Overview
Galatians is Paul's most urgent and combative letter. The churches of Galatia had been unsettled by teachers insisting that faith in Christ must be supplemented by observance of the Jewish law, particularly circumcision. Paul responds with controlled force, insisting that the gospel of grace is not a starting point to be improved upon but the whole ground of salvation. To add works of the law to faith in Christ is not to make the gospel better but to abandon it entirely.
Authorship and background
Paul wrote this letter around AD 48–49 or possibly in the mid-50s, depending on which Galatian churches are in view. He had founded these congregations on his first or second missionary journey and was distressed to hear that they were being drawn away from the simplicity of the gospel. The letter is remarkable for its autobiographical content in the early chapters as Paul traces his own conversion and call.
Christ at the centre
The heart of Galatians is justification by faith in Christ alone. Paul argues from Abraham that God has always justified people by faith and not by law (chapter 3). The law's role was to lead us to Christ, our guardian until faith came. In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female — all are one in Him. The fruit of the Spirit (chapter 5) describes the life that flows naturally from abiding in Christ: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Key verses
"I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." (Galatians 2:20, WEB) "For you are all sons of God, through faith in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:26, WEB) "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control." (Galatians 5:22–23, WEB)
Main themes
Justification by faith alone in Christ alone. Freedom from the law and its curse. The unity of all believers in Christ. Life in the Spirit rather than the flesh. The cross as the only ground of boasting.
For us today
Galatians guards the church in every generation against the subtle temptation to add something to grace. We are prone to measuring our standing with God by our performance rather than resting in what Christ has done. Paul's passionate defence of the free gospel is a standing reminder that salvation is received by faith and maintained by faith. The Spirit-filled life described in chapter 5 is not a programme but the fruit of trusting Jesus.
Please to save this book and keep your own notes.