Does An Enemy Speak Truth?

“DOES AN ENEMY SPEAK TRUTH?”

Galatians 4.12-20

Let’s assume, for the next few moments, that you are the Apostle Paul. Let’s further assume that you have just written Galatians 4.1-11:

1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;

2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.

3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.

9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?

10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.

11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.

Being quite tired, you take a coffee break and sit down at the table with your secretary. After a pause, you dictate verses 12-20:

12 Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.

13 Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first.

14 And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.

15 Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me.

16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

17 They zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them.

18 But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you.

19 My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,

20 I desire to be present with you now, and to change my voice; for I stand in doubt of you.

You are very concerned about the direction the Galatian Church members are reported to have taken. You are led to understand from several sources they are taking solace and comfort, not in their relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, but from their adherence to the rules and regulations of the Law of Moses.

You have told them that you fear for them, fearing that their voluntary submission to the Law's externalities may indicate that there is no real internal heart relationship with Christ. You are terrified to think that they depend on rules and regulations to deceive themselves into thinking they are saved and know Christ when they actually don’t.

You knew their reaction when they read verses 1-11. They would be tempted to become angry. But when you became very weary, and while you were drinking your cup of coffee and resting, God began to speak to your heart again.

“What? Suggest to us that we are lost? Doesn’t he know that we are separated? Doesn’t he know that we never misbehave? Doesn’t he know that we never engage in contentious conversations? Doesn’t he know that we always read three chapters of the Bible each day? Doesn’t he know that we attend services regularly and tithe? Doesn’t he know that we invite people to the assembly on a regular basis? He is just and old-fashioned fuddy-duddy.”

The more you think about them, the more your mind races. You can imagine them in the different Galatian congregations discussing among themselves. “If what Paul says is true about liberty and us not under the Law,” one of them will say, “then all of our members will feel that they can do just about anything they want to. Some already seem to have that attitude.”

As you think the situation over, you realize that your Galatian friends may not pay much attention to what you have written so far. Instead, they may question your motives and begin thinking that you have started to compromise your convictions. They will spend a great deal of time worrying about what they perceive to be the consequences of your teaching and very little time considering whether or not it is Scriptural. Your experience, wisdom and personal piety counts for very little with them.

“What I must do,” Paul thinks to himself as he begins to dictate again, “is grab their attention. Influence them to stop questioning my motives. Somehow encourage them to start paying attention to what I’ve written to them.” “If they will just think about what I have written to them,” I imagine Paul reasoning to himself, “they will see that what they have been involved in is clearly unscriptural and obviously dangerous.”

What I have just shared with you is not too far from what might very well have happened in the heart and mind of the apostle as he becomes very personal and intimate with his readers in an attempt to persuade them to reflect on what he has written to them.

In our text, Paul uses four approaches in his attempt to bring his brothers and sisters in Christ back to the truth:

HIS FIRST APPROACH IS TO REMOVE IMPOSITIONS

How many times Church members have come to me and said, “Pastor, please forgive me for not coming to Church. From now on, I’ll do better.” Do you see what folks are doing when they talk to me that way? Either they are essentially Roman Catholics and want me to absolve them of their sins, or they believe that not coming to Church is a violation of one of the pastor’s rules. Granted, if you sin against me you ought to ask me to forgive you. But no one needs to confess to me their sins against God.

Those of you who have been believers for quite a while will appreciate this next comment. Are you familiar with the tactic employed by some pastors of making people feel bad when they don’t do what the preacher wants them to do? If you don’t enlist in a ministry he urges upon you and wants you to, he then sets about to make you feel really bad. There is nothing wrong with a pastor rebuking someone for being unfaithful or dropping the ball on something that really should have been done. But imposing a burden on someone for failing to do what the preacher wants you to do as an individual?

Verse 12:

“Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.”

Two matters need to be examined:

First, let’s examine the Galatian’s identity with Paul. Repeating Paul’s words:

“Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are.”

