1 Paul, an apostle— not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2 and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. 6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
1. What do we know about Paul?
Saul of Tarsus who becomes Paul the Apostle: Paul was born of the tribe of Benjamin and was named Saul after the first king. As he was Roman, he also went by the name Paul. He was taught the family trade of tent making. Tarsus was famed for its tent cloth, cilicium, made from goat hair. Some of these tents sold for as much as $50, 000 in today’s money.
In addition to its wealth, Tarsus was known for its commitment to culture and education. Saul and his family were part of a city steeped in Greek learning, philosophy, rhetoric, and athletics. One can easily see these cultural influences in Paul’s New Testament writings. “To his Tarsian heritage [Saul, later Paul] owed his fluency in the Greek language and probably much of his cultural orientation. His ministry would mainly be in Hellenistic cities like Tarsus; his early years in that city prepared him” Saul was a Roman citizen. And having been born in Tarsus, he was a Roman citizen by birth. Born into a well-to-do Jewish family of Tarsus, the son of a Roman citizen, Saul was sent to Jerusalem to be trained in the famous rabbinical school headed by Gamaliel. Studying under the well-respected Gamaliel, Saul mastered the Torah and the entire Jewish law, taking his place as a Pharisee. According to the book of Acts, Gamaliel was a moderate in his perspective toward Christians. “ And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it — lest you even be found to fight against God.” Gamaliel
Not so with Saul, who broke with his master, siding with those Jews who regarded Christian teachings as blasphemy. Saul aggressively persecuted Christians and was responsible for many of their deaths.
Paul describes his personal history as: If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. Phil 3:4-6 (NIV)
2. Paul identified himself as formerly being a Pharisee. Who or what were the Pharisees?
They held an extremely high view of the Torah (God’s Law from the first five books of the Old Testament). Strict obedience to the Torah – both the written commands and the oral traditions – was essential to their faith and identity. Ultimately, the Pharisees believed that if the Jewish people as a whole would turn back to God and obey the Torah down to the smallest details, then and only then would God bless them as a nation once again. Interestingly enough, Jesus probably fits more in the company of the Pharisees than any other Jewish sect. There were around 6,000 Pharisees during Jesus’ time on earth. Pharisees were leaders in the local synagogue. Most every Jewish community had their own synagogue, while there was only one temple and it was in Jerusalem.
3. Paul seems to be highlighting “an apostle— not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father”, why?
Apostle. The meaning sent one will not suffice here. All believers have some such commission. Paul proceeds to defend his special authority as a chosen instrument of God. The apostles in the founding of the early church were eye witnesses of the risen Christ and had apostolic authority to establish doctrine, teach, discipline, and perform miracles. Not from men, neither through man. The negative “not” sets the tone of the epistle; it is a polemic, an exposure of error in order to portray the truth to better advantage(a polemic is intended to establish the supremacy of a single point of view by refuting an opposing point of view). If the Judaizers had any apostleship, it was from men. Paul’s was not. It had a higher source. Nor was it through man. No person, apostle or other, had mediated Paul’s authority. It came instead through the intervention in his life of Jesus Christ. The contrast makes Christ more than man. Behind him and on an equality with him stands God the Father, presented here as the one who raised Christ from the dead. It was the risen Christ who appeared to Paul and made him an apostle. WBC
4. So is Paul the 13th apostle?
Paul took the place of Judas. After the resurrection of Jesus, Matthias was chosen by the disciples to fill the place of Judas, but no information is given about Matthias. Matthias is never mentioned again. If the Holy Spirit had chosen him, certainly somewhere along the way He would have set His seal upon this man. Paul, however, proved he was an apostle, and Matthias did not. The election of Matthias as an apostle was held before Pentecost, which was before the Holy Spirit came into the church. For that reason it is clear that the Holy Spirit had nothing to do with the selection of Matthias. There are also many elections in our churches today that are obviously not ordered by the Holy Spirit. I believe that Paul is the man whom the Spirit of God chose to take Judas’ place.
Paul also declares that his apostleship is not “by man.” The preposition dia indicates that it was not through man, that is, not ritualistic by means of laying on of hands, as by a bishop or church court. Paul did not have the other apostles lay their hands on his head and say, “Hocus pocus, you are an apostle.”
Paul was an apostle. How? He was an apostle by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead. Jesus laid His hand upon Paul, called him, and set him apart for the office. JVM
5. Exactly how did Paul become an apostle?
1 But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. 10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. 14 And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” 17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; 19 and taking food, he was strengthened. Acts 9:1-19 (ESV)
6. So would you say that Paul was chosen by God to be the apostle to the gentiles and it really had nothing to do with Paul?
You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, John 15:16 (NASB)
I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. John 17:6-7 (NASB)
7. What can we see conclude from Paul’s greeting, verses 3-5?
Paul is laying out the groundwork for his assault on the Galatian error.
