The Heart Of Paul’s Theology: Paul And The GalatiansSample

False Teachers in Galatia: Galatians 5:2

Until Paul’s first missionary journey, the Christian church had been predominantly Jewish. The early church began in Jerusalem and had held firmly to this Jewish identity. Consequently, the influx of Gentiles led to all kinds of theological and practical troubles. Did these Gentiles have to adopt Jewish traditions? Did they have to keep the law of Moses as Old Testament believers were required to do? These kinds of questions gave rise to false teachers in Galatia. These Jewish teachers came up with their own ways of dealing with Gentiles in the church by insisting that they be circumcised. 

During his missionary journey Paul had not circumcised Gentile believers, but in his absence, the false teachers had taught just the opposite. Now, Paul knew that God had ordained circumcision for Israel, and he was not opposed to circumcision per se. But in Galatia, circumcision for Gentiles had become a very serious matter which Paul could not ignore. It represented a serious departure from the heart of the Christian gospel. 

We will touch on three ways in which Paul believed that insisting on circumcision for Gentile Christians reflected serious misunderstandings of the Christian faith. First, it denied the sufficiency of Christ’s death and resurrection for salvation. Second, it demonstrated an improper reliance on the power of the flesh. And third, it resulted in division within the churches of Galatia. Let’s look first at the way the false teachers had denied the sufficiency of Christ’s death and resurrection for salvation.

From the book of Galatians we may surmise that the Galatian false teachers saw circumcision as a sacrifice of blood that enabled believers to live in a way that pleased God. In their view, Christians had to add circumcision to Christ’s saving work. But from Paul’s perspective, this belief stripped Christ’s death of its true meaning and value. This is why Paul wrote these words in Galatians 5:2:

I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all (Galatians 5:2).

In addition to denying the sufficiency of Christ’s saving work, the false teachers in Galatia challenged Paul’s gospel by teaching that believers must rely on the flesh to complete their salvation. Paul expressly referred to this problem in Galatians 3:3 where he sarcastically asked these questions:

Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? (Galatians 3:3).

The Greek term rendered as “human effort” is sarx, often translated “flesh.” Paul typically used the term “flesh” (or sarx) to refer to mere human power, and often with the connotation of sinful human ways. So, it is rightly translated here “human effort.” 

When Paul first ministered in Galatia, his preaching had been accompanied by dramatic displays of the Spirit’s power. The Galatians had begun their Christian lives in the power of the Spirit. But now, by turning to circumcision, they had begun to depend on their own human abilities to live in ways that please God. Ironically, this reliance on human ability actually condemned them to impotence and failure.