GALATIANS # I
Galatia was not a city but a country or province.
There is no certain information as to the time when the gospel was first preached in Galatia, or the persons by whom it was done. There is mention, however, of Paul’s having preached there several times, and several circumstances lead us to suppose that those churches were established by him, or that he was the first to carry the gospel to them, or that he and Bamabas together preached the gospel there on the mission on which they were sent from Antioch, Acts 13:2. following In Acts 16:5 6, it is expressly said that they went "throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia." This journey was for the purpose of confirming the churches, and was undertaken at the suggestion of Paul Acts 15 36, with the design of visiting their brethren in every city where they had preached the word of the Lord.
The Galatian churches had come into being as a result of Paul’s missionary labors. Therefore the apostle was especially exercised in spirit when he learned that Jewish Christian agitators had circulated among these Gentile converts seeking to impose circumcision and the burden of the Mosaic law upon them as necessary for salvation (Gal 1:7; 4:17; 5: 10). Writing under great stress (as is suggested by the omission of the usual thanksgiving), he met the issue squarely, and thus, in the epistle to the Galatians, gave to the Church a mighty polemic against the Judaizing error.
Paul passes to a statement of what the Gospel is (chs. 3; 4). It is a message of grace that calls for faith. The law does pot produce faith, but rather works a curse, from which Christ had to redeem men.
It is easy to determine from the Epistle itself that the following circumstances existed in the churches of Galatia, and that it was written with reference to them.
(1) That they had been at first devotedly attached to the apostle Paul, and had received his commands and instructions with implicit confidence when he was among them; Gal 4:1415; compare Gal 1:6.
(2) That they had been perverted from the doctrine which he taught them soon after he had left them; Gal 1:6.
(3) That this had been done by persons who were of Jewish origin, and who insisted on the observance of the rites of the Jewish religion.
(4) That they claimed to have come directly from Jerusalem, and to have derived their views of religion and their authority from the apostles there.
(5) That they taught that the apostle Paul was inferior to the apostles there; that he had been called more recently into the apostolic office; that the apostles at Jerusalem must be regarded as the source of authority in the Christian church; and that, therefore, the teaching of Paul should yield to that which was derived directly from Jerusalem.
(6) That the laws of Moses were binding, and were necessary in order to justification. That the rite of circumcision especially was of binding obligation; and it is probable GALATIANS 6:12, that they had prevailed on many of the Galatians to be circumcised, and certain that they had induced them to observe the Jewish festivals; GALATIANS 4: 10.
(7) It would seem, also, that they urged that Paul himself had changed his views since he had been among the Galatians, and now maintained the necessity of circumcision; Gal 5:11. Perhaps they alleged this, from the undoubted fact that Paul, when at Jerusalem Acts 21:26, had complied with some of the customs of the Jewish ritual.
(8) That they urged that all the promises of God were made to Abraham, and that whoever would partake of those promises, must be circumcised as Abraham was. This Paul answers, Gal 3:7; 4:7.
(9) That in consequence of the circulation of these views, great dissensions had arisen in the church, and strife’s of an unhappy nature existed, greatly contrary to the spirit which should be manifested by those who bore the Christian name.
1. The Gospel of Grace Defended 1:1 2:21
A. Introduction 1:1 9
1 Paul, an apostle (not sent from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus
Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),
2 and all the brethren who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,
4 who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father,
5 to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.
6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of
Christ, for a different gospel;
7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to
distort the gospel of Christ.
8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to
what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!
9 As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel
contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!
B. Gospel of Grace Is Given by Divine Revelation 1:10 24
10 For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If
I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond servant of Christ.
11 For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is
not according to man.
12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a
revelation of Jesus Christ.
13 For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute
the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it;
14 and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my
countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.
15 But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me
through His grace, was pleased
16 to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not
immediately consult with flesh and blood,
17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to
Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus.
18 Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and
stayed with him fifteen days.
19 But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.
20(Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying.)
21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
22 1 was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which were in Christ;
23 but only, they kept hearing, "He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith
which he once tried to destroy."
24 And they were glorifying God because of me.
PLAN OF SALVATION
ROMANS 10: 17
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
HEBREWS 11:6
6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
ACTS 2:38
38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
ROMANS 10:9 10
9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
MARK 16:16 16 "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
MATTHEW 7:21
21 "Not everyone who says to Me, "Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.
