Why Is False Teaching A Big Deal? (Galatians 5:7-12)
GIST: False teaching isn’t a matter of different opinions; it leads people away from hope and towards Hell.
Today, we’re picking up with the next section of Galatians 5. As Paul turns to the application portion, he is developing what it looks like if we lived changed by this truth: we are saved by grace alone. For the last two weeks, we’ve looked at the first 6 verses of chapter five. Here he’s been explaining that grace frees us from sin and giving some insights into what that freedom should look like. This next section, verses 7-12, reads like an aside. Remember, he cares deeply for these people. This letter is packed with emotional language as he pleads with them not to fall into the false teaching of Jesus’ grace + works. He loves them, so as he’s writing them, he’s thinking about them as individuals. This isn’t just an academic exercise for him. I think that is clear as he turns away from explaining freedom in Christ to talking about the dangers of false teachers. Let’s look at those verses.
“7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from Him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!”
Strong language to wrap this section up to say the least ☺️. However, the focus of this passage is one that probably doesn’t stir our hearts as much as it should. He’s addressing the dangers of false teachers. For most of us, that’s just not something we spend too much time thinking about. It’s a “churchy” sounding concept, but should it really concern us day-to-day? I know I’m leading here… so, you know I’m looking for you to say, “yes” ☺️, but why? That’s what I want us to consider as we break down Paul’s appeal here this morning. Here’s our kind of “big picture” gist: False teaching isn’t a matter of different opinions; it leads people away from hope and towards Hell. I debated how to structure the layout here. It was either go with one large point or five small ones. I went with five smaller points, so you’ll feel like you’ve accomplished more when we’re done ☺️. First→
I. False teaching gets in the way of truth, and truth matters. (7)
Look at verse 7 again. “7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” This verse starts by reminding us that the Christian life is a race. We’ve been called to a purpose. We’re running toward a goal that Jesus has already attained for us, but that we are eager to experience fully. We broke that concept down a bit last week. We’re saved by grace as soon as we receive His rescue, but there’s coming a day when we’ll experience life fully released from the taint of sin. In the meantime, we run the race set before us to seek Him and shine Him in a world naturally hostile to Him.
Here, Paul tells these Galatians, “You started strong. What happened? Who got in your way?” One of the older commentaries I study, pointed out that this language of hindering seems to be connected to running, as well (Barnes). It’s like someone pushing you off the track before you cross the finish line. But this hindering is directly connected to getting in the way of us obeying the truth. This might be the obvious effect of false teaching. By definition, they don’t teach the truth, so they lead people astray. How serious is that though? In a world where truth is devalued, it might not come across as that shocking. We’re constantly being told that truth is relative. What is true for you, might not be true for me, but if it helps you on your personal journey it’s equally valid...for you. If that’s the case, there are no false teachers. There are just teachers who teach different truths. This doesn’t line up with Jesus’ claims to be the truth. It can’t coexist with Paul repeating again and again in this letter that to miss out on Jesus’ rescue through grace is to miss out on salvation entirely. If the Bible is true, truth can’t be relative, and knowing and following the truth matters. We have so many reasons to trust the Bible. Don’t just take my word for it. Dig in. Look at it’s consistency. Look at how it’s stood the test of time. Look at how its manuscript evidence stacks up against every other ancient writing. Oh, it’s easier to create truth for ourselves to best meet our perceived needs, but that path doesn’t lead to the hope we all really need.
Second→
II. False teaching is not from God, and He’s meant to define our lives. (8)
Paul is quick to point out that “8 This persuasion is not from Him who calls you.” This misleading didn’t come from Jesus. It doesn’t line up with the consistent teaching of His word. It came from people. When you examine all false teachings, this is the case. When you try to line them up next to what the Bible actually teaches, they fall short. This is so important to understand. Lots of false teachings will cloak themselves in Biblical sounding language. They will even claim to be “Christian”. Because of this, so many people just take them to be truth. Don’t just accept a teaching because someone is teaching it to you. That includes me. Examine everything by the Scripture. In college I listened to a lot of Bott Radio Network while driving back and forth to classes, and the Bible Answer Man’s catch phrase always resonated with me (more than the program itself actually ☺️). Become so familiar with the truth that when you see a counterfeit you recognize it immediately.
Third→
III. False teaching is pervasive, so it has to be taken seriously. (9)
It’s a slippery slope. “9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” Again, it’s easy to say, “Ok, I can buy into most of what the Bible teaches, but this one doctrine doesn’t really seem to fit, so I’m just going to set it aside.” Where does that end? If we open the door to Jesus + anything else, we are putting something above His truth. Plain and simple we’re tying ourselves back to the sin Jesus came to free us from. It only takes a little yeast to make a whole loaf rise. That picture is so clear, but I’ve always struggled with it...because I love bread ☺️. For me, a nice risen loaf seems like a winning situation. So, maybe think of it like this: it only takes a little waste to destroy a refreshing cup of water. I take a gallon of water with me to school every day...and drink every bit of it. What if as I’m walking to class, I collide with a custodian who’d just been fixing a clogged toilet. The experience left him drenched, and our collison opened my lunch box causing my water to pop open. It doesn spill, but I see some of his “drippings” fall into the container. How much of that water am I drinking today? Or, what if someone told me they just put a little arsenic into my jug? A little corrupts the whole.
Fourth→
IV. False teaching puts despair in pretty packages. (11)
We see this in verse 11. (I’m skipping verse 10 and coming back to it in closing). “11 But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.” That’s what false teaching does. It takes away the offense of the cross. Most commentators agree that part of the accusations against Paul claimed that he had actually been teaching that people needed to be circumcised in other places, but I guess he was just holding that back from the Galatians. It’s almost as if he remembers that, and immediately says, “If this were true, why would I be persecuted still?” He was being persecuted because he was remaining faithful to the truth. That’s what happens. The truth of Jesus is beautiful and life changing, but it’s hard because it flips our world upside down. It calls us out for our sinful hearts and tells us we need rescued and changed. However, false teaching puts the responsibility back on our shoulders. It takes away the harder bits and, because of that, is easier to swallow. However, in the process it removes all the power and hope.
And lastly, we need to take false teachings seriously because→
V. False teachers will face the consequences. (10, 12)
Don’t take this to mean people who formally teach lies. Anyone who furthers the lie falls into this category. This is a warning for all of us. Look at verse 10 first. “10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is.” My first question when reading this was “Why does he have this confidence?” There is a tone change here. He is warning them and calling them to turn back to the truth they know, and here he expresses that he truly believes they will. Remember, these are people for whom he cares deeply. He believes they will see the truth, and the ones that are robbing them of this joy of walking in the grace and forgiveness of Jesus will be punished.
His final words on the subject here are even stronger. “12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!” They were teaching circumcision as necessary for salvation, so that’s where this whole image comes from. These are strong words, but not the only ones in Scripture. Remember what Jesus said about leading children astray and millstones? “5 Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” (Matthew 18:5-6) Why such language? To emphasize how serious this is. False teaching isn’t something to bat an eye at. It’s not just a “churchy” thing. Let me just recap in our→
TAKEAWAYS
GIST: False teaching isn’t a matter of different opinions; it leads people away from hope and towards Hell.
I. False teaching gets in the way of truth, and truth matters. (7)
II. False teaching is not from God, and He’s meant to define our lives. (8)
III. False teaching is pervasive, so it has to be taken seriously. (9)
IV. False teaching puts despair in pretty packages. (11)
V. False teachers will face the consequences. (10, 12)
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