Bewitched Away from the Cross (Part 1) – By Babatunde Olugboji
The question the Apostle Paul asked in Galatians 3:1 often evokes incredulity. And this is what we will be examining in a mini-series that will conclude next week.
Paul speaks with deep pastoral urgency: “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?” His words are sharp, because he loves them too much to watch them drift from the truth, and not because he hates them. Paul is shocked that believers who once received the message of Christ crucified with clarity are now being drawn away into spiritual confusion.
To understand why Paul uses the word “bewitched,” we must examine the larger context. Reading a text without examining the context could be dangerous. And here is the context of this verse. False teachers had entered the Galatian churches and were persuading Gentile believers that faith in Christ was not enough. They taught that unless these believers observed circumcision and submitted to the rituals of the Mosaic Law, they could not be fully justified before God. In other words, they were adding human works to the finished work of Christ.
This was not a minor doctrinal disagreement. It was an attack on the heart of the gospel. Paul had preached that sinners are justified by faith in Christ, not by the works of the law. He had taught them that salvation is by grace, received through faith, because Christ has already done what human effort could never do. To return to the law as the basis of justification was to deny the sufficiency of the cross.
That is why Paul asks, “Who has bewitched you?” The word suggests a kind of spiritual spell, an evil influence, a deception that clouds judgment and pulls people away from truth. It is as though Paul is saying, “How did you lose sight of something that was once so clear to you? Who got into your ears? Who shifted your focus? Who made you think that Christ crucified was no longer enough?”
The false teachers may have sounded persuasive. They may have appeared religious, serious, eloquent, and wise. But not every religious voice is a gospel voice. Not every impressive teacher is a faithful teacher. Error often comes dressed in spiritual language. Deception does not always announce itself as deception; sometimes it sounds disciplined, respectable, and even biblical. But if it moves people away from the sufficiency of Christ, it is dangerous.
Paul reminds the Galatians that when he came to them, he did not center his preaching on human wisdom or religious performance. He proclaimed Jesus Christ and Him crucified. The cross was not an accessory to the message; it was the message. The crucifixion of Christ declares that salvation is not achieved by human effort but received by faith. If righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing.
Paul then presses the Galatians with a series of questions. Did they receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Were they now trying to complete in the flesh what began by the Spirit? Their own experience testified against their error. They did not receive the Holy Spirit because they performed religious rituals. They received the Spirit because they believed the gospel. Their Christian life began by faith, and it must continue by faith.
Paul also points them to Abraham. Long before the law was given, Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness. Abraham was not declared righteous because he had performed perfectly or earned divine acceptance. He was counted righteous because he trusted God. This is the foundation of justification by faith. God declares the believer righteous, not on the basis of personal merit, but on the basis of faith in Him.
To be continued.
Have a good week.
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