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New Testament Overview –Galatians – Session 5

Written by

Jay Downes

in

Led by Central Pastor Shawn Haggerty Vox Church

My Personal Class Notes-

📜 Paul’s Letter to the Churches of Galatia

🧭 Historical Background

  • Author: The Apostle Paul
  • Date: Most likely AD 48–49 (Paul’s earliest letter)
  • Audience: Churches in southern Galatia — Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe (cf. Acts 13–14)
  • Occasion: False teachers (Judaizers) infiltrated these churches, pressuring Gentile believers to adopt the Mosaic Law, especially circumcision
  • Tone: Fiery, urgent, and corrective — Paul fiercely defends the gospel of grace

📌 Why Galatians Was Written

Paul’s letter serves four main purposes:

  1. Defend Paul’s apostolic authority Galatians 1:1, 11–12 — “Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ…”
  2. Refute legalism, especially circumcision as a requirement for salvation Galatians 5:2–4 — “…if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you.”
  3. Clarify the true gospel — salvation is by grace through faith, not by the works of the Law Galatians 2:16 — “A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
  4. Call believers to live by the Spirit, not the flesh Galatians 5:16 — “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”

🗺️ Where Galatians Fits in Acts

  • Acts 13–14: Paul’s first missionary journey, where he planted churches in southern Galatia.
  • Acts 15: The Jerusalem Council, which dealt with the same Judaizer controversy.
  • Galatians was likely written just before Acts 15, making it part of the pre-council debate.

📖 Chapter-by-Chapter Breakdown with Key Verses

Chapter 1 – No Other Gospel

Galatians 1:6–7 – “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one…”

  • Paul skips the usual thanksgiving and goes straight into rebuke.
  • He defends his calling and gospel as divine in origin.
  • Rebukes them for deserting grace.

Commentary Insight:

The gospel is not up for negotiation. Grace + anything = no longer grace.

Chapter 2 – Justified by Faith, Not Law

Galatians 2:16 – “Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ…”
Galatians 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me…”

  • Paul recounts confronting Peter for hypocrisy.
  • Declares justification is by faith alone.
  • One of the most powerful identity verses in all Scripture.

Commentary Insight:

Even apostles aren’t above correction if they distort the gospel.

Chapter 3 – Children of Promise, Not Law

Galatians 3:24–25 – “So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came… but now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.”

  • Paul argues from Scripture and redemptive history.
  • Abraham’s promise precedes the Law and is by faith.
  • Believers are sons and daughters of God.

Commentary Insight:

You’re not just forgiven—you’ve been adopted.

Chapter 4 – Heirs, Not Slaves

Galatians 4:7 – “So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”

  • Uses the story of Ishmael and Isaac to show freedom vs. bondage.
  • Warns against returning to spiritual slavery.
  • Paul expresses anguish over their regression.

Commentary Insight:

To return to law-keeping is to reject your inheritance.

Chapter 5 – Freedom Through the Spirit

Galatians 5:1 – “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”
Galatians 5:22–23 – “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”

  • Warns against both legalism and license.
  • Urges them to walk by the Spirit, not gratify the flesh.
  • Gives the iconic list contrasting flesh vs. Spirit.

Commentary Insight:

Freedom isn’t doing whatever you want—it’s being led by the Spirit into Christlike character.

Chapter 6 – Sowing and Reaping

Galatians 6:9 – “Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
Galatians 6:15 – “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.”

  • Encourages mutual accountability and burden-bearing.
  • Warns that what you sow, you will reap—spirit or flesh.
  • Paul closes with his own signature and a powerful reminder of what matters most: being a new creation.

Commentary Insight:

Faithfulness over flash. Grace over grind. Spirit over show.

🪧 Core Themes in Galatians

  • Grace Alone: No religious system can add to what Jesus already finished.
  • True Freedom: Found only in walking by the Spirit.
  • Spiritual Identity: Sons, not slaves; heirs, not outsiders.
  • New Creation: The gospel doesn’t clean you up—it makes you new.

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