The Purpose of Paul’s letter to the Galatians

Bible Commentators will routinely characterize Paul’s letter to the Galatians as a stern rebuke for departing from the gospel which he delivered to them, which he referred to as “my gospel,” ((Rom. 2:16; 16;25; 2 Tim. 2:8)) and following a false gospel brought in by false apostles that perverted the gospel by re-introducing the law back into the salvation equation.  In verses 6 and 7, he laments:

6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.  (Other references in Paul’s epistles to “the gospel of Christ”: Rom 1:16; Rom 15:19; Rom 15:29;1 Cor 9:12;1 Cor 9:18;2 Cor 4:4;2 Cor 9:13;2 Cor 10:14;Gal 1:7;Phil 1:27;1 Thess 3:2)

The key phrase in these passages is “another gospel,” which is always treated as a perversion of “the true gospel.”  Luther, in his commentary on Paul’s letter to the Galatians, writes in his comment on verse 7:

“..Ye Galatians are borne in hand, that the gospel which ye have received of me, is not the true and sincere gospel, and therefore ye think ye do well to receive this new gospel, which the false apostles teach, and deemeth it better than mine.”

Nineteenth century commentators Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, treat it in a similar fashion, referring to it as “the one Gospel”:

“Though I called it a different gospel (Gal 1:6), there are not many gospels: there is really but one, and no other. But,  only that there are some that trouble you,’ etc. (Gal 5:10,12.) All I meant by the ‘different gospel’ was nothing but a perversion by ‘some’ of the one Gospel.”

The question concerning this issue is:  Is there another message of “good news/glad tidings”  ((definition of the word “gospel.”)) than the one Paul referred to as “the gospel of Christ” a dozen times in his epistles?  The answer is yes, there is, and the purpose of the Galatian letter is to establish this fact, once and for all.

There are Two Gospels in the New Testament part of the Bible.

If the “other gospel” Paul speaks of is a perversion of the gospel he originally delivered to the Galatian churches, i.e., “the gospel of Christ,” as most commentators characterize it as,  then it wouldn’t qualify as a “gospel,” nor would Paul refer to it as such, nor would those who preached this other gospel be “false apostles.”  The rest of the first chapter, and the first half of the second chapter of Galatians plainly establishes this two gospel position.

Gal 1:11-17

11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

13 For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:

14 And profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.

15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace,

16 To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:

17 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus.

Paul goes out of his way here to declare that he didn’t get his gospel from other humans, and verse 17 plainly states that this included the Lord’s original apostles who pre-dated him, which begs the question: If Paul was preaching the same exact message to the churches he was establishing in Galatia, Asia minor and Europe that the twelve were preaching to Israel in Jerusalem ((reference Acts 2:5, 14, 22, 36)) wouldn’t God have used them to teach it to him?  I would think so.  But that is not what he did, because it was different from what they were given to preach to Israel concerning the kingdom that was to come, which was promised to Israel, ((Ref. Acts 1:6)) and chapter two plainly establishes this:

Gal 2:1-8
Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.   (this would be fourteen years after his first trip up to Jerusalem to meet with Peter and James, which would have been three years after his Damascus Road conversion, making this his second journey to the Holy City)

2 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.

3 But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:

4 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:

5 To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.

6 But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man’s person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;

8(For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)

There is one purpose for this trip: To inform the pillars of the church at Jerusalem (Peter, James and John) of the content of “that gospel” Paul preached among the Gentiles he was sent to. If Paul was preaching the same message they were preaching at Jerusalem  in those regions he was traveling in, what would have been the need to do this?  None. No, it’s obvious that they were not privy to the gospel Paul preached, meaning there was something different about it.

Finally, verse seven puts the coup de grace to the “one gospel” position with the little preposition “of.”  “That gospel” Paul preached among the Gentiles, he refers to as “the gospel of the uncircumcision,” distinguishing it from the one Peter preached to Israel, which he refers to as :”the gospel of the circumcison.”  ((modern Bible version, e.g., the NIV, replace the preposition “of” in this verse with  “to,” which obliterates the distinction made between the two gospels by the King James. One does not have to wonder that this was done for the express purpose of promoting the “only one gospel in the NT” position))

The Differences in the two gospels, and why it is important that we not blend them.

While there are certainly parallels between Paul’s gospel and the gospel the twelve preached, aka, “the gospel of the kingdom.”  ((Matt 4:23; Matt 9:35; Matt 24:14;
Mark 1:14)), the most prominent of which is that both have Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, resurrected from the dead,” ((aka, “the gospel of God” Rom. 1:1-3)) for a foundation, there are differences which distinguish them from each other.

1. Paul received his gospel from the Lord in heaven, by revelation; the twelve received theirs from the Lord in a physical body, on the earth.

2. Paul’s gospel was to Jews and Gentiles, but primarily Gentiles; The twelve were instructed to take their gospel to only “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” ((Matt. 10:6.   In Acts 10, as a fulfillment of prophecy, Peter is sent to one Gentile, Cornelius, but there is never another recording of him or any of the other disciples going to any other Gentiles))

3. Paul’s gospel, the gospel of Christ, as briefly stated in the following passages, DOES NOT include any kind of repenting or submitting to any kind of ritual right of passage  (e.g., water baptism), only simple belief;

1 Cor 15:1-4; Romans 4:25; Acts 16:31
Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;

By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures……for our justification……Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

On the contrary, the gospel of the kingdom required confession, repentance and submission to the ritual of water baptism for the remission of sins; then selling out, and enduring into the end to be saved.  (( Ref. Mat. 3: 2-6; 24:13;  Mark 1:5; Acts 2:38-45; Heb. 3:14; 1 Peter 1:13; ))

4. Paul’s gospel was part of a mystery, not made known in the OT prophetic scriptures: ((Ref. Romans 16:25))  the twelve’s gospel to Israel was the fulfillment of OT prophecy ((ref. Acts 3:24-26))

5.  Finally, the gospel of Christ confers upon those who believe on it “the atonement” for their sins, right then and there, seals them unto the day of redemption, and imputes God’s righteousness to their heavenly account; ((Ref Rom.  3:22; 4:22-24; 5:11; Eph. 1:14; 4:30;))  Under the gospel of the kingdom, believers sins are atoned for (i.e., the blood is applied to them) at the end of a faithfully lived life, ((1 Peter 1:9,13)) which they empowered to carry out through a spiritual “anointing.”  ((1 John 2:27))

Conclusion

The letter to the Galatian’s primary thrust is to establish Paul’s gospel, aka, “the gospel of Christ,” as distinct from the gospel given to the twelve disciples, aka, “the gospel of the kingdom,” and under no circumstances should one attempt to blend the two in order to support a so-called “one gospel” position.

Paul told his chief understudy, Timothy, to “rightly divide the word of truth, ” ((2 Tim. 2:15)) and, if a member of the body of Christ desires to be considered “a workman that needeth not to be ashamed,”  the first and foremost division to be made under that mandate is to draw a sharp distinction between that which Paul preached to the Gentiles, and that which Peter and the other disciples of the Lord were charged with preaching to Israel.

All Scripture references are quoted from the King James Bible.  Feel free to publish this article as you see fit.

Related articles:

Amazing Grace; From Which “Plan” Shall We Build?; Is the Body of Christ one and the same as the New Covenant Church?; The Ministries of Peter and Paul; Why Paul?

Post Script

Are you saved? Jesus Christ—“who knew no sin”—and his sacrificial death on the Cross, has made the way for “everyone that believeth…to be reconciled to God. History has shown that whatever peace man has achieved in the world can only be temporary. The Bible says that individual men and women can know, beyond a doubt, that they are saved and bound for heaven, and therefore have absolute and permanent peace, regardless of what is going on in the world, by trusting Jesus Christ and his death on the cross for their eternal salvation. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Have you done this? If not, why not now?