Introduction
So then you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. The whole building, being put together by Him, grows into a holy sanctuary in the Lord. You also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.[1]
The gospel of Jesus Christ can never be removed as the foundation and cornerstone of the church. Without the gospel, the forgiveness of sins becomes based on works of the law and of man, which can never satisfy. Without the gospel, there is no basis for the indwelling of the Spirit of God in individual members of the church which is necessary to effect their baptism into Christ’s death through union with Christ. Without the gospel, the promised new creation cannot break into the present day with all of its realities and blessings. In the book of Galatians, Paul affirms that it is the gospel alone, faith in Christ, that effects the provision of the Spirit ushering in the new creation ahead of its time.
Separation from Gentiles by Circumcision Demonstrates a Break with the Gospel
Defining Paul’s Gospel
Paul’s Gospel is summarized at the outset of his letter to the Galatian church. In verse 1, Paul affirms the divinity of Jesus by deriving his commission from both Jesus Christ and God the Father. The Nestle-Aland text places both persons under the same preposition, indicating the gospel has a “divine origin” in both Jesus and God.[2] Further reinforcing the link between Jesus and the Father is the declarative statement that the Father is the one “who raised Him from the dead.”[3] This statement incorporates both Jesus’ death and resurrection, since to be raised one must first die. In favor of this understanding, Neufeld argues that the usage of “raised” does not refer to God raising “up a messiah from among his people,” but rather that the statement was used to reference Jesus’ resurrection “in light of the scriptures.”[4] Thus, from the first verse alone, Paul elucidates the kerygma of the Gospel as including the divinity, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Paul further refines his gospel understanding in Galatians 1:3-4. He begins by reiterating the divinity of Christ and Jesus’ unity with the Father.[5] Paul then proceeds to describe how it was the singular will of both the Father and Jesus to “give Himself [Jesus] over for our sins.” This statement provides a direct link between Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and the forgiveness of humanity’s sins. The formulaic nature of this statement provides significant weight to the idea that “full atonement requires nothing less than the blood of Jesus Christ, the very God.”[6] The sufficiency of Christ’s death to the gospel becomes pivotal to Paul’s argument found later in the letter. Paul also links the death of Christ to “rescue … from this present evil age,” which foreshadows his later eschatological discussions of the new creation.[7] Central to Paul’s gospel is the “intrusion of the new age” into the world as a result of Christ’s work.[8] In summary, Paul’s gospel is that the divine son of God, sent by the Father, has died for the forgiveness of the sins of those who believe ushering in a foretaste of the eschatological new creation.
Understanding Circumcision as an Addition to the Profession of Faith in Christ
Circumcision in Light of Galatians 1:1-5
Paul’s gospel serves as a necessary background to the core disagreement he had with the Galatian church. Galatians 2 recounts Paul’s encounter with Peter and the Jews at Antioch describing how they separated from uncircumcised Gentile Christians, essentially breaking fellowship with them. Far from a simple elitist segregation, Paul saw this division as “deviating from the truth of the gospel.”[9] Paul’s issue with the Judaizers must develop from his definition of the gospel: specifically, circumcision was being included alongside the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as a requirement for forgiveness of sins. By separating themselves from the Gentiles, Peter and the Jews were not saying that there were two communities within the new church but that there was only one community comprised of those who professed faith in Jesus and kept to Jewish markers like circumcision.[10] Additionally, the demand of circumcision “carried with it obligation to observe the whole law.”[11] This implication is in clear contradiction to the gospel message and drew Paul’s full ire.
The New Perspective on Paul community disagrees with the prior analysis. They argue that the Jews were not withholding the forgiveness of sins from the Gentiles; rather, they were only locking covenant community membership behind the door of circumcision.[12] NPP Scholars downplay the linkage of circumcision and the law to the forgiveness of sins by redefining Paul’s use of the word justification. N.T. Wright defines justification as the determination of “who is within the covenant family.”[13] Thus, under NPP, Paul takes issue with circumcision because it is being used as a defining marker of who is belongs to the body of Christ. However, this viewpoint is blind to the reality of Galatians 1:1-5. The opening statement of Paul’s letter and the crux around which it is developed is evidence that the gospel concept of Jesus giving “Himself for our sins” is under attack.[14] Covenant community is nowhere in sight in Paul’s initial affirmation of the gospel. Thus, when Paul states that there is a “deviation from the truth of the gospel,” it must concern the forgiveness of sins.[15] Peter and the Jews were not arguing that the un-Judaized Gentiles were forgiven of their sins but not part of the covenant community; they were declaring that the Gentiles were not forgiven of their sins.
