In order to correctly interpret and understand a letter, we need to look at the circumstances in which it was written. Letters are not just random documents, they are tied to specific situations, and they focus on particular needs. Of course, they are not limited to these contexts; we study Galatians today because this letter contains truths and principles that are applicable to all churches and Christian communities. The Holy Spirit inspired the apostle Paul in his writing, the early church recognized the voice of the Spirit in his letters, and by God’s providential care, many of them have been kept and preserved for us to read today.
In terms of circumstances, when it comes to Galatians, we can affirm that it was written by Paul and that it was written for the churches in Galatia. That would be the churches that Paul planted and established when he visited the cities of Antioch, Lystra, Iconium, and Derbe on his first missionary journey. The details of this journey are given to us in Acts 13:1–52 and Acts 14:1–28 Going forward, it will be helpful to briefly summarise what Paul did on that journey as well as the circumstances that gave rise to it.
Following Jesus’ death and resurrection, there was a time when all the apostles remained in Jerusalem, waiting for the Spirit to come in power (Acts 1:1–26). On the day of Pentecost, Peter preached his famous sermon (Acts 2:1–47) and many Jews acknowledged and submitted to the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ. He was the promised Messiah. Gradually, under the leadership of the apostles, the church grew in size and influence (Acts 3:1 – 6:15). So much so that the Jewish authorities began to get agitated, they didn’t like the challenge to their authority, they made plans to stop the spread of the gospel. When they couldn’t silence the apostles (Acts 4:1 – 5:42), they turned their attention to ordinary believers (Acts 7:1–60), eventually forcing them to leave Jerusalem and thereby ensuring that the good news about Jesus was heard throughout Judea (Acts 8:1–40).
One of the cities that was a popular place of refuge for believers was the city of Antioch. About 500 kilometres north of Jerusalem, it was a Gentile city but it had its own synagogue. This was the place where Jewish believers were called Christians for the first time to distinguish them from Jews who did not accept that Jesus was the Christ (Acts 11:19–26). It was also the city in which Paul spent a lot of time teaching, and from which he was sent with Barnabas to go and plant new churches (Acts 13:1–3).
Making use of well-known trade routes, Paul visited a lot of different places during his first missionary journey. First Cyprus, then on into Turkey – he proclaimed the good news of Jesus Christ in the synagogues and by God’s grace, many came to faith. Yes, there was opposition. He was stoned on at least one occasion and chased from the cities by angry Jews. But still, new churches were established, elders were appointed, and after a journey of almost 2,000 kilometres, he was able to return home. Back to Antioch with good news and much rejoicing (Acts 14:26–28).
Having enjoyed a few weeks of rest, it was not long before Paul received some bad news. All those new churches that were up and running? Well, they have all fallen for the tricks of the Judaizers.1 Judaizers, they were Pharisees who recognized Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ.2 Pharisees who wanted Gentiles to become part of the church, as long as they submitted to and kept the traditional Jewish identity markers. Circumcision. A Saturday Sabbath. The annual festivals of the Mosaic calendar...To their mind, to be a good Christian you must also be a good Jew.3 Salvation is through faith in Christ and submission to the Mosaic law.
This was the situation that prompted Paul to write his letter. All that hard work of building new relationships. The risks of travel, the late nights of teaching and counselling, abuse and persecution....there are genuine believers in Galatia. The Lord's elect have come to faith. God’s people must be warned, they must be admonished, the truth must shine to expose this error. And so Paul begins his letter by focusing on two non-negotiable realities: Paul is an apostle of Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age.
1 Paul, an apostle not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead