Highlight Reel
Sermon Summary
This text analyzes Paul’s letter to the Galatians, focusing on his strong condemnation of those distorting the gospel message by adding requirements beyond faith in Christ. The author emphasizes the true gospel’s core components: God’s grace, Christ’s atoning sacrifice, and salvation through faith alone. The text contrasts this with false gospels presented by groups like Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Islam, highlighting the uniqueness of the Christian gospel’s central claims about Jesus. Finally, the author urges readers to defend the true gospel, emphasizing its life-altering power and the eternal consequences of believing a false gospel.
Sermon Audio
Shareable Quote graphics
Sermon Text
Main Idea
There is only one gospel that has the power to save, and it is worth fighting for.
How many of you have a full-length mirror at home? If it is clean and unbroken, it gives you an accurate reflection of yourself, right? Whether or not you like what you see, it shows your true form. Now, let me ask another question. How many of you have ever stood in front of a funhouse mirror? Would you trust it to reflect who you really are?
It has the basic properties of a standard mirror—reflective properties that reflect your image—but the reflection it offers is twisted and untrue. Your form is stretched, shrunk, or warped in ways that misrepresent who you really are. While the mirror might resemble a real one, its distortion creates a false version of reality. Similarly, the Judaizers took the elements of the gospel and, like a funhouse mirror, reflected a distorted version that misrepresented the truth of salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone.
Passage
Galatians 1:3–10 CSB
Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
I am amazed that you are so quickly turning away from him who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another gospel, but there are some who are troubling 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 what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!
For am I now trying to persuade people, or God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
I – Recap
Galatians 1:1–2 CSB
Paul, an apostle—not from men or by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead—and all the brothers who are with me:
To the churches of Galatia.
Paul wrote the book and must begin by defending his authority and apostleship against false teachers infiltrating the church. Therefore, he begins by stating that he is an apostle and has been established as one by Jesus, the resurrected Messiah, and God the Father, who raised Him. No human has given Paul the authority he has. God Himself has issued it, and all the brothers with Paul stand in agreement.
As we established last week, Paul is writing to the cluster of churches in the Roman province of Galatia that he planted on his first missionary journey. These false teachers, known as Judaizers, are demanding that obedience to the Mosaic Law (like circumcision, for example) be a prerequisite to the Gentile men and women coming to faith in Jesus as the Jewish Messiah. Just prior to the Jerusalem Council, when Paul and Barnabas returned to their home base of operations in Antioch, some of these Judaizers came from Judea saying that “unless you are circumcised according to the custom prescribed by Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 15:1).
II – Greeting (vv. 3-5)
Galatians 1:3–5 CSB
Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
While the standard 1st-century letter always includes a greeting, this is anything but standard. Each part of Paul’s greeting also serves as a major load-bearing wall on which his argument for the true gospel is built.
Wall 1 – Grace & Peace – Though this is an inclusive greeting for Jews and Gentiles alike, it is also part of the theological framework Paul is setting up to present crucial theological truths, which is a key pillar in that framework. Paul will go on to passionately defend the true gospel against a false gospel, and neatly tucked into his opening greeting is the first key ingredient of the gospel: the grace of God gives you peace with God. The true gospel is a gospel of grace. Without it, there is no relationship or reconciliation, and therefore there is no peace. All that remains is wrath and judgment (Romans 5). If you want peace with God, He must first extend grace to you and draw you to Himself, and both elements come from the unified provision of the Father and the Son.
Wall 2 – The gospel mission – The will of the Father sends the Son, who freely gives himself as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
Wall 3—The gospel’s purpose is to rescue us from the present evil age. The gospel frees us to live out the benefits of the New Covent age under Jesus’ rulership in the current worldly system, which is under sin’s curse. It is for us today just as much as it secures our eternal future.
Wall 4 – The gospel result – The glory and success of the mission goes to God alone. He did it all! He did it all! Our lives are living sacrifices offered up to the glory of the Father.
Paul had to establish these walls and provide a working definition of the true gospel because he would immediately attack and condemn a distorted version of it.
III – Straight to the Point (vv. 6-7)
Galatians 1:6–7 CSB
I am amazed that you are so quickly turning away from him who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another gospel, but there are some who are troubling you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.
Paul is so angry and concerned about what he sees happening in the Galatian churches that he skips over any pleasantries. Typically, a letter like this would include some encouragement or an opening prayer for the congregation, but he skips over all that and gets straight to the point… WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU THINKING?!
The stark contrast between the greeting and urgency would have immediately grabbed their attention.
Paul goes from grace and peace and glory to God… to I am absolutely flabbergasted! I hope you see it. He marvels at a few things:
1 – The speed of their altered allegiance. If he is speaking to the churches he planted during his first missionary journey, he has barely had the time to unpack his clothes in Jerusalem before the big council meeting when he receives the news that they had followed another gospel.
