SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP SERVICE, 18 October 2026
Sermon Text: Galatians 1:11-24
Main Points:
Introduction
I. The gospel is revealed by God
II. The gospel is entrusted to those God calls
III. The gospel transforms lives for the glory of God
Conclusion
What makes the Christian gospel different from every other religious message in the world? At the heart of Christianity is a message that does not originate in human wisdom or achievement. It is the good news of what God has done for sinners through Jesus Christ.
But, throughout the history of the church, people have been tempted to alter the gospel. Some add human traditions to it; others make it more acceptable to the world. Still others turn it into a message about what we must do to earn God’s favour rather than what God has done to save us. Whenever this happens, the gospel itself is at stake.
This was the very problem the apostle Paul confronted and, therefore, he wrote to the churches in Galatia. Within just fifteen to twenty years of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and the birth of the NT church, the gospel was already under attack. Some people were troubling these churches by distorting the gospel of Christ and undermining Paul’s authority, and therefore, the message he proclaimed.
We face the same challenge in our days. Although the forms of opposition may differ, the authority of the gospel continues to be questioned, challenged, and reshaped according to human preferences and the spirit of the age. We’re often encouraged to accommodate the gospel to contemporary values rather than allow God’s Word to challenge and correct our thinking and life.
Paul’s concern and astonishment for the Galatians’ desertion of the gospel is very much ours. And the question is, ‘Will we stand firmly upon the gospel God has revealed, or will we allow the world to redefine it?’
In our passage, Paul emphasises why the gospel must be trusted. He establishes its divine authority by affirming that it was revealed to him by Jesus Christ. His calling as an apostle was an act of God’s sovereign grace, appointing him to proclaim the gospel so that Christ might be made known and God might be glorified.
So, the central message of this passage is this: God reveals His true gospel, entrusts the gospel to whom He calls, and transforms their lives so that He may be glorified.
I. The Gospel Is Revealed by God (vs. 11-12)
Paul begins in v. 11: “For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel.” He emphasises this because the authority of the gospel was being challenged. If Paul’s message were merely a human invention or his own interpretation of what Jesus had taught, it could be revised or rejected according to human judgement. But Paul insists that his gospel does not originate in humanity; it came to him through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, the gospel he proclaims, and the apostolic authority with which he proclaims it, do not rest on human invention or appointment. The message of salvation comes from God. It tells us what God has done in Christ, something we could never discover by our own wisdom or accomplish through our own efforts. Human beings can develop philosophies, establish religions, and construct moral systems. We can speculate about God and attempt to discover how we might become acceptable to Him. But we cannot create the gospel. We cannot devise a way of salvation that God has not revealed.
The gospel announces what God Himself has accomplished. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came into this world to save sinners. Through His life, death, and resurrection, God has provided the salvation we could never obtain for ourselves. Salvation is God’s gracious provision announced to humanity.
That is why the authority of the gospel does not depend on whether people find it attractive or convincing according to their own preferences. Its authority rests on the God who has revealed it. The point he nails here is this: if the gospel is from God, no one has the right to alter it.
This challenges us to consider how we receive God’s Word. It is easy to accept the parts of Christianity that appeal to us, while resisting those that challenge us. We may welcome the assurance of God’s love but avoid the seriousness of sin. We may appreciate forgiveness while neglecting repentance, or speak about salvation while resisting the lordship of Christ.
But, we cannot receive the gospel on our own terms. We must receive it on God’s terms. The church is not called to invent a new gospel for every generation. Nor are ministers called to remove difficult truths to make God’s message more acceptable. Our responsibility is to proclaim faithfully what God has revealed in His Word.
This does not mean communicating carelessly. We should explain the gospel clearly and compassionately, in language people can understand. But there’s a fundamental difference between communicating the gospel effectively and changing its message to suit human preferences. The first is faithful ministry; the second is unfaithfulness.
Brothers and sisters, our confidence must rest not in a preacher’s personality, a church’s traditions, or the world’s approval, but in the truth of God’s revealed gospel. Throughout the generations since the days of the apostles, God’s people have been warned against these very temptations. Why? Because we’re so easily drawn to the persuasive words of men, the traditions of men, and the approval of the world. That is precisely the warning the Apostle Paul brings before us in Gal. 1.
The gospel is not ours to create or redefine. It belongs to God, and we’re called to receive it in its entirety; we’re called to believe it wholeheartedly, and proclaim it faithfully.
II. The Gospel Is Entrusted to Those God Calls (vs. 13-16)
Paul reinforces his point by appealing to his own life. He reminds the Galatians of what he had been before God called him. In vs. 13-14, Paul describes his former conduct in Judaism. He persecuted the church violently and tried to destroy it. He was extremely zealous for the traditions of the Jews.
This is a remarkable testimony. Paul was not a man sympathetic towards Christianity. He was an active, if not the fiercest, opponent of the church. His religious zeal was real, but it did not lead him to recognise the truth about Jesus Christ. In fact, it drove him to persecute those who belonged to Christ.
Here we encounter an important warning: religious sincerity, by itself, does not guarantee that we’re right with God. A person may be devoted to religious traditions, knowledgeable about religious matters, and zealous in religious activities, yet still fail to recognise the truth of the gospel. Paul’s former life demonstrates how deeply sin can distort even our religious convictions. We may sincerely believe that we’re serving God while resisting His purposes. We may be confident in our own righteousness while failing to recognise our need for mercy.
