Un Llamado a la Libertad – Gálatas

Gálatas 1:1-10

Galatians has been called both the Magna Charta of Christian Liberty and the Christian
Declaration of Independence. Out of its pages grew the Protestant Reformation for it was
by study in Galatians that Luther’s heart was opened to the truth of justification by faith
alone.1
Paul with Barnabas evangelized the southern section of the Roman province of Galatia
during his first missionary journey (Acts 13:14–14:26).2 They encountered fierce
opposition several times from the jewish population of each city they visited. That boiled
over into the circumcision controversy which was the theme of the council in Jerusalem.
After preaching in Derbe, Paul and Barnabas retraced their steps through Lystra, Iconium,
and Antioch teaching, comforting, and appointing leaders in the churches they had just
started (Acts 14:21–23). They ended their journey by returning to Antioch (Acts 14:24–
26).3

Destination of the Letter

To what churches of Galatia (1:2; 3:1) did Paul write? This moot question has bothered
commentators for generations. Although the answer does not affect the message of the
book, it does determine the time of its composition. Two major views have been
proposed. The first is that Paul wrote to churches within the old territory of north Galatia,
a region that he evangelized during his second journey and revisited during his third (Acts
16:6; 18:23). The proponents argue that Luke used territorial, not Roman provincial, titles
to describe the regions encompassed by Paul’s itinerary (Acts 13:14; 14:6; 16:6; 18:23).
However, it is difficult to determine the real meaning of Luke’s words. Literally, he said
that Paul went through “the Phrygian-Galatic country” (16:6) and later through “the
Galatic-Phrygian country” (18:23). This is a general designation and could refer to either
the territory or province or both. The advocates add that since there is no mention of
Paul’s physical infirmity during the first journey (Acts 13–14), why would Paul refer to it in
the letter (4:13)? However, Luke does not mention it in his accounts of the second or third
journeys either. Many of Paul’s persecutions and illnesses were not recorded by Luke or
even by Paul himself (cf. 2 Cor. 11–12). They further suggest that Paul would have referred
to his persecutions, including the stoning episode, if he had written to the south Galatian
churches. But Paul did mention the marks (stigmata) that his body bore for his faith and
testimony (6:17); also, it is conceivable that his eye problem (4:13–15) was caused or
aggravated by the stoning incident.

1 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (p. 227). Baker Academic.

2 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (p. 229). Baker Academic.

3 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (p. 230). Baker Academic.

 In positive support for the second view that Paul wrote to those churches founded on
the first journey, many have pointed out that Acts contains territorial designations
whereas Paul chose to use provincial titles. In First Corinthians, Paul alluded to the
churches of Galatia (16:1); in that same context, he referred to other regions by their
provincial names: Macedonia (16:5), Achaia (16:15), and Asia (16:19). Thus, he most likely
used “Galatia” as a provincial title also. It is also more likely that Paul wrote to churches
whose establishment is recorded in Acts (chs. 13–14) than to churches about which we
have little information. Caution must be exercised here because little is known about the
founding of the Colossian church either. Judaizers, the enemies of Paul, would have
invaded the densely populated areas of southern Galatia where Jews and synagogues
were located rather than the sparsely settled northern sections. The reference to
Barnabas, especially his defection at Antioch (2:1, 9; cf. 2:13), would only have significance
to the southern Galatians because Barnabas was with Paul during the first journey, but not
during the next two. Since there is no reference to the historic decision made at the
council of Jerusalem (Acts 15), a decision that would have provided Paul with a clinching
argument, the book must have been written before that event occurred. In that case Paul
could only have written to the south Galatian churches of Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and
Derbe. Although Peter was an unstable person at times, his defection at Antioch (2:11–14)
would better fit into his life experiences before the council at Jerusalem than after. Finally,
the several biographical references in the first two chapters correlate better with a south
Galatian destination. The visit to Jerusalem in which he saw Peter and James (1:18–19; cf.
Acts 9:26) occurred three years after his conversion ( A.D. 32; cf. A.D. 35). The second visit
to Jerusalem, which happened fourteen years after his conversion rather than after his
first visit, probably was the famine visit rather than the trip to attend the council meeting
(2:1; cf. Acts 11:30; A.D. 46). The council was a public, general meeting (Acts 15), whereas
the visit of Paul, Barnabas, and Titus was private (2:2). The recognition of Paul’s
apostleship and message by the Jerusalem apostles certainly would have taken place
before the council meeting. In the intervening years between the two Jerusalem visits,
Paul spent nine in Tarsus (A.D. 35–44) and labored for two more in Syrian Antioch ( A.D. 44–
46).4

Contemporary scholarship has embraced the south Galatian view. This would mean that
the letter could have been written at any time after the completion of the first journey
(A.D. 47–48).5
Most modern advocates of this theory place the writing of Galatians in Antioch just before
the Jerusalem council (Gromacki, Tenney; A.D. 48–49). Consequently, after Paul and
Barnabas returned to Antioch after their first journey, Peter visited them and the church
at Antioch. There he fellowshiped with the Gentile Christians, withdrew from them, and
was reproved publicly by Paul. Judaizers meanwhile had invaded the south Galatian

4 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (pp. 230–232). Baker Academic.

5 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (p. 232). Baker Academic.

churches, teaching the necessity of circumcision to gain and to maintain salvation and
denying Paul’s apostleship. When Paul received the report of this theological dilemma, he
wrote Galatians prior to his attendance at the Jerusalem council.6

The purposes naturally grew out of the theological predicament of the churches. In the
first two chapters Paul attempted to vindicate his apostleship and message which were
under attack through answers to these questions: where did he get his apostolic authority
and message, and who accepted him as an apostle? Through constant autobiographical
references he demonstrated that his apostolic office was given directly by Christ and that
it was recognized by the Jerusalem apostles. In so doing he made Galatians the second
most autobiographical of his Epistles, next to Second Corinthians.
In the next two chapters (3–4), he logically explained and defended the doctrine of
justification by faith. It was basically a counterattack against the false teaching that
circumcision and legal obedience were necessary in addition to faith to secure a complete
salvation.
The final two chapters (5–6) contain instructions for practical Christian living. The early
section describes the Spirit-controlled life (5:1–6:10), whereas the closing paragraphs deal
with warnings against the Judaizers (6:11–18).
The Judaizers were probably Judean Jews who penetrated the just-established Gentile
churches of Galatia, warning them: “Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses,
ye cannot be saved” (cf. Acts 15:1). They regarded the Gentile believers as “second class”
spiritual citizens who needed to become Jewish in their approach to God. This
proclamation would have appealed to the unsaved Galatian Jews who resisted and
persecuted Paul (Acts 13:41, 45, 50–51; 14:1–5, 19). 7

It should also be observed that this is the only Epistle to be written by Paul to a group of
churches. All others were sent to either individual churches or persons. 8
El evangelio de libertad en Cristo es único y exclusivo. No hay otro. No podemos ni debemos de
desviarnos del evangelio según fue revelado originalmente. No importa quien dice algo diferente.

No importa si no es un mensaje popular o aceptable. El evangelio es el poder de Dios para

salvación.

En la región de Galacia el apóstol Pablo habiá ya hecho un viaje misionero y estaba por

6 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (p. 232). Baker Academic.

7 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (pp. 232–233). Baker Academic.

8 Gromacki, R. G. (1974). New Testament survey (pp. 233–234). Baker Academic.