21/06/20 – Galatians 1:1-5
The province of Galatia was in the middle of what we call Turkey today, probably including Ankara (Turkey’s capital city today). Its capital city was Ancyra or Ankyra.
It was named after the Gauls (Celts) who invaded the Balkans (including Greece) in 279 BC (some say 277 or 278 BC) during the times of confusion after the death of Alexander the Great. They then spread further east to the area of Galatia which was so-named after the Gauls. Roman writers called them Galli who lived in Gallia.
In 25 (some say 24) BC Augustus Caesar brought it into the Roman empire; it then became a Roman province. While they were considered to be largely Greek in culture and probably were fluent in Greek language, they spoke a Celtic language called Galatian similar to the Gaulish language. It is extinct today.
As he wrote in Greek, Paul may have been writing in Greek to Greeks living in Galatia or to Galatians who also spoke Greek.
Galatia – Galatia
(land of the Galli; Gauls) The Roman province of
Galatia may be roughly described as the central region of the peninsula of Asia
Minor, bounded on the north by Bithynia and Paphlagonia; on the east by Pontus;
on the south by Cappadocia and Lycaonia; on the west by Phrygia. (Strongs 1053, Online Bible)
STRONGS NT 1053: Γαλατία
– Galatia, Gallogræcia, a region of Asia
Minor, bounded by Paphlagonia, Pontus, Cappadocia, Lycaonia, Phrygia, and
Bithynia. It took its name from those Gallic tribes that crossed into Asia
Minor B. C. 278, and after roaming about there for a
time at length settled down permanently in the above-mentioned region, and
intermarried with the Greeks. From B. C. 189 on,
though subject to the Romans, they were governed by their own chiefs; but B. C. 24 [others, 25] their country was formally reduced to
a Roman province. (Strongs)
Ancient History Encyclopedia – Celtic migration was already underway by the time the Gallic chieftain Brennus sacked Rome in 390 BCE. (He was defeated again soon after.) It continued down through the 4th century BCE when, around 280 BCE, a group of Celts from Pannonia descended on the region of Greece, offering their services as mercenaries (as they had in Italy almost one hundred years earlier) and living off the land through forage and pillaging towns and cities. (https://www.ancient.eu/galatia/)
From all this we may assume that the Galatians of Paul’s day were descended from a warlike race that fought for financial gain (mercenaries). This may assist in understanding why they took such a strong stand on the law of Moses as their gospel (probably as taught to them by Jews in their community). Being mercenaries who are unlikely to back down in the face of aggression, they would have been likely to have strongly defended any gospel additions they considered necessary.
Galatians 1:1 – Paul, an
apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father,
who raised him from the dead;)
an apostle – apostolos
(a delegate; messenger; one sent forth with orders)
the dead – nekros (lifeless; deceased; without
life; spiritually dead) from nekus (a corpse)
Paul is emphasising his authority to write to them in such strong words.
In Galatians 1:7 he accuses them
of perverting the gospel of Christ. And in Galatians 1:8-9 he says “let him
be accursed (anathema)” for preaching any other gospel than the true gospel
of Christ. Therefore Paul has to ensure that they
don’t see him as just another trouble-maker as no doubt there were those who
disagreed with the Galatians’ perverted gospel of Christ.
An apostle may be one of the first disciples, yet Paul was not such. He still claimed an apostleship – that is, one sent forth with orders. He emphasises that his writings are not of or from man’s rulings (teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men – Matthew 15:9), nor are they given by another man (If any [man] preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received – Galatians 1:9), but directly from Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead (note John 10:30 – I and [my] Father are one.). If quoting names can get the attention of others, then this is the ultimate name-claiming authority. They might be able to argue with the rulings of man; they might be able to argue with Paul if he just presented another gospel to add to what they had; but this is not just any gospel he preaches, but the gospel of Jesus Christ. Barnes says (on Galatians 1:1) that he had the highest possible authority for the office of an apostle; he had been called to it by God himself, who had raised up the Redeemer.
They might be able to argue with what Paul thinks, or with another belief system, but Paul is here saying that if they disagree, their argument must be taken up with both Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead, and there is no greater guarantee of authority than this.
Hebrews 6:13 – For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself
Galatians 1:2 – And all the
brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia:
all the brethren which are with me – all those who are travelling with Paul at that time. It was a common form of greeting, much like saying that all the others say hello to you, without actually naming those others.
unto the churches of Galatia – Galatia was a large provincial area with a few large cities such as Ankyra, Tavium and Pessinus. We don’t know how many churches were involved but there could have been at least one in each of the larger cities.
From this we can assume that the false gospel problem was not just with an isolated congregation but generally spread right across Galatia. This thus assumes some measure of cultural influence that may not have been found as readily in other churches not belonging to Galatia. This may relate to the fact that Galatia was largely settled by a people who came from outside that geographical area, a people who had a different culture to those around them. It may explain why the epistle to the Galatians stands out as a denunciation of the use of the law itself as a gospel of salvation.
