Journal: Journal of Ministry and Theology
Volume: JMAT 25:1 (Spring 2021)
Article: Book Reviews
Author: Anonymous

JMAT 25:1 (Spring 2021) p. 122

Book Reviews

JMAT 25:1 (Spring 2021) p. 123

Galatians: Freedom through God’s Grace. By Phillip J. Long. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2019. 156 pp. Softcover $22.

Philip J. Long (Ph.D.) currently serves as Dean at Grace Christian University in addition to editor of the Journal of Grace Theology. Long has written extensively on the Synoptic Gospels, most notably Jesus the Bridegroom (Pickwick, 2013). He has also contributed several scholarly essays on Paul such as his recent “The Potter and the Clay” presented at the 2019 SBL Midwest Regional Conference. Long regularly contributes to Reading Acts (readingacts.com), a blog dedicated to NT studies.

Paul’s letter to the Galatians represents a tension between freedom and law. Exposing and balancing this duality is the goal to which Long has committed in Galatians: Freedom Through God’s Grace. The broad theme that is woven throughout the book is the subtitle: “freedom through God’s grace.” More specifically, Long details three reasons to study the book of Galatians that serve as a catalyst for the study of the book and its themes: since it is the earliest NT writing, it allows us to understand Acts (and in particular chapter 15) in a “behind the scenes” fashion; second, it deals with the first major problem of the adolescent church; and finally, it addresses the question of freedom in Christ. This reasoning coalesces into a description of the main themes, which Long sees as central to the main “story” of Galatians. The first is the question of the Gentile believers into the Jewish community. He states, “The main problem Paul addresses in the book of Galatians is the status of Gentiles in the church” (4). Building off this is a second theme: Paul’s authority; specifically, Paul’s authority “to declare Gentiles free from the law” (5). A third theme is the status of the law in the new age (e.g., the question of circumcision in chapter 3). And finally, the relationship between law-keeping and ethics (i.e., how can one not keep the law and still be moral?). Many of these subthemes can be subsumed under the grand heading of “Freedom Through God’s Grace.”

Long makes clear that his contribution is not meant to be a technical or exegetical commentary, but rather for lay people, pastors, and Bible teachers who “need an overview of the main issues in the book of Galatians” (ii) without being bogged down in the mud of scholarly opinion.

JMAT 25:1 (Spring 2021) p. 124

The book could be broken down in the following way: chapters 1–3 (1–26): one gospel and the tension of law; chapt...