Class #11: St. Paul defends both his apostolic office and the gospel message which he had preached to the Galatians. The message of the gospel is that man is saved by grace through faith alone apart from works. The ultimate proof that salvation is apart from any merit or worthiness in man is the Scriptural teaching of God’s eternal foreknowledge and election. (See Handout on Election.)
Similarly, even before his birth, St. Paul was predestined by God to serve as the Apostle to the Gentiles. God’s eternal foreknowledge and election had determined “to reveal His Son” in St. Paul apart from any merit or worthiness in him. When Galatians 1:15 says, “it pleased God,” those words show that it is the graciousness of God which is the cause of St. Paul conversion and his appointed mission to preach Jesus among the Gentiles.
God was not pleased with the faithless sacrifices of the Israelites(Ps 40:6-8), nor was He pleased with the unbelieving rabble(1 Cor 10:5). However, the heavenly Father was well-pleased with the sacrifice of His Son (Mt 3:17, 17:5). Furthermore, “God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe” (1 Cor 1:21).
Handout: Formula of Concord Ep XI
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