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The Great Turnaround (Acts of the Apostles #21) (Christ Church)

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INTRODUCTION

We come now to Luke’s account of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Remember that Saul is not his non-Christian name, but is rather his Hebrew name. Paul is his Roman name, not his Christian name. He goes by Saul for some years after this event. But such was the nature of this remarkable appearance that we still routinely refer to any surprising conversion as a Damascus road conversion. One moment Saul had murder on his mind, and a few moments later he was being led by the hand to the place where he would be baptized three days later.

Remember also that Saul of Tarsus was wound tight inside when the Lord appeared to him. The Lord had appeared to him directly, but the Lord had also done some preparation work in Saul’s heart beforehand through the faithful testimony of Stephen—how Stephen argued, how Stephen preached, and how Stephen died.

THE TEXT

“And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink” (Acts 9:1–9).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Saul was furious. He was breathing, as Luke puts it, both threats and murder against the Christians (v. 1), and so in that frame of mind he approached the high priest (v. 1), requesting letters to the synagogues of Damascus, authorizing him to arrest and bring back to Jerusalem any followers of the Way that he found there, whether men or women (v. 2). Remembering our table of contents from chapter 1, notice that the Christian faith has spread by this point into the synagogues of Syria. As he was approaching Damascus, a spotlight from heaven shone all around him (v. 3). It is worth nothing that Lord appeared to him in Syria—remember the central point of Stephen’s speech (v. 3). Saul fell to the ground, and heard a voice asking him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (v. 4). Saul asked, naturally, who was it that was speaking to him. The answer was “I am Jesus,” the one you are persecuting. The Lord Jesus then adds a quotation from the play The Bacchae by Euripides—it is hard for you to kick against the goads, which is interesting (v. 5). Saul was astonished, and so trembling, he asked what he should do. The Lord said to go into the city, and he will be told what he should do (v. 6). The men with him said nothing—they heard a voice, but saw no man (v. 7). So Saul got up, opened his eyes to discover he was blind. They led him by the hand into Damascus (v. 8). He was in this condition for three days, a suggestive note, and had nothing to eat or drink (v. 9).

THREE ACCOUNTS 

There are three accounts of Saul’s conversion in the book of Acts. Recall that all three are coming from Saul and then given to Luke to record. There are variations in the three accounts, but no contradictions.

In our passage, Paul falls to the ground, blinded by the light. He heard Jesus, who told him that he would be further instructed when he was in the city. The men with him did not see the light, but heard the voice. It records they were standing.

In Acts 22:6-11, Paul is giving his defense to a rioting crowd in the Temple. This account says that the men saw the light, but did not hear the voice. And although they saw the light, they were not blinded the way Saul was.

In Acts 26:13-19, Paul is giving his testimony before King Agrippa. Here he says he saw a brilliant light and heard Jesus, who commissioned him as a minister and witness. Here he says that the men with him fell down also.

I would harmonize these accounts this way. Paul says elsewhere that he had seen Jesus (1 Cor. 9:1), which was his authorization to function as an apostle. So he saw Jesus and the light, and was blinded by the encounter. The men with him heard the sound of the voice, but could not distinguish what was said. Jesus was speaking in Hebrew (Heb. 26:14: Aramaic is a dialect of Hebrew). The men with him saw the light, but not the source of the light. They did not see Jesus, not seeing what he did. And they all fell to the ground, but had gotten back up again before Paul got up.

A COMPLETE TRANSFORMATION 

We need to be reminded of what kind of person Saul was. He was a religious zealot, bigoted to the point of madness. He was an insolent persecutor, as he put it, and a blaspheming, insolent man (1 Tim. 1:13). He considered himself to be the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). He approved of the judicial murder of Stephen (Acts 7:57-8:1), and was likely one of those behind the false charges against Stephen (Acts 6:9). When the persecution broke out after Stephen’s death, Saul took the lead in that persecution, savaging the church, dragging men and women both off to prison (Acts 8:3). He made havoc of the church, destroying it. He punished Christians, and compelled blasphemy from them, on account of being exceedingly enraged against them (Acts 26:11). He imprisoned many (Acts 26:10), and when any of them were executed, Saul voted for the death penalty (Acts 26:10). The word for voice here is psephos, which means “voting pebble.” This indicates that Saul was quite possibly a member of the Sanhedrin. Although he was conflicted inside, he was nevertheless a hammer against the saints. He was proceeding to Damascus in the full fury of his wrath, and that was the moment when God determined to save him. The sovereign grace of God can reach anyone, anywhere.

