Have you ever had to initiate a tough conversation or give hard feedback? It’s often a pretty uncomfortable situation. It’s always good to start with something positive, telling the person something they’ve excelled in. In Galatians 5:7 we jump right into this with Paul. “You were running well.” In some translations it says, “You were running the race nobly.” But, wait for it... What happened?!
You see, there were false teachers in their midst. These teachers were convincing the people to forfeit their freedom in Christ and return to the law. You’re heard the old saying, “one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel.” Do you know why? Rotting apples emit ethylene gas with more and more intensity the further past ripe they get. This gas sets off a chain reaction among the other, perfectly ripe apples, spoiling the whole lot! Keep that in mind as you read this next passage:
"This [evil] persuasion is not from Him Who called you [Who invited you to freedom in Christ]. A little leaven (a slight inclination to error, or a few false teachers) leavens the whole lump [it perverts the whole conception of faith or misleads the whole church]." Galatians 5:8,9 Amplified
Paul is letting us know here that ANY inclination away from the truth, however small it may be, is dangerous for the whole church. He lets us know this will not stand and these false teachers will be judged accordingly. He is taking this as a personal affront that anyone would try to come in and corrupt this young church. So, what does that mean for us today? Do we look out for each other, as believers, with this same amount of ferocity? This is not, of course, saying we will never disagree or have differing opinions. It’s rather constantly pointing us to look at the truth of the gospel. It should drive us to continually examine ourselves, asking the uncomfortable question: Am I allowing anything to corrupt my mind, life or view of God that could spread to other believers? I don't know about you, but I don’t want to be a rotten apple!