But Paul’s story does not end with his opposition to the church. A decisive turning point is mentioned in vs. 15-16: “But when He who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son to me, in order that I might preach Him among the Gentiles.” Paul was persecuting the church, but God intervened. Paul was advancing in his former religious life, but God called him to a new one. The persecutor of the church became a servant of the very gospel he had once opposed. Why? In order that Paul might preach Christ among the Gentiles! God did not call Paul merely to give him a new personal experience but to proclaim Christ among the Gentiles, to tell them the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Here, we see how closely Paul’s calling is connected to the nature of the gospel itself. The gospel does not originate in human wisdom, religious tradition, or personal achievement. It is the message of Jesus Christ, whom God has revealed as the Saviour of sinners. God’s purpose was not to make Paul famous or establish his reputation, but to make Christ known. Paul’s own life, therefore, confirms the very point he has been making – the gospel he proclaimed was not a message he had invented or a religious tradition he had inherited. It was revealed by God and entrusted to him for proclamation.
What does this mean for us? First, we must rest our confidence in the gospel of Christ. The gospel we’ve heard, received, and believe is not a message invented by human beings, but the message God Himself has revealed through His apostles. Therefore, our confidence must rest not in human wisdom or persuasion, but in the truth and power of God’s Word. As Paul declares in Rom. 1:16, he is not ashamed of the gospel – why? Because “it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” The gospel we believe is God’s power to save sinners. We have every reason, therefore, to trust it wholeheartedly.
Second, we must proclaim the gospel faithfully and joyfully, and make Christ known. If God has entrusted this gospel to us, we must not keep it to ourselves or alter its message to suit the world. Rather, we’re called to join the apostles and faithful believers throughout the generations in making Jesus Christ known. We do not proclaim ourselves or our own wisdom; we proclaim Christ, crucified and risen, as the only Saviour of sinners. In a word, we’re presenting the heavenly truth to people! May we, therefore, remain faithful to this glorious gospel, so that Christ may be known and God may be glorified.
III. The Gospel Transforms Lives for the Glory of God (vv. 17–24)
In the final part of our passage, Paul describes what happened after his calling. He explains that he did not immediately go to Jerusalem to consult those who were apostles before him. Instead, he went away to Arabia and later returned to Damascus. Only after three years, did he go to Jerusalem to visit Peter, remaining with him for fifteen days. He also notes that he saw none of the other apostles, except James, the Lord’s brother. Paul recounts these details to reinforce his central argument: the gospel he proclaimed is of Christ Jesus.
The churches of Judea did not know him personally. They knew him by reputation, and they were astonished by hearing that the man who once persecuted the church was now preaching the faith he had previously tried to destroy.
Let’s pause for a moment and consider the contrast. The former persecutor had become a preacher. The former enemy of the church had become a servant of Christ. The man who had attempted to silence the gospel was now proclaiming it. What could explain such a dramatic change?
The passage points us back to God’s work. Paul had been called by grace and had received the revelation of Jesus Christ. His transformation was not merely a change in religious preference; rather, the direction and purpose of his life had been radically altered.
And how did the churches respond to this report? V. 24 gives us the answer: “And they glorified God because of [Paul].” This is the climax of Paul’s testimony. The churches did not ultimately glorify Paul as though he were the hero of the story. They glorified God because they recognised God’s glory revealed through the gospel that had transformed Paul’s life. The very man who had once persecuted the church was now proclaiming the faith. What could account for such a remarkable transformation, except the powerful work of God’s grace? Through the gospel, God had revealed His saving power and brought glory to His name.
We see something similar in our own experience. When someone we know comes to faith in Christ and begins to live differently, we’re reminded that the gospel is truly God’s power to transform lives! We may not know all that God is doing in that person’s heart, but we can recognise the evidence of God’s grace in their changed attitudes, words, and actions. When we witness such a change, we cannot help but marvel at God’s grace, and give glory to His name through Christ!
This is, in fact, the very nature of the gospel. It is not merely a message that informs us about God and Christ; it is the good news through which God reveals His glory in the salvation of sinners. The gospel directs our attention away from human achievement and towards God’s gracious work in Jesus Christ. Paul’s transformed life provided a remarkable demonstration of this truth.
The same truth should shape the life of the church today. As the gospel is proclaimed and believed, God continues to transform sinners into people who know, love, and serve Christ. As we see Christians growing in holiness, serving one another, forgiving one another, and bearing witness to Christ, we give thanks and glory to God for His gracious work through His Word. The gospel transforms lives, Christ is made known, and God alone deserves the glory!
Conclusion
Now, brothers and sisters, let us examine our hearts, and let me ask these questions. Are you ashamed of the gospel? Or do you truly rest your confidence in the gospel God has revealed? Or are we tempted to reshape it according to our own preferences and the spirit of the age?
Our answer is clearly set: we stand firmly upon God’s Word, proclaim Christ faithfully and joyfully, and trust in the power of the gospel to save and transform sinners.
As we see God’s gracious work in our lives and in His church, may we never shrink back from proclaiming the gospel or neglect the privilege entrusted to us, but join the generations of believers who have made Christ known, so that God alone may be glorified through Jesus Christ. ***