SO BE ENCOURAGED 

So let us return to a verse cited earlier, in order that you might draw some comfort from it. If God can save Saul, entirely and completely against Saul’s will, He can save anybody. “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1:15). When we are summoned to come to Christ for the cleansing He offers, the only thing that we contribute is the dirt. He does all the saving, and the only thing we do is get in the way. Have you stolen what was not yours to take? Christ is powerful to save. Are you given over to lust and pornography? Christ is powerful to save. Are you full of complaints, murmuring, and grumbles? Christ is powerful to save. Are you unkind to your wife? Christ is powerful to save. Are you disrespectful to your husband? Christ is powerful to save. Are you an adulterer? Christ is powerful to save. Have you murdered Christians simply for being Christians? No? But note this—even if you had done, Christ is powerful to save. And when He saves, He saves to the uttermost (Heb. 7:25).

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Hard Law, Hot Gospel: How Dare You (CC Downtown)

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INTRODUCTION

In this chapter we have two splendors. On one hand we have a hero of the faith, contending, almost entirely alone against error and as a result keeping the early church from sliding into a grievous error. The reason he does so is because of the greater splendor, that of the Gospel of justification by faith alone.

THE TEXT

Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also. And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain. But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised: And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. […] Galatians 2:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Remember that Paul swore before God as to the veracity of his record (1:20). So we must either believe him, or accuse him of falsehood. Now, he has related one trip to Jerusalem in Galatians 1:18-20 which corresponds to Acts 9:26-30, here in our text (Galatians 2:1-10) he relates another trip to Jerusalem, which I believe must be the famine relief trip recorded in Acts 11:27-30, 12:25. This famine was foretold by prophetic vision (Acts 11:28), which is what Paul seems to be referring to in Gal. 2:2 when he says they went up “by revelation”. It is important for the arguments which Paul will make later that we note here that if this was written after the Jerusalem council to the Northern Galatians, then Paul’s sworn record is false for failing to cite the visit to Jerusalem for that vitally important council.

So then, the visit to Jerusalem for famine relief was without fanfare, lest Paul’s mission get gummed up with unnecessary disputes (v2). Titus, a Greek, was with Paul on this trip, but was not compelled to be circumcised (v3). But there was clear pressure, from false brethren, to subject Titus (and therefore all Gentile believers) to this rite (vv4-5). But after conferring with Peter, James, and John, those apostles gave the right hand of fellowship confirming that the ministry to the uncircumcised really had been given with heavenly might unto Paul and as the ministry to the circumcision was proper to Peter (vv6-9). The only stipulation was that Paul remember the poor, which Paul was only too happy to oblige (v10).

The dangerous error which was troubling the Galatians was spreading, and Paul relates an intriguing episode between him and Peter. Peter came up to Antioch, and was happy to dine with Gentiles (Cf. Mk. 7), that is until some of James’ colleagues from Jerusalem arrived. Peter, because he was afraid, withdrew from table fellowship with Gentiles. This act was so pregnant with meaning that even Barnabas was led astray (vv11-13, Cf. Acts 15:39). Paul publicly rebuked Peter’s hypocrisy, and is, of course, committing his public rebuke to the public record (v14). Paul’s rebuke was this, “How dare you freely act as a Gentile one moment, and then browbeat the Gentiles to adopt Jewish manners the very next!”

