Thrust Statement: Paul wants Christians to understand the Gospel so that Christ can be formed in them.

Scripture Reading: Luke 2:10-11; Galatians 4:19

Understanding the Gospel of God

“Until Christ is formed in you” is pregnant with meaning. In the context of Galatians, it appears that this phrase is primarily used in reference to an adequate understanding of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus as the Savior of the world. On the other hand, some commentators look at the ethical aspects of the Christian life as the meaning of this weighty phrase. Both positions are viable interpretations, even though, in this writer’s opinion, the emphasis is not upon the ethical teachings of Jesus but upon a perception of the Gospel of God. This essay discusses both alternatives as viable options in the life of every believer.^[1] Many of the Galatians did not get the picture of the Gospel and were preaching another way of salvation other than faith in Jesus. In the Gospel, it is God who takes the burden of sin upon Himself. God alone, in and through the Cross of Christ, is the one who atones for the sins of humanity. The Book of Galatians is a defense of the expiatory sacrifice of Christ for the sins of humanity.

How can one receive the benefits of this sacrifice offered by God? Paul carefully develops faith as the means whereby individuals receive the blessings of forgiveness and reconciliation with God.  For Paul, it is only in Jesus that the guilt of sin separating individuals from God is removed. It is only in Jesus that God has broken down the barriers raised by guilt. As one reflects upon the Book of Galatians, one quickly realizes that God links humanity to Himself in peace and reconciliation through belief (faith) in the One who atones for the sins of humanity. One cannot approach God directly but only through the Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5; John 14:6). Without faith in Jesus one cannot have eternal life (John 3:36).^[2] Just a perusal of this Book reveals that many did not understand the full implications of the Gospel of God. As a result of this lack of comprehension, Christ was not formed in them.

Many were relying upon something other than faith in Jesus for salvation. Even today, this mentality is still true within many Christian fellowships. Countless Christians are still basing their salvation upon the meticulous details of a so-called worship service, not upon Christ. Some still do not understand that communion with God the Father is only possible through the mediation of Jesus, not through observance of a law code—a code that today is even more stringent than the Old Testament Law, at least according to some Christians. Without a proper discernment of the Gospel, one can say that Christ is still not formed within many. As long as one is relying upon absolute faithfulness to another way of salvation other than faith in Jesus, Christ cannot be formed in that individual. God’s Gospel is about what happened in Jesus, which event flows from eternity, that is to say, it belongs to eternity and it leads to eternity (Ephesians 1:4). Salvation is all of God in and through the finished work of Christ upon the Cross (Colossians 1:21-22). It is only in and through Jesus that the soul can be reunited to God. Jesus is the only way to God. This is what the Gospel of God is all about.

The Gospel of God is about God’s love. It is in and through the Gospel that God’s love takes hold of everyone in Christ. For Paul, one can only be found in His free grace in Jesus. God’s whole revelation is about His coming down to humanity in and through His One and only Son. In other words, God, through Jesus, enters the world of sinful humanity. As one looks at the Cross of Jesus, one looks at the Holiness of God with His mercy. It is in and through the Cross of Jesus that one sees the righteousness of God combined with His justice and mercy. The Jews were looking for another way of salvation other than faith in Jesus. The Gospel played such an important part in redemption that Paul could write with forcefulness:

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— ^7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. ^8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! ^9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned (Galatians 1:6-9)! ^[3]

If one is to understand this section of Scripture, one must understand these verses in light of their context. The Judaizers had infiltrated the Christian community and were requiring something other than faith in Jesus as the way of salvation (see also Romans 10:1-17). It was Christ plus something else (see also Acts 15:1-12). They were not relying upon the finished (perfected) work of Christ upon the Cross for their salvation. Even today, this Scripture citation (1:6-9) is still cited by many well-meaning Christians to give validity to their separation from other Christians who do not conform to their particular brand of orthodoxy. Ostracism of other Christians is based on the belief that they are preaching another Gospel. In other words, the Gospel is frequently associated with various interpretations of New Testament texts. For example, some associate the Gospel with the following beliefs: (1) one cup in the observance of the Lord’s Supper, (2) the manner in which the bread is used in the Lord’s Supper (break or pinch), (3) the use of grape juice in the Lord’s Supper (not wine), (4) accapella singing (not instrumental), and so on. It is not uncommon for the Gospel to be associated with the so-called correct view set forth by some segments within the Christian community. But is this kind of interpretation legitimate in light of Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians?  Many Christians are preaching another gospel, which is not the Gospel of God.

