FRIDAY March 19, 2021

Those Who Trouble You

And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased. I could wish that those who trouble you would even cut themselves off!
Galatians 5:11-12

Notice, the Galatians falsely accused Paul of preaching the Law––circumcision. Paul had been severely persecuted by the Jews for preaching the Cross of Christ (Acts 23:11-22). If he had stopped preaching the powerful message of the Cross, then surely, the persecution he suffered from the Jews would have stopped. Right?

If Paul had preached circumcision, then the Cross of Christ would have had no power or effect in his life. What would have become of his bold testimony? Paul never preached a message of bondage to the Law; He preached the opposite––Jesus Christ and Him crucified:

And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:1-2).

Paul preached a message of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). Paul never preached a message of works.

Paul became angry and outspoken against those troubling the Galatians with false doctrine. He came to the point of saying: I could wish that those who trouble you would even cut themselves off! The phrase cut themselves off is literally translated in the Greek language to mean, “I wish they would castrate themselves as a result of trying to deceive people.” The truth was, those guilty of deceiving others would face the judgment of God if they did not repent. Are you relying on faith for your salvation or works?

The cardinal error against which the gospel of Christ has to contend is the effect of the tendency of the human heart to rely on salvation by works.
~C. H. Spurgeon~

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