More about Galatians

Does the Epistle of James contradict Paul's teachings about Faith and Works of the Law? This Green Room class from James 2:14-2:26 clears up the confusion and reconciles the apostles. This class has implicatons for how we read and understand Galatians, Romans, and Paul's theology. Also includes an interesting discussion on Rahab of Jericho. Download the handout from the 2011 class below.

The Whole Torah in a Single Word

The apostle Paul says the whole Torah is contained in a single word: love your neighbor as yourself. Does that mean that we are exempt from the other 612 commandments? This teaching further explores the question, "Which commandments of the Torah apply to Gentile disciples of Yeshua?", and it continues the discussion from the teaching titled "When You're Strange."

Faith Versus Works

Have you ever heard of faith versus works? The theological argument about whether God saves a person by grace alone or if a person's obedience and good works are a necessary part of the equation is old as the New Testament itself. This teaching offers a resolution of the classic faith-versus-works debate through exploring Paul's theology of justification for the circumcised and the uncircumcised.

Order the book, Holy Epistle to the Galatians.

Bewitched

Have you been "bewitched" by legalism, as Paul says: "O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you" (Galatians 3:1)? This teaching offers a look at how Paul seemingly contrasts the Spirit with the Torah in first verses of Galatians 3.

Through the Law I Died to the Law

Paul says, "Through the Law I Died to the Law." What is that supposed to mean? Take a look at the mystical implications of Paul's death to the law as a death to relying on Jewish identity for salvation.

Works of the Law

Evangelicals often point out that we are saved by grace, not by works, but most people do not have a clear idea of what the Bible means when speaking of the "works of the law." This teaching from Galatians offers an exploration of the terms "justification," "works of the law," and "faith in Jesus Christ" as employed in the Pauline Epistles.

The Antioch Incident

Did Paul really rebuke Peter "to his face"? In Galatians 2:11-14, Paul recounts how Peter, on his visit to Antioch, separated from the God-fearing Gentile believers and incurred Paul's sound rebuke. Get the story behind the story.

The Big Meeting

Paul complains that "false brothers secretly brought in ... slipped in to spy out our freedom ... so that they might bring us into slavery" (Galatians 2:4). Who are these false brothers? In what sense are they false? In what sense had they been secretly brought in? What was the freedom in Messiah on which they were spying? These and more questions are answered as Paul brings Titus to a meeting with three top-ranking apostles to seek an endorsement for his gospel to the Gentiles.

Running the Race in Vain

Was Paul a Lone Ranger and John Wayne type of apostle who heard directly from God, or did he honor higher authorities? In this episode, Paul goes up to Jerusalem to submit his gospel of Gentile inclusion to the authority of the apostles, fearing that he may have been running his race in vain.

"I set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure that I was not running or had run in vain." (Galatians 2:2)

Famine Relief for Jerusalem

Does Galatians 2 contain an alternate version of events at the Acts 15 Jerusalem Council. Many scholars think so, but a careful look at the story in the book of Acts suggests otherwise. After an absense of more than a decade, Paul journeys to jerusalem in the company of Barnabas and Titus with a collection for famine relief.