Inter-Varsity Message- Galatians 4:8-20
This evening I am going to work my way through our text which is Galatians 4:8-20. The churches of Galatia were in an area that the Apostle Paul helped to evangelize on his first and second missionary journeys. One of the texts that speaks of this is in Acts 14 and I will refer to this throughout. After the lesson I will have you look closer at Acts 14 and answer some questions.
If I were going to outline Galatians 4:8-20 I would divide our text into two sections.
First, in verses 8-15 Paul is urging the Galatians not to turn away from the grace of God
Secondly, in verses 16-20 Paul is encouraging them to consider three truths.
Section#1- The first section has five points in verses 8-15.
Paul reminds the Galatians that they were once enslaved. We see this in verse 8 when Paul writes, “Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods.”
“Formerly...you did not know God” Everyone is born in sin and in that condition we do not see God or know Him. In that condition we are enslaved to some type of worldview (secular, pagan, idolatrous or religious) but we do not know God.
We cannot free ourselves and we will naturally turn to anything but God. We are enslaved and we have no power to get ourselves or others free. This is why Paul says, “you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods.”.
Only God, the only true God through the only Gospel can save us and deliver us from these things. Paul speaks of this at the very beginning of this letter, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (1:3-5)
Galatians 1:3-5 shows us several things.
We are delivered from this present evil age and this happens only by Jesus Christ who died for our sins. (Galatians 3:23-29)
We see that Jesus’ primary motive in doing these things for us was to do the will of the Father.
Paul has also taught us that Jesus has done this for us and we are adopted into God’s family and we receive His Spirit. (Galatians 4:4-7) Therefore, the whole Trinity is involved in saving a person from this evil present age.
Therefore, the LORD is due glory and honor forever and ever for this. Yet, the Galatians are turning away from the LORD and from the Gospel! Paul’s is perplexed and absolutely shocked in regards to this as we see in Galatians 1:6-7a, “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel- not that there is another one…”.
Paul is astonished that these believers are turning away and betraying…
The LORD!
Paul’s ministry to them!
the gospel that powerfully saved them!
The grace of God that saved them!
Jesus was only motivated by the will of His Father and that should be our primary motivation as well. Jesus was willing to die before he would sin. That should be our attitude as well.
Paul asks these believers to consider why they would want to go back to these worthless things. In verses 9-10 we read, “But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?”
Now that God has made Himself and His Word known to them how can they turn back and become slaves to these things once again?
In Acts 14 Paul is preaching in the towns that are in the regions of Galatia. One of these towns is very pagan. When Paul heals a man the whole town wants to offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas because they believed they were gods- Zeus and Hermes. In that moment Paul says to them, “Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.” (15)
After Paul spoke these words we read in Acts 14:18, “Even with these words they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifices to them.” Most of this crowd remained unbelievers but there were some who heard Paul’s testimony about the Good News and they became disciples. (20,22) They became believers, churches were started, elders were appointed, and the elders and these believers were committed to the LORD in whom they believed. (23)
It is in this context that makes Paul’s words in Galatians 4:9-10 so shocking, “Now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?”
If we profess to be believers and yet we believe things that are contrary to the Gospel or act in a contrary manner of the Gospel the Word of God comes to us and says, “I am astonished that this is happening. Now that you have been known by God how can you return to these weak and worthless principles of the world? How can you possibly want to be enslaved by these things once more?”
Paul is afraid that his efforts in teaching them has been in vain in verse 11, “You observe days and months and seasons and years! I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.”
In Acts 14 the Galatians in Lystra are pagans and they respond to Paul’s ministry by trying to worship Paul and Barnabas. Paul keeps them from doing this because it is false worship that brings God’s judgment.
Those who have received the Gospel are being persuaded by the Judaisers (14:1-6, 19) to offer some other types of sacrifices to the LORD that the LORD no longer commands. They are beginning to observe special days, months, seasons and years. In light of the Gospel and the grace of God even these things are now inappropriate for them to do to be right with God!