Paul, as he often does in his letters, wishes his audience grace (charis) (God’s unmerited favor) and peace (shalom )(God’s positive blessing of well-being). Grace and peace are twin gifts of God, never reversed in their order. The divine favor received makes possible a life of fullness and of harmony with God and fellow believers. These blessings come from the Lord Jesus Christ as well as from God the Father.
gave himself for our sins. The saving work of Christ on the cross is in the forefront of Paul’s mind and therefore shows up here at the very beginning of the letter. Jesus not only saves Christians from their sins but also sets them free from being slaves of this world. Paul will later explain that in wanting to be under the law, the Galatians are effectively wanting to stay anchored in this present evil age which is the state of the world apart from Christ until his return. ESV
Personal sin is not the only barrier between man and God. Man needs to be freed from his whole position in this present evil age (av, world). The Gospel is not a message of improvement but of deliverance. Christ, in his redeeming work, acted in conjunction with God, according to his will. To God belongs the glory, the praise of saints, forevermore. Without affirming the deity of the Son, the apostle conveys the truth of it by linking Christ with the Father in the apostolic call, in the gift of grace and peace, and in the achieving of salvation. WBC
In the beginning, middle and end of his greeting, Paul points to the work of God as the source of salvation.
According to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever………nothing here about the law.
8. What is Paul so astonished about?
They have quickly turned away from the doctrine of salvation through grace and turned to a man centered, works oriented, salvation based on mixing law and grace. In effect they had accepted a different gospel (good news). Yes Jesus died for our sins………………..but. You must be circumcised and follow the 613 commandments of the Mosaic law.
Any time anybody teaches grace plus anything, it is not the gospel.
Yes Jesus died for you sins but you must obey the 10 commandments.
Yes Jesus died for your sins but you must go to church.
Yes Jesus died for your sins but you must be baptized with immersion.
Yes Jesus died for your sins, but now you have to try hard to not sin and if you’re are not trying hard you are not saved.
Yes Jesus died for your sins but you must stop being a homosexual.
Yes Jesus died for your sins but now you have to be faithful to your wife.
9. Why would anyone want to go back to the law when you have grace?
The law gives me something I can do better than you. It gives me a source of pride.
If I can lead a more legally pure life than my neighbor, then I feel good about myself. Grace never allows personal pride or self will. There is nothing that we can do to earn grace, nor can I boast about grace because somebody else did the work making grace possible.
If the gospel as defined by Paul is: Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters,of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.
3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 5 He was seen by Peterand then by the Twelve. 6 After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followersat one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. 9 For I am the least of all the apostles. NLT 1 Cor. 15:1-8
10. What is your part in providing grace?
NADA
11. So what is Paul’s recommendation for those with impeccable religious credentials, and lofty positions within the church and who bring a slightly different gospel?
What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit.” 2 Peter 2:22 (ESV)
10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. 11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!) 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” 24 And they glorified God because of me. Gal 1:10-24
10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
12. Yeah but Paul also says,” I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.”1 Cor 9:22 (ESV). Shouldn’t we strive to present our message in a non confrontational manner, so as to not offend people?
If you preach the gospel of grace today, you may get into trouble because it is the gospel of the grace of God that the sinner hates. Many unsaved church members do not want to hear the message of grace. They want to hear a message that appeals to the flesh. The gospel of grace puts us in the dust and makes us beggars before God. By nature man responds to legalism. He thinks he doesn’t need a Savior. All he needs is a helper. JVM
I think we need to depend on the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. We can never water down or compromise the message of the cross, but it is important to know what to say and how to say it to be effective. Ripping into an unbeliever with a “fire and brimstone” message might not always be the best approach. All people need to know that there is judgment waiting, but many times timing is the crucial component of evangelism.
Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. 1 Peter 3:15-16 The Message
11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel.
13. What is man’s gospel?
Man’s gospel is a synergistic (man centered, it’s all about me) gospel. Man says, “back off God, I’ve got this under control”. This goes back to the garden.
For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Gen 3:5 (NKJV)
Man has deluded himself into thinking he just needs a little self-improvement, when in reality he needs a new nature.
A gospel based on a set of tasks that I have to perform is appealing because it gives me an opportunity to feel good about myself as I get closer to achieving perfection in my mind. Also I get to compare myself to others who fail to perform as well as me. That really puffs me up, but leaves me without hope of eternal life, because eternal life is a gift. If you give me a fee gift, I don’t get to boast about my accomplishments.
Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. Romans 3:27-28 (ESV)
Justified: declared innocent because somebody else paid for my crimes.
12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
14. What is a revelation?
The term revelation deals with how God has revealed himself to humanity, or in other words, how he has made himself known. Theologians generally distinguish God’s revelation in two ways: General, and Special revelation.
General revelation : Also known as Universal revelation, general revelation deals with how God can be understood through his creation. More specifically, this can be manifest in physical nature, human nature, and history. General revelation does not impart truths that are necessary for salvation (e.g. sinfulness of humanity, the atonement, etc…), however, it is argued thatGod’s existence, transcendence, immanence, self-sufficiency, eternality, power, goodness, and hate for evil can be comprehended and seen through his creation (Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, p. 1,019; cf. Romans 1).
