Meet the Apostle Paul—Part Twelve
Saul/Paul begins his letter to the Galatians by “getting right to it” as they say in Appalachia. He writes,
From Paul, an ambassador who is not sent from human authority or commissioned through a human institution but sent through Jesus the Savior and God the Father who raised Him from the dead; and from all the family members with me.
Divine favor and peace to you from God the Father and King Jesus the Savior. He gave himself for our sins, so he could deliver us from this present evil sphere, according to the will of our God and Father. To God be the fame and honor forever and always! So may it be.
I’m shocked that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the divine favor of the Savior to follow another message of Good News. It’s not really another message of Good News, but certain people are confusing you and they want to change the royal announcement of the reign of the Savior. However, even if we ourselves or a “heavenly messenger” should ever proclaim anything different from what we preached to you, they should be damned. I’m repeating what we’ve said before: if anyone proclaims something different from what you received, they should be damned! (Gal 1:1-9 author’s translation).
What is going on? Apparently, some either from outside or within the churches in this region are questioning Paul’s right to speak for Jesus or that his message to them was insufficient.
We will see that the Galatians are being tempted to adopt some aspects of the Mosaic Law such as circumcision and possibly even a kosher diet. The temptation to do so could be based in a number of factors—the young church may want to fit in with local Jewish synagogues and/or they may want the exemption from worshipping Caesar and other pagan gods that was afforced to Jewish residents of the Roman Empire.
Saul/Paul will have none of it. But as I asked in the last post, why? What is the big deal?
These questions will take us into the heart of Paul’s theology which is union with King Jesus. Paul believed that if one believes in, trusts in and is loyal to Jesus that it wholly defines that person. It is not unlike a marriage or taking a military oath. Once it is done (and we will see that baptism is a big part of this) then you belong to Jesus. So much so that what is true of Jesus is true of all those who belong to Him.
Jesus fulfilled the law in total—even, as we will see, the curses. Thus, the law has been completed and that book has been closed. Not that Paul has no use for the law as it is still both a valuable guide to who God is and who we are but the requirements have been met by Jesus. Those who have true faith are defined wholly by Jesus and His “name.”
A “name” in the ancient world was more than just a title that your parents agreed on for whatever reason, it pointed to your character, goals, etc. Saul/Paul is going to argue that all those “in Christ” are defined by His desires, which is the Great Commission (Matt 28:16-20) and the establishment of a new community that stands at the forefront of a cosmic battle and makes this stand as a family.
But more on that later, so stay tuned.