I don’t claim to have the perfect way to study Scripture nor do I believe that I have it all figured out. In fact, ever since getting my bachelor’s in Biblical Exposition I feel even less confident in my knowledge of the Bible than I did before. There’s so much in this thing.

With that being said, in this Galatians study, I’m going to be walking through it section by section. In the last post, I covered the background and context of the letter to the Galatians as well as covering the greeting verse by verse, Galatians 1:1–5. The sections I follow are in the ESV Study Bible and by “section” I mean each portion that is separated by headings.

What I’m diving into today is Galatians 1:6–10 which has a heading of “No Other Gospel.” These headings were inserted after Paul wrote the letter, so they weren’t there in the original text. They simply serve as a way to separate like portions. If you haven’t read the first post, and the first portion of this Scripture, yet, do so before diving into this one. I’m going to write as if you have, so you’ll be missing out on context without doing so.

Paul’s Astonishment in Galatians 1:6

This section begins with Paul saying that he was “astonished” that they “so quickly [are] deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel” (Gal. 1:6). It’s hard to ignore the intensity of the language that Paul used.

The original word is “θαυμάζω,” pronounced “thaumazō” and it means “to wonder, to be amazed, to marvel.” It is the same word used in Matthew 21:20 when the disciples witnessed the fig tree withering after being cursed: “When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, ‘How did the fig tree wither at once?’” The word “marveled” comes from the same word θαυμάζω.[1]

Word Study Breakdown

First, it’s fun to geek out and see the connections between words in Scripture. Secondly, this shows the intensity of the emotion that Paul is evoking. Imagine how crazy it must have been to watch Jesus curse a tree and immediately see it withering. It would have blown your mind. It’s with that same energy that Paul’s mind is blown at the audacity they had to so quickly question the gospel. This is because “it was a remarkably short time between Paul’s first proclamation to the Galatians and their present disarray.”[2]

The Bible Knowledge Commentary makes a very interesting point. “Conspicuous by its absence is Paul’s usual expression of thanksgiving to God for his readers. Instead he vented his astonishment and anger over the Galatians’ defection. When compared with the opening of 1 Corinthians this is even more striking, for despite the Corinthians’ deep moral defection Paul nonetheless expressed commendation. But here in the face of theological departure he did not express thanks, thus emphasizing the more serious nature of doctrinal apostasy.”[3]

Why There Is No Other Gospel

It is also important to recognize that the issues being discussed are “not issues over which Christians might legitimately disagree.” It is the truth of the gospel itself that they are calling into question. This is why, in verse 7, Paul clarifies that there is, in fact, only one true gospel.[4]

The gospel is one that doesn’t require works but instead acceptance of Jesus and who He is and what He’s done. The false preachers were trying to “persuade the Galatians that they should require circumcision and obedience to the whole law as a means of justification before God.” I have always found the view that salvation must be earned to be wild. “Paul insisted that a gospel of legalism which adds work to faith is not the same kind of gospel that he preached and by which they were saved. It was actually an attempt to pervert the gospel of Christ.”[5]

To believe that we as humans are even capable of doing something, anything at all, to possibly even come close to somehow earning salvation feels like such arrogance. To think that you could see Jesus on the cross and go “ok, you’ve done that. I’m going to go do this and this and this and then we’ll be even.” Like… what?! That just doesn’t sit right with me.

Faith without Works

I’ve talked before on the verse in James about faith without works being dead so I won’t even get into that here. But Paul is making it clear that there is one gospel and it makes it plain that salvation can never be earned. Our debt was so great it could never have been paid and yet Jesus did it for us simply because He wanted a relationship with us.

I will spend the rest of my life doing all that I can to obey and honor God because of the gift of salvation, because He chased after me when I ran away, because He has done so much for me. The absolute least I can do is use the life He has given me to honor Him. Not because I have to, but because I want to.

Legalism and the Danger of a False Gospel

Paul seemed to have this same outlook. Both he and Barnabas had already provided a warning of the judgment that would come when they preached to the Galatians before. Now here he was, saying it again. “If anybody were preaching a different gospel (which the false teachers were), he would come under God’s eternal judgment. It is not difficult to understand why Paul reacted so strongly, because the Judaizers were impugning the Cross; for if works were necessary for salvation, then the work of Christ was not sufficient.”[6]

To say that more must be done is looking at Jesus right in the face and saying “thanks, but it wasn’t enough. I’ll go and finish what you couldn’t.” Even typing that out felt disgustingly heretical.