Circumcision as Seeking Favor of Man
Paul prepares the Galatians for his attack against an inappropriate use of circumcision by calling rebellions against the gospel attempts “to win the favor of people,” rather than the favor of God.[16] In other words, Paul recognizes that the primary temptation to succumb to a false gospel is wanting to please “human beings.”[17] This implies that there would be groups of people trying to manipulate the true Gospel message and their followers’ sense of loyalty in order to gain influence or power. Paul goes on to say that placing oneself under the sway of another gospel is tantamount to becoming a “slave” of that person instead of a “slave of Christ.”[18]
Paul’s allegation of a change in allegiance provides context for the severity of Paul’s injunction. The Jewish Christians were using circumcision to restrict the number of Gentiles who would convert to Christianity in an effort to maintain the ability to “set the agenda and give lead to the Gentile converts.”[19] In order to control the church, the Judaizers were using their fame and position to coerce Gentile converts to either conform to their way of thinking or be denied the power of the gospel. Paul saw this coercion as a direct challenge to Jesus’ authority in the life of a believer. According to Paul, siding with the Judaizers was a full rejection of Christ’s lordship. This plays heavily into Paul’s dual reference of the divinity of Christ and equality with the Father found in the first 4 verses of Galatians. From start to finish, the power play to incorporate circumcision as a requirement for salvation can be seen as an affront to the gospel that Paul preached.
Peter’s Hypocrisy Links the Gospel to the New Boundaries of the Church
Having now set the circumcision controversy in its appropriate context, it is necessary to introduce an unexpected shift in Paul’s argument. In Galatians 2:15-16, Paul outlines what the Judaizers “know,” which is that justification cannot happen through works of the law, but through “faith in Jesus Christ.”[20] However, Paul pivots his attack in verse 17 by reflecting on his own actions. The accusation of the Judaizers is actually that Paul himself has become Gentile in character as a result of faith in Christ.[21] Thus, Paul had to correct the false assumption that if he was correct in his theology, then Christ “was a promoter of sin.”[22] It is at this point that Paul makes a distinctive break with the Jewish understanding of justification by saying, “if I rebuild the system I tore down, I show myself to be a lawbreaker.”[23] To incorporate the law of the Hebrew Scriptures would actually cause Paul to break the law.
The question on the minds of the readers would naturally be: “But what then takes the place of circumcision and the works of the law?” or “How then are we supposed to live?” or “What then sets us apart, we essentially will begin to look like the pagan Gentiles?” The answer to all of these questions is revealed in verses 19-20 in which Paul links the gospel to the new boundary of the church, which is not a fleshly outward sign that ultimately is powerless, but a new inward reality which empowers the believer to live a Godly life. Paul states, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”[24] Going back to Galatians 1:1-3, being crucified with Christ means that one’s sins are forgiven because the believer has been identified with Christ who paid the penalty for that sin: death. Judaizing Christian theology negates the gospel’s ability to the forgive sins and thus reverts the believer to living the law through one’s own power. However, by saying that Christ now lives in him, Paul is indicating that “the cross is the start of a new existence.”[25] The reason Paul was against the Judaizers was that they wanted to receive the justification by faith in Christ but still maintain a Jewish theology of obedience to the law as a co-requirement to justification. Paul was teaching that to maintain that type of obedience is antithetical to the power of Christ living in a person which would ultimately achieve total sanctification and the complete removal of sin from a person’s life. Thus, those whom Christ lives in would know how to live and would be set apart by their lives lived through Christ.
The Presence of the Spirit of God through Faith as the New Boundary of the Church
Spirit of God Comes as a Direct Result of Faith in Christ
To the Jewish reader, Galatians 3 would come as a bit of a shock. One part of the reasoning behind submission to the works of the law for the Jew is that the Jews were previously exiled from the land due to Torah disobedience. Thus, a Jewish Christian might naturally think that Christ came so that the Jews could finally come completely under Torah submission and thus be reinstated to the land, ending their exile. However, Paul radically reformed Jewish thinking in Galatians 2. Jesus did not come and die so that the Jews’ exile from the land would be ended; rather, Jesus came to end the ultimate exile of all humanity: death.[26] Through the death of Christ, Paul argued, “the life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God.”[27] This new life could not be lived out in the same way as the old life, namely, through works of the law. Rather, this new life had to be lived by the Spirit of God.
