The Issue Was Never What Laws to Keep, but How We Are Justified
Many believers today read Paul’s letter to the Galatians and conclude that the Torah no longer applies to followers of Messiah. They see words like “law,” “curse,” and “freedom” and assume Paul was abolishing the torah or obedience itself. But that is not what Galatians teaches.
The issue at the heart of this letter is not which laws to obey, but how a person is justified before God.
Paul’s entire argument centers on one question: What makes a sinner righteous before the Almighty? If we misunderstand this, we risk twisting Paul’s words, just as Peter warned, and being “carried away with the error of the lawless” (2 Peter 3:17).
The Context: A False Gospel Spreading Among Believers
Paul begins with urgency. The Galatians were being persuaded by teachers often called “the circumcision party,” who claimed that Gentiles could not be saved unless they were circumcised and began keeping the Torah as a means of earning righteousness. Paul calls this teaching a false 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.”
Galatians 1:6 (ESV)
“If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”
Galatians 1:9 (ESV)
From the opening paragraph, Paul establishes that this is not a debate about lifestyle or culture. It is about the foundation of salvation itself.
Paul’s Gospel Came from Heaven, Not from Men
“For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Galatians 1:12 (ESV)
Paul wants his readers to know that his gospel did not come from tradition or rabbinic reasoning. It came directly from the risen Messiah. The good news he preaches is the same gospel first promised to Abraham, not a new religion or a rejection of Torah.
The Test Case: Titus and Circumcision
When Paul went up to Jerusalem, the apostles agreed with his message. Titus, a Greek believer, was not forced to be circumcised.
“Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek.”
Galatians 2:3 (ESV)
This moment proved that circumcision was not a requirement for justification. If the question were simply about which laws believers should honor, Paul would never resist circumcision, since it is a commandment. But the issue was using circumcision as a condition for salvation.
“To them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.”
Galatians 2:5 (ESV)
Notice how it says “to them” we did not yield, and not to Torah. Paul isn’t talking about obedience to the commandment of circumcision he is talking about submitting the false teachers and their doctrine regarding circumcision.
Justification, Not Lawlessness
The heart of the letter is found in Galatians chapter 2.
“We know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
Galatians 2:16 (ESV)
“By works of the law no one will be justified.”
Galatians 2:16 (ESV)
“I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”
Galatians 2:21 (ESV)
Paul is not dismissing obedience. He is dismantling the lie that obedience can justify. The Torah defines righteousness, but it cannot make anyone righteous. Justification comes only through faith in the Messiah who bore our penalty.
The Spirit and Abraham Prove the Point
“Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?”
Galatians 3:2 (ESV)
“Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”
Galatians 3:6 (ESV)
“Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.”
Galatians 3:7 (ESV)
From the beginning, righteousness came through faith. Abraham’s obedience followed his belief; it did not earn his acceptance. Paul reminds us that justification precedes obedience, just as faith preceded circumcision in Abraham’s life. And its important to note that Paul is teaching this lessen form the Torah using Abraham as example. It’s not new law vs. Torah. It’s about properly understanding the Torah.
Those Who Rely on the Law for Justification Are Under a Curse
“For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse.”
Galatians 3:10 (ESV)
“The righteous shall live by faith.”
Galatians 3:11 (ESV)
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.”
Galatians 3:13 (ESV)
The “curse of the law” is not the Torah itself but the penalty it demands for disobedience. Messiah redeemed us from that curse, not from the obedience to the commandments of God. The problem was never the law, or obedience, it was our sin, which brought the curse of law upon us.
Promise First, Law Later
“The law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God.”
Galatians 3:17 (ESV)
“If the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise.”
Galatians 3:18 (ESV)
The covenant of promise came before Sinai. The Torah did not replace grace; it revealed the character of the God who saves by grace. The law was never meant to be a new system of justification. It was a guide to teach righteousness.
The Law as Tutor Leading to Faith
“So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.”
Galatians 3:24 (ESV)
“For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.”
Galatians 3:26 (ESV)
The Torah exposes sin and teaches us holiness. Once faith in Messiah brings us justification, we no longer stand condemned under the law. Yet the law continues to instruct us in how to walk as sons and daughters of God.
Freedom Produces Obedience, Not Rebellion
“Do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”
Galatians 5:13 (ESV)
“Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
Galatians 5:16 (ESV)
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV)
The freedom of grace is not lawlessness. It is empowerment. The scriptures tell us Spirit writes the same commandments on our hearts, enabling us to walk in love and truth. Obedience becomes the fruit of a transformed life, not the means of earning salvation.
Acts 15 Confirms the Same Truth
The same controversy recorded in Galatians appears in Acts 15. Certain men were teaching:
“Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”
Acts 15:1 (ESV)
The apostles gathered in Jerusalem to address this claim. After debate, Peter stood and declared:
“We believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”
Acts 15:11 (ESV)
The council ruled that salvation is by grace through faith, not by ritual conversion. Yet they urged Gentile believers to abstain from idolatry, sexual immorality, and blood as immediate essentials for fellowship, acknowledging that “Moses is read every Sabbath in the synagogues” (Acts 15:21). In other words, justification is by faith, but discipleship involves continued learning of God’s instructions.
The True Message of Galatians
- The false teachers claimed obedience could justify.
- Paul proved justification is by faith alone.
- Messiah redeemed us from the curse of disobedience, not from the law of God.
- Faith unites Jew and Gentile into one family under the same God.
- The Spirit empowers believers to walk in obedience born of love.
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.”
Galatians 5:6 (ESV)
All who are in Messiah are already circumcised, just as all who are in Him are dead to the law’s condemnation and justified before God, regardless of the condition of their mortal body.
Conclusion
Galatians does not abolish God’s commandments. It restores the right order of the gospel. We are justified by faith, sanctified through obedience, and guided by the Torah as the standard of righteousness.
The question Paul answered in Galatians was never, “Should we obey God’s law?”
The real question was, “Can obedience save us?”
The answer remains the same as it was in Torah:
No, only faith in Messiah justifies. But that faith, if genuine, always produces obedience.
“The righteous shall live by faith.”
Habakkuk 2:4 (ESV)
Key Takeaways
- The book of Galatians is about justification, not lawlessness.
- Paul opposed using circumcision or “works of the law” as a condition for salvation.
- Faith in Messiah brings justification; obedience reveals transformation.
- Acts 15 confirms salvation by grace, not by ritual conversion.
- The Torah remains the guide for righteous living, upheld by those who walk in the Spirit.
