The gospel of Christ is God’s power to save man, for everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek (Rom. 1:16). In the gospel of Christ is revealed the righteousness of God as it leads to faith and builds on faith.
The apostle Paul had to deal with people in his time, just as we do, who have – under the influence of Satan – perverted the simple message of the gospel of Christ. Let’s feed on Paul’s warning this morning from Galatians 1:1-12 and take serious his admonition not to change or alter the gospel of Jesus Christ. If man does not properly understand the Gospel message of Christ, how can he properly obey the gospel message of Christ? This will be a three part study.
PAUL’S SALUTATION – 1:1-5:
Paul’s authority – The first thing Paul does is to tell his Christian audience that he is an apostle! He is not an apostle sent from men. When someone challenges the teachings of the apostle Paul, of course, the true and accurate response is: That man was an apostle of Christ.
Jesus set the teachings of the apostles on the same level as His own teachings: Luke 10:16. We must take the teachings of the apostles seriously! It’s no joking matter.
The essence of the gospel – Having mentioned Jesus Christ and God the Father, Paul states in verse 1 that God is the one who raised Jesus from the dead. Of course, the resurrection of Christ is the heart and core of the Christian message.
In verse 2, Paul extends his normal greetings to his fellow Christians: Grace and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, but then in verses 3-5, Paul gives the “essence” of the gospel message:
“Jesus gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.” That’s the essence of the gospel message.
When I was in college, Wendell Winkler told us that the theme of the Bible in one sentence is (and notice how closely it relates to Paul’s statement in verses 4-5): “The salvation of man through Jesus Christ to the glory of God.”
1. Jesus gave Himself for our sins.
2. Jesus gave Himself so that He might rescue us from this present evil age.
3. Jesus gave Himself according to the will of our God and Father.
4. Jesus gave Himself for the glory of God forevermore.
That is the essence of the gospel. But, there is more to the gospel than just that. In fact, in Galatians 3:8, Paul will apply the word “gospel” or “good news” to the message God gave to Abraham back in the book of Genesis. So we could broaden our understanding of the word or message of the gospel to include everything from the beginning of the Bible to the end – everything that has to do with God’s plan to save man from sin is a part of the gospel message. The Hebrew word for “gospel” is used 24 times, 7 in the prophecy of Isaiah. Let’s keep that in mind as we continue our study…
Paul Holland
