Change is something that many would like, but not many like to go through. Change can be very difficult. We are creatures of habit. We typically like things to stay the same, but we also realize there are points where change must happen for the better. 

Think about medicine. George Washington died from a simple throat infection. One of the major ways they tried to treat him was to drain some of his blood thinking it would remove the infection. This would happen four times over a day and a half before our nation’s first President died. Aren’t you glad that treatment has changed over the years?

Yes, change can be hard and even uncomfortable at times. It is needed at times, though, for growth and health to take place. 

As Paul writes to the churches in Galatia, he shares the importance of the gospel. When we began looking at this letter a couple of weeks ago, I shared that Paul wrote this letter with two points to make: 

• The importance of the gospel
• Defending his apostleship

As we continue to look at this letter, we come to a section where both of these topics arise in the matter of 14 verses. Let’s read those verses together, and see what the LORD has for us today.

¹¹ For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel preached by me is not of human origin. ¹² For I did not receive it from a human source and I was not taught it, but it came by a revelation of Jesus Christ. 

¹³ For you have heard about my former way of life in Judaism: I intensely persecuted God’s church and tried to destroy it. ¹⁴ I advanced in Judaism beyond many contemporaries among my people, because I was extremely zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. ¹⁵ But when God, who from my mother’s womb set me apart and called me by his grace, was pleased ¹⁶ to reveal his Son in me, so that I could preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone. ¹⁷ I did not go up to Jerusalem to those who had become apostles before me; instead I went to Arabia and came back to Damascus. 

¹⁸ Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to get to know Cephas, and I stayed with him fifteen days. ¹⁹ But I didn’t see any of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. ²⁰ I declare in the sight of God: I am not lying in what I write to you. 

²¹ Afterward, I went to the regions of Syria and Cilicia. ²² I remained personally unknown to the Judean churches that are in Christ. ²³ They simply kept hearing, “He who formerly persecuted us now preaches the faith he once tried to destroy.” ²⁴ And they glorified God because of me.

Galatians 1:11-24 (CSB)

The Gospel is not a human invention

Paul shares with the Galatian churches that the gospel he had previously shared with them,  which brought them salvation, was not something that had come from the imagination of some person. The gospel message comes from the heart of God. 

Think about the gospel message for a moment. Who would have come up with that plan? The holy God of the universe would show grace by sending His one and only Son to be the sacrifice which would bring sinful human beings back into a right relationship with Him. There would be nothing that humans had to do to earn this. It would be a complete work of God’s grace. 

One reason we can trust in the message of the gospel is that it does come from God Himself and not man. He is perfect and all of His ways are good. There is no fear that it will not do what it claims to do.

Paul even mentions in verse 17 that he did not get the gospel from a seminar or class, but He received it from the LORD Himself. It was Jesus who confronted Paul on the Damascus Road in Acts 9. 

While we may not hear the gospel from the LORD’s mouth ourselves, we can be sure that when the gospel is shared through His Word, it holds the same power. The words of Scripture are God-breathed. Because of this, the gospel becomes the standard by which everything else is measured. 

The Gospel is a transforming message

Starting in verse 13, Paul begins to show how his life was completely transformed by the message of the gospel. The gospel has a power that we cannot fully understand. 

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. 

Romans 1:16 (CSB)

We can see three important factors of God’s grace through the gospel in what Paul writes in verses 13-19.

Paul needed grace

Paul writes about his life in the Jewish faith in verses 13-14. He talks about how he was a persecutor of the Church and the name of Christ. 

• Acts 8:1 shows where Paul gave his approval when Stephen was killed for his faith in Jesus. 
• Acts 8:3 shows where Paul committed to “ravaging the church.” He would go out as a representative of the Jewish leaders and arrest Christians even from their homes for their faith in Jesus.
• In Acts 26:10-11, Paul talks about times when he would do everything he could to get Christians to turn away from Jesus, even to the point of having them put to death.

As we see these parts of Paul’s past, we can see that he desperately needed the grace of God that comes through Jesus. He mistreated people like few have. 

He thought he was doing God a favor. You see, Paul was a religious man. Every ugly part of his past was tied to his “religion.” He held to his beliefs tightly and thought he was doing God a favor by his actions. 

