Today’s 333 Devotional: “The Foolishness of Man’s Doctrine”

How easy it is to follow man’s doctrine than the truth of God’s word?

This is how the Apostle Paul saw the church in Galatia. He said, “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth?” (Galatians 3:1a)

Paul was absolutely amazed at how quickly the believers in Galatia turned away and removed themselves from the good news of Jesus Christ by following a doctrine that was both misleading and evil. And what amazed Paul the most was that this false doctrine wasn’t even good news because it perverted faith in Jesus Christ (Galatians 1:6-7).

And so Paul had to ask them what it was that caused them to accept Jesus Christ in the first place.

“Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” (Galatians 3:2b)

To adhere to a faith or religion that is based upon a person’s work is indeed foolish, because it can never save anyone and that’s because it’s based upon the premise that we can be righteous before God based upon our goodness, that is, by our own standard of what is right and wrong.

But the Bible clearly says that this is impossible.

“As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no, not one’” (Romans 3:10; Psalm 143:2), and that everyone of us are sinners and fall short of God’s holy and righteous standards for life (Romans 3:23).

Paul then let’s them know that following the law isn’t going to save them or anyone because if we base our salvation on anything other than the righteousness of Christ then we have to keep the whole law, and any violation of that law will keep us from an eternity in heaven with Christ.

Instead Paul says that the law is our tutor that leads us to faith in Christ.

“Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24).