Paul uses six different arguments to prove that God saves sinners through faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law.

1. He begins with the personal argument (Gal. 3:1–5) in which he asks the Galatians to recall their personal experience with Christ when they were saved.
2. Then he moves into the scriptural argument (Gal. 3:6–14), in which he quotes six Old Testament passages to prove his point.
3. In the logical argument (Gal. 3:15–29) he reasons with his readers on the basis of what a covenant is and how a covenant works.
4. He then presents the historical argument (Gal. 4:1–11), explaining the place of Law in the history of Israel.
5. At this point, Paul’s love for his converts comes to the surface. The result is a sentimental argument (Gal. 4:12–18) as the apostle appeals to them to remember his love and their happy relationship in days past.
6. But then Paul goes right back to his close reasoning, and concludes with the allegorical argument (Gal. 4:19–31), based on the life of Abraham and his relationships with Sarah and Hagar.

• Practical application of his doctrinal argument follows in the last two chapters.[1]

If salvation does not involve the Law, then why was the Law given in the first place?
- Paul quoted from the Law to prove the insignificance of the Law.
- If the Law is now set aside, then his very arguments are worthless, because they are taken from the Law.[2]
​
Galatians 3
15 Brothers and sisters, I’m using a human illustration. No one sets aside or makes additions to a validated human will.
- Paul was quoting from the Law, now he has to show in his argument that the Law did not change the covenant.
 - Once two parties conclude an agreement, a third party cannot come along years later and change that agreement.
 - The only persons who can change an original agreement are the persons who made it.
- To add anything to it or take anything from it would be illegal.[3]
 - The promise made to Abraham in Genesis 15 was around 2000 BC.
 - The Law was given to Moses around 1450 BC, after 430 years of slavery.
16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed.
Genesis 12:1-3 - The Lord said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt, and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.[4]
He does not say “and to seeds,” as though referring to many, but referring to one, and to your seed, who is Christ.
 - Interesting interpretation of the word “seed here.
 - Refers to the “singular seed” vs “plural seed”
 - Romans 4:13-18 – Paul refers to “plural seed”
 - Paul is showing greater fulfillment of this promise is through Christ rather than biological.
17 My point is this: The law, which came 430 years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously established by God and thus cancel the promise.
- The presentation of the Law did not change the promise made between God & Abraham.
 - Ratified by God alone because Abraham was asleep when it was presented to him. (Gen 15 – “Came in a vison”)
 - This covenant can only be changed by God… It is not based upon us perfecting the Law.

18 For if the inheritance is based on the law, it is no longer based on the promise; but God has graciously given it to Abraham through the promise.
- Abraham could not revise the covenant.
 - Neither could Moses, who was given the Law.
 - The law is not, and never was intended to be, the means by which believers experience their inheritance as God’s children.[5]
1 Corinthians 15:56 - The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.[6]
 - The law demands, “Do this!” The promise grants, “Accept this!”[7]

THE PURPOSE OF THE LAW
19 Why then was the law given? It was added for the sake of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise was made would come. The law was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.
- The Law came to:
 1) Define sin (Romans 4:15 - because the law produces wrath. And where there is no law, there is no transgression. [8])
 2) Increase sin (Romans 5:20 - The law came along to multiply the trespass. But where sin multiplied, grace multiplied even more[9]
 - The Law was temporary – It was after the covenant and ended before the covenant was fulfilled.
 - There were no “ifs” in the covenant with Abraham like there was in the Law given to Moses.
 - “It was added” – Came in by a side road.
20 Now a mediator is not just for one person alone, but God is one.
- Moses was this mediator.
 - The Law needed a “go between person”
 - The Law was given to Moses - by God - through angels.
 - The Covenant between God & Abraham did not need a mediator.
21 Is the law therefore contrary to God’s promises? Absolutely not! For if the law had been granted with the ability to give life, then righteousness would certainly be on the basis of the law.
- While Law and grace seem to be contrary to one another, if you go deep enough, you will discover that they actually complement one another.
 - Think about it… Are Law and Grace opposites?
 - The opposite of Law is lawlessness.
 - The opposite of Grace is disgrace.
 - Why, then, was the Law given?[10]
 - If we could attain righteousness but fulfilling the Law, then Christ’s sacrifice on the cross would be pointless.
 - It was “worship of the Law” that led Israel into a self-righteous religion of works, the result of which was the rejection of Christ [11]
22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin’s power, so that the promise might be given on the basis of faith in Jesus Christ to those who believe.
- Romans 7:12 - So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good.[12]
 - It is here that we see the way that Law and grace cooperate in bringing the lost sinner to Jesus Christ.
 - Law shows the sinner his guilt, and grace shows him the forgiveness he can have in Christ.
 - The Law is “holy, and just, and good” (Rom. 7:12), but we are unholy, unjust, and bad.
 - The Law does not make us sinners; it reveals to us that we already are sinners (see Rom. 3:20).

