Justified by faith

GALATIANS: JUSTIFIED BY FAITH

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Dr. Paul Manuel—2016

A man is not justified by observing the law,

but by faith in Jesus Christ. (Gal 2:16)

An Outline of Galatians

I. Paul opens the letter (Gal 1:1-24).

A. He extends his greeting (Gal 1:1-5).
B. He explains his writing (Gal 1:6-9).
C. He extols his gospel (Gal 1:10-24).

1. It came not from man (Gal 1:10-12).
2. It required a lifestyle change (Gal 1:13-17).
3. It led to a discrete meeting (Gal 1:1-24).

Application: You must understand what God has revealed and recorded in His word in order to distinguish the real gospel from pretenders (John 8:31-32).

II. Paul confronts an apostle (Gal 2:1-21).

A. He goes to Jerusalem (Gal 2:1-10).
B. He opposes Peter's hypocrisy (Gal 2:11-14).
C. He lives by faith (Gal 2:15-21).

Application: You must be aware of how your actions have a direct link to your testimony, of how others view you and view the God you represent (Matt 23:3).

III. Paul defends their justification (Gal 3:1-29).

A. Receiving the Spirit is a matter of faith (Gal 3:1-5).
B. Receiving justification is a matter of faith (Gal 3:6-9).
C. The law does not lead to justification (Gal 3:10-14).
D. The law does not supersede God's promise (Gal 3:15-18),
E. The law serves as a signpost to Christ (Gal 3:19-25).
F. The promise encompasses both Jews and gentiles (Gal 3:26-29). 

Application: You must have as the leading characteristic in your relationship with God what is common to all His people—faith (John 10:16).

IV. Paul recounts his ministry (Gal 4:1-31).

A. They should conduct themselves as heirs (Gal 4:1-7).
B. They should not return to their former lifestyle (Gal 4:8-11).
C. They should recall Paul's first visit (Gal 4:12-16).
D. They should recognize the motive of false teachers (Gal 4:17-20).
E. They should understand the two sons allegory (Gal 4:21-31).

Application: You must realize that what you relinquish for God in no way compares to what you will receive from God (Matt 19:29).

V. Paul applies the gospel (Gal 5:1-26).

A. You are confused about the purpose of circumcision (Gal 5:1-6).
B. You are confused about the value of circumcision (Gal 5:7-12).
C. You should be experiencing the freedom of the Spirit (Gal 5:13-15).
D. You should be experiencing the life of the Spirit (Gal 5:16-18).
E. You should be expressing the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:19-26.

Application: You must be willing to give up anything that might stand between you and Jesus, not that he will require you to do so, but you must be ready to do so should he ask (Matt 19:27-29).

VI. Paul closes the letter (Gal 6:1-18).

A. He issues some final advice (Gal 6:1-10).
B. He offers some concluding thoughts (Gal 6:11-18).

Application: You must fulfill your particular obligation toward fellow believers, in part because of the witness it provides (John 13:35).

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The apostle Paul, author of this epistle, is probably on his third missionary journey¹ visiting churches he had established earlier.² These groups consist of gentiles as well as Jews because Paul's initial outreach in a new area was generally to synagogues with some God-fearers in attendance.³ This is after the Jerusalem Council, when the status of gentile believers is officially settled: They do not need to become Jews to be saved.⁴ Paul is bringing news of the Council's ruling to congregations in Asia Minor and may be writing this letter from Antioch⁵ or Ephesus.⁶

Paul begins this epistle as he does many of his other letters, with an address that includes some standard elements.

I. Paul introduces the letter

A. He extends his greeting (Gal 1:1-5).

Gal 1:1 Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead⁷— 2 and all the brothers with me, to the churches in Galatia: 3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

This salutation is similar to those in Paul's other letters to churches, giving the author, the addressee, and—herein lies the difference as well as the omission—an expression of thanks for his readers or praise to God.⁸ In this letter Paul offers no thanks or praise. Instead he gets right to his reason for writing: concern that the Galatians have strayed from the faith. This epistle follows his earlier visit to the area when he discovered an aberration among the believers.

B. He explains his writing (Gal 1:6-9).

Gal 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—7 which is really no gospel at all.⁹ Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!