I remember, though, a time in the past where I lived like this. Of course I had an understanding that the cross was enough but I sure didn’t act like it. I would go back and forth with God, constantly feeling like I wasn’t good enough and had more work to do in order for Him to truly love me.

Then when I burned out because I couldn’t ever reach a point that felt like enough, spoiler alert, that point doesn’t exist, I gave up and went back to the world. Back and forth like a crazy person yo-yo dieting, saying “this time I’ll really do it!” knowing full well I never would.

It wasn’t until I truly understood what it meant for Jesus to die on the cross for me. It wasn’t just some boring Sunday school lesson for kids but a truth that quite literally saved my life. Now I am so grateful I can’t even put into words how I wish I could properly thank Him.

Galatians 1:7–9 and the Seriousness of Distorting the Gospel

In Galatians 1:7 Paul says that there is no other gospel and the ones that say otherwise “trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” There is no room for doubt as Paul makes plain the severity of the sin of denying the gospel. “The departure was not simply from a system of theology but from God Himself, the One who had called them by the grace of Christ (the dominant theme of the epistle).”[7]

Verse 8 provides very interesting context, saying “but even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” Even if he did come sideways, preaching something untrue, there would be consequences for it. He also made an interesting statement, saying that even if “an angel from heaven” should say something against the gospel they preached, he also should be cursed. The specificity of this verse is incredibly fascinating to think about. This isn’t something of simple philosophy. There were lives on the line. “When the gospel message is corrupted, the way of salvation is confused and people are in danger of being eternally lost.”[8]

Pleasing God, Not Man

In verse 10, Paul lays out two possible goals: “for am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man?” There seemed to be criticism happening that stated that Paul somehow received the gospel that he was preaching from man. “Apparently the Judaizers had charged Paul with teaching freedom from the Law in order to curry the Gentiles’ favor. But the tone of this letter, specifically the harsh language Paul had just used, was hardly calculated to win the approval of men.”[9]

In communicating this, Paul shares two goals that are in no way compatible: “pleasing man, or pleasing God. There is no possibility of combining the two.” In order to please man, one disappoints God. Serving God disappoints man. One cannot have both.[10]

In the second half of this verse, Paul says that if he “were still trying to please man, [he] would not be a servant of Christ.” Paul isn’t attempting to please man. His goal is Christ and nothing else. “Paul does not simply defend himself out of resentment or wounded pride but shows a pastoral concern: to reassure the Galatians that the gospel they received was the authentic one, not a false message delivered by an untrustworthy messenger.”[11]

The Bible Knowledge Commentary points out, rightly so, that “Men-pleasers simply do not hurl anathemas against those who proclaim false gospels. Indeed, if the apostle had wanted to please men, he would have remained a zealous Pharisee and promoter of the Law rather than becoming a servant of Christ.”[12]

Final Reflection on the Gospel

Short story long, there is one gospel. And, in case you need a reminder, I have a whole podcast covering it. Even if you have heard it before, even if you just heard it last Sunday or have heard about it your whole life, you should go listen to that episode. I didn’t realize how much I needed the reminder until God reminded me Himself.

It always seems so simple until we really understand how much we haven’t surrendered, how little we really trust God to love us through it all. I am so grateful that He is so good. The gospel isn’t something that we should ever take for granted. It isn’t something to gloss over or look past. This is actually a really big deal. Imagine how different your life would be if you truly believed that Jesus died for you, that God loved you, that He has epic, incredible plans for you.

Questions for Personal Reflection

How would your life be different? Would you talk differently about yourself and others? How would your day to day life be affected?

These questions seem simple but I have felt the Lord prodding at my heart with them daily. I highly encourage you to pull out a journal and really pray and write about these questions. You may be surprised at what God reveals to you.

Footnotes

[1] William Arndt, Frederick W. Danker, Walter Bauer, and F. Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), s.v. “θαυμάζω”; Matt. 21:20.

[2] Donald K. Campbell, “Galatians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 591.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2243.

[5] Campbell, “Galatians,” 591.

[6] Ibid., 591–592.

[7] Crossway Bibles, ESV Study Bible, 2243.

[8] Ibid., 2244.

[9] Campbell, “Galatians,” 592.

[10] Crossway Bibles, ESV Study Bible, 2244.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Campbell, “Galatians,” 592.

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