Ephesus or Galatia?

The seven church epistles are written to people who belong to the  body of Christ. The  first of these epistles is Romans. Romans is about why we needed a Christ (Messiah) and why we need to make him the authority in our life as our access to God. It is basically the book about believing. 

In  the next book, Corinthians, we read reproof  as to how the Corinthians mis-practiced Romans. Peoples' habits, old religious practices, and cultural and societal influences crept into how people lived. Man has a tendency to bring God down to His own level instead of rising up to God’s heart. Human love cannot match the true love God has for us. 

When man doesn’t respond and acknowledge the infinite wisdom of God, he makes his own adjustments and designs his own religion. If practically applied long enough, the original doctrine gets skewed. That is the reason for Galatians: to correct the doctrinal error that crept in due to the practical mixing of world and the right believing in Romans. The error can range from very subtle to very blatant.God is tough love in Galatians.

Read Galatians and then read Ephesians. Who would you like to fellowship with? The Galatians or the Ephesians? Yet today, every human being has to make that decision when you really start studying the Bible. The great apostle Paul had to make these same decisions.  His decision to go to Jerusalem instead of staying in the spiritually hot Ephesus is an example. God tried to shut the door several times but he just had to go (he thought he was being so sacrificial) and it turned out badly.

What happened when Paul got to Jerusalem is written in Acts 21:19-23:

 And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law: And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.

 The law, works, and religion are the major problems of  his trip and of the book of Galatians. We don’t perform for God, we love Him! We share His love with others based on His standard of love.  Our 'coming together' should be based on His Word. Our culture today is no different in this respect from those groups of the first century believers. It is God’s standard that causes His people to live exceedingly abundantly. It is not about sacrifice or self-abasement in certain religious minds. It is not dependent on the government or political winds of the times; not the far right’s, the far left’s or even the moderate middle. Read Romans 8 and then Ephesians to see true abundance and sufficiency. It is wonderful!