Getting Started (Galatians 1:1-5)

SCRIPTURE

Galatians 1:1-5
Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— and all the brothers who are with me,

To the churches of Galatia: 

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

COMMENT

In writing the book of Galatians, Paul is tackling an issue of false teaching, specifically the idea that in addition to faith in Jesus, some external obedience to the Jewish law was also required (Judaizers). He begins this book by stating where the authority for this book comes from, which is Jesus Christ Himself. Of course, if you are a skeptic, that does not mean much to you as anyone could say their authority comes from Jesus (and many do), but those who knew Paul, who witnessed his ministry, suffering, dedication, etc. probably had little doubt as to his commitment and the truth of his message. Such was the original audience for this book, the church at Galatia.

Paul was an apostle. Not by the normal route, as he was not a disciple of Jesus while Jesus walked the earth. Yet Paul was "set apart from birth" to his role. (Galatians 1:15) So when Jesus was in His earthly ministry, Paul (then called Saul) was probably observing from the outside, despising every word that came from the Savior's mouth. Paul continued this after Jesus's death by persecuting Christians, until an encounter with Jesus Himself, where Jesus struck Saul blind on the road to Damascus, leading to his conversion experience.

In verse 4, Paul describes Jesus as he "who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age." I think this is an important statement in light of the teaching that Paul is combating in this book. Paul will confront the Judaizers, those who believed that in addition to Christ's sacrifice on the cross, we must still follow Jewish law to be saved. Paul is setting out that Jesus gave himself for our sins, and it is what He has done, and not what we do in addition to it that saves us. Even today, that is a tough concept for people to grasp.

Interesting Tidbit: There are those who believe that when Jesus encountered the Rich Young Ruler, that was a confrontation with the man then called Saul. Puts an interesting interpretation on the story.