Paul vs. the Judaizers

When we read St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians, we are reading not a theological treatise but rather a snapshot of a hot-wired drama. In the Roman province of Galatia, Judaizers—Christians promoting a works-based righteousness, and they could be either Jew or Gentile—had infiltrated the ranks of the church and advocated adherence to Mosaic Law—with emphasis upon circumcision—as needed in addition to Christ for salvation. They are the people whom Paul despises the most, and they present the biggest obstacle in Paul’s mission of advancing the gospel. In Galatia, the Christians were accepting the teachings of the Judaizers, whose teachings Paul called “another gospel”; and he pressed a rhetorical curse upon all who would teach such a foreign gospel. The model of salvation for St. Paul and the Judaizers contrasts sharply:

St. Paul understands the gospel as proclaiming that in order one to experience salvation—that is, in order to be reconciled with God and to be declared righteous—the cross is sufficient. When we come into contact with the cross through faith/trust in Christ and repentance (not a physical turning from sin but a change in our attitudes towards sin), we are then and there reconciled with God and declared 100% righteous. The Judaizers developed as devout Jews, common with the concept of obedience to the Law, came into contact with the gospel message of grace; when they became Christians, they went through a period of “cognitive dissonance” where what they had been taught all their lives regarding the Law conflicted with the gospel message of liberty from the Law and abandonment to grace. Unwilling to completely forsake their views on the Law, and equally unwilling to reject the cross of Christ, whom they correctly viewed as the Messiah, they came to a compromise on middle-ground: the cross of Christ plus obedience to certain tenants of Mosaic Law equaled reconciliation with God and the gift of being declared righteous.

Sadly, like the Judaizers, sometimes Christians will add some sort of addition to the cross for salvation, often without realizing it. When Christians state that certain theological views, certain behavioral practices, or belonging to a certain denomination are needed for salvation, they are modern-day Judaizers! Paul despises such Christians, for they twist and contort the gospel message of Christ by supplementing it with the Law. Now, Paul doesn’t care if someone wants to obey the Mosaic Law; he cares when people elevate obedience to the Law to soteriological significance, thus interpreting the cross as insufficient for salvation.