Galatians 1:2-5
"-and all the brothers with me, To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
The first thing that strikes me is the reminder that Jesus gave himself for our sins. With that reminder comes all the details of what he went through here on earth (the betrayal, the waiting for the soldiers to come take him, the beating, torture, ridicule, and then death on the cross) and then what happened afterward (he returned to life, he let himself be seen here on earth, and then he went to sit at the right hand of the Father and is reigning in heaven still). It is so humbling to have this reminder of how much God sacrificed for us when I know full well how many times I have failed to do what is right. Which of course brings to mind just what Paul has prayed for in verse 3: "grace and peace ...from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Only God's grace can forgive us our sins and bring us peace in spite of them. The peace which God gives is not hindered by circumstance, but surpasses all understanding and is an incredibly precious gift.
Isn't it interesting that Paul begins his letter with a prayer? Imagine if you began the letters- or in this day and age, emails- that you wrote with a prayer. How might that effect the content of your letters? I imagine it would certainly change the tone of my letters or in the very least shift my mindset as I wrote them. Certainly it may not be wise to begin a letter to some nonbelievers with a prayer. They would likely be offended or at least annoyed, but perhaps we could adapt a different form of this. See, I think that the prayer at the beginning of Paul's letter is a reflection of the fact that he was constantly praying and thus it just naturally came out in his writing. So, as a step in that direction, perhaps we could develop a new habit and try taking a moment to pray before we write our letters or send our emails. What do you think?
The first thing that strikes me is the reminder that Jesus gave himself for our sins. With that reminder comes all the details of what he went through here on earth (the betrayal, the waiting for the soldiers to come take him, the beating, torture, ridicule, and then death on the cross) and then what happened afterward (he returned to life, he let himself be seen here on earth, and then he went to sit at the right hand of the Father and is reigning in heaven still). It is so humbling to have this reminder of how much God sacrificed for us when I know full well how many times I have failed to do what is right. Which of course brings to mind just what Paul has prayed for in verse 3: "grace and peace ...from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Only God's grace can forgive us our sins and bring us peace in spite of them. The peace which God gives is not hindered by circumstance, but surpasses all understanding and is an incredibly precious gift.
Isn't it interesting that Paul begins his letter with a prayer? Imagine if you began the letters- or in this day and age, emails- that you wrote with a prayer. How might that effect the content of your letters? I imagine it would certainly change the tone of my letters or in the very least shift my mindset as I wrote them. Certainly it may not be wise to begin a letter to some nonbelievers with a prayer. They would likely be offended or at least annoyed, but perhaps we could adapt a different form of this. See, I think that the prayer at the beginning of Paul's letter is a reflection of the fact that he was constantly praying and thus it just naturally came out in his writing. So, as a step in that direction, perhaps we could develop a new habit and try taking a moment to pray before we write our letters or send our emails. What do you think?
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