Paul then transitions from timeline to theology. The Jews of all people, unlike the sinful heathens, ought to know that from top to bottom we are justified not by our works of righteousness but by the faith of Christ (vv15-16, Hab. 2:4). Christ’s coming had really changed the cosmos. Jews who would be justified by Christ must first recognize that they are categorically kin with Gentiles: sinners (Rom. 3:9, 2:15). But this arrangement doesn’t make Christ a minister of sin (v17). Paul didn’t preach a Gospel of gluing the shattered tablets of stone back together, only to break them again (v18); rather, the Gospel is that by faith in Christ we die to the law, and live to God (v19). Nevertheless, this union with Christ is only made possible by His crucifixion, which we are joined to by faith alone; for righteousness is only found in Christ’s death (vv20-21).

PILLARS OF A NEW TEMPLE

The old Jerusalem was being replaced by a new Jerusalem. A new temple, with a chief cornerstone had been established, and the pillars of Herod’s temple had been supplanted by living apostolic pillars. Therefore, it would be like trying to time travel backward through time to go back to law-keeping as if nothing had been altered. This new temple had apostolic pillars, carved from Jewish marble, but it also had living stones cut from a Gentile quarry. Paul relates that the Gospel he had been preaching from his conversion was completely in line with the Gospel which the other apostles preached. It was not at all at odds. It was as Isaiah had foretold, the mountain of the Lord (the temple) would be exalted over all the earth, with Gentiles streaming into it, being incorporated into the service of it, and it being made a house of prayer for all nations (Is. 2:2, 56:6-7).

From Paul’s conversion (near Jerusalem), his visit with Peter in Jerusalem after three years in Arabia, and then his private conference with Peter and James 14 years later he had been preaching this Gospel of the coming of Israel’s Messiah, the Resurrection, and therefore the blessing of deliverance from sin for all nations. Paul insists that the other apostles “added nothing” to Paul’s Gospel (2:6). In other words, those who wanted Gentiles to submit to the law-keeping (as represented in the sign of circumcision) were missing the central glory of the Gospel.

The Judaizers, not unlike many modern apparently well-meaning charlatans, likely presented themselves as discipleship gurus. They came with an ethos of “we’re here to help.” But though they appeared to be putting training wheels on the discipleship of Gentiles, they were in fact removing the bike chain, popping the tires, and cutting the brake cords. It was the Judaizers, and those who were swayed by their arguments––Peter in particular––who were not “walking uprightly according to the truth of the gospel”. They moved, not Paul; and most certainly not the Gospel.

THE FAITH OF CHRIST

This portion of Scripture is a priceless cask of the finest wine. You do not find right standing before God by keeping the law. Rather, your faith must be in the faith of Christ. This is a curious phrase that is used twice here (2:15, 20), and once in the next chapter (3:22). Paul will flesh this out more as he goes on, but the sword-point of His argument is that it is by Christ’s perfect righteousness, including His faith in all of God’s promises, by which you are justified. Of old, God had made great promises to His people; Jesus Christ believed all these with a perfect faith and received the inheritance that came along with that faith.

So the Gospel, as always, is the glory of glories. Sin is the transgression of the law. Yet God assures you that all of it, the very worst of it, the sin that you committed willfully, with eyes wide open and heart hardened, is entirely forgiven if you come by faith to Christ. We often want to rush in and add stipulations about living righteously and obediently. Paul will soon explain what the Christian’s life looks like, and it is certainly not marked by continuing in sin. But the scandalous glory of the Gospel is in this: you are crucified with Christ. That means if you look in faith to Christ, your sins, every damn one, is forgiven.

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Establishing the New Jerusalem (The Continuing Adventures of Jesus #48)(King’s Cross)

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INTRODUCTION

If I told you a story about a persecuted people sailing to a strange new world to establish a new way of life and forming a new nation in the process, what does that make you think of? It may apply to the founding of many nations, but for many of us, it sounds like the founding of America. At the time it looked weak and desperate, but it was actually momentous and glorious.

In the ancient world, Homer’s Odyssey traced Odysseus’ beleaguered voyage home after the Trojan War, and Virgil self-consciously channeled that story in his Aeneid and the legendary founding of Rome (a new Troy) by the Trojan hero Aeneas. Perilous voyages, miraculous escapes, and surprising hospitality mark these national legends of pagan virtue and piety. It probably would not have been lost on a first century audience that Paul’s journey to Rome had some of the same echoes. This is the story of the ambassador of the High King of Heaven coming to Rome to establish New Jerusalem.

