INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF GALATIANS
The story is told about an intensely focused husband that did not like to be disturbed when he was involved in a project. One day as he was working on his truck in the garage his wife came out with some news. She waited for about 10 minutes until he acknowledged her and then very calmly, and without a trace of panic, she said, “The house is on fire.”
There definitely is a time to forsake the customary, polite, social graces and bluntly state the problem. The burning house was a time for immediate communication. Likewise, the departure of the churches in Galatia from the teaching of Paul and from the gospel of God’s grace was the time for the sounding of the alarm. Paul had little time to waste in polite introductions, for the problem facing these churches could have had devastating results.
It is possible that this epistle to the Galatians is the first letter of the Apostle Paul. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to compare the way Paul begins this letter with his customary introduction. As customary in the letters of that day, Paul’s letters had a predictable form. There was an initial greeting, a prayer or petition for grace and peace, thanksgiving to God, the body of the letter, personal greetings, and a farewell.
In this letter to the Galatians, Paul skips the thanksgiving section that was so typical in his other letters.
Instead, Paul bluntly expresses his dismay: “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel” - Gal. 1:6.
Something was seriously wrong in the churches of Galatia to prompt such a sobering introduction. A careful reading of the entire epistle confirms this observation. The gospel which Paul had preached and which these Christians had accepted was somehow quickly set aside for other teaching.
The study of the Book of Galatians is of critical importance for Christians today. Not only do we learn of a departure from the gospel in ancient days, but we will see that there is a contemporary ring for today. Many Christians have accepted this deviation from the gospel, not knowing the seriousness of their error. It is important for us to understand what the Galatian error was so that we can recognize similar false teaching today. God-willing, we will reject false teaching for what it is - a departure from the gospel by which we have been saved.
Before we begin our study there are two introductory matters which we need to discuss at the outset. First, we must understand where “the churches of Galatia” were located. Secondly, we must agree upon the date of the writing of the epistle, for it helps define the region of “Galatia.”
Ancient Galatia is located in the central regions of modern-day Turkey.
Around 270 BCE it was inhabited by Celtic mercenaries who were hired by local rulers to thwart the impetus to Hellenize their society.
This was also the period in which Constantine began to embrace Christianity and funded the expansion of the church. Many of our folk today think that there is an unbroken line from the church today back to that of the ancient church ordained by Christ. But that is a misnomer, for the doctrine of the church has always been a series of departures and reformations.
No epistle can lay more claim to being a genuine product of the hand of Paul than can Galatians. In v.1 Paul immediately identifies himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ. The early church accepted Paul’s claim without reservation. And, the style and message of the book mirror Paul’s mind, character and theme.
Paul wrote to the churches in southern Galatia after having a part in starting them on his first missionary journey to Asia Minor. Paul’s close relationship to these churches helps to explain the extremely strong tone he took with them from the very beginning of the letter. Galatians exhibits Paul’s anger at apostasy, as he risked the good favor of the converts in those churches to make sure they were on the path of truth and not led off into deception.
In fact, to emphasize the seriousness of his purpose, he took the pen from his scribe and wrote the end of the letter himself in large letters .
Both Jew and Gentile resented the efforts to Hellenize the culture. Jews were shamed because of their circumcision and Gentile Christians were offended by the profane pagan practices of Greek influence. So, “freedom in Christ” became the theme of Paul’s writing to the Galatians. Some have called it Paul’s “Magna Charta” of the Christian faith. Today, Galatians is our charter of Christian freedom, our declaration of independence from slavery to the law.
Throughout the history of the church the message of Galatians has been needed to free people from chains of false doctrine.
? When the early Judaizers tried to bind Christians to the old commandments from Sinai, Galatians set them free.
? When the apostate church of the Dark Ages tried to bind Christians to a papal system of salvation by penance and works, Galatians set them free.
? When modern legalists try to bind us to a joyless religion of superior “rightness,” Galatians sets us free.
