In this lesson we study the first main section of Paul’s letter, Galatians 1:10 through to 2:21.

Paul answers misrepresentation and opposition by certain Jewish brethren who promote

Paul not a "pleaser of men"

Paul exempted Christians from keeping the law of Moses. He did not do this to please Gentiles or to offend the Jews. He did it because it was God’s will (Gal 1:10).

Paul did not get his gospel from men. Paul received his message directly from the risen Christ. Therefore his doctrine could not possibly be false (Gal 1:11-12).

How Paul came to know Jesus

We can fill in many details not given in Galatians 1:13-17. Paul tells the story of his conversion in Acts 22 and Acts 26. Luke also records it in Acts 9.

Between verses 25 and 26 of Acts 9 there is the period (not mentioned there in Acts, but mentioned here in Galatians 1:17-18). During this period of up to three years, Paul was in Arabia being taught by Jesus Christ.

There is, by the way, no contradiction in the accounts. The information in one account supplements the information in the other accounts. By harmonising the four accounts (the three in Acts and this one in Galatians) we get the complete story.

Before he was called and became a Christian, Paul persecuted the church of Christ.

He was however a devoutly religious man in Judaism.

After he was helped to believe and obey the gospel, he was not taught by anyone other than Jesus Christ who gave Paul direct revelation of the gospel.

Paul’s trips to Jerusalem

Paul’s first trip to Jerusalem is described in Galatians 1:18-24 and in Acts 9:26-30. On this trip Paul introduced himself through Barnabas to the apostles Peter and James and did some preaching in their company.

A subsequent trip is described in Galatians 2:1-10 and in Acts 15. Paul met with the apostles to discuss his doctrine which they commended.

An intermediate trip is mentioned in Acts 11:28-30, Rom 15:25-28, 1Co 16:1-4. Paul and others carried a large contribution to Jerusalem for the needy saints. This trip is not mentioned in Galatians (although they had contributed) because it is irrelevant to the matters discussed in the letter.

During Paul’s first decade as an apostle, he faced no opposition or interference from the apostles in Jerusalem. They did not require Paul to bind or practice circumcision (or any other element of Moses’s law) among his converts. The apostles in Jerusalem did not tell Paul to add anything to his doctrine. They and the apostle Paul considered each other to be equals.

Paul’s dispute with Peter

In Antioch, Peter was acting inconsistently with what he believed and taught (Gal 2:11-14).

Paul’s dispute with Peter was not about doctrine, for Peter believed and preached the same thing. Neither apostle believed that Jews were saved by a different plan than Gentiles, and both apostles taught that all believers were one in Christ Jesus (Acts 10:34-48). We will note Paul’s summary of his doctrine in our next point. Peter had no issue with what Paul said.

The dispute was about Peter’s practice, which was inconsistent with his preaching. Peter was compelling Gentiles to live like Jews. He did not do this by his preaching. He did it by his action: by effectively withdrawing his company from them. To associate with Peter, Gentiles had to comply with Jewish ways, otherwise they would not be accepted into the circle Peter had entered. In this situation, Peter was being a hypocrite and acting against what he personally believed and preached.

Paul summarises his position

In Galatians 2:15-21, Paul shows that Jews, although more righteous in general than pagans, are still found sinners in God’s sight. Jews and Gentiles alike need the cross of Christ and faith in Christ to be justified before God.

One who has been "crucified with Christ" has destroyed the old person who tried but failed to keep the law. Adding the law of Moses (or for that matter any other law but Christ’s) to the Christian life reverses that process. It raises up again that old person and nullifies the grace of God and the cross of Christ.

This was why Paul took the situation in Galatia so seriously and wrote so strongly about it.

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