The Text: “And when they were escaped, then they knew that the island was called Melita. And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness…” (Acts 28:1-16)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

As the ship breaks apart, 276 souls swim or float to the shore of the island of Malta, about 50-60 miles south of Sicily, where they were met by natives who received them kindly and kindled a fire in the midst of a cold, winter rain (Acts 28:1-2). When Paul joined in gathering sticks and feeding the fire, a poisonous viper came out of the heat and bit him, and while the natives assumed this was an omen of his guilt, Paul shook off the snake and was unharmed and the natives acclaimed him as a god (Acts 28:3-6). One of the chief men of the island, Publius, lodged Paul and his companions for three days, and while they were there, Paul healed his father and many others (Acts 28:7-10).

After three months on the island, a ship sailing under the sign of Castor and Pollux took them to Syracuse on Sicily, and from there, the ship worked its way up to Rhegium, past the legendary location of Scylla (a multi-headed monster in a cave) on one side and Charybdis (a deadly whirlpool) on the other, and on up the Italian coast to Puteoli, where they met with Christian brothers for a week (Acts 28:11-14). From there, they continued north, welcomed by more brothers about halfway, before finally arriving in Rome under house arrest (Acts 28:15-16).

TRUE DOMINION BY THE SPIRIT

The church has frequently misunderstood our mission of dominion and has frequently veered between fleshly power and spiritual irrelevance. When I asked Ben Shapiro why he didn’t accept Jesus as the Messiah, he said because the Messiah is clearly a political figure who is supposed to establish a new political order. Many Christians would say Shapiro was wrong: Jesus only came to establish a spiritual kingdom. But Paul would look Shapiro in the eyes and say: “What are you talking about? He is and He did.”

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, it really was His triumphal entry, and when they crucified Him on that Roman cross, mocking Him and crowning Him with thorns, He really was enthroned in this world, in history. At that moment, He was the King of kings and Lord of lords. This was proven and proclaimed with power in His resurrection from the dead three days later. And so here, Paul, the servant of the King of kings, is being escorted to the capital city of an empire to announce the terms of their surrender. Rome belongs to Jesus Christ. And from the shipwreck to the snake bite to the ensign of the ship to the city of Rome, nothing can stop him. He may look like a weak prisoner, but he is being escorted by the authority and healing power of the High King.

As Herbert Schlossberg said, “The Bible can be interpreted as a string of God’s triumphs disguised as disasters.” Or as Chesterton put it, “Christendom has had a series of revolutions and in each one of them Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave.” This is true dominion in history by the power of the Spirit.

APPLICATIONS 

Jesus said that some of His emissaries would “take up serpents” and not be harmed (Mk. 16:18), and so sometimes that has been the case. But that was only a sign confirming the Word of the gospel (Mk. 16:20), which is for the healing of the mostly deadly snake bite: the poison of sin. This was pictured in the Old Testament when many Israelites were bitten by poisonous snakes and were dying (Num. 21:6). God told Moses to make a bronze serpent pierced on a pole, and all who looked at the bronze serpent were healed (Num. 21:9).

And Jesus said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life” (Jn. 3:14-15). This is not merely a spiritual reality; this is the center of the renewal of human life, the healing of families and nations. What is it that brings this healing? Seeing Christ lifted up on Calvary like a poisonous snake and impaled. This is what the gospel proclaims: your sin, your lies, wrath, lust, and envy laid upon Him and pierced through.

One of the marks of this healing in families and nations is hospitality and friendship (e.g. Acts 28:2, 7, 14-16). Jesus came eating and drinking, and by His death, God has welcomed us to His table and fellowship. While it may not look like much, we sit at the Lord’s Supper as His nobility and royalty and friends (Rev. 1:6). Do you believe that? Therefore, we have fellowship with one another because we have fellowship with Him through His blood (1 Jn. 1:7). Here, Christ grants Paul a royal welcome by complete strangers on an island and the brothers along the way. We welcome one another because Christ welcomes us.