Note that it is just to “the
churches of Galatia” without any apparent commendation. Paul gives other
churches commendations. These commendations include beloved
of God, called [to be] saints (Romans 1:7); to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called [to
be] saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ
our Lord, both theirs and ours (1 Corinthians 1:2); to
the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:1);
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you
(Philippians
1:3); To the saints and faithful brethren in
Christ (Colossians 1:2); We give thanks to God
always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; (1 Thessalonians
1:2); your faith groweth
exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth (2 Thessalonians 1:3). Even in 2 Corinthians
1:11 Paul made some effort to commend them by writing Ye also helping together by prayer for us. So why doesn’t Paul say anything
good about the Galatians? Possibly because he can find nothing positive at all
to say to them?
Galatians 1:3 – Grace [be] to
you and peace from God the Father, and [from] our Lord Jesus Christ,
Grace be to you and peace from God the Father – Paul uses “grace” and “peace” in all his greetings, also using “mercy” in his letters to Timothy and Titus. The only notable exception is to the Hebrews, yet there is no proof that Paul actually wrote this epistle. In fact, it is the lack of greeting that is often used to demonstrate that Paul could not have written Hebrews.
It was common in middle-eastern tradition to greet people
with politeness, offering hospitality, even if you were going to stab that
person after the greeting! You could kill your visitor as long as you did it
politely and with respect! Note the “Judas kiss”! (thefreedictionary.com
describes the Judas kiss as A traitorous action
disguised as a show of affection.) Grace relates to the favour of God upon a person and peace is a
common middle-east greeting regardless of religion: shalom (Hebrew); salaam
(Arabic) sliem (Maltese); Shlama
(Syriac-Assyrian); salam (Ethiopean
semitic languages).
Galatians 1:4 – Who gave
himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world,
according to the will of God and our Father:
gave – give of one’s own accord; give to someone to his advantage; bestow a gift; grant; let have; reach out; supply necessary things. It can have the idea of surrendering your own free will. Here it means that Christ surrendered Himself voluntarily for the sake of achieving our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.
Note Titus 2:13-14
– 13Looking
for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ; 14Who gave himself for us, that he
might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people,
zealous of good works.
gave
himself ….. according to the will of God – It was the will of both Father and
Son for Christ to die. John 6:38 – For I came down from heaven, not
to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. and John 10:30 – I
and [my] Father are one.
Christ came to give his life a
ransom for many (Matthew 20:28) A ransom is the price paid to set
someone free from bondage. The ransom can be a person if this is the price
demanded for another’s freedom. It is interesting to note that Calvin (in his
commentary on Matthew 20:28) states that “many”
here “embraces the whole human race”. Calvin also said that “many”
in Matthew 26:28 (For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed
for many for the remission of sins.) meant “not a part of the
world only, but the whole human race”. Now that’s something most calvinists deny vehemently today! They hate
the biblical teaching that Jesus actually died for the sins of the whole human
race!
So, while Calvin contradicted himself on this elsewhere, calvinists must stop making up their own rules to suit whatever doctrine they are trying to defend at the time.
deliver – exaireo (pluck out; draw out; root out; choose out for one’s self; select one person from many; rescue; deliver) Translated “pluck out” in Matthew 5:29 & 18:9. It is derived from ek (out of; from; by; away from) and haireomai (take for one’s self; choose; prefer)
Note “shall be caught up”
in the following is harpazo (sometimes termed “the rapture” or “the
snatching away”) which is also derived from haireomai.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 – Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
exaireo is translated
“delivered” in Acts 7:10 – And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and
gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made
him governor over Egypt and all his house.
world – aion
(for ever;
an unbroken age; perpetuity of time; eternity; universe; period of time; age)
Here it would mean “this present evil age” or even “this present age of evil”. (Note
that “eternal” is aionios.)
that he might deliver us from this present evil world – that is, the world from which we as sinners have to escape in order to be found acceptable in the eyes of God, a world that we should leave behind and never return to.
2 Peter 2:18-21 – 18For when they speak great swelling [words] of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, [through much] wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 19While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 20For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 21For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known [it], to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
Love of the world equates to hatred for God.
James 4:4 – Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
Also note 1 John 2:15-17.
Romans 8:18 – For I
reckon that the sufferings of this present time [are] not worthy [to
be compared] with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
2 Timothy 4:10a – For
Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world
according to the will of God and our Father
– or “according to the will of God our Father”
will – thelema
(what one wants or has determined shall be done) This has the idea of purpose,
of having a goal in mind when deciding something.
Galatians 1:5 – To whom [be]
glory for ever and ever. Amen.
for ever and ever – tous aiōnas tōn aiōnōn This is the word aion used for “world” in Vs 4 above. It could be translated as “for the ages of the ages” or even possibly “for ages and ages”.
Because God is eternal, then all His attributes must likewise be eternal. For, if God never changes, then to not have glory continuously for eternity would mean a point in time when something about God changed, and that can never be. Therefore if God is to have glory, then it must be for all eternity.
