Scripture Reading
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a
different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel
of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached
to you, let him be accursed. - Galatians 1:6–8
• What does this passage reveal about the degree to which we should be committed to defending the purity of the
gospel?
The surprise expressed by the Apostle gives us a sense of the degree to which we should be concerned about the
purity of the gospel. Paul uses the strongest possible language in order to defend the gospel in the letter to the
Galatians. He writes this letter to repudiate any attempt to substitute the true gospel with a false gospel and calls
the members of the church to be discerning whenever someone comes to them with a substitute for the gospel that
they had received from him.
During the Video
Defining the Gospel
• What significant role did the book of Galatians play in the Reformation?
Paul’s letter to the Galatians played a significant role in the Reformation because Martin Luther wrote a highly
significant commentary on it. Luther’s commentary helped set the Reformation on the trajectory of defending the
doctrine of justification against the Roman Catholic perversion of it.
• What is the heart of the message of Galatians?
At the heart of the message of Galatians is the question, What is the gospel? Justification by faith alone in Christ
alone apart from the works of the law is the essence of the gospel. Paul’s zeal reflected his commitment to the
defense of the core gospel message.
• How does Dr. Thomas define the gospel in this lesson?
In this lesson, Dr. Thomas defined the gospel as “a message of grace.” It is the message of “the giving of Jesus for
our sins to deliver us from this present evil age, and all this is part of the sovereign will of our heavenly Father; it’s a
message of grace.” Since sin is our great problem, the gospel is the message about how God has dealt with our sin
through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Distorting the Gospel
• Who were the Judaizers? What was the essence of the false gospel that they were propagating among the
members of the church of Galatia?
The Judaizers were teaching the members of the churches in Galatia that they needed to trust in Christ and keep
the law of Moses in order to be justified before God. They were concerned about the place of the gentiles in the
church. They insisted that in order to be real Christians, gentiles needed to observe the Jewish ceremonial laws.
These false teachers were concerned that gentile converts weren’t circumcised, didn’t observe Jewish food laws,
and didn’t observe the ceremonial calendar, such as the feasts of Passover and Tabernacles. These were the
ceremonial boundary markers that set Jews apart from gentiles. The Judaizers were seeking to impose these Old
Testament provisional laws on the gentiles.
• What important qualification did the Apostle Paul make after expressing surprise that many professing believers
were turning to another gospel?
Immediately after expressing his shock that many in the church were turning away from the true gospel to another
gospel, Paul explained that there is not actually another gospel. There is only one true gospel. There are not
multiple gospels. The true gospel saves; all alternative messages lead to condemnation. There can be no substitute
for the one message of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
Discerning the Gospel
• What pronouncement did Paul make against those who preach a false gospel?
The Apostle used the strongest possible language to denounce the false gospel that the Judaizers were
propagating. He said that if anyone is preaching another gospel, he should be “accursed” (Gal. 1:8–9). The
meaning of the word “accursed” here is “anathematized”—which means “driven away from the grace and presence
of God.” Paul included even the Apostles and angels from heaven among those regarding whom the members of
the church were to exercise discernment.
• What conclusion were the members of the church to come to about the nature of the Judaizers in order to stand
against their false teaching?
The members of the church in Galatia were to recognize that the Judaizers were wolves in sheep’s clothing. As
those who had embraced the true gospel, they were to view the Judaizers for what they were in reality—wolves.
Paul was calling believers to acknowledge that these wolves were in the church and in fellowship with them.
After the Video
• Which person of the Godhead initiated the plan of salvation?
In the lesson, Dr. Thomas made the important point that the Father takes the initiative in the plan of salvation. As
the Apostle John explains in John 3:16, it is God the Father who gave His only begotten Son. The Son of God did
not make a reluctant Father willing to be gracious to us. We often mistakenly think that God the Father will have
mercy on us because of Christ, when in reality the mercy and love of the Father are demonstrated in His giving His
Son for us.
• Why is the insistence that one has to observe the Jewish law in order to be right with God destructive of the true
gospel?
Adding anything to the finished work of Christ undermines the truth that salvation is through Christ alone. Insisting
that the gospel is Jesus plus anything is, in the words of Dr. Thomas, “a damnable plus for Paul.” It is no longer
good news if we add anything to Jesus for our justification. The gospel that Paul preached is the same as the
message of the solas of the Reformation. It is a message of salvation by faith alone in Christ alone apart from works
of the law.
• How can believers be zealous to maintain the truth of the gospel?
We first have to know the true gospel. Once we have come to know and believe the gospel, we have to preach the
message of the gospel to ourselves every day. We can never meditate on the gospel too much. Every morning, we
should call to mind the message of the gospel.
