AN EXPOSITION OF GALATIANS

The Three-Fold Thematic Scheme of the Epistle of Galatians - The primary theme of the nine church epistles is the establishment of the doctrines of the New Testament church. Each of these epistles addresses one aspect of this doctrinal foundation as their secondary theme, so that collectively, they deliver the complete doctrinal creed of the church. The secondary theme of the epistle of Galatians offers the testimony of the office and ministry of the Jesus Christ in the believer’s sanctification, namely the believer’s liberty through the lordship of Jesus Christ over the Church. The third, imperative theme of Galatians is the believer’s outward evidence of his sanctification demonstrated in living a life as a new creature in Christ and walking in freedom from the bondages of this world. In other words, this epistle demonstrates how a believer conducts himself when walking in the freedom of Christ Jesus as Lord over his life and no longer entangled with the bondages and traditions of man. Let me illustrate the theme of Galatians with a story from a book entitled The Call by Rick Joyner. In one of his divine visions, the Lord took him into a prison yard where he sees many the people gathered into many small groups. The sky was dark and dreary, and the prison was surrounded by a tall fence. Beyond the fence was a well hundreds of feet tall. Along this wall were guard towers. As he looked in the prison yard, observed these small groups of people gathered together, he realized that they were segregated by race. The whites gathered with whites, the blacks with blacks, and the same with other ethnic groups. In addition, these groups were segregated by gender, the men joined the same group and the women joined their groups. He notices some people walking about, looking for a group in which they felt comfortable. As he continued to observe, he realized that these people were uncomfortable with those within their own groups. They were looking for every different between themselves and clearly uncomfortable with the slightest dissimilarity. He walked up to one individual and asked him why he was in prison. The person replied that they were not in prison. Rick realized that these people were almost blind and could not see the prison fence surrounding them. He then walked over to one of the guards on the tower who was holding a gun and asked him why these people were in prison. The person was greatly agitated by this question and told Rick that he was not a guard, but a preacher. Concerned about being shot by this guard, he left. He walked along the wall and found a lady guard. She claimed to be a teacher, who was opening the minds of these people to give them a world view. Rick went back into the prison yard and a young man walked up to him named Stephen. This individual had heard the Gospel, and was looking for wisdom. Rick spent a lot of time talking with him about his spiritual journey. He finally convinced this young man to walk through the fence and climb over the high wall. This person’s greatest challenge was overcoming his fear. Although Stephen was partially blind, his vision became restored as he made his way out this prison. When Rick met this man on the other side of the wall, he gave him additional instructions on his spiritual journey. This story by Rick Joyner reflects the message of the epistle of Galatians because so many people are bound with fear and too blind to walk free after accepting Christ Jesus. Many people continue in their bondages. However, once they decide to walk in freedom, their vision becomes strong and clear. When they decided to walk in their freedom, they are able to recognize the bondages of this world’s systems and the blindness that binds people in these systems. Paul addresses these very issues in his epistle to the churches of Galatia. The Importance of the Message of the Epistle of Galatians in Church History - It is one thing to be set free from the bondages of this world by God’s amazing grace when we are first saved, but a mature believer understands the struggle to stay free. There are many ways that we can be seduced and tempted back into following the course of this world. We all know Christians who have gone back into the world because of old bondages into which they returned. The epistle of Galatians teaches us that salvation is found exclusively through faith in Jesus Christ and nothing else, while showing us how to stay free from the bondages of this world so that we can live a Spirit-filled and a Spirit-led life. Therefore, some have called it the “Magna Carta of Christian Liberty.” J. Vernon McGee also calls it “the manifesto of Christian liberty, the impregnable citadel, and a veritable Gibraltar against any attack on the heart of the gospel.” Such titles have been placed upon the epistle of Galatians because it makes one of the strongest declarations of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ alone, placing it at the center of a number of great revivals during the two thousand years of Church history. This small epistle became a mighty weapon of the Reformation period because of its liberating message. It restored to the Church its spiritual liberties in Christ. For example, when Martin Luther (1483-1546) needed fuel to launch his attack upon a corrupted Church, he relied heavily upon the epistle of Galatians, because it had transformed his life. J. B. Lightfoot says Martin Luther’s commentary on Galatians “cost him more labour, and was more highly esteemed by him, than any of his works.” For this reason, Martin Luther called it his “Katy von Bora” (an affectionate name given to his wife), saying that he was married to it. John Bunyan (1628-88) testifies that Martin Luther’s commentary on Galatians was one of his most treasured books outside of the Holy Scriptures. Luther’s commentary on the epistle of Galatians led to the conversion of John Wesley (1703-91) and Charles Wesley (1707-88) in 1738, which led to the rise of the Methodist movement and revivals in England and other places. J. B. Lightfoot (1828-89) says the epistle of Galatians provides the “ground” to combat modern Rationalism, which “denies the divine origin of the Gospel.” In a world that is constantly changing, as even church creeds change through the centuries, the message of Galatians reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ will forever remain unchanged, transforming lives by bringing them to the eternal cross of Calvary.

