Bewitched Away From the Cross (Part 2) By Babatunde Olugboji

Apostle Paul’s question in Galatians 3:1 often evokes astonishment. This week, we’ll conclude a mini-series we started last week that sheds light on this important question.

Here, Paul speaks with deep pastoral urgency: “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?” Very sharp words, not because he dislikes the Galatians, but because he loves them too much to watch them drift from the truth. Paul is shocked that believers who once received the message of Christ crucified with clarity are now being drawn away into spiritual confusion.

Speaking about righteousness, Paul directs the Galatians toward Abraham as an exemplar. Centuries prior to the giving of the law, Abraham placed his faith in God, and this faith was credited to him as righteousness. Abraham’s declaration of righteousness did not result from flawless conduct or the acquisition of divine favor through personal achievement. Rather, he was deemed righteous because of his trust in God. This principle constitutes the fundamental basis of justification through faith. God pronounces the believer righteous not according to individual accomplishment, but according to faith placed in Him.

This is the beauty of imputed righteousness. In Christ, God credits to us what we could never produce by ourselves. Our sin is placed upon Christ, and His righteousness is credited to us. As 2 Corinthians 5:21 teaches, God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. This is why believers are not merely improved sinners; they are declared righteous in Christ and welcomed as children of God.

Paul’s rebuke is therefore a spiritual wake-up call. The Galatians had been influenced by teachers who did not truly care for their souls. These teachers wanted outward religious conformity and human approval. They were concerned with appearance, reputation, and avoiding persecution for the cross. But true shepherds do not lead people away from Christ; they lead people back to Him.

The danger Paul confronts is still with us today. Whenever Christ is treated as insufficient, the church is in danger. Whenever performance replaces grace, whenever rituals replace relationship, whenever human effort becomes the ground of acceptance before God, the gospel is being distorted. The question is no longer only, “Who has bewitched the Galatians?” The question is also, “What voices are bewitching believers today?”

Paul’s message calls us to examine ourselves. Have we drifted from simple faith in Christ? Have we begun trusting in our works, titles, sacrifices, religious habits, or spiritual performance? Have we allowed persuasive voices to move us away from the cross? Have we forgotten that our righteousness is not in ourselves but in Christ?

The answer is to return to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. Return to the cross. Return to grace. Return to faith. Return to the truth that Jesus Christ was crucified is enough.

The gospel does not begin with grace and end with works. It begins with grace, continues by grace, and is completed by grace. The same Christ who saved us is the Christ who keeps us. The same Spirit who began the work in us is the Spirit who empowers us to continue.

So let the church hear Paul’s warning clearly: do not be bewitched away from the cross. Do not trade grace for performance. Do not trade faith for religious pride. Do not trade Christ’s finished work for human striving. Christ is enough. His blood is enough. His righteousness is enough. His grace is enough.

And if Christ is enough, then let us stand firm in the gospel, walk by faith, live by the Spirit, and glory only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Have a good week.

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