Galatians (17)

Having been a key eyewitness of our four babies, it’s amazing to me how quickly pure agony is turned into pure joy when that little baby is presented in full form and begins to snuggle outside the womb for the first time. I've even heard it sad that one can forget the anguish of labor when the child is growing into maturity and full form.

Transition: In a similar way, today’s passage of Scripture from Galatians 4:11-20, the care and anguish that the apostle Paul has for the Galatians churches is compared to labor pains, until Christ is formed in them. And so it is with us. Lets begin by reading the passage.

This passage begins by introducing an imperative. The Apostle Paul calls the Galatians “adelphoi” or brothers and sisters. He is personalizing his concern for them. He has offered them some very straightforward correction because of their abandonment of God and the gospel. He has spent several paragraphs explaining and unpacking the foundations of justification by faith. Now, he begins to transition into matters that are practical in nature. How to live according to the truth of the gospel. In this 4:12-20 Paul offers a window into the bleeding heart of an apostle who is longing for Christ to be formed in the members who make up the churches of Galatia.

After personalizing his tine toward them, he goes on to give the imperative by calling the Galatians to “become as I am,”. This causes us to ask the question, What is Paul referring to? In other letters to other churches Paul uses this same language of , “follow me as I follow Christ.” Or follow my example of being in Christ. Already in this letter to the Galatians as Paul was correcting their misunderstanding of the gospel and law, he said in Galatians 2:20 .

Galatians 2:20 ESV

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

He is giving the Galatians an imperative to live by faith in Jesus Christ, and not depend on the law to accomplish what it was never meant to accomplish. However, notice how he makes this argument. he says, “because I have become as you are.” There has been much speculation about what this phrase means, but I think it is simply understood by the way in which Paul first preached the gospel to the Galatians. When he entered the city of Antioch Pisidia, Paul first preached in the synagogue on the Sabath day. He went first to the Jews, and after the Jews jealously reviled and started contradicting him, he moved on to the gentiles of the city. We know form passages like I Corinthians 9:19-23 that when Paul moved among the Jews he became as a Jew, and when he moved among the gentiles he became as the gentiles so that the gospel would be unhindered. Therefore, when he tells them in Galatians 4:12 to become as I am , for I became as you are, he is calling them to the freedom they have in Christ. Living by faith, unfettered by the law.

Church, it is vitally important for us to have gospel examples to follow. We do not need lists of religious do and don’ts to follow. We need the living faith of other brothers and sisters in Christ to emulate the precious joy of walking by faith in Christ. Once again, this is another reason why we need one another. Obviously, we cannot do this in a way that would idolize one another, but we must do this in a way that would encourage one another to remain faithful to Christ. Who is a person you are observing to pattern your faithfulness from?

At the end of verse 12 Paul tells the Galatians, “You did me no wrong”. He then goes on in verse 13-16 to show how they actually treated him very well. He reminds them that it was because of a physical ailment that he even preached the gospel in Galatia the first time.

His point is to say, Your treatment of me and reception of me was impeccable when I first preached the gospel to you. How is it now that you can so quickly abandon my example and follow after the false teachers that are polluting the gospel? He asks them directly in verse 16, am i now your enemy by telling you the truth?

Before we move on, let me offer a couple of considerations. First, we should never underestimate the sovereign plan of God to advance His gospel. According to His will, God will use whatever means He desires to bring about His purposes. He used a bodily sickness to first bring Paul to the region of Galatia to preach the gospel. Even though this sickness was a trial to the Galatians, God turned the trial into triumph. We need never to doubt the truth of Romans 8:28.

Romans 8:28 ESV

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Perhaps today you are inflicted with physical suffering, a painful diagnosis, or ongoing illness. Never underestimate how God will use that very trial to bring about gospel truth to those in your pathway. He may not cure you, but he will bring good out of your trial so that you might offer the cure of Christ to those who need to hear His gospel.

