Welcome to Anchored by Truth brought to you by Crystal Sea Books. In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” The goal of Anchored by Truth is to encourage everyone to grow in the Christian faith by anchoring themselves to the secure truth found in the inspired, inerrant, and infallible word of God.

Script:

From Paul, whose call to be an apostle did not come from human beings … but from Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from death. All … here join me in sending greetings to the churches of Galatia … I am surprised at you! In no time at all you are deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ, and are accepting another gospel.

Galatians, chapter 1, verses 1, 2, & 6, Good News Translation

********

VK: Hello! I’m Victoria K. Welcome to Anchored by Truth brought to you by Crystal Sea Books. We’re grateful to be with you today. We are in the midst of a series on Anchored by Truth that we are calling “Paul’s Places.” By “Paul,” of course, we’re referring to the Apostle Paul who wrote at least 13 of the books out of the 27 books that comprise the New Testament. We say “at least 13” because some Bible commentators believe Paul also wrote the book of Hebrews but we cannot be certain about that. As part of his ministry Paul wrote a number of letters to various churches. Many of those letters have been preserved in the books of the New Testament. And in this “Paul’s Places” series we are taking a look at Paul’s letters to the churches that are identified in our Bibles by geographic names. These include letters Paul sent to the churches in Rome and Corinth and we have already covered those letters. Today we’re going to look at Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia. In the studio today we have RD Fierro, an author and the founder of Crystal Sea Books. RD, why don’t you remind us of the reason we wanted to do this Paul’s Places series?

RD: Well, I’d like to start by thanking our listeners for joining us here today. We know that the people who join us on Anchored by Truth are people who genuinely want to understand their Bibles better and the content of their Christian faith better. So, one question that people who love the Bible often encounter is how they can be sure that the Bible is the word of God. And we cite four lines of evidence that the Bible can be trusted: reliable history, remarkable unity, fulfilled prophecy, and redeemed destinies. Reliable history means that for those portions of human history on which the Bible reports the Bible’s reports can be trusted. The Bible’s history contains some descriptions of remarkable events.

VK: And certainly the most remarkable event the Bible describes is the most remarkable event in all of human history – the resurrection of Jesus.

RD: Right. It would be impossible for anyone today to personally testify that they were a witness to the resurrection. So, we have to base our trust in the historicity of the resurrection in the documents of the New Testament because it is those documents that bring us the clearest description of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Well, one way we can elevate our confidence in the trustworthiness of those reports is to see how the New Testament documents stack up with what we know about history from other sources such as what extra-Biblical sources report about the geography and history of the places named in the Bible.

VK: We often note on Anchored by Truth that the Bible is a book that is firmly rooted in time and place. Just about every good Bible contains maps of some sort. We can make maps about the places contained in the Bible because those places were real and they are well known even outside the Bible. And just like the cities and states of today the places reported about in the Bible had their own culture, concerns, and distinguishing characteristics. And, if we match up what the Bible says about those places with what is known from secular history, we always see that the Bible’s content is consistent with what else we know. For instance, it was well known throughout the Roman Empire that the city of Corinth was famous for the amount of sexual immorality that was present within the city. So, it makes perfect sense that in 1 Corinthians the Apostle Paul spent more time talking about how to deal with sexual temptation than in any of the other letters he wrote.

RD: Yes. We cannot directly test the Bible’s report of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. But we can test the reliability of the gospel writers’ reports about many other matters. When the gospel writers report that Jesus appeared before the Roman governor Pontus Pilate we can go to archeological findings and determine with certainty that Pontus Pilate was in fact the Roman authority in Israel during the time of Jesus’ ministry. When the gospel writers talk about a sudden storm coming up on the Sea of Galilee we can look at the geography of that part of Israel and see whether that makes sense.

VK: Which it does. The Sea of Galilee's location makes it subject to sudden and violent storms as the wind comes over the eastern mountains and drops suddenly onto the sea. Storms are especially likely when an east wind blows cool air over the warm air that covers the sea. The cold air being heavier drops as the warm air rises. This can produce some tempestuous winds. Coupled with the fact that the Sea is fairly shallow where the wind is hitting the surface, this sudden change can produce surprisingly furious storms in a short time, as it did in Jesus' day

RD: Right. So, when it comes to the so-called “Pauline epistles,” Paul’s letters to churches or individuals, we can look to see whether the character of the letter matches the character of the place. And the example you provided about 1 Corinthians is just one example of how this match takes places throughout Paul’s letters. But it also important to see whether there is a match between the concerns Paul expresses in his letters and what we know about the development of the early church during the 1st century AD. And Galatians is a particularly striking example of how that is true.

