What you think matters to God.  There’s a Book of books I’ll cite as my evidence that this is so.  After all, the statements and propositions we find in the Word of God are thoughts.  Can you think of a place where God commands your thinking, your attitude?  This is a pretty neat idea to me.  In the civilization into which I am writing, the notion that there is right and wrong thought is unacceptable to many if not most.  “How dare anyone suggest that my inner thoughts, ideas, and beliefs are subject to prescription and evaluation by an outside source like the Bible!”  I dare you to look unafraid at the Word of God.

Paul doesn’t just suggest.  Today I want to look at his first command in the earliest epistle we have of his.  Many, if not most conservative Bible teachers and students today believe that the earliest epistle we have from Paul in the Canon is Galatians. I agree with them, based largely on a comparison between the presentation of Paul’s career in Acts and Galatians 1-2.  In any case, if you were to ask, “What is the earliest command (imperative) from Paul in the Bible?” you get your answer in a strong statement in Gal 1:8.

The Text

“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!” (Galatians 1:8, NAS)

The command deals in the strongest possible way with the authority of the apostolic teaching.  What the Holy Spirit has communicated through the apostles carries higher authority than the apostles themselves or even “an angel from heaven.”  That may be surprising, but that’s what Paul states in Galatians 1:8.  Paul is dealing with a situation where those he taught well have been led into error by some who came after him.  They have taken the truth of the pure Gospel of God’s grace and added to it the works of the Mosaic Law.  In the previous two verses, Paul says that this is not the Gospel, and that their embrace of this “different gospel” amounts to abandoning “Him who called [them].”

These hard words for a deceived body of believers are designed to wake them up to the sad condition in which anyone stands who rejects or corrupts the living Word of God.  We need to embrace the corrective, even punitive spirit of this wonderful letter from Paul.  Have you added works to the “by grace through faith” requirement of the Gospel?  Have you told someone that to be saved they must do something other than believe?

The Difficult Construction

What does it mean, “he is to be accursed”?  This is instruction for what we are to think when we hear a contradiction of the Gospel.  Paul is not giving the Galatians authority to curse someone, especially angels.  Even Michael the Archangel did not revile Satan in Jude 9.  And Paul is not himself capable of being accursed. Their appraisal does not amount to a final determination of judgment on the false teacher.  This command means that the hearer of a different message from what Paul taught them concerning the Gospel is to think of them as accursed. This is about the attitude of the hearer.  Here is the strongest possible way of saying something or someone is to be rejected.  “Reject false teachers, as though they were from the pit of Hell” is the idea.  This is like Jesus in rejecting Peter for speaking against the Gospel, and not just his message:

“Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” ” (Matthew 16:22–23, NAS)

Was Peter Satan in the flesh? No, but his message was certainly Satanic and needed to be rejected.  There is in the Bible a strong connection between what you think or say and who you are.

Three Thoughts

1.   Witnessing:  The most important message that we bear is the Person and Work of Christ, the Gospel.   It is so critical that we get it right when we have an opportunity to share with others the message of Eternal Life that Paul denounces the speaker of any contrary message.

2.  Anthropology:  You are designed by God to think His thoughts on His terms.  He holds us accountable throughout the Bible for thinking His Truth.  We shouldn’t be surprised to find that Paul commands our judgment on any matter, especially something like the Gospel, for which we remain in this life.  Embrace Col 3:16!

3.  Soteriology (Doctrine of Salvation):    The Gospel in view here is the “good news” of God’s great works on our behalf in Christ at Calvary.  Therefore this Gospel is absolutely not about our works on God’s behalf.  That is the whole point of Galatians.  Believing is our only responsibility in the attaining of eternal life, and all the work of salvation is God’s responsibility.  This is a very offensive statement to the world because it totally rejects all the “goodness” and “work” of fallen humans and relies only on the Goodness and Work of God.   Gal 2:16, Titus 3:5, Rom 3:23, 6:23, Acts 16:31, John 3:16, 3:36, 14:6.

Passage to Pray: Psalm 19

Memory Verse: Ps 19:7-10

“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. ” (Psalm 19:7–10, NAS)