08 - The Folly Of The Galatians

Galatians 3:1-9

November 27, 2011 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

As loyalist Jews, the Judaizers were persistent in their use of Abraham as their example for Law-keeping. They played on their proud heritage and their embellishment of the Patriarchs to impose their beliefs on non-Jews. So Paul, in his rebuttal, uses Abraham as his example to defeat the false teachers at their own game. Deferring to Genesis 12:3; 15:6; 18:18; and 22:18, he reminds his readers that Abraham was declared righteous before God by faith alone.

With no verse left unexamined, Pastor Ronald H. Gann unpacks each of Paul’s answers in this in-depth sermon series on GALATIANS.

More from Galatians

01 - Introduction: Legalism vs. Liberty

September 4, 2011

When the apostle Paul wrote GALATIANS, little did he know that his minuscule letter would spark a mammoth revolution. Not only did it upend many Jewish readers (with its dual-emphasis on grace and freedom) but it helped to ignite the Reformation some 1,500 years later. In it, Paul asks and answers some probing questions: -- What is a Christian’s relationship to the Old Testament? -- Are Christians still bound to the Mosaic Law? -- How can God forgive sinners who violate the Law? -- What exactly is the gospel of grace and justification? With no verse left unexamined, Pastor Ronald H. Gann unpacks each of Paul’s answers in this in-depth sermon series on GALATIANS.

02 - Paul's Authority & Gospel

September 11, 2011 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

Paul used his opening greeting to the Galatians not necessarily as a salutation but as his weapon of choice, as it were, to rebuke the false teachers in Galatia. The apostle does not waste time with pleasantries or platitudes nor does he commend the Galatians (as was his custom). Instead, because the Galatians were on the verge of defecting from orthodoxy, Paul used his salutation to address the first point of contention between him and the false teachers in Galatia—namely, his apostolic authority. With no verse left unexamined, Pastor Ronald H. Gann unpacks each of Paul’s answers in this in-depth sermon series on GALATIANS.

03 - False Teachers & Faithless Galatians

October 2, 2011 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

Paul cared deeply for the souls of men and his care for the Galatians was no exception. He knew the gospel was the power of God for salvation. Therefore, to corrupt the gospel was to destroy the way of salvation and to send to ruin the souls of men who might be saved by it. As such, it's no wonder that Paul desired that the false teachers in Galatia be eternally accursed and that the Church should treat them as such. With no verse left unexamined, Pastor Ronald H. Gann unpacks each of Paul’s answers in this in-depth sermon series on GALATIANS.