Paul said, "The grace of Jesus Christ makes your baptism valid--your sins are forgiven."

Some Jewish Christians said, "Your baptism is not valid because you were not circumcised before you were baptized."

A basic issue: who is speaking for God and Christ? Who should be trusted and believed?

In order for the confusion to be corrected, Paul knew that they must trust and believe him.

1:1--He was an apostle. Men did not send him; men did not appoint him. He was sent/appointed by Jesus Christ and the God who raised Jesus from the dead.

1:2--Greetings were sent from all who were with Paul to all congregations in Galatia.

1:3--Paul's formal greeting: Grace (a common Roman greeting) and peace (a common Jewish greeting) from God and Jesus.

1:4--Opening emphasis on Jesus' role and importance:

Jesus surrendered himself for our sins.
He did that to deliver us from the present evil world.
It was God's will that Jesus do that.

1:5--Eternal glory should be given to God.

1. Christians (those within the church) who attacked Paul and his teachings tried to destroy his credibility as a preacher/teacher/apostle.
   1. If they destroyed his credibility, they destroyed his influence and his message.

   2. The letters of 1 and 2 Corinthians provide information on methods and approaches used by his Christian enemies who tried to accomplish this.

   3. They made attempts like these:
      1. They criticized him for refusing to accept financial support: "If he were a genuine apostle, he would accept the support. He refuses support because he knows that he is not a real apostle" (1 Corinthians 9:1-18).

      2. They forces him to defend himself, and then said: "He is an unimpressive person who boasts too much" (1 Corinthians 10:8-18).

      3. They attacked him because his apostolic appointment came late: "He does not have the rights of an apostle because he was not a part of Jesus' earthly ministry" (1 Corinthians 9:1-6; 15:8-11; 2 Corinthians 12:11-13).

   4. Paul was vulnerable to such charges because:
      1. He did not follow Jesus during Jesus' ministry on earth.

      2. He was not born nor reared in Palestine; he went to Jerusalem as a student (Acts 22:3; Galatians 1:14).

      3. Prior to conversion, he arrested and abused Christians.

      4. His conversion to Christ and divine appointment to apostleship came long after Jesus' death and resurrection.

2. To restore the Galatian Christians' faith in the complete sufficiency of Jesus, it was essential that Paul restore his credibility and prove that Jesus was the perfect fulfillment of God's plan and intent.

David Chadwell

Galatians Study Guide (part 3)
Wednesday evening Bible class, 14 January - 3 June 1998
West-Ark Church of Christ, Fort Smith, AR

Copyright © 1998
Permission is granted to freely copy and distribute with text unchanged, including author's name.