2—They were turning from God. It’s not that they had simply rejected the message; they were turning away from the God who gave them grace leading to peace. The thrust of the term Paul uses is one of military desertion… or a soldier who has become a turncoat… abandoning their unit to join the enemy ranks.
3 – Turning toward another gospel. In this sort of action, they weren’t just turning away from something or someone but also turning to something or someone else. In this case, they were turning from God and aligning themselves with the false teachers and the false gospel they were promoting, which was nearly unthinkable for Paul. And, to add clarification, this was aNOther gospel… NO meaning that there isn’t a secondary gospel, but only a sinful distortion of the original.
How seriously do you take your faith? Is it an add-on to your current lifestyle, or is it foundational? If it is an add-on, perhaps you still view faith as a set of rules to follow or doctrines to memorize.
Takeaway #1: Believing the message of the gospel means embracing the God of the gospel.
IV – Curses! (vv. 8-9)
Galatians 1:8–9 CSB
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!
Paul is so angry at the distortion of the gospel that he issues a curse on anyone who would propagate anything but the pure gospel that he preached to them the first time around. And he doesn’t just point the finger at the bad guys. He points to them, to himself, to the Apostles or Barnabas (in saying, ‘we’), or even an angel from heaven. If ANYONE preaches a false gospel, they are to be anathematized or cursed.
anathĕma – a (religious) ban or excommunicated —accused.
But this curse goes beyond excommunication or being kicked out of Christian fellowship. Paul uses it in much stronger terms, and because he says it twice, he means to land the punch. The person who preaches and spreads a false gospel is to be placed under God’s judicial wrath and eternally condemned. That is how forcefully Paul guards the true gospel!
But why defend it so vigorously? Isn’t this incredibly intolerant of Paul? Is the distortion of the gospel really that severe? To answer that question, we needn’t look any further than Romans 1:16:
Romans 1:16 CSB
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek.
This is a great declaration we should all be passionate about, but let’s follow Paul’s logic for a moment. The gospel is not something to be ashamed of, though many in his day rejected it and made his life very difficult. But why shouldn’t he (or we) be ashamed of it? It’s because the gospel is the power of God for salvation… it is the means by which we are born again and regenerated to new life! Therefore, if we receive a false gospel, we receive something that claims to secure our eternal destiny in God’s presence, but can’t!
It is like taking monopoly money to Walmart to buy groceries. When you get to the cashier, they will reject it (and probably laugh in your face). Why? Because monopoly money has no actual purchasing power. It isn’t a real currency. In the USA, only the US dollar has real purchasing power. Any gospel other than the true gospel has no purchasing power for your soul. There is only one approved currency that can pay the price.
So, yes… I think Paul is acting precisely as he should… and so should we.
Paul’s message is that God’s grace to unworthy sinners allows us to be justified by faith in Christ. Nothing else needs to be added to the mix. But, his opponents are trying to add Old Testament Laws and regulations on top of Jesus’ sacrifice, saying that circumcision is also required to be saved. That is a dangerous and distorted gospel.
Many people still believe this same lie today. If you asked people on the street the question, “If you died tonight, why do you think you would be allowed into heaven?” I bet the majority of people would say, “Because I am a good person.” What do they mean by that? They mean that their good works outweigh the bad, so the balance of the scale is tipped in their favor. That is a works-based view of salvation.
Specifically, the gospel in question is the ‘gospel of Christ,’ meaning He is the focal point. This is a straightforward litmus test to discern the real gospel from a counterfeit.
How many religions have Jesus in the mix, but isn’t the real Jesus? And of those religions, how many began with a vision or proclamation from an angel?
Islam
• Main Leader: Muhammad
• Visited by an Angel?: Yes, Angel Jibril (Gabriel) revealed the Quran to Muhammad.
• How Their Version of Jesus Differs:
• Jesus is considered a highly revered prophet but not the Son of God or divine.
• He did not die on the cross; instead, someone else was crucified in his place, and Jesus was taken to heaven alive.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormonism)
• Main Leader: Joseph Smith
• Visited by an Angel?: Yes, Angel Moroni revealed golden plates that became the Book of Mormon.
• How Their Version of Jesus Differs:
• Jesus is seen as a separate being from God the Father, not part of a Trinitarian Godhead.
• Jesus is considered the elder brother of all humans and Lucifer.
• He achieved godhood and set an example for others to follow toward exaltation.
Jehovah’s Witnesses
• Main Leader: Charles Taze Russell
• Visited by an Angel?: No documented angelic visitation.
• How Their Version of Jesus Differs:
• Jesus is seen as the archangel Michael incarnate, not God but a created being.