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a
different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel
of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached
to you, let him be accursed. - Galatians 1:6–8
• What does this passage reveal about the degree to which we should be committed to defending the purity of the
gospel?
The surprise expressed by the Apostle gives us a sense of the degree to which we should be concerned about the
purity of the gospel. Paul uses the strongest possible language in order to defend the gospel in the letter to the
Galatians. He writes this letter to repudiate any attempt to substitute the true gospel with a false gospel and calls
the members of the church to be discerning whenever someone comes to them with a substitute for the gospel that
they had received from him.
During the Video
Defining the Gospel
• What significant role did the book of Galatians play in the Reformation?
Paul’s letter to the Galatians played a significant role in the Reformation because Martin Luther wrote a highly
significant commentary on it. Luther’s commentary helped set the Reformation on the trajectory of defending the
doctrine of justification against the Roman Catholic perversion of it.
• What is the heart of the message of Galatians?
At the heart of the message of Galatians is the question, What is the gospel? Justification by faith alone in Christ
alone apart from the works of the law is the essence of the gospel. Paul’s zeal reflected his commitment to the
defense of the core gospel message.
• How does Dr. Thomas define the gospel in this lesson?
In this lesson, Dr. Thomas defined the gospel as “a message of grace.” It is the message of “the giving of Jesus for
our sins to deliver us from this present evil age, and all this is part of the sovereign will of our heavenly Father; it’s a
message of grace.” Since sin is our great problem, the gospel is the message about how God has dealt with our sin
through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Distorting the Gospel
• Who were the Judaizers? What was the essence of the false gospel that they were propagating among the
members of the church of Galatia?
The Judaizers were teaching the members of the churches in Galatia that they needed to trust in Christ and keep
the law of Moses in order to be justified before God. They were concerned about the place of the gentiles in the
church. They insisted that in order to be real Christians, gentiles needed to observe the Jewish ceremonial laws.
These false teachers were concerned that gentile converts weren’t circumcised, didn’t observe Jewish food laws,
and didn’t observe the ceremonial calendar, such as the feasts of Passover and Tabernacles. These were the
ceremonial boundary markers that set Jews apart from gentiles. The Judaizers were seeking to impose these Old
Testament provisional laws on the gentiles.
• What important qualification did the Apostle Paul make after expressing surprise that many professing believers
were turning to another gospel?
Immediately after expressing his shock that many in the church were turning away from the true gospel to another
gospel, Paul explained that there is not actually another gospel. There is only one true gospel. There are not
multiple gospels. The true gospel saves; all alternative messages lead to condemnation. There can be no substitute
for the one message of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
Discerning the Gospel
• What pronouncement did Paul make against those who preach a false gospel?
The Apostle used the strongest possible language to denounce the false gospel that the Judaizers were
propagating. He said that if anyone is preaching another gospel, he should be “accursed” (Gal. 1:8–9). The
meaning of the word “accursed” here is “anathematized”—which means “driven away from the grace and presence
of God.” Paul included even the Apostles and angels from heaven among those regarding whom the members of
the church were to exercise discernment.
• What conclusion were the members of the church to come to about the nature of the Judaizers in order to stand
against their false teaching?
The members of the church in Galatia were to recognize that the Judaizers were wolves in sheep’s clothing. As
those who had embraced the true gospel, they were to view the Judaizers for what they were in reality—wolves.
Paul was calling believers to acknowledge that these wolves were in the church and in fellowship with them.
After the Video
• Which person of the Godhead initiated the plan of salvation?
In the lesson, Dr. Thomas made the important point that the Father takes the initiative in the plan of salvation. As
the Apostle John explains in John 3:16, it is God the Father who gave His only begotten Son. The Son of God did
not make a reluctant Father willing to be gracious to us. We often mistakenly think that God the Father will have
mercy on us because of Christ, when in reality the mercy and love of the Father are demonstrated in His giving His
Son for us.
• Why is the insistence that one has to observe the Jewish law in order to be right with God destructive of the true
gospel?
Adding anything to the finished work of Christ undermines the truth that salvation is through Christ alone. Insisting
that the gospel is Jesus plus anything is, in the words of Dr. Thomas, “a damnable plus for Paul.” It is no longer
good news if we add anything to Jesus for our justification. The gospel that Paul preached is the same as the
message of the solas of the Reformation. It is a message of salvation by faith alone in Christ alone apart from works
of the law.
• How can believers be zealous to maintain the truth of the gospel?
We first have to know the true gospel. Once we have come to know and believe the gospel, we have to preach the
message of the gospel to ourselves every day. We can never meditate on the gospel too much. Every morning, we
should call to mind the message of the gospel.