23 Before this faith came, we were confined under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith was revealed. 24 The law, then, was our guardian until Christ, so that we could be justified by faith.
- Eat a powdered donut in one bite.
 - Look in the mirror
 - Someone else clean their face
 - The Law is a mirror that helps us see our “dirty faces” (James 1:22–25)—but you do not wash your face with the mirror!
 - It is grace that provides the cleansing through the blood of Jesus Christ (see 1 John 1:7b).[13]
25 But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian (tutor), 26 for through faith you are all sons of God in Christ Jesus.
- Highly educated slaves escorted children to and from school. They watched over them through the day.
 - Paul was saying they were not born though the Law but were raised up by the Law.
 - The Law did not give life to Israel… it regulated life.
 - The Judaizers taught that the Law was necessary for life and righteousness.
 -Once the child came of age, they no longer needed the guardian.

 - The Law has performed its purpose: the Savior has come and the “guardian” is no longer needed.
 - It is tragic that the nation of Israel did not recognize their Messiah when He appeared.
 - God finally had to destroy the temple and scatter the nation, so that today it is impossible for a devoted Jew to practice the faith of his fathers.
 - He has no altar, no priesthood, no sacrifice, no temple, no king (Hosea 3:4).
 - All of these have been fulfilled in Christ, so that any man—Jew or Gentile—who trusts Christ becomes a child of God.[14]

SONS AND HEIRS
27 For those of you who were baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ.
- Faith in Jesus baptizes us “into Christ” (Gal. 3:27).
 - This baptism of the Spirit identifies the believer with Christ and makes him part of His body (1 Cor. 12:12–14).
 - Water baptism is an outward picture of this inner work of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 10:44–48).[15]
 - To believe in Jesus Christ and water, Jesus Christ and bread and wine, Jesus Christ and church membership, Jesus Christ and anything else is to profane the grace of God and render useless the death of Christ (2:21).[16]
28 There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male and female; since you are all one in Christ Jesus.
- The Pharisee would pray each morning, “I thank Thee, God, that I am a Jew, not a Gentile; a man, not a woman; and a freeman, and not a slave.” Yet all these distinctions are removed “in Christ.”[17]
29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.
- Genesis 12:1-3 - The Lord said to Abram:
Go out from your land,
your relatives,
and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.
2 I will make you into a great nation,
I will bless you,
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt,
and all the peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.[18]
 - Your Christian life ought to take on new wonder and meaning as you realize all that you have in Christ.
 - And all of this is by grace—not by Law!
 - You are an adult son in God’s family, an heir of God.
 - Are you drawing on your inheritance?[19]

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 697). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 701). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 701). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 12:1–3). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 3:18). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (1 Co 15:56). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, pp. 249–250). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[8] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 4:15). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 5:20). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[10] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 702). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[11] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 702). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[12] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ro 7:12). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[13] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 703). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[14] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 703). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[15] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[16] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, p. 277). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[17] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[18] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 12:1–3). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[19] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

I hope you get this right:
 - In the Gospels, what did Jesus teach?
 - Did Jesus obey God’s Law?
 - How many times did Jesus die on the cross?
 - What did His blood do?