We have been allocated gifts for service according to 1 Corinthians 12. These gifts (charisma) are for the purpose of using them for God’s glory through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 4:10-11 – 10As every man hath received the gift, [even so] minister
the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11If
any man speak, [let him speak] as the oracles of God; if any man
minister, [let him do it] as of the ability which God giveth: that God
in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
As we dig
further into Galatians we find that they taught
another gospel, a perverted gospel, one based on a rigid application of the law
of Moses.
Acts 15:1; 5 – 1And certain men which came down from Judæa
taught the brethren, [and said], Except ye be circumcised after the
manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
5But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees
which believed, saying, That it was needful to
circumcise them, and to command [them] to keep the law of Moses.
The pharisees
(Paul had been a pharisee) taught the traditions of men as an addition to the
law of God, where the word “tradition” (Greek paradosis) in the
following refers to the expanding of the written law (the
Babylonian Talmud as opposed to the Torah which was the law of Moses); such additions
were to be obeyed with reverence equal to that of the law of Moses.
Colossians 2:8 – Beware
lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the
tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
It is likely
that the Galatians maintained that their salvation was through the cross of
Jesus, yet it appears that they assessed that salvation according to their
obedience to the law (according to their tradition). Thus, you were allegedly
saved by a confession of faith in Christ, but unless you were also circumcised,
you weren’t really saved, or even not saved at all. It is clear in Galatians
that the Jews among them (who were circumcised) felt that all the Gentiles
should also be circumcised to be on an equal footing with the Jews.
Historically the Jews had always looked down upon those uncircumcised “goy”
or plural “goyim” as inferior to themselves. Now the Gentiles were being
“saved” by confession of faith in Christ, and were being accepted as God’s
people yet without the circumcision. So the Jews
demanded that in order for the Gentiles to be acceptable, they had to be
circumcised.
Thus Paul
had a fight on his hands. He told them bluntly, that if the Gentiles were then
circumcised simply because the law “demanded” it, then it could be at the
expense of their genuine salvation in Christ.
Galatians 5:1-2 – 1Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath
made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 2Behold,
I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you
nothing.
He also wrote
to the Romans concerning this issue. A real Jew was one who was inwardly
circumcised, regardless of an outward circumcision.
Romans 2:24-29 – 24For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles
through you, as it is written. 25For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker
of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. 26Therefore if
the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law,
shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? 27And
shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil
the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the
law? 28For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither [is
that] circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29But he [is]
a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision [is that] of the
heart, in the spirit, [and] not in the letter; whose praise [is] not
of men, but of God.
In many ways
the Seventh Day Adventists (SDAs) follow the same pathway of the law overruling
righteousness by faith. They preach what appears to be the true gospel of
salvation in Christ, yet make it clear that breaking the law destroys your
salvation. Thus, if you claim to be Christian, yet do not worship on Saturdays,
then your faith is declared null and void as a result of your disobedience to
the law. It doesn’t matter that the law for the SDAs here isn’t circumcision,
but if non-adherence to the law can destroy your salvation, then the law is
effectively your gospel. (One has to ask why the Tongan SDAs worship on a
Sunday, though. Are they therefore lost in spite of being saved?)
And calvinism
isn’t all that different, either, especially this new calvinism which is
basically a reformed SDA belief system. They might preach what looks like the
true gospel, but unless God has chosen you, you cannot be saved. Effectively
their gospel is the election; your salvation rests entirely upon whether or not
you have been chosen in the election by the calvinist God! But how does a
calvinist assess his salvation? If he is not permitted to pray a prayer or make
a decision of any kind toward his salvation, then what does he have that
demonstrates his salvation? Thus the calvinist has to
preach the works of the law as proof of your election; and therefore it is a
puritan lifestyle based upon obedience to the law that determines your elect
status.
What about JWs?
That’s clear, anyway. If they do not do enough evangelising, then they may not
get to heaven. And there may be a limited number who are permitted to live
forever, either in heaven or on earth. So, another JW who works harder than you
might get in while you miss out. A JW can never know if he is saved until he
reaches the end. And this is also the problem of the calvinist. He likewise
cannot know whether or not he is saved until he reaches the end of his life and
hopefully has not fallen. But how far can he fall before he must be considered
lost? It is clear that a Christian must have works or else his faith is dead
(James tells us this). But his works demonstrate his faith that he once
confessed in a sinners’ prayer sometime in the past. But for the calvinist his
works are his faith!
The Galatians
were caught up in this same cycle of having to do the works until they died or
else. If you got off the train before you reached the destination, then you
were never on the train to start with! Once you start on a gospel that has to
have works (or else you are declared lost), then you have to aim for perfection
or else always be wondering just how much more you might need to do to ensure
your salvation. And like the JW you keep slaving away until you die because you
can never be sure if you have done enough.
Romans 4:3-5 – 3For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and
it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4Now to him that worketh
is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. 5But to him that
worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the
ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
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