Thus, in Galatians 3:2, Paul mentions the Spirit for the first time saying, “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith?”[28] In making this step, Paul simultaneously links together the forgiveness of sins, Christ’s death and resurrection, sanctification, justification, and the reality of the new creation. The Spirit of God is “God’s solution … to the curses of Deuteronomy,” and as such, adherence to the Torah as a solution would render Christ’s sacrifice null and void.[29] Having faith in Christ is all that is necessary for the forgiveness of sins and to receive the indwelling of the Spirit of God. In this way, “hearing with faith” results in “receiv[ing] the Spirit” just as Paul said.[30] Whereas under the law, circumcision was required as part of the law in order to come into the covenant, this new covenant is entered into by faith alone, “reception of the Spirit does not require any works of the law,” and leads directly to the presence of God in those who believe.[31]
Results of the Presence of the Spirit of God
Spirit of God makes Christians Abraham’s Sons and Inheritors of Abraham’s Blessing
The reception of the Spirit is not simply a symbol or covenant marker like circumcision; rather, the presence of the Spirit leads directly to the blessings of the new creation. Paul understands the reception of the spirit explicitly in terms of the Abrahamic promises and blessings. In Galatians 3:6-7, Paul argues “that those who have faith are Abraham’s sons.”[32] Those who have faith in Christ are given the Spirit of God, which makes believers Abraham’s sons. The fact that believers become sons and not simply children indicates the force with which Paul argues the point that believers “inherit the blessings (promise) of God’s covenant with Abraham.”[33] Paul’s link provides continuity of the Old Covenant with the New Covenant. The promises God made to Abraham are coming to believers through faith in Christ.
It is vital to understand Paul’s earlier argument concerning works of the law and faith in Christ to capture the exact way that Paul interprets Abraham’s promises. Paul was not arguing for an end to the physical exile of the nation of Israel; he was arguing for the eschatological end to the exile of death. Thus, Paul allows for the future restoration of Israel as the sacrifice of Christ was never intended to usher in that aspect of the God’s promise in the present. The aspect of the blessing brought forward was “all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”[34] Paul explicitly affirms this view in Galatians 3:8-9: “Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and told the good news ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you. So those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.”[35] The blessing that came to the Gentiles (and Jews) through Jesus was the blessing of justification, the application of the forgiveness of sins followed by the restoration of humanity’s relationship with God. Though the Jews might have been worried that Paul was arguing for a dismantling of Israel, at no point did Paul negate the land promises to ethnic Israel. Instead, he applies the reality of the new creation promises upon all who believe in the present. Paul sums up his argument connecting the gospel to the reception of the Spirit and the unification of Jew and Gentile into one family by saying, “the purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith.”[36] The promised Spirit was received through faith by “we,” both Jew and Gentile.
Spirit of God Makes Us All “sons” of God
After establishing that the promises of Abraham are also for the Gentiles, Paul moves on to explicating his theological basis for the incorporation of the Gentiles and Jews into one family of God or household of YHWH. Paul asserts in Galatians 3:25-26 that “since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”[37] The promise of sonship that Paul references is multifaceted. First, the contrast with “guardian” or “custodian” indicates that Paul is referring to adult sons who can now operate by the Spirit, no longer needing the law.[38] This adult sonship also indicates that those who are sons are now able to walk in the inheritance that they have been promised. Third, the promise of sonship is linked with the reality that the believer has been brought “into union with Christ.”[39] Believers are sons precisely because we have been identified with Christ who is the Son of God.[40] Fourth, the notion of being a son of God is a direct link to familial themes found throughout Galatians 3 and 4 including: “the promised seed, the inheritance, adoption, [and] heirship.”[41] This brings all of the Old Testament household of YHWH promises to bear under the promise of being “sons of God.”[42]
Baptism into Christ Links the Gospel to Faith in Christ to the Spirit of God and to sons of God
Baptism Links Gospel to Church Unity in Galatians 3:27-29
The next section of Paul’s argument for justification by faith seems, on the surface, to undercut his entire message: “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ like a garment.” One commentator likens baptism to circumcision saying “historically … the doctrine of believers’ baptism has also implied a gathered church … marked off from the world.”[43] Under the understanding of baptism as referring solely to water baptism, it is easy to leave Paul’s argument thinking he has simply replaced one covenant marker with another. However, scholars in the new perspective camp have provided an alternate reading which fits perfectly in line with Paul’s earlier statements and provides an exceptional link between union with Christ and the unity of the church.