Application 1: If we begin to accept a little works to be justified before God our list of things to do will grow longer and longer. This is why Paul’s defense of the Gospel in Galatians 2:6 is so important. Paul says, “And from those who seemed to be influential (what they are makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)- those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.” They did not add one law, one duty, one work to Paul’s gospel. They only asked him to express the virtues of grace that the Gospel produces in a person. (10)
Observation 2: As a minister Paul labored to see Christ formed in them and now it seemed as though all that effort had been in vain. This is why Paul is so disturbed by what is happening and why as their spiritual father Paul continues to be so passionate for Christ to be formed int hem again. (19-20) Ministry is hard and sometimes frustrating but Paul is not giving up on these believers! (1 Thessalonians 5:14)
Paul encourages them to follow his example as someone who has forsaken these things in verses 12, “Brothers, I entreat you, become as I am, for I also have become as you are. You did me no wrong.”
Paul is encouraging these believers to be like him because he forsook everything to be justified by faith in Christ alone. Philippians 3:1-11 is a great cross reference for this text but let me just read the first few sentences, “My brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you in no trouble to me and is safe for you. Look out for the dogs, look our for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh- though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also.” (1-4a) In the verses that follow Paul speaks of all the righteous things he no longer trusts in so that he may gain Christ and His righteousness. Paul is encouraging these Galatian believers to be like him in this way.
Paul encourages them to remember their former blessedness in verses 13-15, “You know it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first, and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus. What then has become of your blessedness? For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me.”
The Galatian believers have lost their joy and the blessedness of being justified by faith. They are now trusting in their own righteousness and they are not trusting in Christ and His righteousness. Because of this they are not demonstrating towards Paul the love they once did at the very beginning.
Symptoms of a shifting faith= loss of joy, peace, love, etc.
When you read Paul’s letters you find that Paul would diagnose the faith of a church by two things- their faith in God and their love for Him and His people. If Paul saw that they were not continuing to believe the truths of the Christian faith he knew there was a problem. If Paul saw that they were not continuing to love the messengers who delivered the Gospel he knew there was a problem. This church was struggling in all these things. They are a church in danger! They used to love Paul and the Gospel but now they are turning away from both of these things.
Section#2- This brings us to the second section of our text where Paul encourages the Galatians to consider three true facts.
Paul reminds them about the truth regarding him and his ministry in verse 16, “Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?”
Every Christian faces three enemies that are always trying to make us believe that God, His Word, or His people are our enemies. Do you know what those enemies are? They are indwelling sin, sin in the world and the devil. We have to make sure we are fighting the right enemies.
Consider what Acts 14:2 says about this while Paul was preaching in Galatia, “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.” Who are the ‘brothers’? It is the apostles Paul and Barnabas. (4)
Over time these unbelieving Jews and Gentiles were pressuring the Christians and continued to attempt to poison their minds so that Paul and the truth of the Gospel would become their enemy. Paul now confronts this sinful attitude in them and asks, “Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?”
Paul reminds them about the truth regarding the enemies of the gospel in verse 17, “They make much of you, but for no good purpose. They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them.”
After Paul reminds them of the truth of his message he then tells them the truth about those who are doing these things to them. They are flatterers. They appear to be friendly because of their insincere praise but they are attempting to deceive them to further their own intentions. These are some of the same people who stoned Paul and left him for dead. (14:5-6; 19)
What do these people want to do?
They want to make them distrust the Word of God.
They want to shut these people out of access to the grace and mercy of God. (14:3)
They want to separate them from the congregation of faithful believers and their leaders. (23) They want to shut them out of entering into the kingdom of God. (14:22)
They want to frustrate the will of God for these believers in whose care they were committed from the beginning. (4:23)
Paul reminds them that he cares greatly for them as their spiritual father in verses 18-20, “It is always good to be made much of for a good purpose, and not only when I am present with you, my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you! I wish I could be present with you now and change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.”
These believers have been poisoned against Paul and the Gospel of Jesus Christ but Paul truly cares for them. Because he cares for them so much he is greatly concerned and in anguish. He wants to be with them to help them.
In Acts 14 when Paul is in Lystra, in Galatia, Paul is stoned, dragged outside the city and left for dead. Paul wasn’t dead. Eventually he rose back up and entered into that city. Isn’t that amazing that Paul, who had just been stoned by the people in that city was willing to go back in. This same person wants to be with them now!
You hear a lot about Trump getting shot and almost killed and then immediately getting back up and saying, “Fight, fight, fight”. You know that you really believe something when you are willing to do that sort of thing.
Paul believes in the Gospel. Paul is faithful to his calling and to the ministry that he has been given to steward. After being stoned in Galatia he gets up and goes back in the city to encourage the believers there. Later he returns to these cities to appoint elders and entrust them to God. Now Paul wants to be with them again so that they will not forsake the gospel and forsake Christ.
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