Liberated- Part 3

Introduction- Galatians 1:11-24

Last time we were here in the book of Galatians we considered Paul’s primary purpose in writing to the churches of Galatia.

This was to confront false teaching which had gained a foothold among them—specifically a false gospel which blended grace and the works of the law for salvation.

Paul harshly condemns those who were preaching “another gospel” and then boldly declares that what they preach is no gospel at all for there is but one true gospel.

This gospel is that which the churches of Galatia had initially received through the ministry of Paul and his co-laborers—the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and salvation by grace through faith in Him.

The passage before us today is a continuation of this theme wherein Paul deals with the origin of the gospel which he preached and reminds them of the change that it had produced in him.

This passage is meant to show that the gospel which Paul preached was not his own but that which he had personally received from the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Origin of the Gospel (Vs. 11-12)

This passage opens with affirmation from the Apostle Paul of the origin of the gospel which he preached to the churches of Galatia.

The word certify here means to make known and is meant to be an attestation by Paul to the truth of what he has stated.

Paul wanted them to know that the gospel which he had preached to them was not “after man”—meaning it was not invented by men.

The gospel which Paul had preached to them was not something which originated in the minds of men.

He further expresses to them the fact that he had not received it of man nor had it been taught to him by men.

Again this would lead us to conclude that somehow a belief that Paul had received the gospel from men had gained traction among the believers in the churches of Galatia.

This was likely the product of the false teachers’ influence among them and their efforts to cast doubt upon Paul’s ministry to advance their own agenda.

Paul insists—and will provide evidence—that the gospel which he preached came not from man but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

What Paul had preached to the Galatians was what had been personally revealed to him by the Lord Jesus.

This is a point of emphasis for Paul because the false “gospel” which was now being preached among the Galatians was not from Jesus Christ and was instead invented by men.

This is how Paul intends to distinguish the true gospel from any other—by the fact that it originated with Jesus Christ and not in the minds of men.

The Product of the Gospel (Vs. 13-16)

Next Paul reminds the Galatians of his former life and of the impact which the gospel he preached had made upon him.

Paul’s former life was characterized by intense persecution of the church of God and by zealous adherence to the Jewish religious system.

Paul was basically a rising star in Judaism known for his religious zeal and for his hatred and persecution of those identified with Jesus Christ.

Paul surpassed the majority of his peers in religious devotion and activity—laboring energetically to eliminate what he perceived to be the enemies of Judaism.

Yet suddenly as he traveled on the road to Damascus for the purpose of persecuting believers in Christ, everything changed.

At this particular moment in time he had an encounter with Jesus Christ which now looking back he recognizes as an encounter ordained by God.

Paul expresses to the Galatians how that God had separated him from his mother’s womb and had called him by His grace not only to salvation but to service in His good timing.

There was no human explanation for what Paul experienced there on the road to Damascus neither was there any human explanation for the drastic and sudden change which took place in his life following this experience.

God chose in this moment to reveal His Son in Paul—this was the moment that Paul was gloriously converted to Christ—now finally recognizing Jesus to be all that He claimed to be.

Paul also speaks to the fact that it was God who had called him to preach Christ among the heathen upon his conversion.

No man was involved in Paul’s conversion or call to ministry—it was purely the product of God’s working in Paul’s life.

The point which Paul is making here is that there was no one who was more zealous for Judaism than he, thus if anyone were to have a desire to blend the grace of Christ with the works of the law it would be someone like Paul and yet he refused to blend the two because he understood this would be to pervert the gospel of Christ.

This look back over Paul’s past also serves as a reminder of the power of the gospel transforming a zealous persecutor of the Christian faith instantly into a bold preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This shows that the gospel which Paul received and which he preached unto them is the true gospel and needs no addition, and it shows that anything which would differ from it is nothing more than a perversion of it.

Paul’s own life and ministry serves as a powerful testimony to the legitimacy of the gospel which he had preached to the churches of Galatia.

Separated from Man’s Influence (Vs. 16b-24)

Paul then indicates that, upon his reception of the gospel, he did not confer (consult/take counsel from) flesh and blood.

After Paul’s initial encounter with Christ he did not do what one might have expected him to do, rather than going to Jerusalem and consulting men for deeper understanding of his newfound faith he withdrew himself to Arabia, a place where he would find no great Christian influences.

This was not according to Paul’s choosing but was according to God’s design—there Paul would receive revelation from God rather than being taught by men.

Paul would learn from God rather than being influenced by men—he would be uniquely equipped by God for the task which God had called him to undertake—proclaiming the gospel among the Gentiles.

There is a valuable lesson for all believers here in that we must be careful that the influence of men does not supplant the influence of God in the formation of our beliefs and the in the shaping of our ministry.

It was not until three years later that Paul finally made his way to Jerusalem, and only then would he finally become acquainted with some of the other apostles.

Paul would spend only fifteen days in Jerusalem and would only have the opportunity to interact with two others who were called apostles—Peter and the Lord’s brother James.

The amazing truth is that Paul had developed independently from the church at Jerusalem and yet his doctrine was in perfect alignment with theirs because it came from God and both he and the other apostles had received it from Him.

Paul then attests to the truth of what he has said even calling God as a witness to the fact that he has not lied to them.

He speaks of the fact that he was essentially unknown the the churches of Judea—they had heard only of the miraculous transformation which had taken place in his life.

They glorified God for taking one who was formerly one of their greatest foes and making him now one of their greatest allies in the furtherance of the gospel.

In then end Paul had little contact with the churches of Judea and only minimal contact with the other apostles—his life and ministry was the product of God’s working in Him, not the product of man’s influence over him.

The same could not be said of the false teachers which were now exerting influence in the churches of Galatia.

These men were in fact the direct product of man’s influence and were not acting in alignment with the will of God but contrary to it.

Conclusion

The reason that Paul is so adamant that his ministry has developed under the guidance of God and not of men is to show that the gospel which he had preached to the Galatians was not of men but of God.

In this section of the epistle, his intent is clearly to show that it is God who has led him to preach as he did and that the content of his preaching is not from men but from God.

The point which he now makes to the believers in the churches of Galatia is that they have now yielded themselves to those who are speaking on behalf of men and not on behalf of God.

He has reminded them of the origins of the message he preached among them as well as the change which that message had produced in his own life.

His desire is to call them back to God and to truth of the gospel of Christ.