In the Jerusalem conference, Peter boldly defended the acceptance of the Gentiles upon the basis of faith: “He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith” (Acts 15:9). Again, Peter, in his closing remarks, addresses the what of the Gospel of God, that is, what the Gospel is all about: “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are” (15:11). In the churches of Galatia, many were endeavoring to teach another way of purification other than faith in Him. If one wishes to determine the meaning of the word Gospel, the best place to settle on the meaning is the context—verses before and after 1:6-9. Prior to Paul pronouncing a curse upon anyone who preaches another Gospel, he defines this word Gospel just a few verses before his warning about preaching another Gospel:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, ^4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.

What is the Gospel? It is about Christ having given Himself for the sins of humanity in order to rescue men and women from this evil age. For Paul, it is in Jesus that this new aeon with its salvation has dawned. Forgiveness actually takes place in and through Him, nothing else. Jesus is the bridge between God and humanity. In the Gospel, one perceives the mercy of God at the place of horror—the Cross of Jesus on Calvary. It is in the Cross that God comes to sinful humanity. It is only at the Cross that individuals see fully what it is that separates him or her from God, namely, sin. It is in Jesus that one understands that he or she is no longer separated from God. In the Cross of Jesus, one sees the reality of God’s wrath. Unless one is conscious of God’s wrath, one will not take his or her sins seriously. God’s Divine wrath is a Divine reaction against sin and guilt. It is in Christ that God has revealed Himself. The message of the Cross of Jesus is the mystery of the Gospel of God—Jesus is God’s Way of salvation. One can say that Jesus is the gift and act of God. God sent Him, God gave Him, and God gave Him up.  The Gospel is about Jesus the God-Man. It is in Jesus that one encounters the Eternal God.

The word Gospel appears twelve times in this short Epistle.^[4] The Gospel is about God’s activity of redemption for both men and women in Jesus Christ. The Gospel is Good News of justification by faith for sinful humanity. This means of right standing before God is by God’s grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).^[5] Again, one can say that the Gospel is the Good News for dying sinners that God promises them eternal life in and through Jesus by faith, not works. The Good News is that God furnishes His own righteousness—a righteousness that is supplied by God, a righteousness that is devised by God, and a righteousness that is made available by God through faith in His Son (Romans 1:16-17). Six times the word Gospel appears in the first chapter of Galatians. Just a casual glance of the employment of this word in the Book of Galatians reveals the meaning of this word.

Prior to reading Paul’s statement “Until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19), Paul sets forth what the Gospel is all about, namely, Christ. In 1:6, Paul writes: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel.” In 1:4, as mentioned earlier, Paul unravels for the reader the meaning of the word Gospel. Some of the Galatians were turning from the Gospel to another gospel, a gospel that Paul says is not the Gospel: “which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ” (1:7). In this verse, Paul employs the word gospel twice. Paul is combating a system of salvation that does not rest entirely upon the finished work of Christ for one’s salvation.

This preaching of another gospel other than the Gospel of Christ receives strong condemnation from the apostle: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned” (1:8)!  Paul employs the words preach and preached in this verse. Some were preaching a gospel that was not the same as Paul preached. This departure from the true Gospel receives a double warning: “As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned (1:9)! What was Paul preaching? One should turn again to verse four of this same chapter: “Who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age.”

As noted above, Paul calls attention to his preaching the Gospel. Now in 1:11, he calls awareness to the source of his Gospel: “I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up.” Paul is laboring the point of what he preached to the Gentiles. Fourteen years after his conversion, he recalls how he went up to Jerusalem and “set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles” (2:2). Over and over again Paul draws notice to his preaching the Gospel. The word gospel and the word faith are sometimes employed in the Book as synonymous. For example, in 1:23, Paul writes: “They only heard the report: ‘The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.’” Paul had to rebuke Peter and others who were teaching things that undermined the “truth of the Gospel”: “We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you” (2:5).

“Preaching the gospel” (1:9) is equivalent to “preaching the faith” (1:23) and “preaching the faith” is equivalent to “I might preach him among the Gentiles” (1:16). When one peaches Jesus (1:16), one is “preaching the faith” (1:23). Paul set forth “the truth of the gospel” (2:5) when Peter and others were not acting in harmony with the Gospel Paul preached. Paul rebuked Peter when he and the others were “not acting in line with the truth of the gospel” (2:14). Paul adds a significant statement to the reaction of those with whom he met concerning the Gospel that he had received from God: “Those men added nothing to my message. ^7 On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles,^a just as Peter had been to the Jews” (2:6, 7). In the course of this confrontation, Paul rebukes Peter for his hypocrisy:

^14 When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs (2:14)?

            This Scripture citation (2:14) is the tenth time that Paul has mentioned the word Gospel in this short Epistle. Why did Paul rebuke Peter and the rest for their “not acting in line with the truth of the gospel”? They were teaching that something else was essential to salvation, not just faith in the finished work of Christ. Again, Paul zeros in on the nature of the Gospel when he writes:

^ “We who are Jews by birth and not ‘Gentile sinners’ ^16 know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified (2:15-16).

