The Blessed Hope Podcast -- with Dr. Kim Riddlebarger

Paul identifies all those who believe his gospel as “sons of Abraham”–which includes both Jews and Gentiles.  But he does not include those who seek to be right before God on the basis of works of the law, which Paul has declared, do not justify.The Judaizers have been spying on the Galatians Christian liberty.  Gentile Christians in these churches do not follow a kosher diet, they do not observe the feasts of Israel, and there is no requirement that Gentiles be circumcised in order to be justified, or declared “right with God.”  Jews and Gentiles worship together, they eat together, and they embrace the same gospel, without, according to the Judaizers, proper observance of the law of Moses; the reason why they were so vocally challenging Paul’s authority and his gospel.In response, Paul turns to the account of Abraham, who, as we read in Genesis 15:6, believed God and was reckoned as “righteous.”  Paul appeals to the story of Abraham to refute the Judaizing idea that those justified before God, are such, because of “works of the law.”  Abraham is the “man of faith” and the spiritual father of all who believe Paul’s gospel, which Paul says, YHWH had preached to Abraham and which was foretold through the Scriptures.How can uncircumcised Gentiles be identified as “children of Abraham,” Paul is about to tell us.To see show notes, https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/the-blessed-hope-podcastFor show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

Peter enjoyed table fellowship with Gentiles until men from James pressured him to withdraw from table fellowship with them.  Even Barnabas felt the pressure to distance himself from the unclean–those not circumcised.  He too grew hesitant to eat with Gentiles. Paul knew that if the Judaizers got wind of this, they would claim that Peter’s actions proved that Paul’s gospel was a novelty.  Paul, they could argue, was preaching something new and different from that which the Apostles (and the Jerusalem church) were teaching.Paul addressed the question of the origin of his gospel in 1:11-2:10.  But when Peter came to Antioch–Paul’s current base of operations–Paul knew he needed to confront the chief apostle in front of all the church.  In this episode (the first part) we will address Paul’s confrontation with Peter.  Having learned of Peter’s hypocritical actions toward the Gentiles, Paul knows Peter’s actions undermine the gospel and will be used to deny the doctrine of justification, which Paul had been preaching.  For Paul, the confrontation with Peter is not personal.  It is about the gospel.  In Galatians 2:16 he puts matters as clearly as words will allow--sinners are justified by faith in Christ, not by works of the law (i.e, personal obedience to God’s commandments as a requirement to be justified).We move to discuss why many of our contemporaries think that Paul’s doctrine of justification is not about how sinners ‘get saved,” but rather is about identifying who is in the church.  The issue of table fellowship with Gentiles in Galatians 2:11-14, has become a huge point of contention, and is used by advocates of the New Perspective on Paul (NPP) to dismiss Luther and Calvin and those who follow them as badly distorting Paul’s message, making it into a message of how God “saves guilty sinners,” not one of Jewish boasting.Next, we will take up Paul’s contention in Galatians 2:16 that justification is by faith and not by works, and that those like Peter, who now excludes Gentiles from full fellowship in the church, are undermining the gospel Paul has been preaching.This episode is packed, so let us take up Galatians 2:11-21, the account of Paul’s confrontation with Peter, and Paul’s clarification of how sinners (Jew and Gentile) are justified before God – “we are justified by faith, and not by works of the law.”To see show notes, https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/the-blessed-hope-podcastFor show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

Paul was well-known to the Galatians.  He came into Galatia preaching the gospel revealed to him by Jesus Christ.  The Galatians knew Paul.  He stayed with them for a time.  He lived with them, he ate with them, prayed with them, and preached to them.  When he fell ill, they nursed him back to health and once he had recovered, they sent him on his way.  No doubt, they prayed for Paul and encouraged him when he left Galatia to continue his work elsewhere as Apostle to the Gentiles.But after Paul left the area, a group of false teachers, known to us as the Judaizers entered the area and began attacking Paul’s gospel – Paul, they said, was denying that obedience to the law was required of God’s people, and he was teaching that Gentile converts need not submit to circumcision or produce “works of law” to be numbered among the people of God.  The Judaizers resented the freedom enjoyed by these new Gentile converts.  The Judaizers even sought to spy on their liberty–to see if the Gentiles who were following Paul demonstrated sufficient zeal for obedience to the law.But the Judaizers also attacked Paul on a deeply personal level.  They claimed he was an apostate from Israel, that he was a religious huckster trying to attract a group of followers unto himself, that he was not doing the Lord’s work, but was leading the Galatians astray.Paul must defend himself and his apostolic call to people who knew him well, and but now came to question his motives.  He must prove that his gospel is the same as that preached by the other apostles, the Twelve, and that he and his companion Barnabas, had received the blessing of all of Jesus’ disciples as well as the Jerusalem church.As Paul does so in Galatians 1:10-2:11 (or text for this episode), we learn a great deal about Paul and his own personal biography, as well as learning more about the gospel Paul has been preaching.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

What would you do if an angel suddenly appeared to you and proclaimed a gospel much different from that gospel which Paul preached to the Galatians?What would you do if one of your closest friends or a family member encourages you to listen to a celebrity, a life coach, an influencer, or a religious teacher who proclaims a message different from that taught by Paul?What would you do if a well-known Bible teacher or preacher, perhaps someone in your church, or even your own pastor, teaches a gospel different from the one Paul presents in the Book of Galatians.Paul will tell us, as we turn to the opening verses of Paul’s letter to the churches in GalatiaTo see the show notes, go to:  https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/the-blessed-hope-podcastFor show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

The Apostle Paul preached the gospel revealed to him by Jesus Christ throughout the region we know as Galatia.  But soon after Paul left Galatia, he began hearing disturbing reports about false teachers who came into the region, undermining his apostolic office, and challenging the gospel he had previously preached to the Galatians.In the first episode of our series – “Introduction to the Book of Galatians,” often known as “The Magna Carta of Christian liberty” – I ask and answer four basic questions to give us the background and context to go through Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia:  Who?  When?  What? and Why? For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

This is the premier episode of The Blessed Hope Podcast! In this episode, I ask and answer the question, "why another podcast?"  "Why The Blessed Hope?"  First, I explain why I think it important to study the biblical text  in detail, yet in a non-technical way Second, I set out the ground I hope to cover in the episodes of season one (and perhaps, beyond)Third, I'll give you some great resources and background material in the show notes to help you learn more about the ground we will be covering  So, the give "The Blessed Hope" a listen, and tell me what you think!For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/