majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him in Galatians 1:1,
"Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ
and God the Father, who raised him from the dead..."
As Paul responds to the occurrence of false teachers leading the
Galatian believers into theological error, he addresses his letter to
these churches as an apostle sent by Jesus Christ and God the Father.
Paul's credentials to speak authoritatively as God's representative
were impeccable. He wasn't sent on is own, he wasn't sent by the
mother church in Jerusalem or the theological center in Antioch (the
location where the Holy Spirit had commissioned him and Barnabas to
take the gospel to Galatia and other regions, Acts 13:2). He was sent
by God himself. No other authority comes close to that commission.
As God's hand-picked man, Paul was sent with a message. Again, the
authenticity, authority and accuracy of the gospel message Paul had
brought these churches is fully established by the origin of the
message. It did not come from another church, Paul didn't make it up
and it didn't come from some newly endowed school of theology. Paul's
gospel message came directly to Paul from God himself, Galatians
1:11-12.
I am often amazed to see folks these days argue against the writings
of Paul. They place themselves in the position of arguing against God
himself. I can't think of a more insane position to place one's self
into than to find yourself arguing with God. As the writer of Hebrews
says, "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God." Hebrews 10:31. It is to God we will have to give account of our
lives, of the decisions we have made, the things we have done. It is
God before whom we will all stand and have our eternal destinies
determined. Paradise or a fiery lake of burning sulfur?
How I thank our God for giving us his Son, Jesus Christ, to save us
from God's own wrath! May we all heed the gospel message of salvation
by faith that God himself gave to his hand-picked emissary, Paul, for
us.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd
love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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