All Articles For The Charter of Christian Liberty

Prof. Hanko is professor emeritus of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Previous article in this series: January 1, 2006, p. 153.   The Apostolic Blessing   Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Galatians 1:4, 5 A very graphic description of Christ and His great work is appended to the apostolic blessing. This is unique among the blessings that Paul pronounces on the churches in the name of...

Prof. Hanko is professor emeritus of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Previous article in this series: November 15, 2005, p. 85.   The Apostolic Blessing  Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ. Galatians 1:3 All of Paul’s letters begin with a blessing that he pronounces on the church or churches to which he writes. In fact, not only does every letter begin with a blessing, but in every letter the blessing is identical, even when Paul writes to an individual such as Timothy and Titus. However,...

Prof. Hanko is professor emeritus of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Previous article in this series: October 1, 2005, p. 9. Address and Blessing “Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) and all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia.” Galatians 1:1, 2 The attack that the Judaizers in the Galatian churches made on Paul’s apostolic credentials was a vicious and subtle attack. If it could be proved to be true, Paul’s credibility was undermined...

Prof. Hanko is professor emeritus of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. If anyone has any doubts about the worth of this epistle of Paul, let him consider that Martin Luther, the great reformer of Wittenburg, considered hisBondage of the Will and hisCommentary on Galatians to be the only two books out of the many he wrote that were worth saving. He called Paul’s epistle to the Galatians “my epistle,” and spoke of it in the fondest terms as “my Katherine” with whom I live in holy wedlock. Luther’s reasons for his love affair with this epistle of...

Prof. Hanko is professor emeritus of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Pervious article in this series: September 1, 2005, p. 466. The Occasion for the Epistle Assuming that the Galatian churches were comprised of the churches that were established by Paul on his first missionary journey, it is worth our while to refresh our minds on the history. The apostle visited the churches of Galatia on four different occasions. His first visit was at the time of their establishment during the first missionary journey. His second visit came on the return trip of his first...