VK: In what way?

RD: Well, let’s start out by noting that unlike the letters to the Romans, Corinthians, Ephesians, etc., the letter to the Galatians was not addressed to a particular church in a particular city. It is a letter addressed to many churches spread throughout a region.

VK: Galatia was a large Roman province in Asia Minor which is modern day Turkey. During the 1st century AD it was a major province of the Roman Empire. It was about 200 miles in its greatest extent from east to west, and varied in width from 12 to 150 miles. It was one of the largest provinces of Asia Minor. Galatia in Paul’s day was a region roughly equivalent to the State of New Jersey. But its boundaries varied at different times as circumstances dictated. It didn’t have any natural boundary, except on the north. So, it limits varied based on conquests, or by the will of the Roman emperor.

RD: Yes. In Paul’s day Galatia had the Roman province of Pontus on its east, Bithynia and Paphlagonia on its north, Cappadocia and Phrygia on the south, and Phrygia on the west. So, one thing let’s note right up front is that there is no mention at all of Galatia in the Old Testament but it appears in 4 of the New Testament books in addition to the book we call Galatians.

VK: And that makes perfect sense. At the time the last few books of the Old Testament were written in the mid to late 400’s BC, the Persian Empire was in charge in the Mideast including what would be modern day Turkey where Galatia was located. The name “Galatia” began to be used after 278-277 B.C., about 150 years later. The name Galatia came into use when a large body of migrating Gauls (Galatai in Greek) crossed over from Europe and conquered a big part of Western Asia Minor. Gaul as most listeners will know was an ancient name for the region we now call France.

RD: Right. After the Gauls conquered much of what we call Turkey they were gradually confined to a district, and boundaries were fixed for them after 232 B.C. This originated an the independent state of Galatia, that had three primary three city-centers, Pessinus, Ankyra and Tavia. Since the conquering Gauls had brought their wives and families with them, Galatia continued to be a distinct Gaulish race and ethnic group. This would have been impossible if they had come as simple warriors who took wives from the conquered inhabitants. Galatia remained an independent state until its last king gave it over to the Romans and it became a Roman province.

VK: So, it’s important to note that even though the name Galatia has long since passed into history in the Apostle Paul’s day Galatia was a well-known region. When Paul, Peter, and Luke mentioned Galatia in the books they wrote people of their day knew exactly what they were talking about. And people in their day would have known that Galatia had a distinct identity so it would have made sense for Paul to address a letter to the Galatians even though it was a region not a single city.

RD: Right. So, remember the purpose of this “Paul’s Places” series is to see whether the content of the letters Paul wrote makes sense when it comes to what we know about the geography and culture of the people to which Paul addressed his letter. So, as you mentioned one important point is that readers of a letter addressed to the “churches in Galatia” would have known who was intended. A second point is note that we know from the book of Acts that Paul traveled through the region of Galatia during all three of his so-called missionary journeys. Acts 16:6 and 18:3 both specifically mention Paul spending time in Galatia and Phrygia.

VK: It also makes perfect sense that Luke, who wrote the book of Acts, would mention Galatia and Phrygia together. Phrygia was the region immediately south and west of Galatia. [13:30] Any traveler going from Israel and Syria to the west would travel through both regions on the way to Greece which Paul visited on his second and third missionary journeys. We should also, note, however that Paul was in Galatia on his first missionary journey as well but only in the extreme southern portion of it.

RD: Yes. So, because Paul was in Galatia on all three of his missionary journeys there is some disagreement among scholars as to when Paul wrote the book we call Galatians. Some scholars think he wrote it early in his ministry career and date the letter to around 49 AD right after his first missionary journey. Others think he wrote is during the latter part of his third missionary journey and date the letter around 55 or 56 AD. Those who date it later note that on his 1st and 2nd missionary journeys Paul remained in the southern part of Galatia whereas in his 3rd missionary journey he seems to have gone farther north. So, it would make sense that after going through some territory he had either not visited, or spent very little time in, he would write a letter to a group who still identified themselves ethnically as “Galatians.”

