KNOW WHO THE REAL ENEMY IS

GALATIANS 4:16 NKJ 
16 Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth? 

Paul has not changed subjects in the fourth chapter of Galatians.  These letters to the church were not written in chapter and verse.  Scholars would later divide the letters into chapters and verses for easier reference.  Paul is still correcting wrong teaching.   

Paul based his correction on what he called the truth of the gospel (Gal. 2:5).  He considered the good news of Christ truth, and he held to that truth in a very strong way.  He spoke of the people who came to Galatia and preached a "different" gospel.  Those who came and tried to distort the good news about faith in Jesus and all the benefits that were a part of the inheritance through faith in Christ.  So Paul is asking the churches if he now was their enemy because he told them the truth.  Paul's heart was hurt to see these Gentiles try to live under Jewish law, and he opposed those lies by proclaiming the truth of the gospel.  But then, as today, people don't always want the truth of the gospel.  Often those who proclaim or simply live the truth found in the scriptures are viewed as the enemy.  But the real enemy is the lies that distort or refute the gospel message.  The real enemy is Satan and his lies that keep people lost or in bondage.  Anyone who tells you the truth that is found in the gospel and does it with a heart of love is not your enemy.  They are a blessing to you.   

APPLICATION 

Try to pin people down to what they base their lives on today, and you'll often wind up with a declaration about "their truth."  Typically, that means whatever works for them in the moment and rarely involves accountability to God or responsibility for their actions.   

But we base our lives on the truth found in the gospel of Christ.  The truth found in scripture.  We live by this truth, not “our” truth.  Keep in mind when you live this way, your life may convict those around you.  They may view you as the enemy.  You are not their enemy; you are a light in their darkness.  Stay kind, pray for them and stay with His truth.   

PRAYER 

Dear Father, I am so grateful I can base my life and future on Your truth.  And Your truth will last forever.