• Hebrews 10:14 – For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are sanctified. [1].
• Hebrews 10:4 – For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. [2]
   - What were Jesus’ last words?
   - As believers, what do you have to do now?
   - Are you now a “child of God”?

JUSTIFICATION THROUGH FAITH
Galatians 3
 - (1) Paul’s Personal argument (v 1-5)
1 You foolish Galatians! Who has cast a spell on you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?
- It would be like asking our country, “Have you gone mad?”
 - Is it mental incompetence or just lack of wisdom?
 - “Foolish” here means “spiritually dull” whereas being called actual fools in the Gospel meant “godless person”.
 - But I focus on the part of the question, “Who has hypnotized you?”
 - “Who told you that you were naked?” – Genesis 3:11
 - The scheme of the evil one is to confuse the truth. To make it seem like something it is not.
- Paul did not say that the Galatians had had less than a fully genuine experience of the Holy Spirit.
- Indeed, he argued from precisely the opposite premise: since they had certainly received the Holy Spirit and witnessed his mighty works, why were they now retrogressing back from the Spirit to the flesh, that is, from faith back to works and from grace back to law?
- The answer is implied in Paul’s critical word of address: somehow the balance between sound doctrine and Spirit-filled living had gotten out of kilter among the churches of Galatia.[3]
2 I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard?
- Did we not teach you that as Jews, you are no longer subject to circumcision, food restrictions and calendar observances? As a Gentile, you never were?
 - Gentiles didn’t even start with the Law. Why would you bring that into your beliefs?
 - What saved you? Your works or your faith?
3 Are you so foolish? After beginning by the Spirit, are you now finishing by the flesh? 4 Did you experience so much for nothing—if in fact it was for nothing?
- Did you not learn your lesson enough in the flesh that you want to give up on the Spirit already?
 - “flesh” being things done in your own strength… whether bad or good.
5 So then, does God give you the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law? Or is it by believing what you heard--
- This is what the Spirit does:
 - John 16:8-11 – The Spirit convicts the world of its unbelief.
 - Acts 7:51 - “You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit. As your ancestors did, you do also.[4]
- Ephesians 1:13-14 - 13 In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. 14 The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory. [5]
 - (2) Paul’s Scriptural argument (v 6-14)
 - In verses 1-5 Paul asked 6 questions
 - In verses 6-14 Paul uses 6 OT quotes
6 just like Abraham who believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness?

• Genesis 15:6 - Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.[6]
• Genesis 17:9-12 - God also said to Abraham, “As for you, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations are to keep my covenant. 10 This is my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you, which you are to keep: Every one of your males must be circumcised. 11 You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskin to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 Throughout your generations, every male among you is to be circumcised at eight days old—every male born in your household or purchased from any foreigner and not your offspring.[7]
• Exodus 20 – The Ten Commandments.

7 You know, then, that those who have faith, these are Abraham’s sons. 8 Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and proclaimed the gospel ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you.
- Genesis 18:18 - Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him.[8].
9 Consequently those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.
- The logic here is evident: if God promised to save the Gentiles by faith, then the Judaizers are wrong in wanting to take the Gentile believers back into Law.
 - The true “children of Abraham” are not the Jews by physical descent, but Jews and Gentiles who have believed in Jesus Christ. All those who are “of faith” (believers) are blessed with “believing Abraham.”[9]
- Serve carrots… then a donut… back to carrots!
LAW AND PROMISE
10 For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, Everyone who does not do everything written in the book of the law is cursed.
- Paul uses contrasts/antithesis:
        - Crucified with Christ - Alive to God
        - The hearing of faith - The doing of works
        - Beginning in the Spirit - Ending in the flesh
        - Promise – Fulfillment
        - Blessed - Cursed[10]
        - Vs. 9 – Blessed – Vs. 10 – Cursed
- Deuteronomy 27:26 -  ‘Anyone who does not put the words of this law into practice is cursed.’
And all the people will say, ‘Amen!’ [11]

