Read aloud in the early church, that’s what would’ve happened with this letter. There would be a reader, and as everyone hears the opening greeting, when it comes to Amen you’d be expected to join in with your own. Amen. It is true and certain. Paul is an apostle sent by God and Jesus gave himself for our sins. Two important realities. Two fundamental truths that require regular repetition.

The first because it has to do with the authority of Scripture. Apostolic authority is enshrined in apostolic writings. If Paul is not an apostle called by God, then his teachings and writings do not have God’s authority, and we have no reason to submit to what he says. Then we can pit Paul against Jesus and pretend as if he introduced various new doctrines that are at odds with what Jesus would’ve wanted. We can call him a misogynist, chauvinist, homophobe and all the other slurs to try and dismiss what he says. We can do that, if he was not an apostle. But he was, and so in his writings, we recognise the clear voice of the Spirit, God’s Word for us today. Authoritative, relevant, sufficient for our Christian life.

The authority of God’s Word requires regular confirmation, and with it also the truth of the gospel. Most probably, if we are Gentile Christians, we are not tempted to believe that circumcision or the Mosaic law is a necessary part of the Christian life. But there are various Christian groups and churches that continue this heresy, or at the very least they come dangerously close to it. Churches which call on members to forsake pork, to pray to God with Hebrew names and gather for worship on the Saturday (Jewish) Sabbath etc.  Even if we may not be tempted to return to Moses, we still have much to learn from Paul’s letter. The importance of justification by faith. The relationship between the old and new covenant. The centrality of Christ and our sinful tendency to try and find a place for our works when it comes to salvation.