Session 1 True Gospel Believers must faithfully hold to the only true gospel message Jesus crucified and resurrected. GALATIANS 1:1-10 Have you ever tried to open a door with the wrong key? Perhaps the key would not fit in the lock. Or perhaps the key did fit but did not turn the lock. Only one key will actually unlock the door. Some keys clearly do not fit the lock, while others appear to fit but are not the true key. Christians must hold to the only true gospel message and be able to distinguish the true gospel from its various alternatives. How might an untrue spiritual message be confused for the true gospel? 10 Suggested Use Week of September 2
UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT GALATIANS 1:1-10 Context is crucial in understanding Paul s Letter to the Galatians. Most likely the apostle wrote the letter to the churches he had planted on his first missionary journey in the southern portion of the province of Galatia. Those who embrace this locale have dated the book in the period of AD 48-50. In Acts 15, the apostles and others gathered in Jerusalem to deal with the issues of Jewish legalism. They determined to make a decision on whether it was possible for the Gentiles to be saved without circumcision (Acts 15:1,6). Since the council was in AD 49, Galatians could have been written either prior to or after the Jerusalem Council. Either view is possible. The subject of the debate at the Jerusalem Council was the same as the main topic addressed in Galatians. The Galatians had deserted the gospel of salvation by grace through faith in Christ and had turned to a works-oriented salvation accompanied by remnants of Jewish legalism. They were not saying Jesus was unnecessary, but they were implying that He was not enough. They claimed that faith in Christ had to be accompanied by circumcision and other Jewish rituals. This is the context in which Paul wrote to the Galatians. They were not saying Jesus was unnecessary, but they were implying that He was not enough. As Paul received news from the new churches in Galatia, he was astonished that some believers had deserted the gospel he had preached to them (Gal. 1:6). He had experienced trouble in Derbe, Lystra, and Iconium from a strong Jewish contingent (Acts 14). Paul s surprise was not that some people were stirring up trouble in Galatia, but that those who had claimed to embrace the gospel followed them. Read Galatians 1:1-10 in your Bible. Notice how Paul introduced Jesus. How does the introduction of Jesus provide the reader clues about the emphasis of this letter? Session 1 : True Gospel 11
EXPLORE THE TEXT APPOINTED BY GOD (GAL. 1:1-2) 1 Paul, an apostle not from men or by man, but by 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. VERSE 1 Whereas in many places a person s signature on a letter would not appear until the end, letters written in the New Testament era began by identifying the writer. This accepted convention was the way Paul started all his letters. He would identify himself, any co-writers who were with him, and express a greeting of grace. Usually in letters to churches, he would follow that greeting with an expression of thanksgiving or praise to God for the church. (For example, see Rom. 1:8; 1 Cor. 1:4.) The notable exception is in Galatians. This absence spoke volumes. Paul wrote to young churches he had planted during his first missionary journey to correct some serious perversions in doctrine. These young churches had ventured from the true gospel that Paul preached, salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. They had listened to the teachings of the Judaizers, who infiltrated the church and taught that the Galatians had to believe in Christ but also submit themselves to the laws of the Old Testament in order to be saved. Paul argued against a salvation that includes Jesus plus something else. This was a perversion of the true gospel. Therefore, Paul began his letter with a huge omission. How could he express thanksgiving for a people who had deserted the true gospel? Therefore, he started his letter by omitting any reference to thanksgiving and praise for the Galatians, and he focused on establishing his own authority as an apostle. The Greek word for apostle originally referred to a naval expedition commissioned to represent Greek interests in a foreign location. In other places Paul referred to himself as a prisoner (Philem. 1) or a slave (Phil. 1:1; Rom. 1:1), but in eight of the twelve letters Paul wrote in the New Testament, he designated himself as an apostle. In Galatians he expanded and reinforced that title. Paul emphasized that he was an apostle not from men or by man. Almost certainly this was a reference to his calling on the Damascus road, when he was 12 Explore the Bible Personal Study Guide
