How Serious
In my sixty-one years of living, I have learned that there are different levels of seriousness in life.
For instance, there’s the seriousness that is expressed when someone simply wishes to make an important point that isn’t life or death. “I’m not kidding here; I’m serious.”
Then there’s the seriousness of parents on a road trip with kids fighting in the car. The dad or mom says, “Stop it, or so help me, I will stop this car and pull you out!”
Then there’s the seriousness of wishing the worst that could ever happen to someone should they violate something of great importance. I call this the highest level of seriousness.
This is the level of seriousness Paul went to over the gospel. He took the gospel seriously when men from Jerusalem came to Antioch, and it resulted in an open rebuke for Peter from Paul and temporarily led Barnabas astray. That resulted in Paula and Silas being sent to Jerusalem to bring the matter to the apostles and elders. After that, we discover Paul took it seriously with the Corinthians, and now we need to see how seriously he took it with the Galatians and the other churches in that region because the Galatian letter was to be read to all the churches in the region.
Galatians 1:6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7 which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. 10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
This matter of the importance of the New Covenant Gospel is very serious. An entire letter is committed to it. But at the start of this small but powerful letter, Paul says something that should cause any believer to stand up and take notice due to how serious he makes the issue.
He says, “If we or an angel from heaven!” He establishes the importance of the gospel first preached to them in such a serious way that he makes it clear that if he were ever to veer away from it and begin to mix in the law, he would wish himself accursed or even an angel.
Paul goes on to make it clear that he will never back off this position to please any man. He makes it clear that as a bondservant of Jesus Christ, he must stand on the truth of the New Covenant Gospel of Jesus regardless of how unpopular it might make him.
Paul devoted his life to preaching the gospel with clarity and simplicity. Paul uses much of the rest of Galatians to paint a contrast between the law covenant and the new covenant in Christ. One is of faith, and the other is not of faith. The sad reality is that the average believer might never truly read Galatians in a meaningful way, asking the Holy Spirit for revelation and understanding. Even sadder is that not many ministers in churches take the time to teach it to Christ’s disciples. Why would anyone spend time with it if they do not understand how serious it is? No one will ever outgrow their need for the New Covenant Gospel. How serious? Super serious if you were to ask me.