“Because God has made us for Himself, our hearts are restless until they rest in Him.” — St. Augustine
Special revelation: Is distinguished from general revelation in that it is direct revelation from God. Examples include God’s direct speech to various people, prophets and the Bible. Such revelation is sufficient to communicate the gospel, unlike general revelation, and thus salvation is possible only through special revelation.http://www.theopedia.com/Revelation_of_God
In Paul’ s case he received a special visitation from the risen Christ on the road to Damascus.
“The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14), and of course the natural man is not pleased with this divine revelation. Men are pleased when the preacher glosses over their sins, when he makes excuses for their wrongdoings, when he panders to their weaknesses or flatters them as they attempt to work out a righteousness of their own. But when a man preaches the gospel of the grace of God and insists upon man’s utterly lost and ruined condition, declares that he is unable to do one thing to save himself, but must be saved through the atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ, there is nothing about that to please the natural man. It is divine grace that opens the heart to receive that revelation. That was the revelation that came to Paul. IC
13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.
As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. Acts 8:3 (NKJV)
1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Acts 9:1-2 (NKJV)
15. “former life” How significant is our former life?
It is only useful as a reminder of what we used to be and how the power of God has changed us.
“It is I who sweep away your transgressions for My own sake and remember your sins no more. Isaiah 43:25 (HCSB)
But in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back. Isaiah 38:17 (ESV)
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1 (ESV)
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Gal 2:20 (NKJV)
15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles,
16. Did God choose Paul before he was born because He could look into the future and see what Paul was going to develop into, or was God involved in the creation of what Paul would be, even before he was born?
10 Did you not pour me out like milk and curdle me like cheese? 11 You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews. Job 10:10-11 (ESV)
13 For it was You who created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise You because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.Psalms 139:13-14 (HCSB)
For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. 19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? Romans 9:17-21 (NKJV)
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. Romans 8:29-30 (ESV)
Paul’s conversion was effected in line with God’s purpose. The apostle, like Jeremiah,“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jer 1:5), was set apart for his lifework from birth. WBC
So maybe God in his infinite power is able to create freewill creatures, but chooses to intervene in the lives of some to achieve His purposes.
I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
17. What happened in Arabia?
He mentions Arabia in contrast to Jerusalem. No apostle was to be found there. No one was there who could inform him about the Lord and His saving work. It is probable that the new convert journeyed to Arabia to be alone with God, to think through the implications of the Gospel. WBC
He did not seek those who were apostles before him at Jerusalem to be taught. I went into Arabia. This is the only place where this fact is mentioned. Like Moses and Elijah, he spent a season, perhaps for reflection, communion with God, and preparation, amid the Arabian solitudes. Johnson
But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well. Ex 2:15 (KJV)
When all of this is added up, it means that Paul spent less than three years in the desert. It is interesting how God has trained His men. He trained Moses in the Midian desert of Arabia . He put Abraham in a rather unique place to train him, and Elijah had that same type of experience. It has been God’s method to put His man out on the desert to train him. David was trained outdoors in the caves of the earth while he was running away from King Saul. Remember that he cried out to God that he was hunted like a partridge—it was open season on him all the time. The Lord used the same method with Paul. God sent him into the desert for less than three years. Then he went to Jerusalem, saw Peter, and stayed with him for fifteen days. JVM
It would appear that there are times when communion with God in isolation is required in the lives of those called into the service of God.
18. What is the point of Paul pointing out his Damascus and Arabian experiences?
Paul was in the position of having to defend his apostleship from criticism. He was not one of the original disciples, nor was he part of the Jerusalem crowd. As an outsider, his teachings were also questioned. He highlights the special nature of his calling to lend credibility to his ministry to the gentiles.
Acts 9:15 (ESV) But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!) 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” 24 And they glorified God because of me. Gal 1:10-24
19. Why did Paul go to Jerusalem to meet with Peter and James?
The believers in Jerusalem were rather reluctant to accept the apostle Paul. Without the help of Barnabas, Paul would probably have waited a long time before the church in Jerusalem would have received him. These men were hesitant to receive Paul because he had persecuted the church, but they knew what it was to be converted. They knew what it was to have an absolutely earth-shaking experience that would transform a man. Yet they could not believe that Saul of Tarsus could be converted. It seemed not only improbable but impossible. JVM
And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. Acts 9:26-27 (KJV)
- ESVN………….ESV Study Bible Notes
- MSBN…….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
- NIVSN…..NIV Study Notes.
- JVM ….J Vernon McGee,
- ACC …. Adam Clarke’s Commentary
- BN …..Barnes Notes
- WBC…… Wycliffe Bible Commentary
- CN …… Constables Notes
- IC……….Ironside Commentary
- NET………Net Bible Study Notes.
- JFB…………..Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary
- VWS……………..Vincent Word Studies
- CMM………….Commentary on Matthew and Mark
- BDB………….. Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
- Darby………..John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
- Johnson………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
- NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary: Matthew and Mark.
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