VK: The latter dating for the epistle to the Galatians makes sense from another standpoint. In Galatians, chapter 1, verses 18 and 19 Paul says “Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother.” When Paul says “then after three years” he appears to mean after his conversion. In Galatians, chapter 2, verse 1, Paul also wrote [15] “Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also.” Those verses are from the New International Version. If Paul was referring to his first trip to see the Apostles in chapter 2, then that is a total of 17 years Paul is referring to. The best scholarship indicates that Jesus died in 33 AD and Paul was obviously not converted until after that. So, let’s say Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus in 34 AD, then it would have been at least in the early 50’s AD before Paul wrote Galatians.

RD: Yes. So, all this validates the authenticity of the epistle to the Galatians as a letter the Apostle Paul wrote to a distinct group of believing churches in the northern part of modern day Turkey. And the content of the letter continues to reinforce this point. The main purpose that Paul wrote Galatians was to refute the idea that Gentiles had to adopt Jewish customs and practices in order to become Christians. This was an idea that circulated fairly widely during the 1st century AD and it was specifically advocated by a group of religious agitators who said circumcision was a required part of becoming a Christian. So, for anyone who understands the gospel this was a very serious problem.

VK: The gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins. We often say that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. This is made very clear from Ephesians, chapter 2, verses 8 and 9. Those verses say, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” That’s also from the NIV.

RD: Yes. The agitators were trying to add works to faith for salvation to be possible. At a minimum they wanted circumcision to be part of the requirements for salvation but there were also some who wanted to add the Jewish dietary laws as mandatory requirements as well. And the Apostle Paul who had been saved directly by Jesus himself was having none of it.

VK: That’s something we heard in our opening scripture from Galatians, chapter 1, verse 1. In that verse Paul said, “From Paul, whose call to be an apostle did not come from human beings … but from Jesus Christ and God the Father.” Paul was emphatic that his call to be an apostle had come directly from Jesus and the Father. Paul was emphasizing right at the start of his letter to the Galatians that he had received his ministry directly from the hands of the Father and the Son. This meant that Paul absolutely knew what it took to be saved. So, any threat to the idea of grace alone by faith alone in Christ alone was not a secondary matter. It was a threat to the heart of the gospel.

RD: Exactly right. The agitators who had been troubling the Galatians were posing a serious threat to the Galatians’ understanding of their faith. So, Paul took on this serious challenge exactly the way you would expect – forcefully and directly. Paul used some of the most forceful language you find in any of his epistles in chapter 3 of Galatians.

VK: Verses 1 through 3 of chapter 3 say, “You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?” That’s from the New International Version. But listen to how the Amplified Bible puts verse 1: “O you foolish and thoughtless and superficial Galatians, who has bewitched you [that you would act like this], to whom—right before your very eyes—Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified [in the gospel message].” I think it’s fair to label that language as being direct and forceful.

RD: Right. So, again, all this points to the reliability of the letter. Paul was trying to correct a serious error that had entered the churches in Galatia. So, Paul didn’t try to sweet talk his audience out of their mistake. He wasn’t, as the old timers used to say “pussyfooting around.” The agitators had seriously compromised the gospel for the Galatians and Paul intended to correct that error in a way no one would misunderstand.

VK: At this point we need to remind everyone that at the time Paul wrote Galatians, or any of his letters for that matter, the Christian church was in its infancy. This is long before any of the doctrinal or creedal statements had been formulated – long before any of the famous church councils had been held where the theologians hashed out such basic doctrines as the deity of Christ and the dual nature of Jesus. In coming to grips with what the life, death, and resurrection of Christ meant the early believers in the 1st century church had the oral messages being brought by the apostles and their first disciples but they had very limited written instructions. The Jewish converts to Christianity had the Old Testament that they could look to but probably the vast majority of the Gentile converts had limited, if any, familiarity with the Jewish scriptures. In other words, there may have been legitimate reasons that some of these questions about circumcision and dietary restrictions were being asked – but that didn’t make them less threatening to the heart of the gospel.

RD: Exactly. There were many questions circulating in the early church – some were legitimate and some were not. Some were primary to the faith and some were not. So, as we started out saying in this episode one of the hallmarks of the authenticity of the letters that Paul wrote to the churches is the fact that he had to address questions by the early believers that have been settled now. As church history progressed the church did hold those famous councils, doctrinal statements were developed and distributed, and eventually there were schools and organizations that taught and conveyed the determinations that had been made. But all of that was decades, and in some cases centuries, ahead of the church when Paul wrote Galatians.

