Paul’s preaching of the gospel, with its radically Christ-centered character, went beyond the understanding of other early believers. The importance and place of the Law of Moses for both Jews and Gentiles in the church was a hotly contested issue.
In Galatians, Paul endeavored to prevent the Gentile converts in churches he had founded from embracing a version of the gospel that insisted on their observance of a form of the Mosaic Law. He saw with a degree of clarity not shared by many that such a message reduced the crucified Jesus Christ, who alone was the heart of the gospel, to being a mere agent of the Law. For Paul, the gospel of Jesus Christ alone, and him crucified, had no place in it for the claim that Law-observance was somehow necessary for believers in Christ to experience the power of God’s grace.
Marion L. Soards is professor emeritus of New Testament Studies at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He earned a PhD from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where earlier he received an MPhil and an STM. He also has an MDiv from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a BA from Furman University.
Darrell J. Pursiful earned both a PhD and MDiv from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is senior editor of adult curriculum at Smyth & Helwys Publishing as well as an adjunct professor in the Roberts Department of Christianity at Mercer University. He has also served as a pastor of churches in Kentucky and Indiana.
Paul’s preaching of the gospel, with its radically Christ-centered character, went beyond the understanding of other early believers. The importance and place of the Law of Moses for both Jews and Gentiles in the church was a hotly contested issue.
In Galatians, Paul endeavored to prevent the Gentile converts in churches he had founded from embracing a version of the gospel that insisted on their observance of a form of the Mosaic Law. He saw with a degree of clarity not shared by many that such a message reduced the crucified Jesus Christ, who alone was the heart of the gospel, to being a mere agent of the Law. For Paul, the gospel of Jesus Christ alone, and him crucified, had no place in it for the claim that Law-observance was somehow necessary for believers in Christ to experience the power of God’s grace.
Marion L. Soards is professor emeritus of New Testament Studies at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He earned a PhD from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where earlier he received an MPhil and an STM. He also has an MDiv from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a BA from Furman University.
Darrell J. Pursiful earned both a PhD and MDiv from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is senior editor of adult curriculum at Smyth & Helwys Publishing as well as an adjunct professor in the Roberts Department of Christianity at Mercer University. He has also served as a pastor of churches in Kentucky and Indiana.
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