Galatians 1:6-13 Paul is astonished that the Galatians are already allowing themselves to be led astray by a false gospel, a perversion of Christ's message. He tells them that even if he himself or an angel from heaven comes and proclaims a different word from the one he has already told them, they should reject it entirely. The gospel Paul has preached did not come from him, but by revelation from Christ himself, it is the only true Word. Paul asks them to look at motivation - he is clearly not seeking men's favor in what he is doing, he is a servant of Christ's alone. If he is not seeking men's favor, and he is suffering for proclaiming this Word, why would he be doing this unless it is true?

Looking to motivation is always essential, especially when, as today, we are living under a cloud of lies and being influenced by false prophets. If someone is willing to put their reputation, job, livelihood, etc. on the line to express their beliefs, then we must ask ourselves - why? Are they stupid? Are they crazy? A lot of people who are trying to speak the truth these days are being labelled this way. They are called crazy, or stupid, or are accused of racism, sexism, (something)-phobia, etc. Disagreement of any kind, even when telling the truth of the Church's teachings, is often shoehorned into one of these.

But we have to look at motivation, of the speaker and of the accuser. Does the speaker have something to gain personally, or do they risk punishment for what they are saying? Are the people crying "hatred" at others trying to protect their own power, position, etc.? Will they pay any price for falsely calling others racist or haters? For judging or demeaning other people? If not, if their words are hurtful and judgmental (that is, not Christ- like) then they are false prophets - teaching a distorted gospel and we must reject it entirely.

There is a lot of this going on right now, both in the Church and in society. Jesus warned us about false shepherds, saying that they would come, acting in his name, and try to lead us astray. Look to motivation, reward, and outcome. Don't judge right away; and know (or learn) the truth so that you can compare everything to that and avoid the lies.