The New Testament clearly teaches that we are to view fellow Christians as “brothers.” This does not obliterate our duties to our natural family or nation, but while we are to do good to all men, we are to especially minister to those in the “household of faith” (Lk. 8:21, Gal. 6:10, Eph. 2:19). This is a sign of true conversion that you love the saints, who are your brothers (Col. 1:4, 1 Jn. 3:14). But this friendship and hospitality are not ends in themselves, they are for encouragement and refreshment along the way on the mission of the King. We are not here “for community.” We are a community because we are here for the mission, establishing New Jerusalem: All of Christ, for All of Life, for All of Moscow.

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Ethiopia Stretches Out Her Hands (Acts of the Apostles #20) (Christ Church)

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INTRODUCTION

Remember that the Lord had said the gospel would progress from Jerusalem to Judaea, to Samaria, and then to the uttermost parts of the earth. The books of Acts begins in Jerusalem. After the murder of Stephen, the disciples scatter into the province of Judaea, and also Samaria. Philip went to Samaria and ministered there. An angel then sends him into the wilderness toward Gaza, but does not tell him why. While there, Philip sees a chariot (and probably a caravan, given the importance of this man). As the gospel fans out across the world, this is the next stepping stone, and the word of the psalmist is fulfilled.

“Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God” (Psalm 68:31).

And as the next verse makes plain, Ethiopia is the harbinger of all the other nations coming to Christ. “Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord; Selah” (Psalm 68:32).

THE TEXT

“And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? . . .” (Acts 8:26–40).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

After Philip’s success in Samaria, the angel of the Lord commanded Philip to go down to the south desert road from Jerusalem to Gaza (v. 26). So he obeyed, and encountered an Ethiopian eunuch, a very important officer under Candace, the Ethiopian queen. He was her treasurer (v. 27), and was returning home after worshiping in Jerusalem. Sitting in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah (v. 28). The Spirit spoke to Philip, and told him join up with this chariot (v. 29). When Philip did, he heard him reading Isaiah aloud, and asked him if he understood it (v. 30). In the ancient world, there was no such thing as reading silently. The eunuch replied that he was not able to without an interpreter, and invited Philip up into the chariot (v. 31). As it turned out, the place where he was reading was Is. 53:7-8—the place where the Suffering Servant is led as a sheep to the slaughter, not protesting, and his life was taken from the earth in a humiliating way (vv. 32-33). The eunuch asked whether the prophet was speaking about himself or about somebody else (v. 34). So Philip began to speak, starting from that passage, and preached Jesus to him (v. 35). As they continued traveling, they came to a place that had some water, and the eunuch asked what would prohibit him being baptized (v. 36). Philip said that if he believed with all his heart, he certainly could, and the eunuch replied that he did believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (v. 37). Indicating a difference in manuscripts, some of your Bibles don’t have v. 37 included. So the eunuch then commanded the chariot to stop, and both men went down into the water, and Philip baptized him (v. 38). When they both came up out of the water, the Spirit caught Philip away from the eunuch and so he went on his way back to Ethiopia rejoicing (v. 39). But Philip appeared at Azotus (Ashdod), where he preached through all the cities, until he came to Caesarea (v. 40).

MODES OF BAPTISM 

Not surprisingly, this passage has been referred to often when it comes to debates over baptism. Advocates of “immersion only” often refer to the fact that in v. 39, it says that they came up “out of the water.” The problem with this is that it would require the immersion of Philip also. The demands of the text would be fully met if they walked into the water knee deep, and water was poured or sprinkled over the eunuch’s head. At Christ Church, we practice water baptism by three lawful modes of baptism—Christian baptism is any application of water to someone in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19).

You have perhaps been erroneously told that baptizo means immersion, and can mean nothing else, which is not the case. It certainly includes immersion, but it is not limited to that meaning.

