WEDNESDAY 4th
Galatians 1:1-5
NIV (v1) – ‘Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead . . .’
ESV (v1) – ‘Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead . . .’
(See also Galatians 1:11-12)
When Elaine and I made the decision to move up here to the North East, one of the first priorities was to find somewhere to live, a house. We searched the internet for all the viable options, and then drew a short list and then came up and spent a day over the new year driving around and viewing. We had a list of things that we wanted, a good size, a decent kitchen, good sized bedrooms, preferably have a garage and a garden and the list went on. Some houses didn’t fit the bill, others did but not the location, one house we pulled up outside we didn’t even bother to view, until we eventually decided upon the house which was in the early stages of being built which we reserved and are now living in. But it does not matter how big the kitchen is, or what size the bedrooms are, even if it has a garden or garage unless something important is in place and that is a good foundation! Remember the story Jesus told of the two builders, one foolish and another wise. The foolish man built on sand, and when the storms arrived it came crashing down, the other builder was wise and built upon rock and when the same storms came it stood firm. (Matthew 7:24-27)
When we come to Paul’s epistles, including the ones that come before Galatians (Romans and 1st and 2nd Corinthians) there is something we can be assured of, they come from a good solid foundation. Paul starts his epistles by introducing himself in such a way that there is no room for any doubt about his credentials, he had been ‘called as an apostle, not from men or through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead . . .’
In Romans 1:1 he introduces himself as ‘a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God . . .’ In 1 Corinthians 1:1 he says ‘Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus . . .’ he says similar in other opening verses, his credentials are very clear, not called by men but called by God. And as one called by God, he was charged with the responsibility of taking the gospel to the Gentiles and to the people of Israel. His mandate was clear, and in obedience he went, and he pioneered, preached, planted and he oversaw. It is out of this solid foundation of who and what he was in Christ, a servant and an apostle, that he wrote his epistles to the Churches, as I said yesterday, letters to build up, to encourage and exhort but also there are times when the letters were written to rebuke where needed so that correction could take place as we will see tomorrow in this first chapter to Galatians.
Because of the good foundation, we can trust Paul and all that he has written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for it was not just written to the specific Church or Churches he may mention but for our sakes as well, that we too will be built up in the most holy faith. The epistles themselves therefore become a good foundation for our lives. Taken along with the words of Jesus, as we heed, we will stand strong.