“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?” (Galatians 4:9).
TEXT — Galatians 4:1-11
Message
The words of Eleanor Roosevelt ring true: “One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words. It is expressed in the choices one makes. In the long run, we shape our lives and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility”.
The Galatian believers were an example of a church that took series of wrong decisions. In our text, Apostle Paul asked them why they chose to return to the weak and beggarly elements of their sinful past, after they had been saved. Paul concluded by re-emphasising the beauty of the truth of the gospel, which they heard and believed, and charged them to return to it. As a loving father, he expressed his fears over their spiritual wellbeing, because of their gullibility and simplicity.
Like the Galatians, many people are marked out by short-term self-indulgence, which makes them think less of long-term priorities and goals. No wonder Paul called them ‘foolish Galatians’ (Galatians 3:1) for their propensity to believe false teachers and their fickleness and vulnerability. These false teachers, perhaps, made use of some attractive things to ensnare these Galatian believers back to their old lives, and damn their souls.
The point being made in Paul’s admonition is that we must make right choices concerning our faith, stand firm in the truth we have received and resist every allurement to go back to past sinful life. We should not just counsel the new converts brought into the Kingdom, but also contend against false doctrines they are exposed to. Like good mothers, we should feed them with good and nourishing teachings of the full-orbed truths so they will not desire the unsafe roadside ‘food’ being peddled by satanic ‘vendors’. While doing this, we should be watchful and prayerful both for them and over our lives.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
Good
I am fully blessed, more of God’s grace and anointing upon you in Jesus name
To God be the glory