confronted by Jesus (Acts 9:1-9). No human being called Paul to be a disciple only Jesus! Any authority that Paul had for speaking to the Galatians about their problems with the gospel came not from himself but from God the Father who raised Him from the dead. When might a person need to set forth his or her credentials to speak authoritatively on a subject? How might a believer introduce him or herself to establish credibility as one who knows the truth about Jesus? VERSE 2 Paul often mentioned his co-workers who were with him in his greetings to the churches. For example, he sent a greeting to Corinth from his co-workers, Sosthenes (1 Cor. 1:1) and Timothy (2 Cor. 1:1). He sent greetings from Timothy to the Philippians (Phil. 1:1) and Colossians (1:1). When he wrote to the Galatians, Paul did not name his traveling companions as he did in other letters. Though no reason for this is given in the text, it certainly supported the point of his greeting that the gospel did not depend upon people. He did not need the support of his traveling companions or any other person to speak authoritatively about the gospel. He received that authority from his resurrected Savior by the power of God Himself. The apostle addressed his letter to the churches of Galatia. On his first missionary journey, Paul had preached the gospel in Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, and other places along the way in Galatia (Acts 13:14 14:23). He did not preach the gospel and then leave them alone. He cared about the churches he had planted on his journeys. His biggest concern was that they embrace the true gospel. Major Themes in Galatians* 1. Paul defended his authority as an apostle of Jesus Christ. 2. Paul argued that salvation is solely by God s grace through His Son Jesus Christ, received by faith. 3. The Christian life is one of freedom, directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Session 1 : True Gospel 13
THROUGH HIS GRACE (GAL. 1:3-5) 3 Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father. 5 To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. VERSE 3 Paul often greeted his readers with grace and peace. The word for grace was related to the common Greek word for hello, but Paul adapted the typical greeting to highlight the unmerited favor given to his readers in Jesus Christ. This greeting of grace in Galatians seems especially appropriate since Paul began and ended the letter by calling attention to such a key term (Gal. 6:18). Grace was the message needed in the Galatian churches. They had abandoned the grace of Jesus Christ (1:6) and had become entangled in legalism as the means of obtaining and maintaining salvation. God had chosen Paul by His grace (1:15), and the apostles had acknowledged that grace in his life (2:9). Paul would show the Galatians the folly of trusting in anything other than the grace of God for salvation, and that grace came through the death of Jesus Christ (2:21). VERSE 4 Paul summarized the work of Christ. Jesus gave himself for our sins. The substitutionary death of Jesus allowed the Galatians to experience God s grace, and therefore His peace. At the outset of the letter, the apostle assured the Galatians that the true gospel does is not about what we have done for God but what God has done for us. He sent Jesus who offered His life as a sacrifice for our sins. This sacrifice set in motion Jesus plan to rescue us from this present evil age. In Jewish thought, time was divided into two ages the present evil age and the age to come. Sin s power to destroy human lives dominates the present evil age. Jesus death, however, changed things. His victory over death empowers believers to live righteous lives now in spite of the evil powers that attack all people. Jesus death enables Christians to endure in the present age because we are confident of what comes in the future one. 14 Explore the Bible Personal Study Guide
In this present evil age, we do not need simply to try harder; we need an all-out rescue. We need more than self-improvement; we need a new self. This will not happen because of our effort. In fact, it is according to the will of our God and Father. God willed it and accomplished it through His Son. If we could achieve salvation by our own efforts, then we could boast in our own abilities. Paul said he would boast only in the cross of Christ (Gal. 6:14). VERSE 5 A false gospel that centered on human effort and achievement would call attention to people and their efforts to reach God. However, the true gospel that centers on the death and resurrection of Jesus highlights the One who went to the cross and rose from the grave. Paul ended his greeting with words of praise to him be the glory forever and ever. God s glory indicates the majestic, unique, and mighty nature of God. Our amazing God revealed His true self by sending His Son to rescue us. Amen. What are the dangers of embracing a religion, like the Galatians did, that is centered on legalism? How can a person keep Jesus as the central focus of the gospel? KEY DOCTRINE: Salvation By His own blood, Jesus obtained eternal redemption for the believer (Eph. 1:7). DISTORTED BY SOME (GAL. 1:6-10) 6 I am amazed that you are so quickly turning away from him who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel 7 not that there is another gospel, but there are some who are troubling 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 what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! 9 As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you Session 1 : True Gospel 15
