The Letters

Galatians 1:1-5

I. THE NEW YEAR WELCOME

We made it! The first Sunday of 2026! Welcome home! We are starting a journey together this year through a series simply called “The Letters.” Now, before we dive right in, let’s lay some groundwork for our time in the letters together. We need to work on how we actually read and listen to these ancient documents.

[STAGE DIRECTION: PLAY THE BIBLE PROJECT VIDEO]

II. INTRODUCING GALATIANS: THE SPIRITUAL WAKE-UP CALL

This morning we start with a really intense letter, the letter to the Galatians. Let me introduce you to Galatians: it is a spiritual wake-up call. It kicks the door down on legalism. Notice that Paul doesn’t start with warm greetings or long thank-yous like he does in his other letters. He opens with urgency. He opens with almost a sense of shock. Why? Because the very heart of the gospel is at stake.

Here’s what Galatians Is Really About: At its core, Galatians asks one explosive question: Is Jesus enough? That’s the question of a lifetime. I want to spend the next 12 weeks answering this question with you. Not Jesus plus what I bring to the table. Not Jesus plus religious performance. Not Jesus plus cultural expectations. Just Jesus.

III. THE DRIFT TOWARD “PLUS”

The early church in Galatia had started well. They had faith. They had joy. They had freedom. All of it. But somewhere along the way, voices crept in saying, “Faith in Christ is good, but it’s not enough. You need to add more.” Rules. Rituals. Works. Control.

And Paul loses it! …but he does it in the holiest, Spirit-filled way possible. Galatians is Paul standing up and saying: “If you add anything to the gospel, you don’t improve it, you destroy it.” Here’s why this book still hits so hard today: Because we haven’t changed much. We still drift toward:

1. Earning God’s approval instead of resting in it.
2. Measuring spirituality by behavior instead of transformation.
3. Trading freedom for control.
4. Living from fear instead of faith.

Galatians exposes our “default mode,” which is turning grace into a system and freedom into a checklist. And Paul won’t let that slide. Because the gospel isn’t just how you start the Christian life. It’s how you live it.

IV. THE CHARACTER OF THE LETTER

After today’s first 5 verses, you’ll start to feel the tone of this letter. It’s urgent. It’s personal. It’s unapologetic. This letter is deeply theological, even in some of our verses today, but you cannot miss that it is a letter. Which means it’s personal, it’s emotional, and it’s pastoral.

Paul’s Mission in these pages: He Defends the true gospel. He Defends his apostolic calling. He Defends the freedom of believers. And then he shows what life in the Spirit actually looks like. By the time you reach the “Fruit of the Spirit” in chapter 5, you realize something stunning: Freedom isn’t the absence of restraint, it’s the presence of the Spirit.

V. WHAT GALATIANS WILL DO TO YOU (IF YOU LET IT)

Galatians will: Strip away your spiritual performance. Challenge your religious pride. Comfort the weary and heavy-laden. Call you back to grace. And remind you who you really are in Christ.

So if you’re tired of trying to prove yourself to God… If you feel trapped by what you “should be doing” and spiritual expectations… If you’ve confused maturity with perfection… If you want to rediscover joy, freedom, and life in the Spirit… Then grab your bible, your pen, your journal, and welcome to the book of Galatians. This book calls you to believe deeper and rely on grace.

VI. THE ROADMAP

We will be looking at the book of Galatians first in our journey through “The Letters.” For your notes, here is our quick outline:

• Chapters 1–2: What is the gospel?
• Chapters 3–4: How does it save?
• Chapters 5–6: How do we live it out?

VII. VERSE 1: ON WHOSE AUTHORITY?

Galatians 1:1 — Paul, an apostle, not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead.

One of the problems this letter addresses is this: On whose authority can we say that Jesus is enough? The answer comes through the very clear authorship of this letter. Who wrote it? The Apostle Paul did. But how do we know he is an apostle? This was part of the debate in Galatia. Men were teaching young Christians that they needed to add things to what Jesus had done because “Jesus alone isn’t enough.”

Part of their strategy was removing the authority of others—namely, Paul. The questioning probably started like this: “How did Paul become an apostle? Does he have the right credentials? Did the other apostles in Jerusalem really say he is an apostle? Is he ordained? What denomination is he from?”

