Setting the book in context
Following Christ's ascension, the gospel began to spread smoothly -- as long as it was being passed from one Jew to another. But when Paul began to take the good news of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, quarrels arose. Was it necessary for Gentile believers to accept Jewish culture and
customs in addition to accepting Jesus? Some argued, "Yes. If we make the gospel too easy, we'll
have a church full of rabble who aren't willing to pay the price." Paul argued that grace plus law is
a false gospel and that those who teach such a theology are to be damned (Galatians 1:8-9).
In this context, Jewish legalists were accusing Paul of three things:
1.They said he was a false apostle. Since Paul had never been with Jesus or His disciples and
since he had never seen the risen Christ, he couldn't be an apostle.
2. They charged that he preached a false gospel. Paul was unwilling to risk being rejected by the
Gentiles, so he made the gospel easy for them.
3. They claimed that Paul's gospel would produce false righteousness. From their perspective,
people's sin nature would go unchecked if there were no rules to hold them in. Without laws,
why should anyone obey?
These are the issues addressed in Galatians.
Verses 1-9
Letters in this day typically began with descriptions of the writer and the recipients and a brief
note of thanksgiving and prayer. In the opening of Galatians, what is not said is as important as
what is said. In the first three words, Paul tells his readers where he stands -- he is an apostle. His
greeting is terse -- "to the churches in Galatia" -- and there is no note of thanksgiving at all.
In these verses Paul begins to address the three accusations being made against him. He asserts
that he is an apostle whose authority comes from God, not men (v. 1). This idea will be developed
in the first two chapters.
He also defends his gospel. He argues that trust in God's grace is not only the way into the
Kingdom (we are saved by grace), but it is also the way on (we grow in the character and nature
of Christ, not by our works, but by His grace). He alludes to this concept in verse 3, and he will
develop it further in chapters 3-4.
The final theme emphasizes the power of the cross. Paul says in verse 4 that Jesus "gave Himself
for our sins, to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of God the Father." The
word "rescue" here means "to deliver from the power of," so Paul is saying that a law-free gospel
will not result in rampant sin because Jesus' death broke sin's power; when an individual truly
encounters God's grace, the Holy Spirit invades his life and begins to move him toward obedience.
The law tries to bring change from the outside in, but the Spirit changes from the inside out and
evokes true righteousness. This is explored further in chapters 5-6.