Martin Luther was moved by Galatians to sound the reveille of the Reformation. He said, “The Epistle to the Galatians is my epistle; I have betrothed myself to it: it is my wife.” His commentary on Galatians cost him more labor, and was more highly esteemed by him, than any of his other works.
For Luther, as for every age, the simple gospel of the message of Galatians was a mighty weapon in the arsenal of freedom.
While the authorship is beyond dispute, there is considerable controversy regarding the recipients of this letter. They are called “the churches in Galatia,” but just what is meant by this?
During the third century B.C. some barbarian people of Celtic origin migrated to the inner plateau of Asia Minor and established a kingdom there. Since some of the Celtic people were known in France as the Gauls, these people in Asia Minor were distinguished as the “Gallo-Graecians,” from which the name “Galatians” comes. Their realm was centered around Ancyra (the modern capital of Turkey) in the northern highlands area.
After the Romans conquered this territory, it was combined in 25 B.C. into a large province containing the districts to the south, Lycaonia and parts of Pisidia and Phrygia. The newly created province was called Galatia, and included the cities known to us from Paul’s missionary journeys - Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Derbe, and Lystra.
When Paul spoke of “Galatia,” did he refer to ethnic Galatia (the tribal area limited to the north), or did he refer to political Galatia (the province which also included the districts to the south)? The traditional view, still shown on most Bible maps, is the “north Galatian theory.” The view favored by most scholars today is the “south Galatian theory.”
In the 1880s and 90s William Ramsay did extensive archaeological work in Asia Minor. His careful research not only proved that Luke was an accurate historian; it also laid the foundation for the “south Galatian theory” and this is the view favored by most commentators today.
If the “south Galatian theory” is correct, then Paul visited cities of Galatia on all three of his missionary journeys. These were among the first churches he started. The cities would include Pisidian Antioch and Iconium (where Paul met resistance from the Jews), and Lystra (where Paul was first welcomed, and then stoned).
For those who favor the “north” theory the book of Galatians was written somewhere between 52-57 AD. If one is convinced that the “south Galatian theory” is correct it would make the probable date A.D. 49 or later. It is likely that Galatians stands among the first of Paul’s epistles.
The purpose of the book is to thwart error – specifically a group of Judaizers who sought to make the Law of Moses a requirement of the Christian faith.
Remember the Jerusalem council in A.D. 49? Some were teaching that you could not be saved unless you were circumcised. This troubled Paul and Barnabas and they traveled to Jerusalem where they were welcomed by the elders of the church.
So, why is Galatians so important? Paul’s letter speaks wisdom and clarity into the first real controversy that plagued the church in its early years - the relationship between Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles.
Paul’s aggressive tone shows just how important it was to him that the people embrace unity in Christ, no matter their racial distinctions. For him, this was no minor issue, as he went so far as to call the Galatians deserters of Christ, people turning from the truth toward a gospel contrary to the one they had received from Paul (Galatians 1:6–9).
When the Galatians fell away so quickly from the gospel of grace Paul had preached to them, they also made clear their disloyalty to Paul’s authority as an apostle. Therefore, Paul began the letter to the Galatians by spending two chapters defending that very issue.
Only in chapter 3 did he begin to get to the heart of their error; namely, that these Galatians sought to be justified by the Mosaic Law. In contrast, Paul presented his argument that justification comes to people by faith in Jesus Christ, not by their works under the Law.
As you begin to read Paul's letter to the Galatian Christians, you can tell immediately that something is radically wrong, because he does not open his letter with his usual praise to God and prayer for the saints. He has no time!
Paul is about to engage in a battle for the truth of the Gospel and the liberty of the Christian life. False teachers are spreading a false "gospel" which is a mixture of Law and grace, and Paul is not going to stand by and do nothing.
How does Paul approach the Galatian Christians in his attempt to teach them the truth about the Gospel?
In the opening verses, the apostle takes three definite steps as he prepares to fight this battle . In vv. 1-2 he cites his ministry. As an apostle, Paul establishes that he had been chosen with a commission from Christ himself.