In Galatians 3:27 and Romans 6:3-5, baptism is linked heavily to the crucifixion of Christ to the point that the believer is “baptized into Christ” or “baptized into His death.” These verses speak less of individual water baptism and more of all believers “being baptized at exactly the same moment” in a corporate way of which water baptism is a symbolic reflection.[44] In the context of the full letter of Galatians, water is not even in sight; rather, the focus is the Spirit.[45] Thus, upon faith in Christ, believers are baptized by the Spirit into Christ’s death. Understood as baptism into Christ’s death, the act of water baptism – an act of obedience not justification – can take its proper place: not in soteriology but in ecclesiology. Therefore, the baptism into Christ’s death is nothing like circumcision at all. It is totally a work of the Spirit that occurs upon the profession of faith from a believer.
This understanding is vitally important in light of the claim that Paul makes in Galatians 3:28-29. If Galatians 3:27 were referring to water baptism, there would be no hope for a united body in Christ. Yet, Paul makes the claim that “There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”[46] Connecting these theological threads reveals that Paul taught: (1) faith in Christ effects forgiveness in the sinner, (2) upon being forgiven the Spirit of God takes up presence in the believer, (3) the Spirit of God baptizes the believer into Christ’s death thereby effecting union with Christ and sonship of the Father, and (4) that union trumps all other delineations between people so that there truly are only brother and sisters in Christ “for you are all one.”[47] Thus, the gospel is directly linked to church unity and without it unity cannot be attained.[48]
Church Schism Is a Result of Gospel Perversion
In context, the addition of circumcision was every bit as vicious an attack on the gospel and church unity as Paul claimed, and the schism that it was causing merited Paul’s extreme denunciation. By insisting on circumcision for justification, the Judaizers were positing a work of the law in addition to the satisfactory sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. In doing so, they were encouraging people to rely on the works of the law for their full sanctification and justification rather than on the Spirit of God. Their rejection of the Spirit of God in this way was leading to the divisive doctrine of in-group/out-group dynamics based around circumcision which was leading to disunity in the church. Thus, Paul’s link between church disunity and the gospel is both implied by his argument and theologically correct.
New Boundaries Create the New Reality of Life in the New Creation
The Relationship of Gospel and the Spirit to the New Creation
Paul does not leave his argument at unity in the church. Instead he ties the life brought by the Spirit through belief in Christ and His crucifixion to the eschatological new creation. In Galatians 6:14, Paul writes, “But as for me, I will never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. The world has been crucified to me through the cross, and I to the world.”[49] The gospel of Jesus Christ, His death on a cross for sins as outlined in Galatians 1:1-5, is the only thing that will bring about the new creation. As he says in verse 15, “what matters instead is a new creation.”[50]
Galatians 6:15-16 – The Old Boundaries are Insufficient to Enact the New Creation
Faith in Christ is directly contrasted with “circumcision and uncircumcision,” directly indicting the Judaizers for trying to attain the life of the new creation through something other than the Spirit of God which is given as a result of faith in Christ. In Paul’s theological framework, the cross results in “a radical redefinition of his existence … and relationship to the [Lord].”[51] The implications of the cross are so fundamental to Paul that he even argues in verse 14 that “these markers of his previous identity are not simply ‘loss,’ but have in fact been ‘crucified’ along with him.”[52] That “the world has been crucified to [Paul] through the cross, and [Paul] to the world” is no small statement. The world and all its trappings, accomplishments, and works have nothing to avail Paul who by the cross has escaped “the present evil age” and entered into the “new creation.”[53] Once and for all, Paul explicitly states that circumcision and the law were part of the old age, the old covenant, and the old way of relating to God and that those things would never be sufficient to save people from the evil age nor deliver them into the new creation.
Galatians 6:7-10 – Sowing in the Spirit Leads to Reaping Eternal Life in the Spirit
Paul also discusses how one can reap eternal life. Under Paul’s theology, one must sow in the Spirit in order to “reap eternal life from the Spirit.”[54] In Galatians 5, Paul talks about “walking in the Spirit … being led by the Spirit … and marching in step with the Spirit.”[55] These are all references to the reality of eternal life that will be produced in a person upon their reliance on faith in Christ followed by the Spirit of God living in them. This does not equate to moral action being the determiner of salvation, but to adherence to the gospel message through which the Spirit comes and reigns in one’s life. This is evidenced by how Paul couches his argument in the midst of saying “through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.” If one walks in the Spirit, the Spirit will reside in that person and produce the fruit of the Spirit in that person. The fruit are examples of the root of what one believes is necessary to justify himself. What is radical about Paul’s statements is the fact that real actual evidence of eternal life can be seen in the present time within the believer who trusts in Christ. Thus, the issue of circumcision becomes entirely useless: with the advent of new creation who would need outward signs to be seen as set apart?
