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Paul began this letter holding nothing back. He came out firing on all cylinders. Why was he so emotional? It wasn`t because the Galatian believers rejected him. He was so upset because they had rejected what God had given to him to give to all people! So, in a very real sense, they were not rejecting him, but GOD! And that is why this book, like no other in the New Testament is so fiery.

You & I, just like the Galatian believers, need to be clear on the essentials of the gospel. We can be sure that what the Apostles presented in the New Testament is what will not only save us, but will also enable to follow God until our salvation is complete. Don`t be fooled by counterfeit gospels. They may sound the same, but at their core they are not! And following them will cause you all kinds of grief as you try to follow them.

Galatians 1:10 is often overlooked, yet it’s a key statement of Paul’s modus operandi—not to please people, but to be a God-Pleaser. These are mutually-exclusive options—you either please people, or God; you cannot do both. Today there’s intense pressure to please people at school, work, & via social media. Too often we’re governed by others’ approval/disapproval; we aren’t true to our own convictions. What’s the solution? Some sermons advise—‘be more assertive; define your boundaries; you’re responsible for your own happiness.’ That may be good advice, but it’s not the gospel. The NT message is not to be an autonomous ‘Self-Pleaser,’ but to become a ‘God-Pleaser,’ serving Christ as Lord. We examine how to do that. Paul exemplifies God-pleasing and says ‘imitate me.’ He’s clear about his divine commitment; he resists peer-pressure from influential people. Paul was not arrogant, or egotistical; rather he values God’s approval over human acceptance or rejection. We should too!

Paul was desperate for his new brothers and sisters in Christ who were being persuaded to move away from Christ for their further salvation. Paul took to helping them see that his apostleship was not of a human origin (Gal. 1:1), nor his gospel (Gal. 1:11 – 17). He received both in one life-changing event, as he journeyed to Damascus to drag any errant Jews who had turned to the false Messiah Jesus back to Jerusalem to be imprisoned (Acts 9:1 – 6). In the heat and passion of that determined journey, Paul was visited and commissioned by the resurrected Christ! This is when the gospel was revealed to him. It was that divinely originated gospel that Paul fought to defend for the sake of the Galatian believers.

Paul’s encounter with the risen Jesus on the Damascus road is the most crucial event in Christian history, second only to Christ’s death & resurrection. Luke—the ‘great storyteller’–narrates the dramatic story three times in Yet it’s easy to miss the real significance in the outward drama. Notably Paul himself never recounts the outward drama. His autobiographical references trace the inner repercussions of that seismic event. Paul had to rethink his fundamental values, priorities and goals. He didn’t simply add Jesus to his former way of life. Paul declares, “God revealed His Son in me” (not simply ‘to me’); that God “shined into our hearts” in new creation; that he saw the “supreme value of Christ,” which depreciated everything else. We don’t need the outward drama, yet the same inward transforming experiences can be ours.

If you were asked, “What is the essential message of Paul’s gospel?” what would you say? If you look at all of Paul’s messages in Acts and all of his letters, what does he focus on? It’s not Jesus’ life and ministry recorded in the four Gospels: his teachings, miracles, or parables. Rather, he is intensely focused on Jesus’ death & resurrection . Why? It’s because those are the very things that bring about change in our lives! Who did you believe in? Jesus, the one who died and rose for you. Why were you baptised? To be identified with Jesus’ death and resurrection (Rom. 6:3 – 5)! That doesn’t diminish the Gospels in any way. Rather, Paul zeroes in on what really makes the difference for people: Jesus’ death and resurrection!

Paul worked for around 14 years in a hidden way far away from Jerusalem. He preached the gospel that had been revealed to him.  W hile he laboured he continued to receive revelations regarding the gospel. At the same time he also suffered while spreading the word of the gospel in the regions of Syria and Cilicia (modern day Turkey). Yet Paul worked in a hidden way, not trying to gain a name for himself but being faithful to the commission given him by God. 

Fourteen years later he went to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus, most likely to bring money for the poor in Judea. Here he presented what he was preaching and how Gentiles were responding to the gospel. The leaders in Jerusalem had nothing to add to what Paul was preaching. This confirmation by the Jerusalem apostles should have given the Galatian believers confidence in the gospel Paul was preaching. 