 -Deuteronomy 28:58 - “If you are not careful to obey all the words of this law, which are written in this scroll, by fearing this glorious and awe-inspiring name—the Lord, your God[12]
 - James 2:10 -  For whoever keeps the entire law, and yet stumbles at one point, is guilty of breaking it all.[13]
11 Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous will live by faith.
- It is obvious…
 - Habakkuk 2:4 -
        - The Righteous – Romans 1:17
        - Will live – Galatians 3:11
        - By faith - Hebrews 10:37
 - It doesn’t say “those who live by faith are righteous.”
 - Nor is it a command.
 - It is a simple statement of fact.
 - Those who have been made righteous will naturally live by faith.
 - If these are words by Habakkuk… they were still under the law… This was about the future.
 - If Daniel was here today… could he see the righteous.
 - Paul saw and experienced living under the Law vs living by faith because of his righteousness.
12 But the law is not based on faith; instead, the one who does these things will live by them.
- Leviticus 18:5 - Keep my statutes and ordinances; a person will live if he does them. I am the Lord. [14]
 - The Law is based on doing… not trusting!
 - God never intended the Law to make people righteous.
 - God intended to send a Savior to save us from our own works.
 - God intended to send a Helper to live our life for us.
 - “How in the world am I going to get through this?”
 - You’re not in your own strength.
 - You will by trusting Him to do it in your own life!

 - Eating carrots vs eating a donut
 - Why go back to carrots!?!
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, because it is written, Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree. 14 The purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith.
  - Deuteronomy 21:22 -  “If anyone is found guilty of an offense deserving the death penalty and is executed, and you hang his body on a tree, 23 you are not to leave his corpse on the tree overnight but are to bury him that day, for anyone hung on a tree is under God’s curse. You must not defile the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.[15]
 - Jews were stoned first and then hung on a tree for display.
 - They are not talking about crucifixion here.
 - This was major since the Jews were careful with treatment of a dead body.
 - The word redeemed means to purchase a slave for the purpose of setting him free.
 - It is possible to purchase a slave and keep him as a slave, but this is not what Christ did.
 - By shedding His blood on the cross, He purchased us that we might be set free.
 - The Judaizers wanted to lead the Christians into slavery, but Christ died to set them free.
 - Salvation is not exchanging one form of bondage for another.
 - Salvation is being set free from the bondage of sin and the Law into the liberty of God’s grace through Christ.[16]
 - God’s provision through Christ’s death on the cross enables believers to no longer live under the threat of condemnation.[17]
 - You… my friend… have been released from the curse.
 - There is no one who can condemn you for what you have done or going to do.
 - There will be logical negative consequences.
 - But you can never be condemned.
 - Judgment Day will be a good day.
 - To the Jew – “Do you want the blessing of Abraham? It comes through Jesus.”
 - To the Gentile – “Do you want to be included in the blessing?” It comes through Jesus.

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Heb 10:14). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Heb 10:4). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, p. 206). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ac 7:51). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Eph 1:13–14). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 15:6). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 17:9–12). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[8] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 18:18). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 699). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[10] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, p. 229). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[11] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Dt 27:26). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[12] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Dt 28:58). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[13] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jas 2:10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[14] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Le 18:5). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[15] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Dt 21:22–23). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[16] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 700). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[17] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 3:13). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Galatians 2
11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned. 12 For he regularly ate with the Gentiles before certain men came from James. However, when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, because he feared those from the circumcision party. 13 Then the rest of the Jews joined his hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.[1]
------
14 But when I saw that they were deviating from the truth of the gospel, I told Cephas in front of everyone, “If you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel Gentiles to live like Jews?”

