What is Galatians all about?

Galatians! Wow! What a letter! I mean what a letter!

My beloved wife and I spent our honeymoon in sunny Marseille reading through the book and studying it inside out. It was as spellbinding as France.

The cool thing about Galatians is that it’s so easy to understand. Paul has one simple message he conveys from beginning to end. It is the key New Testament truth that justification is by faith alone. From this huge, titanic tarantula-like doctrine the web of Galatians unfolds into seductive splendour. It pounces upon any prey scenting of salvation by works.

Let’s do some resuming...

Paul kicks off the epistle by defending his apostolic authority. He was obliged to do so because several Judaizers (religious folk who taught that salvation was only possible through trusting in Christ and obeying the Law meticulously) had infiltrated the church and called his ministerial credentials into question. Bro Paul makes it crystal clear that God Himself put him in pulpit and stamped the Gospel of grace onto his eyeballs. That pretty much sums up chapter one.

The following three chapters (two, three and four) seek to validate the marrow of Paul’s Good News proclamation, namely, that salvation is not by works but by faith in Christ. 

Chapter two recounts the famous clash of titans wherein Paul rebuked Peter publically because Pete’s cowardly actions gave the impression that the Jews were somehow holier than the Gentile Christians. “Nothing of the sort!” retorts Paul. “The Gentile believers are just as justified as we Jewish believers are! The Christ that saved us has also saved them!” Paul sure knew how to put a man in his place! Check out Galatians 2:16 by the way. In my humble opinion it’s the most important text of the whole book.

In chapter three Paul employs a Scriptural example to defend the doctrine of his faith-in-Christ based Gospel. That example is Abraham. In a theological masterpiece (or tour de force since I’m still in French mode), Paul interlaces his novel message with the Genesis account of old Father Abraham. What did Paul’s preaching and Abraham have in common? Answer: both reveal that God justifies men (women) through faith; and never through works. Abraham was justified by God long before the Law came along because he took the Lord at His word. Therefore everyone who believes the Gospel of Christ –whether they be Jew or Gentile- become spiritual children of Abraham. Amazing!

Chapter four uses another image from the Old Testament to reflect the same truth. This time Hagar and Sarah take centre stage. The reason Paul evokes them is to prove that Hagar’s offspring are under the bondage of the Law whereas the Sarah’s lad, Isaac, is the true child of the promise. Every Christian, then, is an Isaac; justified freely without the deeds of the Law.

The final two chapters are a practical application of Paul’s theological treatise.

Chapter five and chapter six remind believers that although they are freed from the bondage of the Law they must not abuse their liberty in Christ as a pretext for satisfying the flesh. Rather, Abraham’s children are called to abound in the fruit of the Spirit and to be a blessing to all. After all, they are a new creation and glory solely in the cross of the Lord Jesus. Justification by faith, therefore, should lead to sanctification. 

Just before wrapping up here are some questions you’ve got to ask yourself in the light of Galatians:  is the Gospel you believe the Pauline one or the Judaizing one? In other words, is it salvation by faith in Christ or salvation by works? There is only one Gospel: the Gospel of God’s free grace revealed in Jesus Christ. Only faith can grasp it. And only faith can be grasped by it. 

Believe the Gospel. Believe that God raised up the crucified Christ from the dead. Believe that He will have mercy on you for Christ’s sake. Believe, believe, believe! 

That’s all Abraham did. That’s all Paul did. That’s all the Galatians had to do. And that ‘all’ was enough.

Au revoir!