VK: [23] So, from a human standpoint, we see that the issues Paul was discussing in the letter to the Galatians make perfect sense for the stage of development of the church at that time. This is solid evidence that Galatians was written during the mid 1st century AD. By the time the 2nd century AD rolled around some of these early controversies were starting to be settled and frankly the church as a body was moving onto other issues from whether Gentile converts had to be circumcised or follow Jewish dietary laws. So, what we can see clearly from the content of Galatians is that it addressed issues that were germane during the first decades of Christianity but not much later. Paul’s letter to the Galatians also addressed the very serious problem that agitators were trying to subvert the gospel by adding works as a necessary component of salvation. This was a serious problem and Paul’s language in forcefully rebutting it was consistent with the seriousness of the issue. And we can see that it made for Paul to address a letter to churches in Galatia because the ethnic distinction of many parts of Galatia meant that they had a well-known, and distinguishable identity. Is there anything else that you would like to point out as evidence within the book of Galatians that provides evidence of its authenticity?

RD: Well, we don’t’ have much time but let’s quickly go over two more points. First, as we mentioned Galatians was addressed to multiple church bodies not just one single church. As such it’s not strange to find out that Paul did not mention any individual believer by name which he often did when writing to a particular church. There are no greetings or salutations where Paul singles out anyone for commendations or personal greetings. This makes perfect sense where Paul knows he is going to have to send so strong a rebuke that he going to call his recipients “foolish.” Paul was a pastor. He praised people very publically but was very careful with his correction. Second, Paul undertook a strong defense of himself and his ministry in Galatians because the agitators were apparently questioning his authority to put pressure on the Galatians. This pressure was in effect to make the Galatians appear more “Jewish.”

VK: That would also make sense when we remember that Judaism was one of the officially recognized religions within the Roman Empire – but Christianity was not. So, some of the people probably thought that if they appeared more Jewish it would relieve some of the pressure and antagonism that was starting to be directed at Christians by the Roman authorities.

RD: Exactly. As we’ve mentioned before anyone who refused to worship the Roman Emperor – the Caesar – was considered to be guilty of sedition unless that person was worshipping another recognized religion. The Judaism was recognized but Christianity’s status was uncertain. In some places they saw Christianity as a sect within Judaism but in many places they did not. Ultimately, the early church went through a lengthy period of severe persecution because Christianity was deemed to be a new and threatening religion. The early Christians could not declare that Caesar was lord because they, and we, have only one Lord and master, Jesus Christ.

VK: All that fits together perfectly in demonstrating that Galatians was an authentic letter written by the Apostle Paul in the mid 1st century AD. The content of the letter is consistent with the issues of the day and Paul’s tone in rebutting a serious attack on the heart of the gospel was entirely reasonable.

RD: Right. Many people who have limited familiarity with the Bible have this misimpression that the Bible – because it contains reports of some supernatural events such as the appearance of angels and the resurrection of Jesus – must be filled with legends that make no sense in the real world. But nothing could be further from the truth and the Pauline epistles demonstrate they were real letters to real people about real issues confronting those people. In addressing those issues Paul would talk about the supernatural component of the Christian faith because Christians firmly believe in heaven, angels, Christ’s ascension, and a host of other supernatural things. But the reason we can have confidence that the supernatural realm is real is because the Bible is a book firmly grounded in space and time and the Bible writers simply wrote about supernatural events as truthfully as they did the issues that we can verify through our normal senses.

VK: 20 or 30 years ago there was far less reason for the need for a “Paul’s Places” series. The information we’re covering was still good information but in those days people accepted the Bible as being true even people who didn’t specifically consider themselves Christians. But today much of that has changed so we have to be prepared to carefully and reasonably demonstrate that the Bible fulfills all the attributes of both being true and being God’s word. Well, as we always do let’s close with prayer. Today let’s listen to a prayer for our first responders – the men and women who rush toward danger when most of us trying to escape it. Anyone who is willing to hazard their own safety for the welfare of others certainly needs the superintending protection that can only come from an Almighty God.

VK: Before we close we’d like to remind our audience that a lot of our radio episodes are linked together in series of topics so if they missed any episodes in this series or if they just want to hear one again, all of these episodes are available on your favorite podcast app. To find them just search on “Anchored by Truth by Crystal Sea Books.”

If you’d like to hear more, try out crystalseabooks.com where “We’re not perfect but our Boss is!” (Opening Bible Quote from the Good News Translation)

Galatians, chapter 1, verses 1, 2, & 6, Good News Translation

Galatians 1 Barnes' Notes (biblehub.com)