William Burkitt Notes and Observations - Galatians 4:13 - 4:13

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William Burkitt Notes and Observations - Galatians 4:13 - 4:13


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Observe here, 1. A singular instance which St. Paul gives of his sincere affection towards these Galatians, he preached the gospel to them at first, and this both with difficulty and danger, through the infirmity of the flesh; that is, through much bodily weakness and imperfections. The ancients say St. Paul was little man, and had some deformity or crookedness of body, and imperfection in his utterance, which rendered both his person and his speech contemptible. These bodily infirmities he calls a temptation; intimating, that the afflictions of the body are great temptations to the soul. And besides these bodily infirmities, he encountered also with persecutions in preaching the gospel to them; which were evidences and convincing demonstrations of his fervent love and affectionate regard towards them: Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel to you at the first.

Observe, 2. The reciprocal returns of love and affection which the Galatians made to St. Paul, at his first coming among them to preach the gospel; they received him as an angel of God, or as a messenger from God sent unto them, yea, as Jesus Christ, as if Christ himself had been there in person, and preached to them: Nay, so warm were their affections then to St. Paul at his first coming amongst them, that they did not only pull open their purses, but had it been possible for them, or profitable to him, they could even have plucked out their very eyes for him. But note, it was at his first coming amongst them, and preaching to them.

Whence we may observe, that the first years of a minister's preaching to, and amongst a people, are usually most successful: then our people's affections are warmest, and perhaps our own too: Our people then hear us without any kind of prejudice against us, with great desire and delight; afterwards their affections cool, either through their own inconstancy, or our inadvertency, or by the malice of Satan, or by the mischievous designs and misrepresentations of some of his instruments.

Observe farther, that the love and reverence which the people owe to their ministers, should not be verbal and in profession only, but real and in sincerity; they ought to part with what is dear to them, to promote the work of God in their houses. There was a time when these Galatians would have given all they had to the apostle, money out of their purse, bread from their table, yea, blood out of their veins, and the very eyes out of their head: I bear you record, that you would even have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me.

Learn, lastly, that it is a high commendation to a people, when neither poverty nor deformity, nor any deficiency, which may render a minister of the gospel base and contemptible in the estimation of the world, can possibly diminish anything of that respect which they know to be due and payable unto him. Notwithstanding the Galatians knew the infirmity and temptation of the apostle, yet they received him (at first) as an angel of God.