Daily Devotional for Monday, November 25

Paul the Apostle

"Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;);' Galatians 1:1.

Growing up, I was surrounded by educators. Learning, knowledge and facts were always of high importance. I loved trivia competitions, strived to get A-honor roll and even looked forward to standardized testing week. I thrived on knowing the right answers and sharing that knowledge with others. That may have contributed to my becoming an educator myself, and even now, I love to study so that I am knowledgeable about whatever subject I may be discussing. I can imagine Paul's frustration in hearing about the misinformation that had spread after he had already discipled the churches in Galatia.

Paul began his letter in defense mode. Clearly, there had been people questioning Paul's authority and apostleship, and he needed to set the record straight before he began correcting the teachings that had infiltrated the churches. He started this greeting by stating his name and his title of "apostle" which means one who is sent. When the other apostles voted to replace Judas, the process was recorded in Acts 1:15-26. There is no record of a similar ceremony that declared Paul an apostle because he received his commission, as he wrote, "not of men, neither by man," but directly from the resurrected Christ. He declared for those doubting his authority that God Himself sent Paul to be a witness unto the Jews and Gentiles alike.

Having the Scriptures at our fingertips, we know that God chose Paul for great and marvelous works and to share the name of Jesus with the Gentiles, kingsandJews(Acts 9:15, 16).Aswe begin thebook of Galatians, let us read it with the knowledge that God Himself commissioned Paul to teach us these truths.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

We can avoid being misinformed and misled by studying the truth in God's Word and hiding it in our hearts.

Ashley Ridings