Galatians 1:10-24

The false teachers had told the Galatians that Paul was not a reliable teacher. No matter how false the accusations, Paul knew they would have an effect on the Galatians if they went unanswered. They need to know that Paul was a true apostle, and that both he and the gospel could be trusted. If they thought that Paul was a charlatan then they would not have believed the gospel either. It is also important to remember that in believing the gospel the Galatians were not adopting a well established or respected religion, but going out on a limb. Therefore, it would not be surprising if they felt somewhat insecure.

It is not possible to be absolutely sure what the exact arguments were that the false teachers used were, but they may have gone something like this:

Paul derived his authority from the Jerusalem church (1:12,17; 2:6), but that in saying circumcision was not necessary he was acting on his own initiative and had no right to do so. They said his teaching was man-made (1:11), in contradistinction to the Law. They may also have said that Paul was just trying to please men (1:10), so he preached non-circumcision to the Gentiles, but did preach it to others (5:11). In addition, they may have implied that Paul was a "failed" Jew.

In these verses Paul stresses that far from being taught by men he received the gospel by direct revelation from God (1:11,12,16). In particular he did not receive direct instruction from Jerusalem (1:17-24). On a more general level Paul was certainly not a failed Jew (1:13,14), nor was he a man-pleaser (1:10). While Paul came to the gospel independently, he was welcomed by the church (1:23)

We need to recognise that what people think of us will influence what they think of the gospel. Like it or not we are witnesses and examples. How we live matters.