• 1) Circumcision 2) Food laws & 3) Calendar observances
• Paul is separating Peter’s personal convictions vs Truth of the Word.
• Suppose Peter and Barnabas had won the day and led the church into legalism? What might the results have been?
• Would Antioch have continued to be the great missionary church that sent out Paul and Barnabas? (Acts 13)
• Would they, instead, have sent out the “missionaries” of the circumcision party and either captured or divided the churches Paul had already founded?
• You can see that this problem was not a matter of personality or party; it was a question of “the truth of the Gospel.”
• And Paul was prepared to fight for it.[2]

 

• What was the purpose of Paul confronting Peter in front of everyone?
• Was there emotion involved?
• What is the difference in communicating truth with anger vs no emotion?
• The same message is communicated.
• It never says what Paul’s emotions are… we just assume.
• You realize your reaction to news/information or the correction given will impact future exchanges of a relationship.
• Between a husband and a wife
• Between a parent and a child
• Between a boss and an employer
• Between friends or even siblings.
  ​
  

15 We are Jews by birth and not “Gentile sinners,”

• They were “Gentile sinners” from birth because they were not given the Law like the Jews were.

16 and yet because we know that a person is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we ourselves have believed in Christ Jesus. This was so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no human being will be justified.

• “How should [a] man be just with God?” (Job 9:2) was a vital question, because the answer determined eternal consequences.
• “The just shall live by his faith” (Hab. 2:4) is God’s answer.
• Justification is not simply “forgiveness,” because a person could be forgiven and then go out and sin and become guilty.
• Once you have been “justified by faith” you can never be held guilty before God.
• Justification is also different from “pardon,” because a pardoned criminal still has a record.
• When the sinner is justified by faith, his past sins are remembered against him no more, and God no longer puts his sins on record.

 

• So important is this concept that three New Testament books explain it to us: Romans (see 1:17), Galatians (see 3:11), and Hebrews (see 10:38).
• Romans explains the meaning of “the just”;
• Galatians explains “shall live”;
• Hebrews explains “by faith.”[3]
• Christ died one time and based upon our belief in the Son of God, we were justified one time.
• Proven “not guilty”
• Double Jeopardy – Cannot be tried twice for the same crime.

17 But if we ourselves are also found to be “sinners” while seeking to be justified by Christ, is Christ then a promoter of sin? Absolutely not! 18 If I rebuild those things that I tore down, I show myself to be a lawbreaker. 19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live for God.

• If a man is justified by the works of the Law, then why did Jesus Christ die?
• What died?
• The Law demanded death for those who broke it, but Christ paid that death penalty for all sinners. [4]
• To go back to Moses is to return to the graveyard!
• We have been “raised to walk in newness of life”[5]

20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,

• Paul does not refer here to physical death, but to the death of his former self (see Eph 4:22).
• The self-righteous, self-centered Saul died.
• Paul’s understanding of union with Christ begins with the cross of Christ.
• This enables Paul to endure shame, contempt, and false accusations like Jesus, God’s Suffering Servant (Col 1:24; Phil 1:29).
• Christ lives in me Refers to new life in Christ as well as the presence of God’s Spirit, which empowers obedience to the gospel (Gal 3:2; 4:6; 5:16–18, 22–25).
• the Son of God Faith in the Son of God transforms a person from a slave to a child of God.

who loved me and gave himself for me.

• Paul describes the sacrificial love of Christ in personal terms.
• Christ’s willingness to die on behalf of sinners brings deliverance from the power of sin for those believe in Him (1:4).
• Grace says, “There is no difference! All are sinners, and all can be saved through faith in Christ!”
• But Peter’s actions had said, “There is a difference! The grace of God is not sufficient; we also need the Law.”
• Returning to the Law nullifies the Cross: “If righteousness came by the Law, then Christ is dead in vain” (Gal. 2:21).
• Law says DO! Grace says DONE! “It is finished!” was Christ’s victory cry (John 19:30). “For by grace are ye saved through faith”[6]
• In essence Paul affirmed, “If He loved me enough to give Himself for me, then He loves me enough to live out His life in me.”[7]

21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.[8]

• Faith in the Son of God transforms a person from a slave of the Law to a child of God.
• Paul’s opponents had accused him of using God’s grace to justify unrighteous living.[9]
• We have no record of Peter’s reply to Paul’s rebuke, but Scripture would indicate that he admitted his sin and was restored to the fellowship once again.
• Certainly when you read his two letters (1 and 2 Peter) you detect no deviation from the Gospel of the grace of God.
• In fact, the theme of 1 Peter is “the true grace of God” (1 Peter 5:12); and the word grace is used in every chapter of the letter.
• Peter is careful to point out that he and Paul were in complete agreement, lest anyone try to “rob Peter to pay Paul”
  