However, there were people in Jerusalem, false brothers, who wanted to impose Jewish observances such as circumcision upon the Gentile believers in order for them to be received into the people of God. Paul strongly objected to this so that the truth of the gospel would be preserved especially for the gentile believers. 

In Galatians 2:11-14, Paul fights for the truth of the gospel as he points out a critical error that Peter made with regards the Gentile believers. But before we can truly understand what’s going on in Galatians, we must see the background in Acts 10 & 11. There we see Peter received a vision from God that the Jewish food laws of the Old Covenant, and the separation from Gentiles were now over! Of course, Peter needed some time to understand this. Eventually he realized that God did it to make a way for all peoples on earth to enter the family of God through Jesus Christ.

Having seen this vision, then, why would he take a step backwards in Antioch? (Gal. 2:11-12) How often have we ourselves seen something from God, walked in it for some time, and later to live as though we’d never seen it? Thankfully we have a God who is for our progress & growth in the faith he has called us too. He restores those who take a step backwards. He did this for Peter, and we see evidence of this in Acts 15:7b-10. There, Peter speaks clearly about how God has opened the way for the Gentiles in his family.

Church conflicts are ugly & painful; yet they happen. Scripture eschews a utopian ideal; it realistically reports conflict, even among church leaders—e.g., Paul, Peter, & James. We can learn from their actions & reactions. The church’s emergence from Judaism produced tensions–some soon resolved, others not. The ‘Antioch incident’ was no ‘tempest in a teapot;’ it was a major watershed. Both major players had divine revelations. Paul testified, “I did not disobey the heavenly vision.” Peter couldn’t say that. When James’ delegation arrived, insisting Jewish believers segregate from Gentile “sinners” at fellowship meals, Peter retreated, splitting the church between Jews & Gentiles. Paul reacted, rebuking Peter to his face. This was no power play. Paul saw that this violated the gospel truth–all believers justified by faith, are equal members in God’s family. Paul’s rearguard action, despite the other leaders’ defection, prevented Christianity from being reabsorbed back into Judaism. The other leaders’ intransigence left Paul isolated, yet Church history vindicates Paul. In the church old distinctions along ethnic/racial lines can’t coexist with faith in Christ—new creation’s sole distinctive. At Antioch Paul was a ‘midwife’ birthing the church out of Judaism.

This week we address the topic of justification. However, we need to keep in mind that in Galatians, justification is in the context of Jewish believers and Gentile believers living in community together. The Jewish believers needed to realize that their believing in Jesus implied that keeping the Mosaic law did not make them accepted and approved by God otherwise there was no need to put their trust and faith in Jesus. The Mosaic law refers to practices such as special diet, circumcision, not associating with non-Jews (Gentiles), hence separation, keeping the Sabbath and many other regulations. 

Our acceptance (justification) is based on our faith in Jesus the Christ. This faith is not merely mental agreement, it is a trust relationship. Faith is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8). Faith is a trust and personal dependence on what God has done in the death and resurrection of Jesus. Our initial trust justified us (approved us) however we continue to have a trust relationship with the crucified and resurrected Jesus, continuing our acceptance and approval. We continue to endeavor to be justified (Gal. 2:17) based on this relationship of trust and faith. May we continue to have this personal dependence of trust on the crucified and resurrected Jesus and enjoy the table fellowship will all of those who have believed.

In Scripture God made it clear that the old covenant he made with the Jews would one day be over and a new covenant would replace it (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:26-27; Gal. 3:24a, 25). Instead of people maintaining their relationship to God through a variety of practices (circumcision, law, diet), they would do that through Christ alone! This new covenant was enacted through his death and resurrection, which brought an end to all these practices. And while that seems so obvious to you and I, leaving those old practices behind for Jewish Christians was not easy at all. In Gal. 2:15-21, Paul reminds Peter what happens when anyone believes into Jesus: they are accepted or approved (justified) by God; they enter into a new relationship with God! What, then, are we to do to maintain this relationship? Simply keep a daily walk in Christ, even if it means that some think that we are “sinning.” But what we shouldn’t do is rebuild the very things that God tore down through Christ’s death and resurrection, that separate people from one another.

