Galatians 1.1–5

¹ Paul, an apostle—sent not with a human commission nor by human authority, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— ² and all the brothers and sisters with me,
To the churches in Galatia:

³ Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴ who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, ⁵ to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Our devotional efforts today take us to Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia, which is also a letter to us.

As we read through this epistle we’ll find some of the words to be pretty harsh, but here in the beginning Paul reminds us of the compassion of our God. The greeting wishes us grace and peace. Paul then reminds us that Jesus is the one who gave himself up to rescue us from the present evil age.

The first century could be called a “present evil age”. It was a time of violence, a time of uncertainty, a time in which Christians were being harshly criticized; sounds a lot like the twenty-first century. Just browse the internet and you will be flooded with stories of violence, uncertainty and it is easy to find those who are harsh toward Christ’s church.

Take time to examine Jesus, investigate his claims, and then take time to thank him for his willingness to be our eternal life rescuer.