In this statement, Paul pleads with the Galatians to be like him because he is just like them. He is identifying with them and desiring that they identify with him. Does that jar you just a little bit? It does me. I have been an observer of some Christian leader’s ministries for approaching fifty years, and I begin to wonder if some of these guys are really human beings at all? Here we have the great Apostle Paul letting everyone know that he is a regular guy. But I know men in the ministry who have never let it be known that they fuss with their wife on occasion, have never given anyone a clue that they have sinful thoughts from time to time, have never let it be known that sometimes they just like to goof off.

It is absolutely critical for you to realize, if you ever hope to be free from the rules and regulations of men, that those men that you hope to please instead of Christ, those men that you hope to be like instead of being Christ like, those men that you can’t imagine having sinful thoughts from time to time or improper motives, are just regular guys. If Paul was just like the Galatians and wanted them to be, spiritually, like him, then any man of God who is alive today is no different than you and me. We need to rid ourselves of the mystique that we envelop some of these men in. If Paul was an ordinary man used of God in an extraordinary way, then so was Carey, so was Spurgeon, so was Knox, so was Nettleton, and so was Edwards.

Second, let’s examine the Galatian’s injury of Paul. He finishes verse 12 with the words,

“Ye have not injured me at all.”

When the Galatians sinned, was there an injured party? Sure there was, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was Christ Who was the injured party, not Paul. Do you see what Paul is getting at? He is an ordinary guy. When you miss a Church service, or you decide you only need two services per week rather than three, or you fail to show up for your ministry and leave others in the lurch, you do me no harm, but you do harm the cause of Christ. When you are unfaithful with your giving, you do me no harm, but you do harm the cause of Christ. When you dress weirdly or take on a bizarre appearance, you do me no harm, but you do harm the cause of Christ. And some people are so concerned about weird fashion trends that they will reject the Gospel so they can wear ridiculous-looking apparel.

The tendency pastors need to work at avoiding, me included, is to make a Christian’s sin a personal offense against me. That would be wrong. That merely imposes on the Christian a burden God does not want him to carry. If there is to be any convicting going on, God wants it to be Him Who does the convicting of sin, not you or me. That doesn’t mean God won’t use a spiritual Christian, someone with insight and wisdom, who is obeying the Word of God, to deal with someone about a sin, but it does mean that we have no business laying additional burdens on folks. The bottom line is this: Paul is removing all of the barriers that hinder the Galatians from returning to the truth. That leaves only one barrier to returning to the truth; the truth. Not politics. Not fashion trends. Not fiscal policy. Truth. And if you have any doubts, make sure it is Gospel truth. It’s an example we should follow. Amen?

AFTER REMOVING IMPOSITIONS, WHICH IS THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT MOST SPIRITUAL LEADERS USUALLY DO, PAUL MOVES ON TO HIS SECOND APPROACH. HE RECALLS HIS INFIRMITIES THAT HE SUFFERED WHILE HE WAS IN GALATIA

In verse 13, we see his reason for going to Galatia:

“Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first.”

Is it not amazing our tendency to make the actions of every hero high and lofty and noble? And isn’t it amazing our inability to see that the great men of the faith were normal men? Paul had a physical problem. From verse 15, we can surmise that he had a problem with his eyes. We don’t know for sure that this was the thorn in the flesh mentioned in Second Corinthians chapter 13. This problem might have been a temporary one. At any rate, Paul seems to be telling us that the reason he went to Galatia in the first place was because of a disturbing physical problem.[1] Is that so hard to believe?

Paul had serious problems with his eyes. He went to Galatia to seek relief from his problem, and while he was in the region, while he was disabled in this manner, he continued to serve God, continued to preach the Gospel, and continued to plant Churches. The wonderful thing about Paul’s ministry was this: He was not some weirdo who ignored his own normal and legitimate physical needs or pretended he was too spiritual to have such needs. He met those needs, without concealing them from anyone and served God at the same time. And the results were glorious!

