TAWG - September 15, 2022 - Galatians 1:1-10
September 15, 2022

Galatians 1:1-10

Paul begins his letter by establishing the true messenger (himself) and defining the true message (the gospel). The gospel is not a mixture of law and grace; it is the message of grace and grace alone.

1:1 | Although Paul was not one of the original Twelve, his call was as real as theirs - through the risen Christ and God the Father (1 Cor. 15:8-9; Eph. 3:8; 1 Tim. 1:15-16). This startling claim shapes the first two chapters of this epistle and affirms Paul’s message as authoritative and true.

1:3 | The order of the greeting is significant: once grace is experienced, peace follows.

1:4 | The present evil age in which the Galatians lived is the same as ours - a fallen world under the rule of Satan (4:1-11; Col. 1:13-16; Rom. 1:28-32).

1:6-7 | The message being taught by Paul’s opponents was not just a variation of the true gospel but such an altogether different gospel that it was no gospel at all. Their version was based in works of the law, and it required Gentile believers to abide by Old Covenant standards and ceremonies (Acts 15:1; Phil. 3:1-6).

1:6 | Paul was astonished that the Galatians were so quickly turning away from God (the verb describes a military revolt). At this place in his other letters, Paul typically offers a prayer of thanksgiving for the believers to whom he is writing (Rom. 1:8-15; 1 Cor. 1:4-9; Phil. 1:3-11; Col. 1:3-8; 1 Thess. 1:2-10; 2 Thess. 1:3-12; 2 Tim. 1:3-7; Philem. 4-7). Not so here - he jumps right into his concerns, accusing his readers of being “turncoats” to the gospel.

1:7 | A gospel that mixes God’s grace and human effort is a mongrel gospel. To pervert the truth means to literally turn it from one direction to another, or to turn it into something else (5:10-12; 2 Cor. 11:4).

1:8-9 | Accursed translates the Greek word anathema meaning “to be set aside to God for destruction.” When false messengers tamper with the eternal destiny of a soal by preaching a false gospel, they fall under God’s judgment (1 Cor. 16:22).

1:10 | Paul’s opponents accused him of making up a message of grace and freedom from the law in order to please the Gentiles. Paul insists that his desire is to please God only (1 Thess. 2:4), as his willingness to suffer as a bondservant of Christ testifies.