Galatians 1:1-5 – Miscellaneous Thoughts

Here is my fairly literal translation of these verses:

¹Paul, an apostle, not from men neither through a man, but through Jesus Christ and God [the] Father Who raised Him out of [the] dead ones, ²and all the brothers with me, to the churches of Galatia: ³Grace to you and peace from God [the] Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴Who gave Himself on behalf of our sins, in order that He might rescue us out of the evil of the present age according to the desire of our God and Father, ⁵to Whom [be] the glory into the ages of the ages. Amen.

These opening verses are in no way arbitrary greetings. Verses 1&2 affirm Paul’s authority as an Apostle, while verses 4&5 assert the doctrine of grace. The two surround v3, his benediction of “grace to you and peace…” Note Lightfoot’s observation: “The two threads which run through this Epistle—the defense of the Apostle’s own authority, and the maintenance of the doctrine of grace—are knotted together in the opening salutation. By expanding his official title into a statement of his direct commission from God, he meets the personal attack of his enemies; and by dwelling on the work of redemption in connection with the name of Christ (v. 4.) he resists their doctrinal errors.”

As I have begun to study, it seems clear Lightfoot is right. The purpose of the book seems to be Paul’s response to the errors which had infected the Galatian church and specifically they are: #1 – the deprecation of his authority, and #2 – their deviation from the doctrine of grace.

This is an interesting place for me to start. I selected this book particularly because I have a John Eadie commentary on it through which I’ve never studied. When it comes to Bible study, him and I are kindred spirits. It’s too bad he’s been dead for 150 years. I would sure enjoy studying with him today. But to follow along his commentary through any book feels like I’m studying with him and I seriously enjoy it. However, wading into the book, my first reactions are less than enthusiastic. As Chrysostom noted, “…this Epistle breathes an indignant spirit.” Here’s my rub: The book itself is a fight. Paul needs to fight. This battle is one which must be engaged, no less than Jesus’ castigation of the Pharisees in Matt 23. The problem for me is that I am not a fighter. I don’t want to fight. With anyone. Over anything. I’ve never been a fighter. I have fought plenty of battles in my life. But I hated every one of them. I did it because I must. But I don’t like it. And so, as I look ahead to several months of studying a book about fighting … well, you understand my quandary.

However (and this is a HUGE however), this is the very reason I love to study the Bible. I can essentially pick any book at random and know that the Lord will make me think about things I didn’t necessarily intend (or even prefer) to think about. And there is even a sense of excitement when He leads me to something I “don’t like.” … I know that means He wants to teach me something. He wants to rock my world, to blow my mind, to “cast down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ.” So I wade in – on the one hand wishing I could study something more pleasant, but on the other hand, in anxious anticipation of what He’ll teach me. Come back and visit me in about a year. Hopefully, I will have learned something that makes me more like Christ, more ready to fight the battles which must be fought. Cool.

Another random thought: I found a new friend. My good friend Joe Fleener recommended some websites where I could find commentaries on the book. In the process I wandered across translations from John Chrysostom, who lived from 349 to 407 AD. The guy is another real exegete! He takes each verse phrase by phrase and actually considers the Greek, the meanings of the words, then draws applications. Cool. Another kindred spirit – even if his bones are quite cold by this point 1600 years later!

Another random thought from the first five verses: Notice God’s goodness: He specifically, deliberately, and miraculously called out an apostle for us Gentiles. He raised Jesus out of “the dead ones,” that we too might have life from the dead. He wishes “grace and peace” for us. Jesus “gave Himself for our sins.” He wants to “rescue us out of the evil of the present age.” This all was very specifically God’s “desire” for us. As I mourned before, it seems to me that so many people think hard thoughts of God. But if they would just read the Bible and let it say what it says, they would realize what it says is, “I love you,” over and over and over and over and over. Like John, we should all lay our heads on Jesus’ breast and long to never leave.

Another thing I’m looking forward to is following Martin Luther’s commentary on this book. I am a history nut so I relish his writings for their profound historical significance. But I also simply relish hearing the thoughts of the man who was the “morning star” of the Protestant Reformation, and especially when those thoughts are rising from one of the very books of the Bible which fueled his cause. Here is just one quote of his from the opening verses: “Grace remits sin, and peace quiets the conscience. Sin and conscience torment us, but Christ has overcome these fiends now and forever”.

Looks like fun.

I will probably post again on these five verses as I would like to record a few exegetical thoughts.