Also, consider this. We must be speakers of truth no matter the response. This is true for the whole church. We are called upon to be proclaimers of objective facts about reality. The church has not been instructed to give suggestions, perspective, or creative ideas. We have been given truth, and the truth is what we have to offer. Again, this is not the way of the elementary principles of the world, which only desires flattering little commercials that will apply a band aide to the problems of life. No, we speak truth about the reality of God, humanity, and our need to turn from sin and trust in Christ. We must do this with the compassion and love of Christ! However, we should not be surprised that sometimes there will be those who have previously treated us with blessedness, after hearing the truth, will treat us with contempt, scorn, as enemies. Church, we live in the days that the apostle warned pastor Timothy about in his last letter, II Tim 4:1-5

2 Timothy 4:1–5 ESV

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

We must not despair over the treatment that we may or may not receive by others. We must speak the truth.

In verse 17 of Galatians 4 Paul begins to address the motive of the false teachers who are leading the Galatians astray. He says, “They make much of you, but for no good purpose.” There is not doubt that the false teachers going through Galatia were dynamic and had the ability to sway a crowd. They were flattering the churches with much enthusiasm. They had an active interest in the Galatians. Much like a bird dog has for pheasants. The false teachers pursued the Galatians and sniffed them out and gave them all kinds of attention. However, it was not so they would be accepted, rather so they could shut them out. And that the Galatians would make much of them.

This is exactly the opposite of the truth of the gospel. Paul had just reminded them that according to the good new of the true gospel, being in Christ means you have been adopted by God the Father, and the Holy Spirit cries out in us abba Father. Meaning, God is our heavenly daddy who we are perfectly accepted by in Christ. We have inclusion and equality, and and inheritance according to the truth of the gospel. However, according to the motives of those teaching a false gospel, we have exclusion, and prevention from being accepted.

Church, we should heed a great warning concerning those who would lay out hoops to jump through , or hurdles to jump in order to have a right relationship with God. Any person who says, if you do this, then God will accept you is a laying a deceitful trap that leads to death.

Notice, the problem isn’t being enthusiast about a person. rather the problem was the intent in doing so. Paul goes on to say in verse 18, “it’s always good to be made much of, for the right reason”. This was exactly how the Galatians had originally treated Paul. They were enthusiastic about helping him, showing him hospitality, and receiving the gospel he preached. However, now he telling them that the authenticity of their reception will show if they do the same even when he is not there with them. Basically, how will they receive the truth of this letter when it is read to them.

Because Paul is is so concerned for them he says in verse 19. “My little children.” In the same way the Abba is a term of endearment for God as, Daddy daddy, so too “tekna” is a term of endearment for children. Paul is showing himself to be like a nurturing mother in the way he cares for the church. He says, I am again in labor pains until Christ is formed in you.

The word formed, is morphothe. It means to be a distinct entity or to develop into a state of being. Its similar to when we say, metamorphosis. The transformations that occurs when a caterpillar become a butterfly is a picture of what it looks like for a Christian to have Christ formed in us. However, notice that Paul is saying, i am travailing over you, i wish i could be with you so you could hear the tone of my voice, but i m laboring over you and my mind is terribly frustrated about you … until Christ is formed in you. This helps us to see to full scope of Paul's apostleship. As an apostle he preaches and teaches the gospel with authority to admonish and correct. However, he also preaches sand teaches the gospel with the anguish of caring for souls and seeing Christ formed in those who believe.

Church, this helps us to examine how we give and receive admonishment and encouragement from one another. I Thess 5:14 tells us,

1 Thessalonians 5:14 ESV

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.

Within the body of Christ there is no doubt those who need admonishment, those who need encouragement, and those who need help. The challenge for us is to discern within one another what and how to accomplish this. We cannot give ourselves over to flattery. And we certainly cannot give ourselves over to the grumbling of behind the back criticism. We must love one another in Christ by giving and receiving admonishment and encouragement so that Christ would be formed in us. This is the same imperative given to the church in Ephesus when it says in Eph 4:11-16 .

Ephesians 4:11–16 ESV

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Conclusion: Application summary from this text.

Find someone to follow as they follow Christ. Be someone who is worth following. We need examples.

Beware of intentions. Motive matters.

Not every one who enthusiastically commends you have the right motives.

Trust God to bring about His good plan, even in trials.

Love the truth.

Give and receive authentic admonishment and encouragement.

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