Galatians 6:11-13 Do not Submit to Legalistic Religion

Galatians 6:11-13 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For those who are circumcised do not even keep the Law themselves, but they desire to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh.

Paul takes the pen to himself and begins to write, emphasizing what he is saying, since this will be the lasting, most memorable section in the remembrance of the Galatians—and so Paul must be wishing to drive home his point. In this section, Paul makes one last reference to the Judaizers to show how fallacious and utterly absurd their doctrines and practices are.

The Judaizers desired to look good outwardly, though they neglected their hearts, and God looks at the heart, not merely the outward appearances (cf. Galatians 2:6). Jesus even warned the Pharisees: “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24). The Judaizers, who were seeking to prove their own self-righteousness much like the Pharisees, obeying outward ordinances and not seeking the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, were merely “whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.” They were hypocrites. Although they claimed to keep the Law, yet they were lawless (Matthew 23:27-28).

Legalistic systems, which include every religion except evangelical Christianity, are all ultimately bankrupt. They despise that which has the only power to save and instead embrace their own fatal hypocrisy. Do not give in to these systems. Do not be carried away into these religions. Just as Paul exhorts and warns the Galatians, so I warn you. They offer only death!

Those of other religions will seek to persuade you (including the postmodernist religion of pluralism), just as the Judaizers sought to persuade the Galatians. They will try to persuade you to take upon yourself their “circumcision”—their merit seeking outward works. They do this “so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.” They are willing to accept “a Christ who is a teacher (but only a teacher) [because He] can well be assimilated by Judaism or by any other religion.”[1] They continued in their error because they could not bear the cross of Christ. “The difficulty is the cross, because the cross speaks of the necessity of a divine death as the only solution to the sin of man. To have the cross is to have three disquieting and humiliating doctrines: (1) man is a sinner; (2) his sin brings him under the curse of God, which curse Christ bore; and (3) nothing man can do can earn salvation, for if this were possible, the cross would have been unnecessary. These doctrines humble men. Consequently, men hate the cross and actively persecute those who proclaim it.”[2] Works based religions are not willing to accept that they fail the Law and are unable to come to God. They all either compromise God’s holiness or their own sinfulness.

Such proselytizers will seek to convert you to their own religious system even though it is worthless both for justifying a person before God and for promoting true godliness. They have been deceived and so will seek to deceive you as well. They do this for the purpose of boasting. If they can convert a Christian (just as the Judaizers wanted to boast that they had converted the Galatians), they will make it known and try to rub it in the face of other Christians, inflating their pride and self-righteousness. And this is not just theoretical, there are websites devoted to other religions, such as Islam, who try to boast of the greatness and truthfulness of Islam based upon a proselytizers ability to convert a so called “Christian.”

Brothers and sisters, do not fear the persecution that comes with the cross. Rather, rejoice that you have been counted worthy to suffer for Christ (cf. Acts 5:41, Philippians 1:29). Also, do not give in to the legalistic measures of other religions. They are deceived and boastful. They do not hope in the cross, which is the only wisdom of God (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18-25).

I must also warn you against another area in which Christians today stumble. Many Christians, many are probably merely claimers, but many true Christians fall into the trap as well, of being trophy hunters. They seek how many baptisms or “decisions for Christ” they can accrue. They practice what is known as revivalism—purporting great awakenings to bolster their own pride. They boast in how big their church is (as if they could even build a true Church), how many converts they see, how many missionaries they send, how much money their congregation gives, or how well their books sell. Do not fall into this, dear Christians. Consider that any real success, not just the appearance of success, comes from the work of the Holy Spirit—you’re just along for the ride. If God chooses to use you, you have no room to boast. You were merely a weak vessel that He has shown His power through. Do not become prideful, but rather give God the glory.

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[1] Expositor’s Commentary, Galatians 6:12

[2] Ibid.