Letters to the Church

In  Galatians , Paul addresses a growing danger. Certain “ men from Jerusalem ” claimed that Gentiles must keep the deeds of the Mosaic Law to “ complete ” their faith, or at least, some of its statutes and rites. They were “ compelling Gentiles to Judaize ” by adopting circumcision, calendrical observances, and perhaps the Levitical dietary restrictions.

After a curt introduction, Paul began his  Letter to the Galatians  with a stern warning and a sharp rebuke. What some members of the congregation were contemplating would replace Jesus with a false messiah and a counterfeit gospel. Abandoning the “ faith of Jesus Christ ” by engaging in circumcision and other “ works of the law ” for justification before God would lead inevitably to being severed from Christ. Thus, the seriousness of his language.

Paul claimed that the source of his apostleship was the same God who raised His Son from “ among dead ones ” (literal rendering). This same Messiah died and was raised from the dead to “ deliver us from this evil age .” In  Galatians , The Apostle was responding to certain “ men from Jerusalem ” who were operating in the Assembly as if the old era was still in effect, insisting that Gentiles must be circumcised and keep the Jewish calendar, and challenging Paul’s Apostolic authority and credentials.

According to Paul, there is “ now no condemnation ” for anyone who is “ in Christ Jesus .” This happy condition exists because the “ law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and of death .” Moreover, he links our salvation to the inheritance of Christ and the coming redemption of the creation. Adam’s transgression condemned the entire universe to bondage and death, not just humanity. However, “ much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus, abound to the many .”

Central to the biblical doctrine of salvation is the promise of redemption. God will not abandon what He first created. The term signifies the recovery of that which was lost. The universe has been enslaved by sin and condemned to decay and death. All living creatures die eventually. However, in the redemptive plans of the Creator, the end state of the things and creatures redeemed by Him will be vastly superior to their original state. This idea is epitomized especially in the bodily resurrection of the righteous.

If the Thessalonians continue to emulate the apostolic example, they will receive the Crown of Glory when Jesus arrives from Heaven . Opposition from the local synagogue had compelled Paul to leave Thessalonica prematurely. Though initially, some members of that group had welcomed his message, they turned against him once the Gentiles began to embrace the Gospel. Even after he left the city, some synagogue leaders pursued Paul when he preached the Gospel elsewhere in Macedonia.