  
• Ask yourself:
  1) Have I been saved by the grace of God?
  2) Am I trying to mix Law and grace?
  3) Am I rejoicing in the fact that I have been justified by faith in Christ Jesus?
  4) Am I walking in the freedom of grace?
  5) Am I walking by the Spirit (that aligns with the Truth of the Gospel)?
  6) Am I willing to walk by the Spirit in defense of the Gospel?

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ga 2:11–13). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 694). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 695). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[4] Campbell, D. K. (1985). Galatians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 596). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[5] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 695). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[6] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 696). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[7] Campbell, D. K. (1985). Galatians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 596). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[8] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ga 2:1–21). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Barry, J. D., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Mangum, D., & Whitehead, M. M. (2012). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 2:21). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.

1. Paul’s early Christian experience and his first encounter with church leaders in Jerusalem (1:11–24)
2. The summit meeting between Paul and the Jerusalem leaders over the scope and sphere of his missionary work (2:1–10)
3. The confrontation with Peter at Antioch leading to the central pronouncement of justification by faith (2:11–21).[1]

- Paul’s first fight for Christian liberty was at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:1–35; Gal. 2:1–10); his second was at a private meeting with Peter (Gal. 2:11–21). [2]
-  Paul had already returned from Antioch and 1st Missionary Journey with Barnabas when reports about all the Gentiles being “saved” returned to Jerusalem.
 - The Jewish leaders were upset with what they heard and went to Antioch and began telling the Gentile believers that they needed to become Jewish first (circumcision) before they became Christians.
 - The Jewish leaders had forgotten the true purpose of circumcision.
 - The new believers had a circumcision of the heart.
 - They did not need a physical operation.
 
GALATIANS 2
PAUL DEFENDS HIS GOSPEL AT JERUSALEM
1 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along also.

• Titus was a Greek Gentile and companion of Paul.
• He is mentioned to demonstrate that the leaders of the church in Jerusalem did not pressure him to be circumcised.
• This would have discredited any claim that the leaders in Jerusalem required that Gentiles be circumcised.[3]

 
2 I went up according to a revelation and presented
(make clear to you) to them the gospel I preach among
the Gentiles, but privately to those recognized as
leaders. I wanted to be sure I was not running, and had
not been running, in vain. and wonders.

• They met privately with the 3 pillars
• “According to a revelation” – The Lord told Paul to meet privately with these 3.
• Peter, James & John
• James is Jesus’ half-brother.
• The other James (brother of John) was killed by Herod in Acts 12.
• Attests to Paul’s motivation for traveling to Jerusalem.
• He was responding to God’s direction, not human invitation.
• He was concerned with aligning his ministry to the Gentiles with the work of the Jerusalem apostles.
• In essence, he was not the rogue minister that his accusers claimed he was.[4]
• Paul wanted to provide a “united” front in the public meetings.
• If the “pillars” sided with the Judaizers, or tried to compromise, then Paul’s ministry would be in jeopardy.
• He wanted to get their approval before he faced the whole assembly; otherwise a three-way division could result.[5]
• Paul was being proactive rather reactive.
• This is an awkward situation… so let’s fight through the awkwardness.
• The Spirit will lead you to be proactive… your delay causes you to be reactive.

3 But not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4 This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus in order to enslave us. 5 But we did not give up and submit to these people for even a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would be preserved for you.

• Titus was 100% Gentile. Didn’t need to be circumcised (It was obvious from his behavior that he was a believer).
• Timothy – Was 50% Gentile and 50% Jewish. He needed to be circumcised so as not to bring confusion to the Jews he was trying to reach with the Gospel.
• Paul’s concern was “the truth of the Gospel” (Gal. 2:5, 14), not the “peace of the church.”
• The wisdom that God sends from above is “first pure, then peaceable” (James 3:17).
• “Peace at any price” was not Paul’s philosophy of ministry, nor should it be ours.

