a death sentence by court martial; during the Civil War it was often a bullet from a ranking officer in the battle, and to make an example to deter others.[2] I'm not saying those who turn from Christ should be shot; I am saying to turn from the gospel is to turn from forgiveness, hope, and eternal life found in Christ alone. Accursed. Regardless of who they are, let them be accursed. Accursed is the one who brings you another gospel to deceive you away from life and into death. Devoted to destruction.

Accursed is the one who distorts the gospel of Christ, to make it more or less than it is.

Accursed is the one who brings a gospel contrary to the one gospel you've received.

Now from what I understand of the language Paul wasn't calling down a curse on these men; he was acknowledging that they were accursed already because of their attack on the gospel.

Paul's strongest language throughout his writings was reserved for his greatest enemies – the false teachers. Why? Because their work is satanically led and powered; they are 'false prophets', Jesus said, and 'of their father the devil', who is 'a liar from the beginning'.  Jesus said this referring to the deception of God's Word in the garden, 'Did God actually say?' and then the huge lie, 'You will not die!'. Of course, he was wrong, and the Satanic lie these young Galatian Christians was exposed to was such a lie, one that could again lead to death! So let the preachers of such a lie be accursed, anathema, or 'devoted to destruction'. Such language should hold us!

Approval and Authority, 10-12. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. Here in verse 10-12 we'll consider what Paul was seeking and what he gave away.

Approval of man. Paul was very definitely not living his life for this. He was risking his life to preach the gospel to man for God's approval. He saw early on that man's approval wouldn't be bought by the message of the cross; that currency only cost him such approval. For a bit of a modern comparison: today academics who hold fast to the theory of Creation or even to the theory of Intelligent Design do so often at the cost of their advancement in their chosen career fields. To hold to these views could cost you raises, positions of honor and prestige, tenure, and even your job. Such men and women must decide; will I pursue and write of true science, or the religiously accepted party line of evolution? For true science often contradicts evolution at its base. Stephen Meyer has written a book called Signature in the Cell which unpacks this thesis: the best explanation for the origins of biological information is that it comes from an intelligent source, a mind. In a debate with a theistic evolutionist named Steve Matheson, Matheson said this of Meyer's argument: "I buy that, I get it, it's, it's obvious. But I see the world differently than you do"[3]. Matheson recognizes the good science, but holds fast to his faulty science due to his faulty worldview. Matheson is honored, and Meyer is vilified.

Now that illustrates that these academics must either please man in their current culture or seek truth; but it's not a direct life/death situation for them. The people in the churches of Galatia would have to make this call; either please and placate the Judaizers who were adding circumcision to the gospel in trying to reconcile law and grace, or stand on grace through faith alone at the expense of the acceptance of man. Paul had already made that choice. He sought the approval of God, not of man, and that was what he challenged the young believers on now.

Paul's personal dilemma was this: please man and live a safe, good life while people die in their sins; or please God and offer eternal life in the truth of the cross and risk your own life repeatedly. By God's call and power – which we'll see more next week – Paul preached Christ. Want to know more sad truth? Many mainline denominations of past glory have traveled down this road of seeking man's approval at the expense of the gospel, and they have STILL faded into oblivion! What reward was promised by the lure of the false gospel has proven empty as well as the lie itself, and now those liars will face an Unhappy, Holy God.

Authority. This is a Scriptural Issue: is the gospel taught in the Old Testament and by the apostles THE gospel, and is it from God? Paul's adamant writing was YES! It is a battle still brought to the gates of the church today. Some argue that the church created the Bible, the Canon. This is how many think of God's Word today, and they are wrong – and dangerously so. It is consistent in Scripture, however, that the Word of God ALWAYS creates the Word of God. God spoke men and women into existence. God called Abraham, and the 'people of God' were created; Abraham didn't created the Word of God, but the Word of God created Abraham! God sent His Son who was and who preached the truth. He sent the apostles into the world with this Gospel[4].

I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

The church only recognized the Word of God, and that on two grounds; apostolicity and inspiration. Was this written by an apostle or someone in his circle, and 2) does this book bear the marks of inspiration? Does it line up with the Hebrew Bible, what we call the Old Testament? For example; Gnostic writers taught that all material, all matter was evil; and when the church Fathers held these Gnostic up to the light of the Scriptures, they pointed the contradiction with the truth in Gen 1 and 2 – God created it all and saw that it was good! Thus they strongly refuted the lies of the Gnostics and held up the truth of the gospel.

The Word of God creates the people of God: God's people do not create God's Word.

Church, this issue of authority hasn't gone away. It is raging today as emergents and liberals in massive churches and small ones write books that disdain the Authority of the Scriptures. We must hold fast to this truth; The Bible is our standard for all of life, practice, and ministry. We have no other truth, no other gospel.

Authority of the gospel message comes from God, and through Christ our Lord.

Authority of the gospel message has come from Christ our Lord through the Apostles to us today.

So… Astonished. Accursed. Approval. Authority. These were grave issues that faced the Galatian churches, and I say they are grave issues that we face still today.

Astonished: Amazed and astounded. Astonished that believers would turn from God to another gospel. Tell me, what is your connection to God – is it Christ alone? What is your love for, enjoyment of, and hope in – is it God alone through Christ alone? On what threads are you holding fast to the truth? Are they strong and well kept, or are they thin and oft-neglected? Would the apostle be amazed or astonished at how easily we disobey God, or turn from this life-giving gospel to write our own or to buy that of some false teacher? Or would he be encouraged at how we hold fast to Christ and His Word through the challenges of our day?

Accursed: accursed is the condition of those who teach another gospel, a distorted gospel, a gospel contrary to the truth. Do you fear the wrath of God enough to tell the truth about God and His glory, about Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life? You're not doing anyone any favors by distorting or contradicting it, and you're putting yourself in grave danger. Also, let us be discerning in who we listen to and follow, for false teachers still abound, church! This isn't a past-tense issue; as long as there is a true gospel, then false gospels will abound. 

Approval. The approval of man is deceptive, empty, and dead. We are tempted to fit in, be valued, and to toe the party line so, so often! Folks, this cross doesn't fit well in the vehicle of many cultures; will you leave it by the curb to get in, or will you walk with your cross?

Authority. Let us hold fast to God's good Word, being fed well and strengthened on this pure gospel, that we were and are sinners, needing to be saved from the penalty our sins have deserved from God. Jesus Christ came and paid this price, bringing to us salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. This message is authoritative, exclusive, singular, and beautiful. It is the message of life, hope, forgiveness, and adoption. Have you received this good news, this Son of God, this Savior and Lord? There IS no other gospel.

 

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[1] All Scripture, unless otherwise noted, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (via E-Sword Software) © 2001 Crossway Publishing. All Rights Reserved

[2] interesting article about this found at http://www.civilwarhome.com/desertion.htm

[3] Excellent read found at http://www.evolutionnews.org/2010/05/which_steve_said_design_is_an.html

[4] This point was excellently made and supported by Ligon Duncan in his message at the Together for the Gospel Conference in Louisville, KY that I recently attended.