Religious Spies

In the early church, religious spies were everywhere.

Paul writes in Galatians 2:5-4,

“This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.”

What were they spying on?

They were spying on those who embraced the truth that righteousness (total forgiveness of all sins by God and complete innocence before God – as if one had never sinned) came by grace through faith in Jesus.

These religious spies were spying on the freedom the grace-believers had in Christ.

What was the freedom the believers had in Christ?

They were free from having to meet certain religious and moral expectations to be right with God.

They were free from having to have certain spiritual experiences to be right with God.

They were free from having to follow specific disciplines to grow in their relationship with God.

They were free from having to seek daily forgiveness from God.

They were free from having to try to get close to God.

They were free from having to live by a list of religious rules to grow in their relationship with God or be right with God.

They were free to enjoy a close, loving relationship with God as Abba, Father because of what Jesus did for them on the cross.

They were confident they were Abba’s loved, forgiven, righteous, accepted, and innocent sons and daughters.

This freedom scared the religious leaders because they thought grace would lead to wild, careless, apathetic living.

So the religious leaders sent religious spies to spy on the grace-believers’ freedom in Christ.

The spies’ assignment was to go undercover and appear to be grace believers.

Their goal was to gather information about the grace of Jesus that was being taught and to gain influence among the believers to get them away from grace and under a rigid system where believers must live according to the daily spiritual disciplines and expectations mandated by the spiritual leaders.

They were told that unless they live according to the disciplines then they can’t grow in their relationship with God, be close to God, or stay in fellowship with God.

Much is the same today.

Yet, there is one major exception...the religious spies are no longer spies.

Those who were religious spies in the first century church are now the leaders of churches and ministries.

They are not undercover, they are out in the open.

They are outwardly seeking to get people under a rigid system of daily disciplines and requirements, convincing the people that these disciplines and requirements are necessary for forgiveness from God and closeness to God.

The spiritual truths of grace are no longer the means of spiritual growth.

Spiritual disciplines have replaced spiritual truth as the means for spiritual growth.

Believers have been taught much about spiritual disciplines and very little, if at all, about the spiritual truths of grace.

Consequently, most believers are not experiencing freedom in Jesus.

They have no idea what freedom in Jesus is.

They are in bondage to a set of spiritual disciplines and expectations, but they do not know it.

Unfortunately, their relationships with God revolves around adherence to a set of daily spiritual disciplines rather than on the cross of Jesus.

When they practice the disciplines they feel good about their relationship with God and close to him.

However, when they fail to follow the disciplines, if just for one day, they feel guilty in their relationship with God and distant from him.

They have no idea they are completely forgiven of all sins for all time.

They have no idea that they are righteous before God and close to God.

They have no idea that they live by the faithfulness of Christ to them when he loved them and went to the cross for them (grace).

They have no idea they are filled with the Spirit of Christ, rather they are trying to be fully devoted followers of Jesus.

They are trying to be “all in for Jesus” rather than understanding Jesus went all in for them (grace).

They are living by their faithfulness to the disciplines and expectations given to them by their leaders.

During the time of the religious spies, Paul and others stood up for the gospel of grace that leads to freedom in Christ (Galatians 5:1).

We must do the same today.

We must not give in to the religious leaders of our day who are failing to communicate the good news of grace to millions of believers.

We must lovingly, gently, and clearly communicate the gospel of grace so the good news of grace will be experienced by those in our generation and preserved for those in future generations.

The spies are no longer among believers, they are now leading believers in full view.

Let’s love them and share the gospel of grace with them and with those they lead.

To read more of Brad’s teachings on Galatians, click on the categories at the top of this teaching.