In verse 10 Paul says, “I have confidence as to you in the Lord that in nothing you will be otherwise minded.” This word indicates that Paul had great faith. Notice, however, that Paul’s confidence was not in the Galatians, but in the Lord. Paul did not say, “I have confidence in you”; rather, he said, “I have confidence as to you in the Lord.” Because Paul had been praying for the Galatians, he could have confidence in the Lord concerning them and not be disappointed. In particular, Paul was confident that the Galatians would not be otherwise minded.
In referring to the matter of being otherwise minded, Paul touches the most important source of problems in the church life—that of having a different mind, of being otherwise minded. As long as there is no idolatry, immorality, or divisiveness in the church, we should not be otherwise minded concerning anything. Instead, we should be one with the church and go along with the church, no matter what direction the church may pursue. Regarding doctrines and practices, do not be otherwise minded. For example, do not say that you agree with arranging the chairs in a particular way, but not with arranging them in some other way. Also, we should not say that we prefer to meet in homes instead of in the meeting hall. It is absolutely not of God to be otherwise minded in this way. The source of this is the enemy, Satan. None of us should give ground for a different kind of mind to enter into the church life. We need to close ourselves to such an invasion of the enemy. We all must take the responsibility not to be otherwise minded. If the church practices idolatry, we should stand against it. But even in this we must have a proper spirit in order to be helpful to others.
To repeat, we should not agree with anything idolatrous, immoral, or divisive. However, we should not be dissenting about other things. Suppose we come to a meeting and find the chairs arranged in a very unusual way. If none of the saints speak critically of this arrangement, this will be a sign that the church life is very strong. It will be a clear indication that we care for Christ and not for a particular way of arranging the chairs.
If we have truly seen the enjoyment of Christ and the oneness of the church, we shall not be otherwise minded. We shall not care for any particular opinion, way, or practice. Instead, we shall care only for the enjoyment of Christ and for the oneness of the Body.
In the church life, we should not exercise our mind to gather unnecessary information. We should not be spies trying to gather information. The weaker we are in life, the greater will be our tendency to act like a spy. Should such a weak one visit a church in another locality, he may want to spy out things there. This kind of practice is devilish. Whenever we visit another church, we should be content to be blind, not knowing anything about the situation of the saints there.
When Paul uttered the words that he was confident in the Lord concerning the Galatian believers that they would not be otherwise minded, the situation among the saints was much different than it is today. When Paul wrote the book of Galatians, there was still the proper emphasis on the oneness of the church in each locality and on the enjoyment of Christ. Paul’s confidence was based upon the fact that there was just one church in each locality and that in his ministry there was a strong and clear emphasis on Christ as everything to the saints. This was the basis for Paul’s confidence in the Lord that in nothing the believers in Galatia would be otherwise minded. Paul prayed much for the believers and was confident that in everything they would not be otherwise minded. He had a solid ground for this confidence. But because of the pervasive influence of poisonous leaven, our situation is very different. The matter of being otherwise minded is found virtually among all Christians. But at Paul’s time the church was one, and Paul had reason for confidence in the Lord concerning the saints.