In verse 14, we see their response to Paul in Galatia:

“And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.”

As to rejection, remember that Paul was a seriously sick man who was still serving God in the midst of Greek culture. And Greek culture in Paul’s day deified and worshipped the beautiful and healthy body as much as we do today. So, can you imagine a little Jewish guy, scarred from beatings and torture, claiming to represent Almighty God, who was sick? Paul’s ailment was of such a disgusting nature that most men would likely have been uncomfortable to spend much time around him. The word “despised” refers to regarding someone as nothing, and because of that to, treat him with utter contempt. The word “rejected,” ἐxeptύsate, refers to spitting something out.[2] It’s like putting food in your mouth, tasting it and realizing it’s sickening, and then spitting it out before you gag on it. Whatever it was that afflicted Paul, it made him look repulsive. Perhaps his eyes were so diseased and infected that he had puss running out of them.

Can you imagine how sickening that would be? Whatever it was, Paul fits absolutely none of the mental pictures we have of what a great man of God ought to look like. But praise be to God, the Galatians received him as an angel of God. And they received the Lord he preached, too. What about your religious system, my unsaved friend? Can it tolerate the ministry of a cripple like Paul? Can it tolerate the ministry of a man who depends on the power of the Holy Spirit of God? If it’s real, it can. But if it’s false, the “man of God” must be healthy, appear wealthy, and look sharp, hip, and acceptable.

In verse 15, we see Paul’s request of those in Galatia:

“Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me.”

Here is where Paul really takes the Galatians back to when he first arrived among them. He reminds them of their speech and of their sacrificial love for him. Were they blessed of God? They said they were. They spoke of it all the time. And their love. They had such a love for Paul that he had no doubt they would have taken their own eyes and given them to him, if that had been possible. Oh, how they desired to please this man God had sent to them. What was Paul’s request? He asks them, “What happened to that? Where did that blessedness go to?” Remember, they were wonderfully blessed long before they even thought of living according to the Law of Moses or the rules of men. Think about it for a moment. With his physical problems, there was no way Paul could have adhered to some legal requirement. And the Galatians initially had never even heard of such a thing. They thought only of pleasing God. Rules? Regulations? Law? Recalling his infirmities and their response to his ministry, Paul showed them that they didn’t need those things.

THE THIRD APPROACH PAUL USES INVOLVES REBUKING INDIVIDUALS

Remember, the Galatians, in straying away from the truth that Paul had taught them, had sinned. Now it’s time for the man of God to rebuke them.

First, he dealt with the Churches’ membership, in verse 16:

“Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?”

When Paul came to them, they received him with open arms of love. They were very humble and submissive to him, as we see from Hebrews 13.7 and 17 they ought to have been:

“Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.”

“Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.”

But not anymore. What had happened that caused them to suddenly hate him? The only thing he had ever done to them and for them was preach and teach the truth of God’s Word. Could that be the reason? Can it possibly be that he was now considered an enemy because he had told them the truth? That’s a question pastors and missionaries often ask when those in their ministry suddenly and permanently decide they are no longer worthwhile to listen to.

Many is the time folks have ghosted me. Typically without an explanation of any kind. And without responding to requests from me to find out what’s going on. When I do get an explanation, it is frequently profoundly unconvincing. Whether they be saved or lost, it’s a sad day indeed when a guy doesn’t want to be caught in a room alone with you just because he knows you’re going to open God’s Word to him, or because you might ask him a question related to why he changed course in life without so much as a hint. I think, if such a thing were to happen to me, I’d strongly consider being saved or getting right with God. Amen? Just doesn’t make sense to avoid a guy for telling the truth. So, Paul rebukes them for their attitude.

Next, Paul deals with the Churches’ attackers, verse 17:

“They zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them.”

