Galatians 5:12 How Are We to Act Toward Those Who Teach Dangerous Heresies?

Galatians 5:12 I wish that those who are troubling you would even mutilate themselves.

Paul swiftly turns his attention now to the Judaizers. If they are so eager for circumcision, then let them not stop there, but finish the job and castrate themselves. If they are that concerned about physical rites, then let them finish the job on themselves (Paul’s wording is that they would castrate themselves—in other words, each one of them would be taking the knife himself and cutting himself). Castration was a pagan religious practice. In these words Paul is both saying that the Judaizers desire to circumcise the Gentiles is on the same level as this pagan ritual, an abomination because it stems from seeking to establish oneself as righteous before God, rather than by faith accepting righteousness as a gift, and he is showing his desire for them to be cut off from the congregation of Lord, as Deuteronomy 23:1 says: “No one who is emasculated or has his male organ cut off shall enter the assembly of the Lord.” Paul would rather have them remove themselves from the Church than have them continue to teach abhorrent doctrines which were causing the Galtatians confusion and to forsake pure faith in Christ.

Let us learn from Paul’s righteous, jealous anger, dear brothers and sisters. We live in a day when political correctness reigns supreme. This is not always the way that we are supposed to live and act. Consider Elijah, who mocked the worshipers of Baal for worshiping a false god (1 Kings 18:25-29). Consider even Jesus, whose woes upon the scribes and Pharisees included calling them “hypocrites,” “blind guides,” “serpents…brood of vipers,” “whitewashed tombs,” and those who are stupid enough to “strain out a gnat and swallow a camel” (obviously hyperbolic) (Matthew 23:13-33). We are called to always be loving; however, we are not always called to be nice. When you have solemnly sought reconciliation with those who are leading people astray from the truth of the gospel (reconciliation foremost with God, that is), and they still refuse, turning to harsh words that show the seriousness of their heresies may be in order. This must only be done in the greatest of discernment, however. Two considerations must be taken first: have you sought to reconcile them to the truth with much patience and gentleness (2 Timothy 2:24-26), and are they leading others astray? There is a time when we must completely part ways with those who teach dangerous doctrines. This must only be done out of concern for the purity of the body of Christ—with whom you must always speak with edifying speech (Ephesians 4:29).

I must make one final thing clear, brothers and sisters. Despite the commands that those with physical deformaties are not to be allowed into the assembly of God, we are not to prohibit those who have such problems from entering or serving in our churches. All things have been made clean in Christ. Despite their physical deformities now, they are in the kingdom of God, and so when the kingdom comes in its fullness (when Christ returns), they will be given new, perfect bodies. We are to accept them the same as we would accept someone who is physically whole. Such distinctions have been taken out of the way in Christ.