6 Now from those recognized as important (what they once were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism)—they added nothing to me. 7 On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel for the uncircumcised, just as Peter was for the circumcised, 8 since the one at work in Peter for an apostleship to the circumcised was also at work in me for the Gentiles. 9 When James, Cephas, and John—those recognized as pillars—acknowledged the grace that had been given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to me and Barnabas, agreeing that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.

• Ever since Paul’s time, the enemies of grace have been trying to add something to the simple Gospel of the grace of God.
• They tell us that a man is saved by faith in Christ plus something—good works, the Ten Commandments, baptism, church membership, religious ritual—and Paul makes it clear that these teachers are wrong.
• It is a serious thing to tamper with the Gospel.[6]
• This act of “giving the right hand of fellowship” indicates the acceptance of Paul’s apostleship and gospel message by the apostles in Jerusalem, as well as the recognition of their partnership as ministers.
• If the Galatians were formerly concerned that Paul might be a rogue apostle, they no longer needed to be.[7]

10 They asked only that we would remember the poor, which I had made every effort to do.

• Correct doctrine is never a substitute for Christian duty (James 2:14–26).
• Too often our church meetings discuss problems, but they fail to result in practical help for the needy world.
• Paul had always been interested in helping the poor (Acts 11:27–30), so he was glad to follow the leaders’ suggestion.[8]
  ​
  

FREEDOM FROM THE LAW
11 But when Cephas came to Antioch,

• Antioch was 300 miles north of Jerusalem (Syria)
• During the New Testament period Antioch was the third largest city in the Roman Empire and boasted a population of more than half a million.
• Peter came to Paul’s home turf.
• The Jewish community formed a significant segment of the city’s population, numbering some sixty-five thousand during the New Testament era.[9]

I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned. 12 For he regularly ate with the Gentiles before certain men came from James.

• These were not the same men mentioned in 2:4 (false teachers).
• These men were sent from Jerusalem by James.
• They ate differently (law vs no law) – piety
• It wasn’t the fact that he was just eating with the Gentiles.
• He ate like the Gentiles… forgetting Jewish rituals that he practiced with the Jews.
• How does this differ when Paul says, “Be all things to all people.”?
• When the Judaizers came along, they expected the Gentiles to eat like them.

However, when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, because he feared those from the circumcision party.

• What did Peter have to be afraid of? Intimidation?
• Power of sin working on Peter… He was the one who had authority… not James’ men.
• Peter’s fear was robbing him of his freedom.
• Proverbs 29:25 - 25 The fear of man is a snare, but the one who trusts in the Lord is protected.[10]

13 Then the rest of the Jews joined his hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.

• That speaks of the influence that James had back in Jerusalem.
• Or how strong Jewish rituals were taught.
• Paul used two very strong words in his public condemnation of Peter and the other Jewish Christians at Antioch who had separated from their Gentile brothers and sisters: playacting and crooked walking.
• The word in v. 13 translated “hypocrisy” (hypokrisis) comes from the world of the theater, where it refers to the act of wearing a mask or playing a part in a drama.
• By negative transference it came to mean pretense, insincerity, acting in a fashion that belies one’s true convictions.
• Here is the brunt of Paul’s charge against Peter: He should have known better!
• Peter was not guilty of an honest mistake, nor was there any evidence that he had changed his mind about the extension of salvation to the Gentiles.
• Peter had donned a mask of pretense; he was shamefully acting a part contrary to his own true convictions.

What Paul rebuked was the inconsistency of his conduct.[11]

[1] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, pp. 105–106). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 689). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 2:1). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[4] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 2:2). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[5] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 691). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[6] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 692). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[7] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ga 2:9). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[8] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 693). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[9] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, p. 170). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[10] The Holy Bible: Holman Christian standard version. (2009). (Pr 29:25). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.
[11] George, T. (1994). Galatians (Vol. 30, p. 177). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.