Galatians 1 - June 1^st

The book of Galatians is often called a “miniature Romans” because much of the same content, specifically concerning the fact that salvation comes by grace alone and not by works, is expressed as the central theme of this epistle. This letter was written by the apostle Paul to Gentile Christians in the Roman province of Galatia. These Gentile Christians were being plagued by false teaching coming from false teachers who are commonly referred to as the Judaizers. The Judaizers have been seen before in Acts 15, and they essentially taught that a Gentile must first become a Jew before they can become a Christian. They must first be circumcised according to the Law of Moses, or they cannot be saved. Because of this threat and the apparent root that it had taken in the mind of the Galatians, Paul pens this letter in order to remind them that justification comes by grace alone and no merit of our own. Let's consider some points from this chapter.

Paul’s Defense of His Apostleship

Throughout this epistle, there is much evidence that the agitators who crept into the church attempted to discredit the true gospel by discrediting its messenger, in this particular case, Paul. Paul begins his epistle by immediately stating his credentials. He says in verse 1, “Paul, an apostle — not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father.” Paul is immediately asserting that the authority by which he preaches and is writing this epistle to them comes not from man but from God. Paul is a messenger of God, like the prophets of old, Paul speaks that which God told him. He further asserts this point by referencing his conversion in which Christ himself appeared to him and called him to preach the message of salvation to the Gentiles. Verses 15-16 say, “But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles.” Paul was a messenger who was sent by God, and so he derives authority from man, not from God. To fight against the true messengers of God is to make the same error as Korah in the Book of Numbers.

The One True Gospel

Paul establishes straight from the outset of this epistle that there is only ONE gospel. Essentially the error of these false teachers was that they were preaching another gospel, one in which salvation was based on merit and not on grace. Paul is clear, just as he has authority because he was appointed by God, his message had authority because it is from God himself. The gospel which Paul preached was not his gospel in the sense that he made it up, but he received it from God! No one can preach another message, not even Paul himself! He is clear, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” If anyone, even say a marvelous angel from heaven or Paul himself, should preach a counterfeit gospel, let them be accursed.   This is a hard blow to contemporary false teachers and our accept-all-but-truth society; there is only one gospel message by which men will be saved. Only through Christ and his grace alone will anyone be reconciled to God. If anyone, Caleb, Jonathan, Steve, Mike, and myself, preaches something other than what is found in the pages of sacred scripture, we lie and do not practice the truth. We are bound to the same truth as the angels in heaven, and the apostle Paul is bound, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ!