Paul and the Galatians

Strangely, just as I began researching for what I'm sure would have been an amazing post about "judging others," I began a Bible study on the book of Galatians. A short little thing, but man does it pack a punch. I have already learned it's one of Paul's strongest, most intense letters. I learned there was a lot at stake for Paul, and for future generations of Gentiles.

What's strange is how powerfully this introductory text and subsequent discussion affected me. Paul was seriously upset at the outside influences that were corrupting his teachings. Paul told the Gentiles that the way to salvation was by faith, through grace, plus... well, plus nothing! It was those outside influences, namely the Jerusalem Jews, that were suggesting to the Gentiles that although Paul was a cool dude and all, he didn't quite have all the facts. One had to become fully Jewish in order to be a part of God's family. In other words, one had to follow the dietary laws, observe the sabbath and be circumcised.

"Umm, I'm not sure if I want to be a part of that, I mean..." Can't you just hear the Gentile men talking about this? Can't you imagine them running away as fast as they can? What's also strange is how I -- and my peers -- have experienced something very much similar to this.

When I was younger, all those years ago, and was struggling to find myself and figure out the world around me, my friends and I would often discuss religion. Most of the time, of course, we were defending our decision to not attend church and stay as far away from religion as we could. Often, the conversation would center around the ideas that we honestly thought made up a religious life: i.e., the things we thought we had to do to become "Christians."

Universally, in my peer group, those things included going to church early on Sunday morning, not making mistakes, following all the rules and forcing your beliefs on others. Attending church on Sunday mornings was tough. There were Saturday nights when we didn't stop partying until most Christians were already on their way to church. Not making mistakes, we thought, was impossible. Why try? Following all the rules was boring and difficult. Not a great combination for lazy teenagers. And we knew we didn't want to hear that gospel stuff from other people, so we knew we weren't cut out to impose it on anyone else. But since I have returned to the church as an adult, I find that really none of those precepts were true at all.

One does not have to attend church on Sunday morning in order to be a Christian. One can find God while sitting at home. I certainly believe that; but I also know from experience that if one really wants to follow Jesus, you need to belong and regularly attend a church. It's hard enough to get through life as a Christian with full support. I wouldn't want to fathom trying to do it alone. In fact, I would deem that as impossible. Joining a group of followers, who can relate to you, support you and teach you, is imperative.

Christianity is not about being perfect. Jesus was about that, and thank you Jesus for coming here and finding out first hand what living on this earth is like. But no human being is capable of being mistake-free. It doesn't mean we don't strive to obey God, but the reality is none of us will ever make it. By the same token, following all the rules is not what Christianity is about, either. Is it important how we live? Yes, of course. But as many of us know, we are saved by faith, through grace -- Paul's message to the Gentiles throughout his missionary journeys. Should we do good works? Of course. Should we strive to do the right thing? Absolutely. But that's the benefit of being saved. We are free to do good works in His name. It's not a requirement, however.

And about witnessing, or spreading the word. The task of witnessing is so daunting. I have heard many Christian leaders, some of which I like very much, say things like: "When we face God he'll ask two questions. Do you know me, and who did you bring with you?"

In some ways, this rings true with every Christian, and at times haunts my being to the core. I am so worried that I can't say the right thing; or lacking in confidence because I am so unworthy, etc. We have a duty to share the Gospel with as many people as possible. We have to figure out how to do this in the course of our daily lives. But I really don't think it's about beating people over the head with the Bible. I see some who believe in standing on the street corner and directly confronting people with the Gospel. That's always been troubling to me. I admire the courage to stand out in public and preach the word, but doing so in a confrontational manner just doesn't work, at least in my world. God bless those who try. And if one person is saved in this manner, I guess it's worth it. You just wonder how many others have been chased away by these methods.

My favorite pastor always goes to John, Chapter 9. The blind man who was healed was not a mature Christian. He didn't have fancy words. He wasn't particularly smart or educated. He had few experiences to draw from. He didn't have a Bible. "All I know," he said, "is once I was blind, but now I can see." We all have our own story to tell. We don't need to fear anything. It's not important what fancy words we use, how smart we sound, or how many scriptures we can quote. What matters is it's our story, no one else's; and no one can refute that or take it away. It's still not easy, but we don't have to worry about doing it well; we just need to do it from the heart. It's still the most difficult thing to do. And not doing so is weak, and sinful, but it's also forgiven, as are all of our sins.

See, that's the part that Christians didn't make us aware of in the 60s and 70s. We didn't realize that. Or the devil hid it from us, maybe. But I don't remember anyone stressing all of the good things that accepting Christ meant. All of the cool stuff. The stuff that gives us freedom, peace of mind, direction for our lives. We didn't get that part. Somebody, like the circumcised Jews of Jerusalem, wasn't giving it to us straight. The fact is, one doesn't have to do any of those things to be a Christian. One needs to have faith in the risen Lord. We needed Paul, like the Galatians needed Paul. I can't wait to hear what Paul has to say next.