Paul clarifies: I am an apostle. A biblical apostle has 5 distinct characteristics:

1. They Are Sent by Jesus, Not Self-Appointed.
2. They Are Witnesses to the Risen Christ.
3. They Speak With Delegated Authority.
4. They Are Entrusted With the Gospel.
5. They Lay the Foundation of the Church.

Definition: A biblical apostle is a Christ-appointed messenger who is sent with authority to bear witness to the risen Lord, proclaim the true gospel, and lay the doctrinal foundation of the church. Here’s why this matters to you: If his apostleship is from Jesus, the gospel he preaches is authoritative. If it is human, the gospel becomes negotiable. The gospel is not negotiable. Paul is not protecting his ego. He is protecting the integrity of the gospel.

VIII. VERSE 2: THE UNIFIED VOICE

Galatians 1:2 — …and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:

Notice that Paul often has co-authors. His co-authors here are “the brothers.” This means this letter is not just Paul’s private opinion. It bears the weight and authority of the church as a whole. Notice the progression: From God the Father… Through His son Jesus Christ… Through His Apostle Paul and the brothers… To the churches of Galatia.

This isn’t a lone voice. This is a unified witness standing around one confession: Jesus is enough. The Galatians weren’t being asked to reject Jesus outright. They were just being asked to add to Him. And the church says, with one voice: No. Not Jesus plus law. Not Jesus plus rituals. Not Jesus plus performance. Just Jesus.

IX. VERSE 3: GRACE AND PEACE

Galatians 1:3 — Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ

Paul is doing something intentional here. He is drawing from two worlds. Grace comes from the Greek world. Peace comes from the Jewish world—the Shalom of God. Paul uses the word “grace” more than 100 times—nearly twice as much as all the other New Testament authors combined. Grace carries two ideas:

1. Beauty: The Greek word charis speaks of charm and loveliness. If grace is working in your life, it should make your life beautiful. Not perfect, but compelling. Too often, goodness exists without charm. Grace is where they meet.
2. Undeserved Generosity: It is a gift no one earns and no one can repay.

When Paul says, “Grace to you,” it’s as if he’s saying: “May the beautiful, undeserved love of God rest upon you in such a way that it makes your life beautiful too.” Then he says, “and peace.” Paul is thinking of Shalom. Shalom is not just the absence of conflict. It means wholeness. Restoration. Peace is what happens when a person is rightly aligned with God.

X. VERSE 4: THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL

Galatians 1:4 — …who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.

This is the beauty of the gospel. The lynchpin of the argument. There is no way we could’ve dealt with the issue of sin on our own.

The Gospel breakdown:

• The Giver: Christ Himself.
• The Reason: Our sins.
• The Result: Deliverance.
• The Scope: This present age.
• The Source: The will of God.

[ILLUSTRATION: THE THRONE ROOM]

How do you think that conversation goes before the throne of God? “Hey God, I’m really thankful you sent your son… but can you pull up my serving stats real quick? Can you check my tithe report? I’d like to add that to the blood of Jesus.” No. The sacrifice of Jesus is enough. To be delivered from this present age means we don’t have to live by the rules of this world—rules of status, comparison, and “enoughness.” We live by the rules of the Kingdom.

XI. VERSE 5: THE GLORY

Galatians 1:5 — …to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Who’s glory is it? God’s. The moment we add ourselves to salvation, we divide the glory. But when Christ stands alone as Savior, God gets all the glory. Paul finishes this introduction not with a period, but with an “Amen” and a doxology. He is so caught up in the reality of the grace he just described that he has to break into worship before he even gets to the body of the letter.

XII. CONCLUSION

Church, this is how Paul opens. Not with a list of things to fix, but with the Gospel. Before he challenges their drift, he reminds them who Jesus is. Jesus gave Himself. For our sins. To deliver us.

Over the next 12 weeks, this letter is going to press on us. It’s going to expose some things. At times, it may feel uncomfortable, because grace always feels threatening to our need to earn. But Galatians is here to free you. Is Jesus enough? Enough for your salvation? Enough for your standing? Enough for your future? Every week, Paul will answer: Yes! So lay down the scoreboard. Release the pressure to perform. Stop trying to add to what Christ has already finished.

Amen.