No Other Gospel - Galatians 1

No Other Gospel

Galatians 1:1-24

Gospel means good news.  There is only one gospel, the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ, "who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever.  Amen."  Galatians 1:4, 5.

The test of the gospel is the grace of God.  Our eternal salvation is a gift, freely given by the Lord to the undeserving who believe in Him.  "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.

When the apostle Paul preached the good news to the Galatians, the message was well received.  The people had welcomed the apostle as God's messenger, even as Christ Jesus.  See Galatians 4:14.  But after Paul left, some preachers came who questioned Paul's apostleship and preached another gospel.  They preached circumcision and obedience to the law of Moses as conditions of salvation.  An unexpected apostasy was the result.  Paul wrote, "I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel."  They turned from the Lord and His grace, to a so-called gospel of works.

This other gospel was a perversion, a distortion of the truth.  Today it has come to us in various forms.  At times it denies who Jesus is, usually a rejection of His deity.  Jesus is declared to be an angel or a prophet or a teacher, or something else.  An unachievable legalistic requirement is always added as a condition of salvation.  No one is ever "good enough" to merit eternal life.  "Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified (declared righteous) in His sight...."  Romans 3:20.  No one can be saved by good works.

Of course, there are those who believe that everybody will go to heaven.  If they don't enter the pearly gates when they die, the hope is offered they will eventually wind up there after they have suffered for their sins in purgatory.  Paul didn't believe this.  He had some strong words for anyone who preached another gospel.  "Let him be accursed."  He says this twice in two verses.  See Galatians 1:8, 9.  Those who believe another gospel will share the same end as the bearers of bad news.  They will also be accursed.  Paul had a specific word to those who had turned away.  "You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace."  Galatians 5:4. 

By grace you are saved!  Now that's good news!  There is no other gospel!

 

Lord, You are the way, the truth, and the life.  We turned to You for life, and You have saved us by Your grace.  How else could it be?  Thank You for the priceless gift of salvation.  In Jesus' name.  Amen!

 

Crucified with Christ - Galatians 2

 
GotQuestions.org

sharing-your-faith

All About God
 

Scripture taken from the
New King James Version.
Copyright ©
1979, 1980, 1982
by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Used by Permission.
All rights reserved.

Navigation Tips

Since visitors use different browsers and monitors, and have different preferences in how they navigate through a website, we've provided multiple ways to progress through the studies on KnowingJesusChrist.com.

1) For those who find drop-down, slide-out menus convenient, just hover over the category (menu link on the top bar) and sub-category (menu link in the drop down list).  If there is an arrow to the right of the item, the articles in that category will slide out.  (If there is no arrow, just click on the item.)  Click on any article to read it.  If you have a "wheel mouse," you should be able to roll it toward you to see more of the drop-down menu.

2) If you are unable to see all the drop-down or slide-out items (or just prefer a different way of navigating), click on the category (menu link on the top bar), then on any sub-category in the list that appears.  You will see a list of articles to choose from OR use our Site Map.

3) Most studies are part of a series (category or sub-category).  Each article within the category has a link to the next article so you can progress easily to the next study.

4) At the top of the page, you will also notice "Breadcrumbs" that show which category and sub-category you are in.  You may click on those links to return to the "parent" category or sub-category list.

5) ANSWERS to Review Questions and Quizzes are found in links at the end of the Review Questions or Quiz.  They may also be accessed by clicking on the category (which will show a list of all articles in the category).  The link at the end of the article will cause a pop up window to appear so you may easily refer to other pages on the site; the link in the Category list will open a normal page.

If you're looking for a particular topic, word, or phrase, try the Search feature in the right column.

Close this box by clicking on the top (dark brown) part again.