Paul is "astonished", a word he uses sparingly.¹⁰ He is surprised they would entertain such an aberrant idea, "a different gospel" (v. 6), a non-gospel, that runs completely counter to what he had taught them. So strongly does Paul feel that he twice issues a malediction against anyone who holds and promotes this view: "Let him be eternally condemned!".¹¹ This particular heresy is not good news, as Paul will make clear, because it places the responsibility for man's salvation on man himself, an impossible task.

This was not a new problem but the repackaging of a claim some Pharisees made at the Jerusalem Council: "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses" (Acts 15:5). While not as much of a problem for observant Jews, who already kept the law, this view posed some difficulty for non-Jews who had no previous connection to (or familiarity with) the law. Although the Council ruled that gentiles did not need to become Jews to be saved,¹² by recommending to them the Noachide laws: "telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood" (Acts 15:20), it may have inadvertently suggested that God favored obedience to these laws. Moreover, some Pharisaic believers may have understood that recommendation as a preliminary step to full conversion. Gentiles in the Galatian churches encountered a variation of this problem, which Paul takes as an opportunity to clarify for both gentiles and Jews the basis (Jesus' death) as well as the requirement (man's faith) of their salvation.

C. He extols his gospel (Gal 1:10-24).

 1. It came not from man.

Gal 1:10 Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. 11 I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. 12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.

This is different from the normal rabbinic practice of transmitting knowledge along a line of recognized teachers: "Moses received Torah at Sinai and handed it on to Joshua, Joshua to elders, and elders to prophets, and prophets handed it on to the men of the great assembly" (m Avot 1:1a-b). Paul's gospel is in a direct line of transmission: from Jesus to Paul.¹³

2. It required a lifestyle change.

Gal 1:13 For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. 14 I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.

Paul does not describe his initial encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. The readers of this letter have probably heard the account:

As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied.... Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything. (Acts 9:3-5, 8-9)

That experience suddenly changed everything for Paul. The very course and purpose of his life underwent a radical transformation, from persecutor of the church to promoter of the gospel. It was a complete reversal of what he thought God wanted him to be doing, and it would involve more gentiles than Jews. Rather than seeking help from the Jerusalem church, the main body of believers, Paul withdrew for a time in solitary contemplation.

3. It led to a discrete meeting.

Gal 1:18 Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. 19 I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord's brother. 20 I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. 21 Later I went to Syria and Cilicia. 22 I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only heard the report: "The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy." [cf. Acts 9:21] 24 And they praised God because of me.

It may have been too early for Paul to make his conversion public, especially given people's initial suspicion:

All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?" (Acts 9:21)

In Jerusalem, Paul revealed his new-found faith only to the most senior members of the congregation, Peter and James. Then he was off to a new and very different mission, to people less familiar with his previous activity.

Application: There are several competing theories about how one can get to heaven—different gospels—such as the one Paul mentions in this letter, but there is only one gospel that has the imprimatur of God, only one gospel that is truely good news. Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:3 lb-32). Therefore, you must understand what God has revealed and recorded in His word in order to distinguish the real gospel from pretenders.

After an extended period away, ministering in Asia Minor, Paul returns to the capital to meet with members of the church there.

II. Paul confronts an apostle (chapter 2).

A. He goes to Jerusalem (2:1-10).

Gal 2:1 Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2 I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. 3 Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4 [This matter arose] because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5 We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you.

Barnabas was originally part of the Jerusalem congregation, and he introduced Paul to that group, which then sent him to work with Paul in Antioch, where the two remained "for a whole year" (Acts 11:26),¹⁴ along with Titus.¹⁵ The "false brothers" Paul mentions believed circumcision was necessary for salvation, a position the Jerusalem Council denied: "We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are" (Acts 15:11). That ruling was further confirmation that Paul had not labored "in vain" (v. 2).

Gal 2:6 As for those who seemed to be important—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance—those men added nothing to my message. 7 On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews. 8 For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. 9 James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. 10 All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

Despite the apostles' being "pillars" (v. 9) in the mother church, their status did not overly impress Paul, although he did find it necessary to get their approval of his ministry, lest he labor "in vain" (v. 2). The division of labor Paul outlined applied in most cases but not all.

For a pdf with the remainder of the paper (27 pages) including Bibliography and Endnotes see here.