Ep. #03 "GALATIANS 3-6" [Series: PAUL'S LETTERS]

Episode: Paul’s Letters Series No. 03 Narrator: Lois Primary Scriptures: Galatians 3-6 Story Summary: Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia Location: Roman Empire; Galatia Time: AD 30 Jesus crucified and resurrected; Pentecost; Holy Spirit arrives AD 48 Paul’s “famine visit” to Jerusalem; First Missionary Journey starts AD 50 Council at Jerusalem; Start of Second Missionary Journey; approximate time of the writing of Galatians. Suggested Memory Scriptures: Galatians 3:3, 11, 26-28; 4:6-8; 5:1, 8, 14, 16, 22-25; 6:2-3, 7, 10 On their First Missionary Journey, Paul and Barnabas established churches in Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe, towns located in the Roman province of Galatia, in central Asia Minor. Paul probably had these churches in mind when he wrote Galatians. Timothy, Eunice, and Lois were from Lystra. It is not absolutely clear if Paul and Barnabas met them on the First Missionary Journey, but this is likely. It is possibly from them that Paul learned Judaizers were negatively influencing those early churches. Assuming Galatians is the first of Paul’s letters, then Galatians 3 becomes his first written foray into a topic that will become a major theme for him: the righteous live by faith, not by following the Laws of Moses. Moving forward, he concludes that those who believe in Christ are adopted children of God. He also makes a statement that will resound through the centuries: among those who believe in Christ, there is to be no distinction due to ethnicity, gender, or any other human-based distinction. Christians are to be completely unified. In Galatians 4, Paul lays out his case that those who follow Christ have freedom, and those who don’t are enslaved. In this passage, Paul uses a word that may sound strange to modern ears, “zealous.” In modern use, it tends to means enthusiastic and diligent, but Paul intended it to mean entirely devoted and very passionate. The first use of the word in the Bible is when Phinehas was so devoted to God that he drove a spear through a Jewish man and into a Midianite woman who were committing adultery.1 As a zealous person himself, Paul notes the importance of being zealous...for the right things. Chapters 5 and 6 contain some of the most important teachings about the Holy Spirit that are in the New Testament, as well as some of the most important teachings about living as a Christian. In one of the most recognized phrases of his teachings, Paul describes actions and consequences in a few simple words: “You reap what you sow.” *1 Numbers 24:11 Discussion Questions: 1. Paul opens Ephesians 3 by describing the Galatians as being foolish and easily deceived by false teachers. How are some ways that modern Christians are foolish and easily deceived? 2. One of Paul’s themes is based on a phrase from Habakkuk 2:4. The New International Version shows that the Hebrew word in that verse can be translated as “faith” or “faithfulness.” What is the difference in those two words in modern use? How do you understand “the righteous shall live by faithfulness” instead of “the righteous shall live by faith”? 3. Galatians 4:7 says that Christians are sons of God. Why do you think Paul used the word “sons” instead of “children” in this context? 4. Galatians 5:1 says not to submit to the yoke of slavery. What kind of slavery was he talking about? 5. Discuss Galatians 6:7 and how it applies to your society. *1. “faithfulness” possibly implies more of doing something in response to faith, while “faith” possibly implies more of intellectual assent. 3. In this context, he was talking about heirs, which were typically sons. 4. Spiritual slavery to following the law. Application Questions: 1. Name a time in your life when you reaped what you sowed in a negative sense, and another time in a positive sense. 2. Consider Galatians 5:17-23. Do you consider the things listed there as complete lists, or simple examples? If you read Galatians 5:22-23 as a partial listing, what other attributes might you add to the ones in those verses? 3. Galatians 6:9 says not to grow weary of doing good. Have you ever grown weary of doing good to the point you quit doing it? Application Questions for Teens: 1. Think of something that happened to you in the past year when you reaped what you had previously sown. How much time delay was there between the sowing and the reaping? Did that time delay cause you to believe you might avoid the consequences of doing something? If there is a long delay, or you question whether you will ever receive a penalty, do you tend to misbehave more than if the consequences are sure and immediate? 2. Galatians 5:14 says that the whole law is summed up by, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Modern society is trending toward a message of loving oneself while trying not to harm your neighbor. What is the difference between those two descriptions of life? Eyewitness Bible Series