Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20080518.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Galatians: Defending The Truthfulness Of Paul's Teaching On God's Grace
Part I: Stating The Validity Of Paul's Teaching On God's Grace
(Galatians 1:1-5)
  1. Introduction
    1. Unique to all other religions, Biblical Christianity teaches that salvation from hell and sanctification in the life that follows are produced not by human merit or work, but by God's unmerited favor, by His grace.
    2. This fact makes it imperative that we Christians be SURE our stand on God's grace is right, for the vast majority of the WORLD strongly suggests that salvation and sanctification in living are not by grace!
    3. The Epistle of Galatians stands as a great signpost on the VALIDITY of the truth of God's GRACE, and even the introduction to Paul's Epistle of the Galatians resoundingly asserts this fact (as follows):
  2. Stating The Validity Of Paul's Teaching On God's Grace, Galatians 1:1-5.
    1. Though Paul's introductory remarks contain "the usual identification of author and recipient together with a customary greeting, the usual expression of thanksgiving and praise for believers is totally absent," cf. Galatians 1:1-5 versus 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, etc.; Bible Knowledge Commentary, New Testament, p. 589.
    2. This is because the Galatian churches were guilty of yielding ground to men who taught that they needed faith plus circumcision to be saved, a grave error, cf. Galatians 1:6; 3:3 with 5:2 and 6:12.
    3. Thus, even in his introduction, Paul eagerly stated for the record the basic reasons for the validity of the truth he had taught these believers, and from which they had quickly departed! (Galatians 1:6)
    4. Galatians 1:1-2 then quickly delves into the credibility of the messenger in the Apostle Paul who taught this truth, which credibility is certified by the testimony of Luke, a Paul's traveling companion:
      1. Paul claimed his apostleship did not from the authority of a group of men, Gal. 1:1a: this is verified by the testimony of Luke in Acts 13:1-3 where the elders of the Church at Antioch who sent Paul out as a missionary were told by the Holy Spirit that He had already (perfect tense in proskeklaymai, cf. U. B. S. Greek N. T., 1966 ed., p. 464) called Paul to the work! These elders could only confirm that calling!
      2. Paul indicated he was an apostle, but not from any single man, Galatians 1:1b: this truth is verified by the testimony of Luke at Acts 9:10-16: at Paul's conversion, Ananias who was reluctant to heed Christ in going to Saul as a new convert to lay his hands on him to restore his sight was told by Jesus that Saul (later Paul) was already "a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel . . ." No mortal man had established Paul to be an apostle.
      3. Indeed, Paul confirmed that he had been sent out as an apostle through Jesus Christ and God the Father Who had raised Him from the dead, a powerful assertion on the divine origin of his office, Gal. 1:1b.
      4. Lest there be any doubt as to the validity of his claim on this apostleship, Paul added that this letter was being sent not only from him, but from all the brethren who were with him, people like Barnabas and the elders at the Church of Antioch from which he wrote the letter, men who would certify the validity of the beliefs he presented, Gal. 1:2; Ibid., Bible Knowledge Commentary, New Testament, p. 588.
    5. Then, Galatians 1:3-5 unapologetically asserts how that truth about God's grace is DISTINCT from the evil world around the Christian, and how the believer theologically is to separate from it (as follows):
      1. In giving his greeting of grace and peace from God the Father and Jesus Christ to the Galatians, Paul added that Christ gave Himself for our sins in order that (hopos, Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.) He might set us free, deliver or rescue us (exeletai, cf. Arndt & Ging. A Grk.-Engl. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 271) out of (ek , Ibid. U. B. S. Grk. N. T.) this current evil age according to the will of the Father, 1:3-4.
      2. So, regardless if the rest of the world adhered in belief to human merit or works for salvation (Gal. 1:6) and/or sanctified living as a believer (Gal. 5:16), the truth about God's grace from God's true apostle is that salvation and sanctification are by God's grace, and we are to hold to it in contrast to the world!
Lesson: Even in the beginning of his Galatian epistle, Paul asserted his teaching on God's grace in salvation (and sanctification via Galatians 5-6) was true, verified by His divine appointment as an apostle, and certified by credible Christian witnesses, and was to be held versus the world's errant ideas.

Application: May we be FIRM in our CONVICTION of the truth of divine GRACE in OPPOSITION to the ERRORS of ALL the world's FALSE beliefs to the contrary!