Galatians’ best-known statement is, “I’m crucified with Christ… ” We post it on Instagram & frame on our living room wall. Yet it’s mysterious, little understood, & applied even less. Here Paul declares that he died, yet this ‘dead man’ still lives & speaks. What’s going on? The core of the Christian life is encapsulated in Paul’s dense statement. Let’s not rush over it, but proceed step-by-step. God’s gift of the Law was good, but Christ is better. Here we see [1.]

Galatians 2:19-21 are some of the most important verses in the New Testament. Paul describes his identity and his living in Christ. Paul’s relationship with the law (Torah) was ended because he was crucified with Christ. Even though he felt that he was able to keep the law, he realized that his acceptance by God was not based on keeping the law but on faith in Christ. He no longer lived a ego-centric life, but now Christ lived in him. This did not mean he was replaced or annihilated. But now the source of his life and living was guided by the faithfulness of the Son of God who loved him and gave himself for Paul. Paul considered his identity in Christ and his living in this new identity and relationship was what should be everyone’s experience. He did not consider himself special, he considered himself simply to be an example. 

Paul proclaimed Christ crucified & observed the Galatians’ life-changing reception of the Holy Spirit. Now Paul unleashes a barrage of questions—on what basis did they get the Spirit—by adopting Jewish rites, or via faith? That’s a ‘no-brainer;’ as ex-pagans the Jewish option was a non-starter. Today’s Protestants & Evangelicals also know the kneejerk answer–‘Saved by faith, not works.’ But maybe we’re missing something crucial—God’s initiative precedes ours. ‘Faith’ here isn’t our fragile human faith, it’s the ‘faith of Jesus Christ’—his faithfulness in fulfilling God’s mission even to the cross. His faithfulness trumps our wavering faith. Christians may suffer ‘salvation anxiety;’ they can question or even ‘lose their faith.’ Nevertheless our salvation & the Spirit’s reception are secured by Christ’s own faith. Our believing simply ‘echoes’ the Son of God’s faith.

Paul uses the example of Abraham to illustrate that being considered righteous before God is based on faith and not keeping the Torah. Most likely his opposers used Abraham’s circumcision to insist that the Gentiles should become circumcised to become accepted as part of the people of God. Paul never mentions circumcision but quotes Gen. 15:6 to prove that righteousness comes through faith. Implicit in his argument is that it is either faith or keeping the Torah that makes us righteous. It cannot be both. And he argues it is faith and only faith.

Paul’s use of Abraham also could be understood that Abraham is a type of Christ. As the father of faith, he has many “sons.” They are his descendants because of their faith. We are sons of God by faith. Abraham’s faithfulness (even if it was sometimes questionable) is also a type of the faithfulness of Christ. The fact that the nations are blessed with Abraham is also a type of Christ becoming a blessing to the whole world.

Abraham had many failures, yet he is still considered the father of faith. God did not discard him because of his failures. This should be a great encouragement to us. Remember, we live by the faithfulness of the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us, not by our own merit.

When you think of yourself, would you say you are a child of Abraham? On the surface you may say, NO! But if you dig deeper you may see some striking similarities in your temperament and psychology to his, and if you are a follower of Jesus by faith, then Paul says you definitely are one of his descendants (Gal. 3:7, 9). God called him, and God called you to follow him. If you are his child then you are blessed (Gal. 3:9)!

Some Jewish Christians in Galatia wanted the new non-Jewish (Gentile) followers of Jesus to keep the Old Testament law. But Paul says that places them under a curse (Gal. 3:10) just like Israel has been. Israel was cursed because they couldn’t keep the law. God was so concerned about this that Christ came to redeem (deliver or liberate) those who were under that curse (Gal. 3:13). Why? So that everyone could enjoy his blessing!