However, Paul's miraculous conversion and call to apostleship created some problems. He was not a part of the original Apostles. His enemies said that he was not a ‘true apostle’ for this reason. Paul is careful to point out that he had been made an apostle by Jesus Christ just as much as had the original Twelve. His apostleship was not from human selection and approval, but by divine appointment. Therefore, he had the authority to deal with the problems in the Galatian churches.
Paul always had a loving concern for his converts and a deep desire to see the churches he had founded glorify Christ . He was not content to lead men and women to Christ and then abandon them.
When Paul heard that false teachers had begun to capture his converts and lead them astray, he was greatly concerned, and rightly so. After all, teaching new Christians how to live for Christ is as much a part of Christ's commission as converting them .
Sad to say, many of the Galatian Christians had turned away from Paul, their "spiritual father" in the Lord, and were now following legalistic teachers who were mixing Old Testament Law with the Gospel of God's grace.
(We call these false teachers "Judaizers" because they were trying to entice Christians back into the Jewish religious system.) So, Paul had a ministry as an apostle, and specifically as a church planter of the Galatian churches.
As such, he had the authority to deal with the problems in the churches. But there was a second source of authority. In vv. 3-4 he appeals to his message.
From the very beginning, Paul clearly states the message of the Gospel, because it was this message that the Judaizers were changing. The Gospel centers in a Person - Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This Person paid a price - He gave Himself to die on the cross.
Paul’s theme song could very well have been the contemporary song sung today – Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ – the gospel in a word is Christ! Christ and His crucifixion was an important theme in Galatians . Christ paid a tremendous price that He might achieve a purpose - delivering sinners from the bondage of sin.
Liberty or freedom in Christ is the dominant theme of Galatians. Five times, Paul mentions this bondage that the Judaizers were trying to bind on Christians. They wanted to lead the Christians out of the liberty of grace, into the bondage of Law. Paul knew that bondage was not a part of the message of the Gospel, for Christ had died to set men free. Paul's ministry and message were sources of spiritual authority. The third aspect of Paul’s authority was his motive.
In vv. 2-5 we read, “To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
The false teachers were not ministering for the glory of Christ, but for their own glory .
Like false teachers today, the Judaizers were not busy converting lost people to Christ. Rather, they were stealing Christian converts and bragging about their statistics. But Paul's motive was pure and godly: he wanted to glorify Jesus Christ .
Paul has now explained his authority. He is ready for a second step as he begins this battle for the liberty of the Christian. And we will hopefully discuss that next week.
To close this lesson – what does Christian freedom look like? There are some church groups that live under a set of laws and expectations that can be smothering. This is because when someone's salvation is tied to their behavior, attitude, appearance, and following a set of rules, then there can be little freedom to live, to make mistakes, and to grow. Therefore, in such churches, people will put on a good face, a proper smile, and not really share serious issues in their lives.
Galatians 5:13 tells us, "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."
The Galatians were called by God’s grace and they were free . As believers in Christ, the truth in Him had set them free . This verse to the Galatian believers is pivotal, and it accomplishes two things: (1) it authorizes believers to lay claim to their freedom, and (2) it challenges believers to use their freedom responsibly.
There is always the danger that people freed from one tyrant will fall prey to another. New Christians, who realize that their spiritual freedom has delivered them from bondage to law, may foolishly rush into a new servitude - bondage to their own flesh. (The NIV, avoids the word “flesh,” but does supply an acceptable alternative in the term “sinful nature.”)
People who spend their lives trying to satisfy every fleshly appetite find out this phony freedom is even worse than bondage to rules. This later predicament has not yet been the problem of the Galatians, but Paul knows the new danger they might well face in this opposite direction.
The message of Galatians is:
? You are free from the law (1:1-5:12).
? Your freedom must not lead to carnality (5:14-21).
? Your freedom must change your life (5:22-6:18).
Today, do you enjoy the freedom that Christ affords? Do you live under law or lawlessness? Has your life in Christ changed the way you live? If you need to respond, please come as we stand and sing a song of encouragement.