In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit is poured out on the disciples (Acts 2:17-18), just as the prophet Joel predicted (ekcheo). The verb pour is used twice. In Acts 10:44, the Holy Spirit fell on them (epipipto). When Peter recounts what had happened, he describes it this way. “And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning” (Acts 11:15). And in the next breath, he describes this falling and pouring as a baptism—“ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost” (Acts 11:16). So pouring is clearly a biblical mode.

What about sprinkling (rhantizo)? In Hebrews, we are told about the older Mosaic ceremonies (Heb. 9:10), and they included “divers washings.” The word for washing here is baptismos, the noun. But three verses later, in describing one of the ceremonies, he refers to the “ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean” (Heb. 9:13). This sprinkling was part of the ceremonial ablutions that prepared the Israelites for worship. And in our text, what possessed the eunuch to ask about baptism? Remember that Philip started from Is. 53:7. As it happens, this is what Isaiah says nine verses earlier: “So shall he sprinkle many nations; The kings shall shut their mouths at him: For that which had not been told them shall they see; And that which they had not heard shall they consider” (Isaiah 52:15). So sprinkling is a biblical mode.

And not that you need to be persuaded, immersion is also a biblical mode. “For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing (baptismos) of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do” (Mark 7:8). The washing of cups and pots obviously included immersing them.

BAPTIZED INTO THE LIVING CHRIST 

We are accustomed to think of baptism as resulting when a new believer comes to the water. But what happened prior to that was that the water came into the world, and the only way that the water could do that was because it was living water. Christ is the one who possesses the gift of living water (John 4:10). And when He brings the water to us, the water baptizes us, and that water is Christ Himself. And once we are baptized in His living water, we become a source of that same life that ministers to others. “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38).

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Hard Law, Hot Gospel: Any Other Gospel (CC Downtown)

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INTRODUCTION

Apathy is like wearing concrete boots while swimming. Yet, all too often we are tempted to skate along and ignore complacency and indifference. We say things like, “the honeymoon is over” to justify marital apathy; or “we’ve always done it this way” to justify corporate bloat; or “don’t rock the boat” in order to maintain some status quo. This epistle is Paul being an apostolic burr in the saddle, pebble in the boot, and pain in the neck. In so doing, he kept not only the Galatians, but the early church as a whole from apathetically drifting back into business as usual.

THE TEXT

Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia: Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, 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: To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. […] Galatians 1:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Before we begin expositing the black and white letters of this epistle, we should take notice of the colorful context of this letter. Other than the synoptic Gospels, this letter from Paul to the Galatians is one of the earliest NT writings (~AD48). As we shall see, this fact proves to be pivotal in locking the door against a dangerous error that was threatening the early church. But this was not only from Paul, it was from Paul “and all the brethren” (v2), to the churches (plural) of Galatia. This helps us decide between two theories regarding the timing of this letter. The Northern Galatian theory argues that this was written to the Gauls located in what is now central Turkey; these were Celtic peoples, who were spread across Europe at the time. Paul eventually visited the northern Galatians (Acts 16:6; 18:5). The Southern Galatian theory is that Paul wrote to the Roman province of Galatia which consisted of four primary cities which we know Paul visited in his early mission trips: Antioch of Pisidia (Acts 13:14), Iconium (Acts 13:51), Lystra, and Derbe (Acts 14:6, 20 – 21). Given the content, not to mention the heat, of Paul’s letter we are left with a strong case for this being written in the lead up to the Jerusalem Counsel (Acts 15) not after.

Paul begins by asserting the nature of his apostleship (v1). He greets them with grace and peace, and briefly states the Gospel: Jesus (whom the Father had raised from the dead) gave Himself for our sins (Cf. Is. 53:6), to deliver us from the “present evil age”, by the Father’s will, and this all leads us to glorify God (vv3-5). Instead of pleasant thanksgiving for the Galatians, Paul begins with a deep grievance. And no wonder! The Galatians have drifted from the Gospel which he had taught them, into a graceless Gospel (v6). This took place because the Galatians were troubled by some who had perverted the Gospel (v7). Paul pronounces a double anathema on angelic or human teachers of this mangled Gospel (vv8-9).

