Galatians 1:1-5 (ESV)

Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Paul recognized his new identity as apostle. 

An apostle is literally an emissary or ambassador. They are uniquely gifted to plant and oversee new churches. They may be referred to as missionaries, as the term means “sent out one”.  In terms of war, these are the leaders on the frontline, leading the charge.  

He was made an apostle, not by or through man. It was God. His plan. His will. Paul was made an apostle, to join the very people and movement he terrorized. He was made an apostle to the gentile world, who as a Pharisee he would have never regarded before.

Yes, Paul had apostolic gifting. He was a strong and vibrant leader, after all he, rose to such great heights as a Pharisee. In his flesh, he could easily lead a people, zealous for their cause. But this would be his way in his own effort or those around him, or as Paul puts it, “from or through man”. He would earn favor as their leader based on human merit and skill.  But this isn’t how The Kingdom of God operates. 

Paul would suffer greatly as an apostle. He would become a very visible image of Christ. In fact, Luke depicts Paul as a “type of Christ” throughout the book of Acts. 

When Jesus met Saul on the road to Damascus, He set him on a new course, redeemed and set free. He changed more than Saul’s name and vocation. He changed the entire trajectory of the human race. Jesus opened up the flood gates of grace through Paul. He used him to demonstrate to this new human race, a new way to live, how to live a life of freedom in the magnificent grace of the gospel. Underserved and unstoppable freedom. The kingdom was pushing forward. Light was breaking through. 

But this was an evil age. Paul recognized he would not only fight the Jews, and Judaizers, and gentile pagans but the very powers of darkness. He would fight flesh and spirit in his apostolic mission.  As Christ gave himself, so now would Paul. 

Christ gave himself for our sins. 

Ever since the fall of humanity, death loomed. Man was separated from God. Death became their master. Every life ended in death. There was no escaping it. Even today, despite all attempts at intervention and technology, humanity has not transcended this curse. As Paul would explain elsewhere in his letter to the Church of Rome, the wages of sin is death. 

Since the fall, God promised He would give a way to remove this death. This eternal separation. That He would return His people to Himself. That He would defeat their master. Through His remnant, His inheritance, His people – He would bring about salvation. His people had faith that He would save them. They believed in His promise. They had faith, that their God could and would defeat death.

He taught them, through the prophets and the law, that sin had to be paid for. The early history of our spiritual ancestors is filed with sacrifice and atonement all pointed to Christ, and what would be His work on the cross. Through His death, burial and resurrection, He defeated death and freed humanity from its curse. 

This was the first victory blow against Satan, and the tide of war shifted. Grace and peace was given to us, by Christs self-sacrifice. 

But no army fights more vicious and ruthless than the losing team. The battles rage on. Look around, you will see the casualties. People are hurting. Some are in conflict within themselves, wanting to break free from the sins and struggles that hurt them and those closest to them. Others will cause conflict, and in some instances significant pain in others lives. People will be hurt, and become victims of significant emotional, psychological, and physical suffering. 

Like Christ, and Paul. We must be willing to give ourselves. “We” are the first “weapon” in this war. We are used by God, redeemed in Christ, driven by the Spirit. We must sacrifice our comforts and pleasures to help others. We must lay it all down. This is what it takes to bring grace and peace to the world, this is the will of God. 

What stands in your way? What do you hold onto so tightly that you can’t help others? What in your past prevents you from moving forward, following Jesus in boldness and faith?

He will redeem it all. Just like Paul, God will use every bit of our past and present to shape His future. He continue opening up the flood gates of His grace to the world, and He will use us, as He gifts and shapes us to do His will.

If you need help understanding how God redeems your story, and how YOU can be used as in the arsenal of Gods kingdom. Seek out the wisdom of elders, your pastor or a biblical counselor. Work through the doubts, and the areas you lack faith. Work through the hurts, and your past. How the wrong people, and even the powers of evil used you for their purposes. Give it to God.

If you need someone to talk to for counsel and coaching to help decipher how God will redeem your past, for His future plans, contact Good&Well.

He is still faithful. He will give you grace and peace. He will send you out to the front lines. You were made to be used… by God. You are His.

Peace be with you.