• He is not part of the Trinity, which Jehovah’s Witnesses reject as unbiblical.
• Jesus’ resurrection is believed to have been spiritual, not physical.
There is only one true Jesus and one legitimate gospel. If you believe in a counterfeit gospel or a false Christ, you have a Jesus that cannot save you.
So, let’s not deceive ourselves into thinking that this is a 1st-century issue only. This problem is alive and well in the church today.
Takeaway #2: One of the most loving things you can do for a person who any of these systems has deceived is to lovingly confront false claims and show them the true gospel.
It’s time to get them back on the right team.
V – Gospel
What is the gospel? Gospel means ‘Good News,’ and as we’ve seen already, it is good news specifically about Jesus Christ.
We could go to dozens of verses to flesh this out, but I thought it would be helpful to look at one passage of scripture from Paul’s first missionary journey to discover what he said to them. That should give us helpful context for what he is trying to reinforce in this letter. So, let’s travel back to Pisidian Antioch. Here, Paul goes into the synagogue. Passages from the Law and Prophets are read, and Paul is invited to speak. He begins by explaining how God chose Israel and let them out of Egypt, then summarizes God’s provision in giving them the promised land and rulers that come to a focal point in King David, whose lineage the Messiah will come from. Then, he goes on to say:
Acts 13:23–39 CSB
“From this man’s descendants, as he promised, God brought to Israel the Savior, Jesus. Before his coming to public attention, John had previously proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. Now as John was completing his mission, he said, ‘Who do you think I am? I am not the one. But one is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet.’
“Brothers and sisters, children of Abraham’s race, and those among you who fear God, it is to us that the word of this salvation has been sent. Since the residents of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him or the sayings of the prophets that are read every Sabbath, they have fulfilled their words by condemning him. Though they found no grounds for the death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him killed. When they had carried out all that had been written about him, they took him down from the tree and put him in a tomb.
But God raised him from the dead, and he appeared for many days to those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people. And we ourselves proclaim to you the good news of the promise that was made to our ancestors. God has fulfilled this for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second Psalm:
You are my Son; today I have become your Father.
As to his raising him from the dead, never to return to decay, he has spoken in this way, I will give you the holy and sure promises of David. Therefore he also says in another passage, You will not let your Holy One see decay. For David, after serving God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and decayed, but the one God raised up did not decay. Therefore, let it be known to you, brothers and sisters, that through this man forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you. Everyone who believes is justified through him from everything that you could not be justified from through the law of Moses.”
So, what elements do we see in this passage?
- Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to give Israel a Savior.
- The message is a message of salvation
- Jesus was innocent and killed
- God raised Jesus, fulfilling prophecy and establishing His Kingship (Ps. 2 reference)
- In His death and resurrection, forgiveness of sins is made possible.
- Those who believe in Jesus’ atoning death and resurrection are justified in their faith… not through the Mosaic Law.
Now, let’s compare that with the gospel elements in Paul’s greeting:
1 – Grace & Peace – the grace of God gives you peace with God.
2 – The gospel mission – The will of the Father sends the Son, who freely gives himself as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
3 – The gospel’s purpose is to rescue us from the present evil age.
4 – The gospel result – The glory goes to God alone.
Therefore, based on the Galatian context, we could define the gospel as:
the good news of Jesus Christ, God’s promised Savior, who died for our sins and rose again to rule and reign, graciously offering forgiveness and reconciliation with God to all who believe in Him in faith alone, for God’s glory alone.
In the context of the message to the Galatians. Jesus, the innocent Savior, was crucified, and God raised Him from the dead, fulfilling prophecy and establishing His Kingship. Through His death and resurrection, forgiveness of sins is made possible, and those who believe in His atoning sacrifice are justified by faith, not by adherence to the Mosaic Law. This message of grace brings peace with God, rescues us from the present evil age, and glorifies God alone as the ultimate purpose and result of His redemptive mission.
Takeaway #3: The gospel must be given as a message of salvation that includes Jesus’ atoning death, resurrection, and Lordship that is completely sufficient to save us, justify us, and showcase God’s faithfulness to His covenant promises.
VI – Serving the Right Master (v. 10)
This final verse is a bit of a gut-punch reaction from Paul and is likely a response to his opponent’s accusations that he is being too lenient with his version of the gospel. They have been following the Mosaic law for centuries. How dare Paul say that all it takes is faith? Surely, Paul is going easy on them to win them ove r and gain their affection, right?
WRONG.
Paul proves his allegiance to the gospel by being hard on the Galatian churches. His sharp, angry tone shows he is not trying to win their approval. If that were his focus, he wouldn’t be God’s servant… the same God that established his authority as an Apostle!
And we need to be the same way. In closing, we must all treat the gospel as Paul did. We may not have to get punchy as he did, but we should hold it with the same reverential awe because it is the power of God to save and lead us to the God who gave it to us to proclaim.