This is very personal, not academic, for Paul. Other than Acts we learn more about Paul’s biography from this section of Galatians than anywhere else. This is important because Paul wants to impress upon the Galatians that Christ’s coming was apocalyptic, and Paul had personally experienced the potency of the revelation of Jesus Christ. None of what Paul has done was by man or for man, because this Gospel was from God and for God’s glory (vv10-12).

Beginning in 1:13, Paul launches into a lengthy personal history which continues through most of chapter 2 as well. Paul had been a zealous hall monitor for the laws of the Pharisees and was infamous for his seething persecution of the disciples of Christ and profiting from his persecutions (vv13-14). Elsewhere he describes himself as a blasphemer (1 Tim. 1:13). Central to Paul’s Gospel is the sovereign will of God to deliver such wicked sinners from their sin. Paul explains that by God’s grace the Son was revealed to him, and this was foreordained by God even when Paul was in his mother’s womb (vv15-16a, Cf. Is. 49:1). God kindly did this so that Paul would bring news of Christ’s deliverance from this present evil age to the heathen (v16). After Paul’s conversion, he didn’t enroll at Jerusalem Apostolic Seminary. This will be important to the argument that Paul concludes in chapter 2. Rather, he went into Arabia, presumably to pray and study (v 17; Cf. 2 Cor. 12:2-4). Three years later, he visited with Peter & James in Jerusalem for 15 days, but didn’t spend time with any of the other apostles (vv18-19).

Paul avows the truth of all this (v20); he didn’t linger in Judea, going instead to Gentile regions. The Judaean Christians knew that their former persecutor was now preaching the Gospel he’d attempted to destroy, though they hadn’t met him personally these Jewish believers glorified God because of him (vv21-24).

THE GOSPEL IS PERSONAL 

It might seem incongruous to us why Paul stresses his personal history in making his argument against the Judaizers. The work which Paul has been set apart for, from his mother’s womb, is not a merely human venture. We could easily mistake Paul’s concern about establishing his apostolic office as some sort of territorial turf war. This is not why Paul is arguing. His apostleship is tied up with ancient promises which God, through Christ, has now made good.

We see this in Paul’s two allusions to Isaiah. First, consider his allusion to Isaiah 53:6. The sheep had strayed, every last one; so the Lord offers up His anointed servant as the sacrifice. He gave himself for us. Faithful OT saints believed that God would inaugurate the last times and would do so with two clear signs. The first would be the coming of the Messiah, the Lord’s servant and true King of Israel. The second sign would be that of the resurrection (Job 19:25). As Paul makes his argument throughout this epistle, these articles of ancient faith must be kept in mind. Jesus’ coming was the breaking through of God’s new creation work, and this of course was manifestly vindicated by Jesus’ own resurrection.

So then, Paul’s insistence on tracing his apostolic calling is not off topic from his main argument, nor is it a pious flex. If God’s new creation work had really burst into this world, then Paul’s Damascus road conversion is not off topic. The Risen Christ in His ascended glory had revealed himself to this blaspheming murderer to convert him and then task him to go with the glad tidings of the new creation to the Gentiles. This ties in with the second allusion that Paul makes to Isaiah and his description of the Messiah’s mission (Is. 49:1). Isaiah says Messiah would gather Israel’s wandering sheep and then shine with Gospel light upon the Gentiles. So Paul’s Damascus conversion and thus Gentile commission really was on topic.

THE GOSPEL IS POTENT 

This Gospel is also potent. It is potent personally. But the personal potency of the Gospel is in force because of the transformation that took place in the order of things when Christ arose. Christ’s resurrection was the Galatian’s deliverance from the present evil world. The world governed by demons, where hard law was needful to restrain the raving of depraved man. But since Christ had come, the old order was passing away and along with it the dominion of devils. Thus, a return to the Law (which is the primary issue Paul will deal with) is to turn away from the potency of Christ’s life, to the impotency of dead flesh. To return to the law would be to return to business as usual, and with Christ’s coming it was no longer business as usual. All things were being made new.

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