How is one justified before God? Paul states plainly that it is  “by faith in Jesus Christ.” This section of Scripture coincides with what Paul says in 1:4.  The Book of Galatians unfolds the Gospel of God in very clear terms. One of the most significant verses in this Book is found in the third chapter:

The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”^{b 9} So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith (3:8-9).

            Again, one may ask, how are individuals justified before God? Once more, Paul goes right to the core of justification: “God would justify the Gentiles by faith.” In 3:8, Paul employs the word Gospel for the eleventh time. Two thousand years before the Incarnation, God preached “the gospel in advance to Abraham.” What did he preach to him? Was it accapella singing? Was it one cup for the Lord’s Supper? Was it about the Sunday collection (cannot collect money on any day except Sunday)? Was it about how to share the bread in the Lord’s Supper—break or pinch? Was it about grape juice or wine in the Lord’s Supper? Was it about a baptistry versus running water for baptism? Was it about kitchens in the church building? Was it about Bible colleges? Just what was the Gospel that was preached to Abraham? The Gospel consisted in this: “All nations will be blessed through you.” How? Christ came through the seed of Abraham.

            The Gospel of God is about justification. How is one justified before God? Is it by works of the Law (any law) or by faith in Jesus? When one fails to walk according to the truth of the Gospel, he or she is relying upon other means of salvation other than faith alone. Paul clearly states: “A man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ” (2:16). Faith in Christ is the only means of a right standing before God: “We, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law” (2:16). How are individuals justified before God? Listen to Paul once more as he zeros in on the cause of justification: “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham” (3:8). This Gospel announced Jesus as God’s Way of salvation. Paul continues this line of reasoning about the Gospel when he writes: “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,”^a meaning one person, who is Christ” (3:16).

Indisputable Historical Fact

            As one reflects upon the Gospel of God, one can hardly fail to recall the words of the angel to the shepherds concerning the birth of Christ. This announcement is the Good News of God concerning God’s message of salvation for lost humanity. Pay attention to the words of the angel as he speaks of “good tidings of great joy”: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ^11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ^a the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). In the Incarnation, Jesus came into a world of carnage. Just a casual reading of the life and times of people in the first century reveals that this world was a world of terror. It was a rough, hard, and brutal world.  The words of the angel were addressed, as it were, to this evil and horrifying world. God sent One to be the savior of the world. This One came to give hope and peace to all who put their trust in Him. The answer to one’s fears can only be found in Jesus who is Christ the Lord.

            “Be not afraid” sinks deep into the modern society. The modern world, as well as the world then, is full of terror. The real world is a most fearful world, not an idealized Christian world. Since the birth of Christ, the world has not become less fearsome. Individuals still live in a world of horror. There is no escape from this nightmare of fright. As one reflects upon the words of the angel, this narrative strikes one’s ears as if the announcement is far away. As both men and women witness the present war with Iraq, this announcement from the angel appears almost as a legend to the modern ear. The world at large is at war with God. This message, at this time, seems almost out of place. Yet, at this time of the year, one hears the story of Jesus told from one church to another church. The words of the angel ring out during the Christmas season.

At first glance, it appears that the horrors of the world and the message of the angel do not go together. The angel announces a real historical event—the Incarnation. The Gospels paint a picture of Jesus that reveals His humanity as well as His Deity (the pre-existence of the Logos). It is unquestionable that Jesus was born. The testimony of the Evangelist reveals that He grew up as a carpenter’s son in Nazareth of Galilee, alongside of four brothers and some sisters. The birth of Jesus is an indisputable historical fact. You will not find in the history books of the world that Jesus of Nazareth is the Savior of the world. You will not find in the chronicles of humanity, except Christianity, that God became flesh in order to redeem lost humanity. You will not discover in the writings of history that eternal light broke into the darkness of humanity. Yet, the eternal world of God disclosed itself in the Christ event.

            In the days of Jesus, God came to visit this world of sin. His birth is still a mystery to the world at large. Many still cannot grasp His life, His death, and His resurrection. These historical events still baffle the mind of the unbeliever. The unique event of His death as an Atonement for the redemption of the whole world still mystifies the atheist. One can search world history, but one will never find anything of this magnitude that has such a decisive significance for all eternity.  All the basic events of the world come to an end and are swallowed up in the nothingness of death. In other words, there is nothing in the secular archives of history that leads from the historical events of world history into eternity with the God of creation. History for the world is simply one event in time; world history is simply a series of events that is purely the outcome of other events. There is no meaning to history as found in the Bible.

            The message of the angel is in contrast to the philosophy of history by the world. What happened in Jesus Christ flows from eternity. As stated earlier, Jesus belongs to eternity and He leads to eternity. Because of this fact, John could write: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ^2 He was with God in the beginning” (John 1:1-2). It is in the same vein that Jesus prays to the Father: “And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began” (17:5). Paul also writes: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love ^5 he^a predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will” (Ephesians 1:4-5).

