An Appeal to Past Harmony. Galatians 4:12-16.
Dear Kingdom of Priests,
Paul is dealing with believers who are young in the faith and who have been misled by legalists. They have even begun to doubt him as a person, so he takes them back to the past, where it all started.
Adapted (v. 12). Paul urges the Galatians to imitate him. When he came to them, he adapted to them. Whatever their culture and way of life, that is what he adjusted his life to and it did him no harm. He expounds on this concept more extensively in his first letter to the Corinthians in which he says he “became all things to all men” (1 Corinthians 9:19-22). Whatever sacrifice it took for the gospel to reach a certain group, Paul was willing to make it.
Accepted (vv. 13-15).It seems that contrary to the popular perception, Paul did not blaze through Galatia demonstrating power at every twist and turn. He says rather, that he is “physical infirmity.”Yet the Galatians did not despise him and received him instead, as a messenger from God. They so appreciated the gospel that they “would have plucked out” their own eyes and given them to him. This implies that Paul had a problem with his eyes. It has been suggested by many that his “Damascus Road Experience” (Acts 9:1-19) had left him with poor vision. It has also been suggested that his “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7) was actually the eye problem. We know also that Paul wrote his letters with the help of others, to whom he would dictate (1 Corinthians 16:21; Romans 19:22; Colossians 4:18; 2 Thessalonians 3:17; Galatians 6:11). This poor vision problem is the most likely, but it could simply have been an expression at the time that communicated extreme devotion. Whatever the case, Paul implies that this devotion could only have happened because of their experience with the gospel he preached, because there obviously was no other benefit.
Alienated (v16). Paul then asks, What changed? If before he told them the truth, which they received and because of which they devoted themselves to God and also to him, why were they now, after being told the same truth, treating him like an enemy?
When we have been devoted to a person and have submitted to his spiritual authority and then find ourselves not only disagreeing but also actively opposing him, it may be time for a rain check. We may need to reexamine our motives and the matter at hand, lest we follow our passions and the deception of men.
Your Loving Pastor Chris.