This is a draft of a commentary on Galatians based on a six-week course of lectures that I gave for an adult education class. The content reflects the influence of J.M.G Barclay's magisterial Paul & the Gift, which I was reading at the time. Only in retrospect did it occur to me that I could have developed it for publication and wider distribution in view of the 500th commemoration of the Reformation in 2017, since together with Romans Galatians exerted a decisive influence on Martin Luther's formulation of the doctrine of justification by faith, which has been regarded as the "material" principle of the Reformation. .

Galatians: A Commentary - The Essence of Christianity, 2023

If Jesus Christ Himself and His sacrificial death, victorious resurrection, and permanent exaltation as Intercessor and Mediator in behalf of human beings to the right hand of the Majesty on High are not sufficient to provide deliverance from the penalty of sin, from the dominion of the power of sin, and ultimately from the presence of sin, then this NT letter known as Galatians should be discarded. After all, it utterly condemns any other way to approach God and be accepted by Him. It sets forth contrasting pathways to God and lands convincingly on firm grounds which verify, validate, legitimate, and illustrate in the experience of the readers of this letter and others that the detailed explanation of scripture yields no other acceptable alternative than Jesus Christ Himself. It sets forth the heart and core of the Christian faith: that Jesus is the essence of Christianity. Apart from Him, Christianity is just another religion in name only.

Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 2.2 (2012): 105-110, 2012

This article is devoted to an overview of research published on the Letter to the Galatians from 2000 to 2010. An attempt is made to paint as detailed a picture as possible of the research on the letter, but in such a way that the gist of the contributions that have been selected is also communicated, albeit very briefly. Research on Galatians in the following five areas is discussed: introductory issues (e.g., authorship, opponents and recipients), the Wirkungsgeschichte of the letter, interpretative approaches to the letter, studies of particular verses/passages in the letter and the theology of the letter.

2013

Despite his misgivings expressed in the preface, David deSilva’s commentary on Galatians is a worthy successor to Fung’s 1988 commentary and stands well alongside F. F. Bruce’s classic New International Greek Text commentary. Students of Galatians should consider this commentary a standard work on one of Paul’s most important letters. Although this is a professional, technical commentary, deSilva’s text is very easy to read and will be of use for both pastor and scholar.

2017

St. Paul’s epistle to the Galatians offers a fascinating window into the life of the Christian church in its earliest days. We see in this letter a pastor guiding his people through questions of salvation, theology, and ethics. The more we read, the more we realize that many of the same questions facing the Galatian Christians continue to face us today: Are we still under the Old Testament Law? What happened to the Law when Jesus came? Who are the people of God? From Law to Logos: Reading St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians is a primer for reading Galatians for all it is worth. The focus of this book is preparing modern Christians to understand Galatians by reading it as a letter, in its entirety, over and over again. At the end of each chapter, the reader is better prepared to read and study Galatians in its literary, historical, and theological context.

In The Galatians Debate: Contemporary Issues in Rhetorical and Historical Interpretation (Nanos M. ed. Hendrickson). 408-33.

1991