His Love Frees

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—and all the brothers and sisters with me,

To the churches in Galatia:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Galatians 1: (1-3)

We can become used to rituals in churches, saying the same words again and again. And the danger is not really thinking about what comes out of our mouths. The church leader stands at the front and leads reflections or prayers, and we respond with ‘Amen’ in the right places, or repeating words back at him. I think there’s a similar danger in reading over this introduction to Galatians. If we take a moment though to slow down and absorb these words of Paul, it can be a great blessing. 

Firstly, Paul shows that he knows his calling – an apostle sent by God not man. It throws a question at us: do we know our identity? Are we aware of our purpose in life? 

Secondly, he gives a simple direction to what the gospel is about: Jesus was given to us, saving us from our evil deeds and rescuing us from “the present evil age.” And it was all God the Father’s plan. We don’t need to complicate the Christian message. Jesus came into the world to rescue us because of God’s love. That’s it – and that’s wonderful!

Lastly, there’s this beautiful phrase, ‘grace and peace.’ These are the kind of churchified words, which are so easy to read quickly and not really digest. But the grace of God and the peace he gives opens doors and sets us free. In Romans 8, Paul talks about the mind of the flesh being set on death, but the mind on the Spirit is set on ‘life and peace’. Some of us may interpret ‘life’ in weary ways. We’ve suffered and the idea of eternal life may feel torturous. So Paul makes it clear that true life is lodged in peace, the kind of peace that God alone is able to give us. 

There’s so much to smile about in this introduction of Paul’s message to the Galatians. Let’s spend a bit of time just dwelling on what it says, reflecting on the words and praying about it. 

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