MONDAY January 11, 2021

Let Him Be Accursed

As we have said before, so now I [Paul] say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
Galatians 1:9

Among the churches in Galatia, there were those who had made a decision to accept Christ, but they went back from faith into Law and works. They became false teachers who came against the true principles of faith. Paul engaged in a fierce battle for the truth of the Gospel to make sure that believers in Galatia understood their true Christian liberty in life.

False teachers spread false doctrines––a mixture of Law and grace. Paul would not stand by idly; he would fight the good fight against these Judaizers as they were causing great confusion in the churches. They were distorting the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Judaizers taught Gentiles that they must become Jews and be circumcised before they could become Christians and join the church. Jewish and Gentile were righteous before God, only if they remained bound under the Laws and regulations and ceremonies of Judaism. Paul, in his letter, preached against all these things and would not yield to them:

Yet not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage), to whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with you (Galatians 2:3-5).

Paul stated the gravity of the situation, and in Galatians 1:8, he warned: But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. The Greek word for accursed is the word “anathema.” It means “to be cursed––sent to the lowest hell.” If false teachers tried to preach anything else other than grace––the unmerited favor given to us by God, Paul condemned them.

Every doctrine that is not embedded in the Cross of Jesus will lead astray.
~Oswald Chambers~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!