Preventing Distortion
“Not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Gal. 1:7)
When one looks at a Rubik’s cube, the difference between well-ordered and a complete mess is not the addition nor subtraction of any single block; the difference is in distortion. From a man who has never properly solved a Rubik’s cube, I can testify that one wrong turn can lead to a world of hurt. That world is the one of which Paul enters in Galatia. These false teachers were not adding anything to the sacred Scriptures. These were not men who added books of the Bible nor altered their translations to fit their theology. No, these were Jews who revered the Old Testament scriptures and yet distorted the “gospel of Christ.”
Let’s not be naïve today, for these troubles continue to beset us. Speaking of Paul’s letters, Peter writes: “There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scripture.” (2 Peter 3:16) “Ignorant and unstable” do not refer to the one’s smarts, but to one’s soul. These holy writings require a holy people to handle properly. The clarity of the New Testament does not prevent the distortion from occurring. In fact, the danger is all the greater. To read the Scriptures comes with high spiritual stakes. To treat Jesus Christ as John Grisham is to our harm.
To keep the gospel of Christ well-ordered is beyond our ability; therefore, we desperately need the help of the Holy Spirit. He opens our eyes, He enlightens our heart, He makes wise the simple. No spiritual benefit from this spiritual book can be expected without the Spirit’s help. When He helps, expect to find matters beyond your understanding, for the Bible was inspired by a God beyond our understanding. We call that an aid to humility. When He helps, expect to find matters that go against the gain of your pride, for God is Most High. Another aid to humility. When He helps, expect to find Jesus Christ glorified above every human idea and institution. Another aid to humility. To paraphrase Paul, when we “want to make a good showing of the flesh,” it always comes at the glory of Christ (Gal. 6:12). To read the gospel of Christ well, the Spirit makes a good showing of Christ at the expense of our glory.
