Friday, January 11, 2013

Galatians 1:6


Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely
Galatians 1:6

6 I marvel [thaumazo] that [hoti] ye are [metatithemi] so [houto] soon [tacheos] removed [metatithemi] from [apo] him that called [kaleo] you [humas] into [en] the grace [charis] of Christ [Christos] unto [eis] another [heteros] gospel: [euaggelion] KJV-Interlinear

6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; NASB


Marvel, ‘thaumazo,’ is typically used in the form of wonder or admiration, but here it is used in dramatic disappointment, Paul being so surprised that such a promising group of people, in so many different churches within this region, all collectively fell off their spiritual direction in such a short space of time.

The time frame is not mentioned, but is here implied that it was short, at least in Pauls mind.

The Galatians had heard the gospel, and had believed, so much so that not just one or two churches were formed, but several churches in the area of Galatia, were formed.

And then, almost as though one simply turns around and everything has changed with seemingly no effort or delay or thought.

And so Paul is amazed, flabbergasted, shaking his head in this unbelievably fast change.

Him that called you, is a reference to God the Father, Gal 1:15; Rom 8:30; 9:24,25; 1 Cor 1:9; 7:15,17; 1 Thess 2:12; 2 Thess 2:14; 2 Tim 1:9).

This departure from truth, is stated here very clearly, as one of a separation from God Himself.

People do not simply choose between one philosophy or trend of thought for another, they actively choose for Gods truth, or they choose against it.  The world is not a cafeteria where God has given you many choices, and then off you go in life to see how you do.

Quite the contrary, God gives every person a single choice, namely truth or lies.  And you either choose for God, by doing His will, or you choose against God, by choosing your own invented interpretation of life.

And Gods will is very easy to learn. 

He mandates you to believe in Christ to be saved.
He mandates you to confess your sins in order to reside in fellowship (Gods sanctuary).
He mandates you to study daily by instruction (your daily spiritual meal).
He mandates you to learn from that daily study (to develop understanding).
He mandates you to use what you learn, in your daily life (to further develop your understanding and to become spiritually productive).
He mandates you to repeat this process so that you will develop wisdom.

All of this in turn develops your spiritual muscle, develops your faith, develops within you a natural desire to support and contribute to that which sustains your spiritual development.

These things, learning, understanding, application, production, wisdom, faith, support, all lead to the completion of your life, from within the scope of this life in this world.

The final components of your, self completion, come in the afterlife when you receive your eternal reward, and then possess it in the next universe.

These things the Galatians knew.

But what so often occurs, is that people get away from their daily studies, and begin to listen to offhand teachings and that is the beginning of their spiritual downfall.  They begin to believe that they can do things themselves.  They begin to believe that they do not need God, but can look into themselves for what they need in order to be acceptable to God.  They begin to believe that they can earn Gods respect, and that is one of the biggest lies of evil of all time.

The biggest enemy of the spiritual life is the lack of a consistent daily study.  And this leads to the false impression that what you are doing, is correct, when it is not.

If you do not pursue your study daily every day, and every day of your life, then you are not in Gods will, and probably have already been swallowed up by spiritual failure, but just have not figured that out.

But, anyone and everyone who is still alive and breathing in this world, always has the opportunity to get their spiritual act together, by beginning or resuming their daily studies.

You cannot know what you do not learn.
You cannot learn if you are not taught.
You cannot be taught if you do not engage in a daily study.

And daily means the intake of spiritual food for the soul, as symbolized by your need for daily meals of physical foods.  The principle is the same.

Eat once a month or once a year and how good will your health be?