Through the Gospel the New Creation Manifests within Believers and Is Evidenced by Unity in the Church
Realities of the New Creation in Galatians 5:6,13-14, 16 – 6:2
Galatians 5:6 gets to the heart of Paul’s now-but-not-yet eschatology and the end result of relying on circumcision instead of Christ: “neither circumcision nor uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through love.”[56] The realities of the new creation – the breakout of love for God and love for each other – are only possible through the Spirit and faith in Christ. Paul argues that this love from the Spirit manifests itself as free acts of service for one’s neighbors.[57] In Paul’s theology, it is almost as though love were not truly possible prior to the new creation. With the advent of the Spirit, the Fruit (“love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control”) abound. Paul then beautifully articulates how these realities come into being. Through Jesus, the flesh and all its desires are crucified and put to death which allows a person to live by the Spirit.[58] However, living by the Spirit does not equate to following the Spirit. The Spirit of God pours love out into the believer which the believer then must choose to act upon.
New Creation and the Fulfillment of the Mission of God
In light of Paul’s theology of the gospel and the new creation, it is important to reflect on the missional importance of his view. If the people of God hold to the true gospel, that Christ died on the cross for the forgiveness of their sins, then they will be able to proclaim that message to others as Jesus instructed.[59] By relying on the true gospel, believers will be united through their union with Christ that the Spirit of God effects. This unity will be seen as an outpouring of the fruit of the Spirit upon each other and those who have yet come to saving faith. In this way, the church will continue “running a good race,” never being in danger of disqualification due to a fundamental gospel rejection like the those at the Pergamum church, rampant strife like the Judaizers, or a loss of love like the church of Ephesus.[60] Rather, by holding true to the gospel, Paul indicates that the church will be an effective witness and fulfill her mission to be a light to the nations of this Earth.[61]
Conclusion: Paul, The Gospel, and the New Creation: Defining Boundaries and Realities of Paul’s Churches as found in the Letter of Galatians
The gospel that Paul preached effected the new creation ahead of its time and gave power to the church to complete its mission. Paul preached a gospel of exclusivity with regard to the forgiveness of sins. Only Christ’s sacrifice and faith in Him was required for one to be forgiven; circumcision and other Jewish markers were wholly ineffective and antithetical to the gospel. Upon being forgiven, the believer was baptized into Christ’s death through the indwelling of the Spirit of God. This also resulted in the union with Christ that brings believers into the family of God as sons and daughters. Finally, through the Spirit of God, the new creation broke into the present time ending the enslavement to the evil age. In line with the new creation, members of the church now exhibit the fruit of the Spirit as evidence of eternal life. Armed with the knowledge of the gospel and the power of God the church is able to go about its mission to reach the lost of this world.
Bibliography
De Boer, Martinus, C. Galatians: A Commentary. The New Testament Library. Westminster John Knox Press: Louisville, KY, 2011.
Dunn, James, D. G. The New Perspective on Paul. Revised. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.
Fee, Gordon D. Galatians. Pentecostal Commentary Series. Dorset, U.K.: Deo Publishing, 2011.
Fung, Ronald Y.K. The Epistle to the Galatians. The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988.
George, Timothy. Galatians. Vol. 30. The New American Commentary: New International Version. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 1994.
Hietanen, Mika. Paul’s Argumentation in Galatians: A Pragma-Dialectical Analysis. Edited by Mark Goodacre. Library of New Testament Studies. London, U.K.: T&T Clark International, 2007.
Holland, Tom. Contours of Pauline Theology: A Radical New Survey of the Influences on Paul’s Biblical Writings. Scotland, UK: Christian Focus Publications, 2004.
Hubing, Jeff. Crucifixion and New Creation: The Strategic Purpose of Galatians 6;11-17. Library of New Testament Studies. New York City, NY: T&T Clark, 2015.
Lategan, B. C. “The Argumentative Situation of Galatians.” In The Galatians Debate, edited by Mark D. Nanos. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2002.
Martens, Elmer, A. “The People of God.” In Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity, edited by Scott Hafemann J. and Paul House R. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007.
Morales, Rodrigo J. The Spirit and the Restoration of Israel. Tubingen, Germany: Mohr Siebeck, 2010.
Neufeld, Vernon, H. The Earliest Christian Confessions. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1963.