Misdirected beliefs will lead you astray regardless of how zealous you are. A person can be so consumed with “religion” and miss Jesus. That is what happened in Paul’s early life. 

There are times when we look at someone and say, “They need Jesus.” Their sin is out in the open for all to see. God’s grace is available to them through the gift Jesus made available on the cross. 

It is easy to look at people who are living in blatant sin and think they need to experience the grace of God. But what about the person who is moral… religious… well thought of? Does that person really need God’s grace? YES!!! 

What about you? Do you see your need for God’s grace? You may say, “I’ve never done anything like Paul did. I’ve never killed anyone or anything like that.” While that might be true, what is also true is that each of us have sinned in some way against God. That means that each one of us are in need of His grace. 

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”

Romans 3:23 (CSB)

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23 (CSB)

You don’t have to have a horrible past to have a need for Jesus. All you have to have is sin – which we all do. Every one of us is in need of God’s grace. Paul highlights this truth to the Galatians. 

Grace found Paul where he was

What we see unfold in verses 15-16 is a beautiful picture of God’s grace. Paul shares that while he was actually running in the opposite direction of God, God came running to him. Jesus met Paul right where he was in life – in the middle of all of his junk, and brought His grace with Him. 

This is the story of every Christian. While we are born running from God, He comes to us with the message of the gospel – a message of forgiveness, hope, and grace. God doesn’t wait for us to get our act together. He knows that apart from His help we cannot do that. He meets us right where we are and offers His amazing grace to us.

You may be hearing this and thinking it is too good to be true. The perfect God of the universe would come running after me and offer me forgiveness, hope, and grace (when I don’t deserve it). I would tell you with every fiber of my being that is exactly what happens. 

We don’t have to get our act together to come to Jesus. If we could do that, what need would we have of Jesus? We don’t have to even fully understand it all to receive it. That is why it comes to us through faith. 

Paul shares how, though he didn’t deserve it, God came to him and offered Paul His grace.

Grace caused a desire to grow

Paul continues to share that this grace he encountered developed within his heart a desire to grow. He talks about how, at first, he didn’t go up to the disciples in Jerusalem, but spent some time with the LORD. This was needed in his life to sort out everything he had been taught previously (Galatians 1:17). 

It wasn’t long before Paul was guided by the Holy Spirit to join himself to a church. We see that he did go to Jerusalem where he would spend time with Peter (Cephas), James, and others (Galatians 1:18-21).

Paul learned quickly that he couldn’t know all of the things about this new life in Christ by himself. He needed a local church to come alongside him and disciple him. We are not called to walk this journey alone. Just as Paul needed a group of believers to come alongside of him and disciple him, so do we. This is one of the main reasons we strongly encourage people to find and join a local church. 

God is working in each of our lives. Part of that work in us is to equip us with tools to help and encourage each other in our faith journey with Jesus. It is much more than just attending some services and sitting in a room together. It is doing life with one another. It is teaching one another. It is helping one another up when we fall. 

Paul knew that if the Galatians kept listening to the false gospel that was creeping into their midst, it would rob them of the wonderful work God was doing in their lives. He knew this firsthand and cared about them enough to confront them about it.

Conclusion

As we hear about the wonderful work of God’s grace in the life of Paul, I have to wonder if we are experiencing that work in our own lives. Are we realizing that this gospel message is not something that some man or woman dreamed up somewhere way back? Do we realize it is the heartbeat of God? 

As we see how Paul’s life was changed by the gospel, can we see our story in this as well? Do we see our need for God’s grace and His coming to us just as we are extending the most precious gift ever given? Maybe you’re seeing that clearly for the first time. I would invite you to reach out by faith and accept that gift. We would love to show you how you can do that. In a moment, we will give you an opportunity to talk with someone about receiving this gift of God’s grace.

Do we see our continued need for God’s grace and to be part of a local church where we can join together with others in growing and carrying out the mission of God? It is so much more than a place to go to hear some good music, a speech, and maybe catch up with those you haven’t seen all week. It is a representation of the family of God. It is one of the most powerful tools God has given us to help us in our faith journey until He calls us home. I would encourage you to find a local church where you can plug in and grow in your faith.