Of course, those causing problems in the Galatian Churches aren’t going to read Paul’s letter, so he can’t rebuke them directly. Instead, he tells the Galatians what these false teachers are up to. Notice two words: The words “zealously affect” and the word “affect” come from the same Greek word, zhlόw. Paul is telling the Galatians that these false teachers were strongly interested in them just so they will be strongly interested in return. The phrase “not well,” oὐ kalῶV, lets us know that the strong interest the false teachers had for the Galatians is not genuine. In effect, Paul is telling them, “The false teachers show no interest in you because they’re interested in you. They show interest in you only so you will be interested in them.” It’s manipulation.

Is there a Megan Markle or Amber Heard application of this verse? Do we see third wave feminists influencing their guys like the Galatians were influenced? Megan influences pathetic Prince Harry because he is weak and simple-minded, taking him away from his people so she can more easily manage him. Amber could not control her vile husband, so she attempted to destroy him. Too bad for her Johnny Depp had almost limitless financial resources and hired Camille Vasquez.

Then, Paul deals with the Churches’ pastors, verse 18:

“But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you.”

I suggest to you that Paul is rebuking pastors here, though he does not directly say that he is doing so. What he does say is that it is great when interest is shown toward Christians to influence them for the good, and not just when Paul happens to be around. The verse ends,

“and not only when I am present with you.”

I am of the opinion that the Galatians’ pastors were probably your normal garden variety preachers. That means, and Paul gives some indication here, they didn’t really conduct their ministry the way they ought to have unless he happened to be around. They might have been cold and indifferent to their people. Or they might have been lazy and slothful. Either way, Church members had allowed the false teachers to get a foothold in their Churches and cause great harm by not exercising real leadership.

When you are a pastor and your relationship with God isn’t right, the conduct of your ministry will rapidly go wrong. You tend to lose sight of the fact that for a Church to be effective for Christ we must be of one mind and heart. Such had happened in the Galatian congregations. God’s plan for men in the ministry doesn’t give them a great deal of control. After all, Churches are the ultimate democracy and people can take a hike if they don’t like what the pastor’s direction is. So, it’s important that the pastor exercise strong leadership and deal with problems when they arise, while the problems are still small, rather than allowing issues to develop, as had rapidly happened in Galatia.

Whatever their specific problem was, those pastors seem to have been men who only conducted themselves properly when Paul was watching them. They weren’t men who led with commitment and wisdom. And that kind of ministry no Church needs. If someone wants to serve God in this Church, that someone needs to be willing to get the job done whether I am watching or not. Amen? People in ministries at Calvary Road Baptist Church need to do more than just enough to get by. I am here to remind everyone that when we serve we serve as unto the Lord.

THE FINAL APPROACH PAUL USES TO BRING HIS BELOVED GALATIANS BACK TO TRUTH IS BY WHAT I CALL RELIVING IMPLANTATION

Paul brought them to Christ. He went through the heartache and the agony of implanting the seed of the Word of God into their lives, and then prayed heartfelt prayers that God would use His Word to save their souls. Now, as he sees them straying into doctrinal error, he seems to be going through the agony all over again in trying to get them back on the right track.

Notice his address:

“My little children.”

The Apostle John will use this address as a term of endearment in his letters. But I don’t think Paul here uses the phrase in quite the way John would decades later. I think Paul is using this address to remind to his readers of their spiritual immaturity. He wanted them to know that they were spiritual babies. And being spiritually mature himself, he was very concerned for them.

Next, notice his agony:

“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.”

“Travail” speaks of the sharp pangs a mother endures as she is delivering her child. Labor pains. Paul felt this pain when he was in Galatia, guiding those precious souls to Christ. But here he is again, enduring the same heartaches all over again to get them back on the right track. What was their problem? We have an indication in this verse. Paul said he was in travail “until Christ be formed in you.” Remember that these Galatians had begun to try to become Christ-like by fulfilling the works of the Law of Moses.