Most of the world’s population identify with an Abrahamic religion. So, who are Abraham’s true descendants? Jews? Muslims? Christians? Galatia’s churches faced the same issue; agitators pressured Gentile-believers to adopt Jewish rites to become Abraham’s bone fide heirs. Paul reacts with the audacious claim: Abraham’s singular ‘seed’ is Jesus Christ alone, not OT Israel. Plus everyone belonging to Christ—the church–is also Abraham’s seed. Critics find such claims ‘grotesque,’ ‘anti- Semitic,’ & a ‘violent & unfaithful reading’ of Genesis. Yet, Paul isn’t twisting history; he reinterprets Israel’s founding story in the light of the Christ event. The trajectory of the divine promise diverges from Israel’s history, bypassing the Law. God’s sovereign action—the coming of faith, of Christ, of the Spirit–are not dependent on human cooperation; no person or people (Israel, church, etc.) is indispensable to God’s plan. So, let’s trust & wait for God to do what only God can do, believing we will see surprising things!

The letter to the Galatian churches is Paul’s attempt to address the division caused by Jewish believers not accepting the Gentile believers without their conforming to Jewish practices.  The root cause of this was that Jewish people felt they were superior to non-Jews. This led them to practice separation and avoiding fellowship with non-Jewish believers. In this final portion of chapter 3, Paul clearly concludes that since all believers are accepted by God based on their response to the faithfulness of Jesus Christ, then there should be no separation among people with different backgrounds. 

Paul’s understanding went beyond Jew versus Greek. He extended this principle and theology to include slaves and free as well as male and female. He clearly states that all, regardless of their differences, are one in Christ, because all have been baptized into Christ. Furthermore, since they are all in Christ, they are also heirs of the promises. There is no difference in worth between the various different people. 

Paul has been making the point that those who are of faith in Christ are sons of God and therefore heirs of God’s promises also (Gal. 3:26-29). In 4:1-11, Paul shows us that every single one of us, no matter our background, was in slavery prior to meeting Christ. We were all held in slavery to something. Jews were enslaved to God’s law. Gentiles didn’t have God’s law, but were enslaved nevertheless to cultural, national, and tribal ideas, values, philosophies, prejudices, power imbalances, etc. And yes, even we enlightened North American, western thinkers were and are enslaved too! Behind the scenes, evil spiritual beings are manipulating and twisting things to such an extent that we are enslaved under them. How do we come out from under this slavery? Most of us don’t even know we are slaves. We think we are free human beings determining our own fate.

We have a God who is always pursuing us to release us from our slavery and make us his sons and heirs! If he hadn’t moved through his Son and in his Spirit we would still be slaves. Let’s worship him for who he is and for all he has and is still doing to rescue us!

The letter to the Galatian churches is Paul’s passionate attempt to recover and rescue the Galatian believers from leaving the gospel. Initially he used rebuke (1:6; 3:1, 3) and a lot of theological and intellectual arguments. Now in this section he uses emotional arguments. Firstly, he presents himself as a pattern to them and charges them to become like him. He abandoned the law and took his stand as crucified with Christ and living by him (2:20). Secondly, he reminds them of their initial response to the gospel. Thirdly, he accuses the circumcision party of making the Galatians feel “outside of God’s people” unless they become circumcised. Finally, he expresses maternal sentiment as he struggles that Christ would be formed in the Galatians. This section is full of emotion.

Paul’s churches were imperiled by zealous Jewish-Christians pressuring Gentile-believers to proselytize. They argued that all Abraham’s descendants were circumcised. Paul rebuts this ‘false gospel.’ He creatively applies OT Scripture, ‘turning the tables’ on his opponents. Abraham had two sons, not just one; Ishmael, Abraham’s natural son via Hagar, represents slavery. Only Isaac, Sarah’s son via God’s promise, portrays freedom. Despite their DNA, the Jewish agitators are not today’s ‘Isaac;’ they are ‘Ishmael,’ slaves under Law, destined for expulsion. Who is today’s ‘Isaac’? In the era of freedom launched by Christ, the churches expressing the Spirit’s fruit and responding to Scripture’s living voice—they are today’s ‘Isaac.’ Let’s examine ourselves by these criteria; do we manifest the characteristics of ‘Isaac’ or of ‘Ishmael’?

