DON'T TURN BACK!

Gal 4:8-11 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them, which by nature are no gods. But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain.

No doubt the members of the churches in Galatia were made up of both Jews and Gentiles. Paul had just berated the Hebrew Christians for bringing Jewish rituals, ceremonies, and doctrine into the church of Christ, and for teaching the same to the Gentile brethren. The lesson text seems to indicate that previous heathen practices of worshiping idols had been, or had attempted to be, brought into church doctrine by the Gentile Christians. Having been converted to Christianity through their belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and then having been baptized into Christ for the remission of their sins, these Gentile Christians continued to give service to them, which by nature are no gods.

Paul reminded these Gentile Christians that, before they were converted to Christ, they knew not God. They had been idolators, without knowledge of the true God of heaven, paying homage to, and worshiping idol gods made of clay, stone, and wood. From these natural elements of the earth, heathen craftsmen formed idols and promoted their craft by giving each figure the title of a "god." Purchased by superstitious heathen Gentiles, they did service to them, that is, they worshipped these god idols. Paul says that these figures were merely images carved and molded from the natural elements of the earth, which by nature could not possibly be gods at all.Moses, by inspiration, warned the children of Israel not to serve heathen idols, referring to them as the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell (Deut. 4:28). Such was the worthlessness of these Gentile god idols made by men.

It was the Holy Spirit-inspired gospel message of Paul, and other teachers of Christ, that rescued these Gentiles from idol worship, and gave them the knowledge of God, and the hope of eternal salvation, through His Son, Jesus Christ. They came to know God, and God knew them, as His adopted children. Accepting God as the Author of their salvation, these Gentiles were filled with spiritual bliss, made free from idolatrous worship, and the bondage of sin that resulted from it. As elated as Paul was at their conversion, his gladness was replaced with deep sorrow, when these Gentile Christians returned, once again, to their former sinful conduct of life. Paul's question to them was, But now ...how (could you) turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?

These Gentiles once lived sinfully in the eyes of God. To live in sin, is to live in bondage, which are the weak and beggarly elements of worldliness. Such a sinful life is weak;it cannot save mankind, because it has no soul-redeeming qualities; it is beggarly; it is too spiritually poor to afford the rich graces found in Christ, Jesus. Sin enslaves one to the evil ways of Satan, but hearing, believing, and obeying the gospel message of Jesus Christ, can break sin's chains that bind. These Gentile Christians had freed themselves of the chains of sin, but their spiritual weakness had caused them to return to sin's bondage.

Paul asks, why? Why turn back to theweak and beggarly life of sin? Some answers are found in God's holy word. Jesus tells us that it can occur because one gives in to the deceit of false prophets (false preachers and teachers) (Matt. 24:11), or by surrendering to the temptations of life (Luke 8:13). It can occur if, like Demas, one loves the present world more that a future, heavenly world (2 Tim. 4:10), or if one becomes so entangled in worldliness that it becomes too difficult to escape (2 Pet. 2:20-21).

Due to their state of apostasy, Paul was fearful that his labor of love - preaching the gospel of Christ to them, had been in vain. Why? Because these Gentile, as well as Jewish Christians, had turned back to, and corrupted Christian doctrine by, returning to pagan religious practices, and by keeping days, and months, and times, and years as "religious" rites, ceremonies, and pageantry. When one obeys God's gospel call and comes to Christ, the ways of the world, as well as all previous "religious" doctrines, must be left behind. These are the things one must repent of, and turn away from, in order to become a follower of Christ. Once this is done, Paul warned the churches of Galatia, as well as all members of the body of Christ today - Don't turn back!