Questions to Consider
In what ways might we be tempted to add to or subtract from the gospel of Christ?
Why does Paul emphasize his apostolic authority at the beginning of the letter?
What keywords or phrases does Paul repeat in this passage?
How does Paul describe the gospel in verses 3-5?
How can we discern between the true gospel and false teachings today?
FAQs
FAQ: The True Gospel and Its Distortions
- What is the main concern Paul expresses in his letter to the Galatians, and why is it so urgent?
- Paul is deeply concerned because the Galatian churches are quickly turning away from the true gospel of grace and towards a distorted version promoted by false teachers (Judaizers). This is urgent because he views this shift not merely as a change in doctrine but as a betrayal of God himself. They were abandoning the faith they had been taught and embracing a false gospel. Paul likens this to a soldier deserting their unit to join the enemy.
- What is the “false gospel” that the Judaizers are promoting, and how does it differ from the true gospel?
- The Judaizers taught that Gentile converts needed to adhere to the Mosaic Law, including circumcision, in addition to faith in Jesus, to be saved. The true gospel, in contrast, is that salvation is achieved through grace by faith in Jesus Christ alone, without any added requirement of works or laws. The Judaizers were essentially creating a “funhouse mirror” version of the gospel that appeared similar but was fundamentally distorted.
- Why is Paul so vehement in condemning anyone who preaches a different gospel, even to the point of issuing a curse?
- Paul is so vehement because the true gospel is the only way to salvation. He views a distorted gospel as having no “purchasing power” for the soul, like using monopoly money to buy groceries. It misleads people by offering a false sense of security and cannot provide true reconciliation with God. Therefore, those who spread a false gospel are under God’s judicial wrath because they are causing others to reject God’s gracious provision of salvation.
- What are the core elements of the true gospel, as outlined in Paul’s greeting (Galatians 1:3-5) and his sermon in Acts 13?
The core elements include:
- Grace and Peace: God’s grace is the foundation of our reconciliation with Him, bringing peace.
- Atoning Sacrifice: Jesus willingly gave himself as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
- Rescue: The gospel’s purpose is to rescue us from the present evil age, leading us into the kingdom of Christ.
- God’s Glory: The glory for this work belongs solely to God, the giver of salvation.
In his sermon, he highlights:
- Jesus as Savior: Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to send a Savior.
- Salvation: The message is one of salvation.
- Innocence and Sacrifice: Jesus was innocent and yet crucified.
- Resurrection and Kingship: God raised Jesus from the dead, fulfilling prophecy, establishing His Kingship.
- Forgiveness and Justification: Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, forgiveness of sins is made possible for those who believe.
In short, the gospel is about God’s provision of salvation through Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, resurrection, and offer of reconciliation to all who believe.
- How does Paul defend his apostolic authority, and why is it significant to his argument?
- Paul defends his apostolic authority by stating that he received it directly from Jesus Christ and God the Father, not from any human source. He emphasizes this to demonstrate that his message is not his own creation but a divine revelation. This is important because it establishes the validity and authority of the gospel message he preaches and counters the false teachers who try to undermine his message.
- What is the significance of Paul’s focus on grace in contrast to law in this letter?
- Paul’s focus on grace is essential because it emphasizes that salvation is a free gift from God, not something earned through obedience to the law or good works. He argues that adding laws, like circumcision, undermines the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice and introduces a works-based system that cannot save. The true gospel is centered on God’s grace extended to us through Jesus’s atonement, which we receive by faith alone.
- How can we discern between the true gospel and false teachings in our own time?
- To discern between the true gospel and false teachings:
- Focus on Jesus: Examine if Jesus is at the center of the message and presented as the divine Son of God, who died for sins and resurrected.
- Salvation by Grace: Confirm that the message teaches that salvation is received through grace by faith in Jesus alone, not through works or adherence to any law.
- God’s Glory: Ensure that the primary aim of the message is to bring glory to God, not to promote any individual or organization.
- Compare with Scripture: Check if the message aligns with the teaching of the Bible as the ultimate source of truth.
- Be Aware of Twists: Be wary of teachings that subtly add or subtract from the gospel or distort the character of Jesus.
- Examples in this source show how some religions may incorporate Jesus, but their view of him is distorted.
- What is the key takeaway regarding our role in relation to the gospel message, based on Paul’s actions and words in this passage?
- The key takeaway is that we should guard and defend the true gospel with the same passion and conviction that Paul did. We must treat the gospel with reverential awe as it is the power of God to save. We also need to be willing to lovingly confront and correct those who are deceived by false teachings, helping them return to the true gospel. This also includes ensuring we ourselves are living out the gospel and not simply adding it on to our lives, but making it the foundation.