In world history one does not find anything of this element. This happening is one of the most significant events to transpire in the records of this world. In the birth of Christ, eternity entered time, and Christ has offered eternity to all who confess Him as Lord. It is only in Jesus that the life of joy and peace can be experienced. God entered into a new covenant relationship with His creatures, a covenant sealed with the blood of the Son of God and made valid for all eternity.  As a result of this new covenant, those who respond to God’s gift to sinful humanity (Jesus Christ) are made heirs of divine glory and enjoy the fullness of eternal life. This covenant remains valid for all eternity. Nothing can cancel this new relationship created by God through His Son. Paul seeks to grasp the love of God as he seeks to capture the depth of God’s love through Christ:

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^d neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ^39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).

Is it any wonder that Paul could write: “My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, ^20 how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you” (Galatians 4:19-20)!  How do Christians know this? They know this because Jesus is more than man; they also know this because Jesus is the Word of the eternal God Himself. What happened two thousand years ago is still decisive for today. This confidence is solidified in and through Jesus. Eternal life is given to anyone who puts his or her trust in Him. Thus, even in the midst of a dark and terrible world, one can still find joy.

CONCLUSION

            The Gospel is about Christ. The Gospel is about justification in and through Christ. Without faith in Him, one cannot stand in the presence of God. To get a feel for the context of Galatians 3:16, wherein he writes: “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,”^a meaning one person, who is Christ,” one needs to review the immediate context in order to fully grasp the picture of what the Gospel of God is all about:

^10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”^{c 11} Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”^{d 12} The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.”^{e 13} Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”^{f 14} He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit (3:10-14).

            As mentioned earlier, the word faith appears nineteen times in this short Epistle. Faith is employed in two differences senses in this Book. It is used in the sense of objective faith as well as subjective faith. In objective faith, faith has for its object, Jesus.  In 1:23, Paul speaks of “the faith” he once tried to destroy. Christ is the object of this faith. On the other hand, subjective faith of the individual is the means of receiving God’s grace. Faith  (subjective) is the channel or the means whereby God imputes to both men and women His righteousness. This is why Paul writes: “justified by faith in Christ” (2:16). Then again in 2:20, he writes: “I live by faith in the Son of God.” When he writes about Abraham and the justification of Gentiles, he calls attention to the means of justification: “God would justify the Gentiles by faith” (3:8). Once more, he draws attention to faith: “The righteous will live by faith” (3:11).     Why was the Law given? Listen to Paul as he pens the following words: “So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith” (3:24). Then in 3:26, he issues his clarion call, as it were, “You are all sons of God through faith in Jesus in Christ Jesus.”

            Since Jesus is the decisive and final revelation of God, there is salvation in no one else (Acts 4:12). In justification, Christ takes our place and we take His. Justification cannot be separated from the Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5), which is Christ in you the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Jesus came to visit us in the Incarnation. It is in Jesus that God reveals His eternal world. In other words, it is in the Christ event that reconciliation with God takes place. The life of Christ, His death, and His resurrection signify the incomprehensible and unique event of the atonement and redemption of the world. This new relationship that men and women experience today is a relationship created by the blood of Christ shed upon the Cross. As a result of Christ’s blood, one enters into a new relationship with God.  God links everyone to Himself in peace and reconciliation through belief in the One who atones for the sins of humanity. Redemption took place in Him and through Him alone. The Gospel of God is about how God comes to humanity in Jesus. Jesus cleared the way for reconciliation with God the Father. The Gospel demonstrates that men and women do not find a way to God, but rather, God comes to both in and through Jesus.

            As one rereads the Book of Galatians, one realizes that God has revealed Himself in Christ. The starting point of the Gospel is the belief that God has revealed Himself in and through Jesus the eternal Logos. It is in the Cross of Jesus that one observes an objective transaction in the salvation of humanity. In other words, God actually does something, which is absolutely necessary for the salvation of men and women. It is only in Jesus that God can deal with His wrath and His holiness at the same time. This is what the Gospel of God is all about—Salvation by faith in Jesus. God prepared reconciliation for humanity even before Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. In the Cross of Jesus, one discovers that everything necessary for forgiveness has been done. The Good News is that in the Cross, God has done what must be done to reconcile sinful humanity to Himself. In Jesus, the love of God becomes a gift to fallen humanity. The following words of Robert Clyde Johnson capture the Gospel of God in graphic language:

This is the intent of the teaching of Jesus, to announce “the gospel of God.” His basic concern was to bring men into a new relationship to God, not to teach them new ways of thinking about God. Thus his message was “news,” and not a symposium of new ideas about God. He announced the “good news” that God was acting to redeem and reconcile the world to himself.^[6]