Circle the words “be formed” and let me tell you some things about those two words. They come from a single Greek word, morjwqῇ, a philosophical word that refers to the outward expression a person gives to his innermost being. It refers to Christ on the inside, in the person of the indwelling Spirit of God, being lived on the outside. And this verb is passive. Here is what a passive verb means: First, the subject of a passive verb is inactive or passive. That means Christ isn’t doing anything. He is passive. Second, the subject is acted upon by something or someone else. Christ isn’t doing anything here, but someone or something is doing this for Him.

Imagine, for illustration purposes, that Christ is actually residing in the heart of a Christian in the person of the Holy Spirit in an inactive or passive state. Not that Christ does not do anything, but that He does not express Himself in the believer’s life. He does not glorify Himself in your life or in mine. That’s the first part of the passive verb. But what about the second part? What about the part where the subject is acted on by someone or something else? If Christ does not express Himself in your life, Who or what does? John 16.14 teaches us it is the task of the Holy Spirit. Boiled down to the essentials, the Galatians, and any person who lives by rules and regulations, is in effect trying to do the Holy Spirit’s job for Him. Christ does not glorify Himself. But neither can the Christian glorify Christ by keeping the Law or by keeping a list of rules. Only the Spirit of God will glorify Christ. And He will not use rules and Laws to perform that mission.

If you ever become Christ-like it will be the result of the Holy Spirit’s working in you, not some Law working on you, or you attempting to adhere to a list of rules, do’s and don’ts. This illustration made, let me restate again that the Lord Jesus Christ’s residency in a believer is actually through His representative, the Holy Spirit of God. But Paul’s explanation thoroughly addresses the Holy Spirit’s role of magnifying Christ in a believer’s life.

Finally, Paul’s attitude, in verse 20:

“I desire to be present with you now, and to change my voice; for I stand in doubt of you.”

Paul is puzzled. He is perplexed. He is somewhat embarrassed. He really doesn’t know what to do with them. He has been writing hard and challenging words. He’d rather be there and speak a bit more gently, but since he couldn’t come he had to write using words that were tough, to shake them up. And, in the end, he doesn’t really know where he stands with them because their behavior has left him in doubt about them. Are they saved or are they not saved? He used to be sure, but as of now? He has a question in his mind.

We could spend every Sunday for a year dealing with the issues raised in this one passage. Entire courses to teach young men about pastoring could be developed from these 9 verses. We have had but a few minutes. In those few minutes, however, I trust the Holy Spirit has done a work in your heart.

Point one was about removing impositions. Have folks imposed burdens on you that have nothing to do with the Word of God? Are you trying to live up to the expectations of other people? Forget their expectations. You focus on serving God and they will be just fine. However, don’t misunderstand this as a carte blanche for disregarding congregational leadership.

Point number two was about recalling infirmities. My unsaved friend, aren’t you glad God could use a man like Paul? That means, if you were ever saved God, could use a man or a woman like you, too. Real Christianity has room for ordinary people like Paul. False religions and false faiths that depend on human works or good deeds don’t have room in them for people like Paul.

Point three was about rebuking individuals of various kinds. Are you angry when God’s man preaches the truth? Are you angry that your comfortable system, which strongly resembles Christianity, has been shown to be contrary to the plan of God for your life? Remember, just because something is comfortable doesn’t mean it’s right.

Finally, about reliving implantation. Are there folks who are agonizing because you have supposedly “gotten saved” but never progressed beyond that? Are you putting others through agony because of their concern for your spiritual lethargy? Why not get your life back on track? Quit the rules and regulations, that no one can measure up to anyway, and fall in love with Christ again.

Or perhaps that challenge is out of order. Perhaps you just need to be saved for real the first time. Amen?

__________

[1] Ernest R. Campbell, Galatians, (Silverton, Oregon: Canyonview Press, 1981), pages 100-101.

[2] Ibid., page 101.

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