If you asked 100 people to tell you what they thought freedom was, it’s likely you’d get 100 different answers. As Christians we can be persuaded by all kinds of ideas about what freedom is or should be. But, how does God see freedom? As Christians, his thoughts on freedom are what should and must govern our lives. In Galatians 5:1a, Paul says, “For freedom Christ has set us free.” Our freedom was won by Christ’s work for us. It’s a freedom ‘from’ sin, ‘from’ self, and ‘from’ the influence of the evil forces. But God’s freedom is also ‘for’ something. God frees us to live the life he has designed for us. We are freed to love and serve others in righteousness. And we are told to remain in that freedom. What we have to guard ourselves against is that we do not return to any yoke of slavery again (Gal. 5:1b).

Freedom as revealed in Scripture is very different from freedom that is promoted in society. Freedom in society is individualistic and self centered. Freedom in the Spirit, which is a gift from God, is focused on taking care of others, serving others, and promoting the welfare of community, especially the Christian community, the church. The works of the flesh are mainly against the community of faith.

This section also contrasts walking by the Spirit and carrying out the desires of the flesh. The Spirit was given to us when we received salvation. It is this Spirit, who has the power that is stronger than the power of the flesh. We do not fight against the flesh, we get in step with the Spirit, who is the One with power over the flesh. If we think that we have to fight the flesh we fall into the trap of keeping the law. 

When we think about the ‘works of the flesh’ and the ‘fruit of the Spirit’ we often think individually. But is that what Paul is pointing to in Gal. 5:19-23? He is actually much more concerned with our community life. Hatred, envy, strife, etc. are all aimed at others, with the result of destroying community. Whereas, love – sacrificial love for others – exhibited in a joy and peace and patience, that love always builds community. Why? Because that is the kind of love lived by Christ who “loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20b). That is life the Spirit of God is leading us to live every day. In this way he is leading us to build the Christian community God has placed us in.

Galatians 6 gives an example of what living by the Spirit looks like. The example is restoring a person who has sinned or has manifested the “works of the flesh.” Restoration should be carried out by those who experience the Spirit producing humility in them. This restoration should also include walking with the person until they learn to walk by the Spirit. This is to carry one another’s burdens.

Although only one example is given here, there are many other examples of carrying one another’s burdens. We need to learn to give help and also to ask for help. We are designed to walk by the Spirit in community. However, on the other hand, before God, we must carry our own load. One day, each of us will give an account of our life to God.

As Paul concludes Galatians, he wants to underscore the importance of living life with the Spirit. He’s already mentioned ‘walking by the Spirit’ and ‘being led by the Spirit,’ but here in chapter 6 he says, ‘sow to the Spirit’ (6:8). Sowing here is a form of investing. We can invest in what the Spirit is doing, or what the corrupting flesh wants. As we consider where to sow (invest), Paul turns our attention again towards others. Sowing to the Spirit is not just a personal endeavour, but more importantly, one done in and for the building of Christian community. Are you investing well? And maybe more importantly, where, or in whom are you investing? It matters because God sees and is not mocked (6:7). The cold reality is that we may be deceiving ourselves as we sow to the flesh and think everything is just fine. Sow today for your present and future experience of eternal life?

The ending of Paul’s letter to the Galatians differs drastically from his other letter-endings. He forgoes the niceties of personal greetings, best wishes, and travel plans. Paul ends with ‘fighting words’ because his gospel is being perverted, the believers led astray. Like a lawyer’s closing statement, Paul summarizes his case, making his strongest arguments. The coming of Christ, faith, and the Spirit have changed everything, ending the old age/world (where circumcision counts) and launching the new age/new creation. ‘In Christ,’ the Gentile believers are neither short nor incomplete; they are God’s sons, Abraham’s heirs, God’s faith-family, and ‘the Israel of God.’ Even today some Bible teachers  & preachers suggest we are deficient or incomplete—short of special spiritual experiences or lacking the ‘inside information’ needed to decipher Bible-prophecies about future geo-political events. Applying Paul’s ‘rule’ or ‘standard’—that God’s ‘new creation’ is all that matters—we can repudiate such claims.