The apostle Paul names himself as the Holy Writer of this epistle in the opening verse: “Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead), and all the brethren who are with me, To the churches of Galatia.”
Paul also tells us to whom he is writing, “To the churches of Galatia.” Notice that this letter of Paul is unusual in that it addresses a group of churches within a particular area, as opposed to one specific congregation (Rome, Corinth, Thessalonica, Ephesus etc.). But where were these Galatian congregations located? Here is what the letter to the Galatians tells us:
Paul had done extensive work in these congregations, and not that long ago, for he says, “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel” (1:6).
Galatia was the name originally given to the territory in north-central Asia Minor where the Gauls from France had immigrated to. This changed in 25 B.C. when this area came under the control of the Romans. The boundaries of the Roman province of Galatia included not only this ethnic Galatian region, but also the more southern parts including Pisidia, Isauria, Lycaonia, and a portion of eastern Phrygia (view a map of the provinces of the Roman empire).
The book of Acts helps us figure out which part of Galatia Paul was writing to:
While these congregations in Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe are not specifically mentioned in this letter, the contents of this letter compared with the book of Acts seem to support that conclusion - that Paul was writing to that group of churches among whom he had worked so hard.
The book of Galatians addresses problems raised by the damaging theology of Jewish legalists. These men had caused some believers in Galatia to trade their freedom in Christ for bondage to the law. Paul writes this forceful letter to expose the false gospel of works and demonstrate the superiority of justification by grace through faith. The letter of Paul to the Galatians has been called the “Magna Carta of Christian Liberty.” Christ has freed believers from bondage to the law (5:1-6) and from bondage to sin (5:16-26) and has placed them in a position of liberty.
The writing of this letter to the Galatians had to come prior to the Apostolic Council. Since Paul was writing to the Galatians about a topic directly discussed by the Jerusalem Council, why would he not have referred to the decisions made by the Council? The recent development in Galatia would seem to be another reason which made the Council necessary.
In 4:20 Paul says, “I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone; for I have doubts about you.” From these words it appears that he was either too far away or busy, and was not able to go to them at that time. This could have been because Paul was on his way up to Jerusalem to discuss this very topic with the Apostles and elders there and so he could not go up to Galatia at this time. Instead, he wrote this letter to the Galatians to combat the danger that was facing them. It would have been on his Second missionary Journey, when Paul visited these cities again, that he would have made known the results of this council.
If Paul was writing this letter during his journey from Antioch to Jerusalem it would also give an explanation as to why there are no greetings from a definite church which are so common in Paul’s letters. Instead Paul says in Galatians 1:2, “and all the brethren who are with me,” as a reference to the traveling companions who were with him. Based on this we would date Paul’s letter to the Galatians around 49 AD, between his first and second missionary journeys, and on his way to Jerusalem for the Council.
Paul’s letter to the Galatians can be divided up into three main sections:
In the first two chapters Paul begins by defending his apostleship. The Judaizers were undermining Paul’s apostolic authority, saying that he wasn’t a real apostle like the other eleven, because he had never seen Jesus or been called by Him. So Paul defends his calling saying, “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:11-12 - cf. 1:1; 1:15-16; 2:6-9; 2:11ff).
In chapters three and four Paul goes on to defend the doctrine of justification by grace, through faith. Here Paul proclaims, “But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor” (3:22-25).
Finally, in chapters five and six, Paul defends the liberty that we have in Christ with some very strong words: “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.... You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.... For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (5:1,4,13).
Note: This study was prepared for the Bible Class at Zion Lutheran Church, Lawrenceville, GA by Pastor Nathanael Mayhew.