Ryken, Philip Graham. Galatians. Reformed Expository Commentary. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2005.
Schreiner, Thomas R. Galatians. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010.
Wright, N. T. Paul and the Faithfulness of God. Vol. 4. Christian Origins and the Question of God. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2013.
———. Pauline Perspectives: Essays on Paul, 1978-2013. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2013.
[1] Ephesians 2:19-22 (HCSB).
[2] Ronald Y.K. Fung, The Epistle to the Galatians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988).
[3] Galatians 1:1 (HCSB).
[4] Vernon Neufeld H., The Earliest Christian Confessions (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1963).
[5] Fung, The Epistle to the Galatians.
[6] Philip Graham Ryken, Galatians, Reformed Expository Commentary (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2005).
[7] Galatians 1:4 (HCSB).
[8] Thomas R. Schreiner, Galatians, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010).
[9] Galatians 2:14 (HCSB).
[10] Timothy George, Galatians, vol. 30, The New American Commentary: New International Version (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 1994).
[11] James Dunn D. G., The New Perspective on Paul, Revised. (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008).
[12] Ibid, 319.
[13] N. T. Wright, Pauline Perspectives: Essays on Paul, 1978-2013 (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2013).
[14] Galatians 1:4 (HCSB).
[15] Galatians 2:14 (HCSB).
[16] Galatians 1:10 (HCSB).
[17] Martinus De Boer C., Galatians: A Commentary, The New Testament Library (Westminster John Knox Press: Louisville, KY, 2011).
[18] Galatians 1:10 (HCSB).
[19] Tom Holland, Contours of Pauline Theology: A Radical New Survey of the Influences on Paul’s Biblical Writings (Scotland, UK: Christian Focus Publications, 2004).
[20] Galatians 2:15-17 (HCSB).
[21] Ryken, Galatians, 70.
[22] Galatians 2:17 (HCSB).
[23] Galatians 2:18 (HCSB).
[24] Galatians 2:19-20 (HCSB).
[25] B. C. Lategan, “The Argumentative Situation of Galatians,” in The Galatians Debate, ed. Mark D. Nanos (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2002), 393.
[26] Rodrigo J. Morales, The Spirit and the Restoration of Israel (Tubingen, Germany: Mohr Siebeck, 2010), 86.
[27] Galatians 2:20 (HCSB).
[28] Galatians 3:2 (HCSB).
[29] Morales, The Spirit and the Restoration of Israel, 78.
[30] Galatians 3:2 (HCSB).
[31] Mika Hietanen, Paul’s Argumentation in Galatians: A Pragma-Dialectical Analysis, ed. Mark Goodacre, Library of New Testament Studies (London, U.K.: T&T Clark International, 2007), 88.
[32] Galatians 3:7 (HCSB).
[33] Gordon D. Fee, Galatians, Pentecostal Commentary Series (Dorset, U.K.: Deo Publishing, 2011), 114.
[34] Genesis 12:3 (HCSB).
[35] Galatians 3:8-9 (HCSB).
[36] Galatians 3:14 (HCSB).
[37] Galatians 3:25-26 (HCSB).
[38] Fung, The Epistle to the Galatians, 170-171.
[39] Ibid, 172.
[40] George, Galatians, 274.
[41] Ibid.
[42] Galatians 3:26 (HCSB).
[43] George, Galatians, 276.
[44] Holland, Contours of Pauline Theology: A Radical New Survey of the Influences on Paul’s Biblical Writings, 147.
[45] Ibid.
[46] Galatians 3:28 (HCSB).
[47] Ibid.
[48] N. T. Wright, Paul and the Faithfulness of God, vol. 4, Christian Origins and the Question of God (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2013), 427.
[49] Galatians 6:14 (HCSB).
[50] Galatians 6:15 (HCSB).
[51] Jeff Hubing, Crucifixion and New Creation: The Strategic Purpose of Galatians 6;11-17, Library of New Testament Studies (New York City, NY: T&T Clark, 2015), 230.
[52] Ibid, 235.
[53] Schreiner, Galatians, 379.
[54] Ibid, 368.
[55] Ibid.
[56] Galatians 5:6 (HCSB).
[57] Galatians 5:13-14 (HCSB).
[58] Galatians 5:25-26 (HCSB).
[59] Matthew 28:19-20 (HCSB).
[60] Galatians 5:7 (NIV).
[61] Elmer Martens A., “The People of God,” in Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity, ed. Scott Hafemann J. and Paul House R. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 250-253.
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