A Biblical Theology of Galatians
1. The Context of Galatians
The letter to the Galatians arises from a pastoral crisis. Paul’s Gentile converts were being told they must submit to the Mosaic covenant through circumcision in order to belong fully to the people of God (Gal. 2:3; 5:2–6). The issue was not a minor disagreement but a question of identity: Who truly belongs to the covenant community? Paul confronts this distortion by grounding his response in the Gospel.
The letter’s introduction (1:1–5) already sets the theological stage. Humanity was captive to “this present evil age,” but Christ gave himself for sins to deliver his people. God raised him from the dead, establishing the eschatological shift from the old age to the new. Grace and peace flow from God the Father through Jesus Christ. Paul’s apostleship, given by divine commission, anchors the authority of the message.
2. The Foundations of the Gospel
Galatians reveals the Gospel as more than personal forgiveness—it is the announcement of the age to come. The letter frames salvation in apocalyptic terms: Christ’s death and resurrection are the turning point of history. Key foundations include:
Sin and deliverance – Humanity was enslaved to sin and spiritual powers (1:4; 4:3).
Christ as Messiah and Lord – His crucifixion and resurrection usher in the new creation (2:20; 6:15).
God the Father – He sent the Son, raised him from the dead, and offers redemption through him (1:1; 4:4–5).
Paul’s commission – Rooted in God’s will, not human approval (1:10–12).
The Gospel is therefore cosmic, not merely individual. It addresses the world order, confronting the powers of “this evil age” with the new reign of Christ.
3. The Eschatological Transformation
Galatians emphasizes the clash between the old age and the new. Paul contrasts life before Christ and life after Christ’s coming in sharp dualisms:
Before: slavery to the elements of the world (4:3)
After: redemption as God’s children (4:4–7)
Before: under law (3:23)
After: justified by faith (3:25)
Before: walking in the flesh (5:19–21)
After: walking by the Spirit (5:22–25)
This apocalyptic vision is not abstract. It means the former world order has ended with the crucifixion of Christ (6:14). In the present time, believers live in the overlap of ages, already tasting the Spirit and new creation (5:5–6).
4. The Christ-Centered Gospel
The letter’s theology centers on Jesus Christ. His cross is the decisive act of obedience (3:13; 2:20). His resurrection inaugurates the new creation (6:15). By union with Christ, believers share in his death and life, receiving justification, adoption, and the Spirit.
Christ’s work is both substitutionary and transformative:
He bore the curse of the law to redeem us (3:13).
He poured out the Spirit of sonship (4:6).
He reconstituted the people of God, making Jews and Gentiles one family (3:28–29).
Thus, the Gospel is not merely about personal salvation but about the creation of a new community, the church, as the Israel of God (6:16).
5. The Role of Paul in God’s Mission
Paul defends his apostleship because the authority of the Gospel is at stake. He is not self-appointed; God set him apart before birth, revealed Christ to him, and sent him to the Gentiles (1:15–16). His life reflects the same apocalyptic structure as his theology: two eras, divided by the revelation of Christ.
Paul’s ministry parallels that of Peter—entrusted with Gentiles as Peter with Jews (2:7–9). Yet his role is more than missionary strategy. Paul is a prophetic figure, bearing unique responsibility to interpret the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection for the nations.
6. The Law and the Promise
One of the sharpest issues in Galatians is the role of the law. For Paul, the law belonged to the old age, given for a limited purpose until Christ came (3:19–25). It could not justify or impart life. Instead, it exposed sin and pointed forward to the promise.
Key contrasts:
Law – temporary, tied to Israel’s exile and curse (3:10, 13; 4:25).
Promise – permanent, given to Abraham and fulfilled in Christ (3:16–18).
Therefore, reliance on “works of the law” means returning to slavery. The Gospel displaces the law as the defining marker of God’s people. Now, justification and Spirit-gifted life are through faith in Christ alone.
7. The Faith of Christ and the Faith of Believers
Galatians raises the debated phrase pistis Christou. Is justification grounded in Christ’s faithfulness or in human faith in Christ? Paul may intend both dimensions:
Christ’s faithfulness – His obedient death secures redemption (2:16; 3:22).
Believers’ faith – Trust in him unites them to his benefits (2:16; 3:26).
Either way, salvation is by grace through Christ’s self-giving, not by human effort. Believers live by faith in the Son of God, who loved them and gave himself for them (2:20).
8. The Israel of God
Paul envisions the church as the fulfillment of God’s promises to Israel. Galatians calls the church:
Children of Abraham (3:7, 29)
Children of God (4:5–7)
Recipients of the Spirit promised to Israel (4:6; cf. Ezek. 36:27)
The climactic title is “the Israel of God” (6:16). Here Paul identifies the church—Jew and Gentile together—as God’s eschatological people. This aligns with Isaiah’s promise that the nations would be blessed in Abraham’s seed (Isa. 49:6; Gal. 3:8).
9. The Life of Freedom in the Spirit
Galatians climaxes with a vision of Spirit-filled freedom. “For freedom Christ has set us free” (5:1). Yet freedom is not license. It expresses itself in love and service (5:13).
Paul contrasts the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit (5:19–23). The flesh represents life according to the old age; the Spirit manifests the power of the new. The “law of Christ” is fulfilled not by external rules but by Spirit-shaped character expressed in love (6:2).
Thus, Christian freedom is the freedom to walk in the Spirit, embodying the Gospel in daily life.
10. The Theology of Galatians as Biblical Theology
Galatians integrates the whole Bible’s story into its vision. The Gospel fulfills the promise to Abraham, the law’s temporary role, and Israel’s prophetic hopes. The shift from “this age” to “the age to come” has already occurred in Christ’s death and resurrection. The church now embodies God’s restored people, justified by faith and indwelt by the Spirit.
The theology of Galatians is, therefore, the theology of the Gospel itself: the reign of Christ breaking into history, creating a new humanity, and directing believers to live in the Spirit as signs of the coming kingdom.
