Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2 and all the brothers who are with me,
To the churches of Galatia:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Jesus says, “See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray” (Mark 13:5-6). Paul says, “there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ” (v. 7).
Why would anyone want to do that? Some possible reasons:
- Mislead Misleaders: Some people are misled themselves and gather people around and lead them astray as they themselves fall away from truth. Jesus calls such people blind guides.
- Egotistical Attention-Getters: Some people just want attention. They want to feel important. They need the spotlight. They need all eyes focused on themselves.
- Narcissists: Those who are excessive self-centered, have an inflated sense of their own importance, and a strong need for admiration. We sometimes use the term casually (I put those people in the category above). But narcissistic personality disorder is a clinical diagnosis that requires evaluation by mental health professionals.
- Angry and Alienated Displaced Powermongers: Some people have lost power. They miss the opportunity to influence others and will cast aspersions on true followers of Jesus in order to regain their former place of honor.
Any of these kinds of people can distort the Good News of Jesus. But the true gospel message is precious, and beautifully expressed in these truths:
- God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. – John 3:16
- For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. – Ephesians 2:8-9
- All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. – Romans 3:23-24
- For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 6:23
- Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:
He was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated by the Spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory. – 1 Timothy 3:16
This is the message Paul was defending; the truth that people were abandoning. They were being led astray by people who wanted all the attention, who did not believe it themselves, and who were themselves terribly deceived.
This gospel, however, is a precious truth, never to be abandoned or distorted. This is why I keep studying and proclaiming this Good News.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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