a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him! 10 For am I now trying to persuade people, or God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. VERSE 6 Normally, Paul would insert an expression of praise at this point in his letters, but not in the Letter to the Galatians. He did the opposite. He said he was amazed at two actions of the Galatians. This is the same word used of the amazement people expressed at the miracles of Jesus. First, the Galatians were turning away from the One who called them by the grace of Christ. True grace has the power to keep those in its grip, so it astonished Paul that the Galatians were turning from Christ. This was a clue that the Galatians were secondly turning to a different gospel. The Greek word used refers to another of a different kind. It is not the same quality as the true gospel, and Paul made that clear in his wording. Paul was astonished that they were so quickly turning from God and turning to a different gospel. Whether the letter was written early or late, he would not have expected new Christians to desert Christ so quickly after they had received salvation. VERSE 7 Though Paul said that some were turning to a different gospel, he was quick to remind them that there is not another gospel. This time the word in Greek changes to another of the same kind. By the shift in wording, he was saying that some had turned to a different kind of gospel, though there is no different gospel at all. A gospel of human effort and achievement is not good news. False teachers had arisen who were troubling the Galatians and trying to distort the gospel of Christ. To tamper with the gospel is to trouble the church. The gospel must remain in its purity and simplicity to be effective, otherwise it is not the gospel at all. What might cause a person to turn away from following Christ today? How have people distorted the gospel today? 16 Explore the Bible Personal Study Guide
VERSES 8-9 The content, not the messenger, was the most crucial element of the gospel. Paul argued that even if an angel from heaven preached the law-based gospel of the Judaizers, that angel was wrong. Satan was called the angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14-15), and he preached a different gospel to Eve in Genesis 3. Even apostles like Paul had no right to preach a gospel contrary to the death and resurrection of Christ. Those who preached a false gospel stood under a curse. This referred to something that was delivered over to God for divine judgment. Those who tamper with the gospel face God s judgment. For emphasis, verse 9 repeats Paul s expression from verse 8. He stated it again. Anyone who preached a gospel contrary to what you received would have a curse be on him. It is a serious offense to preach a false gospel. VERSE 10 Some opponents had accused Paul of trying to please people with his preaching (2 Cor. 10; Gal. 6:12). However, Paul made it clear he was not trying to persuade people but God. Apparently some thought Paul avoided preaching circumcision and the law for salvation because he was trying to gain the favor of the Gentiles. Nothing could be further from the truth. If Paul had wanted the approval of people he would have remained a respected Pharisee in his zeal of persecuting the church. He would not have signed up to be a servant of Christ. His goal was not his own glory but Christ s glory. Paul had not won favor but scorn by following Christ, but it was worth it because only the true gospel gave him the hope of pleasing God. BIBLE SKILL: Use a Bible dictionary (either print or on the Internet) to learn more about the concept of grace. Review the definition of grace in a Bible dictionary. Take note of the background for the word translated grace or mercy in the Hebrew and Greek languages. Write a definition of grace in your own words. Considering what you know about Paul, why do you think the doctrine of grace was so important to him? Session 1 : True Gospel 17
IN MY CONTEXT God appoints all believers to deliver His gospel message. True peace comes only by the grace of God through faith in the sacrificial death of His Son. Believers must safeguard their faith, resisting those who teach a salvation that comes through any means other than faith in Jesus. To whom has God appointed you to be a messenger of the gospel? What tools can you use to share with them in the next week? How can you encourage group members to distinguish between the true gospel and the works-based gospel embraced by the Galatians? What similarities do you see between the perversions of the gospel in Paul s day and in our day? What actions do you need to take to safeguard yourself from these perversions of the truth? Prayer Needs *Adapted from the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Revised and Expanded (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2015), 606. 18 Explore the Bible Personal Study Guide