The New Testament is made up primarily of letters written by the leaders of the early church. Some of these letters, also called epistles, were to individuals, such as to Timothy or Titus. Others were written to specific churches, or to the Church in general. Sometimes a letter is called by its author's name (James, I John, Jude, etc.) while at other times the title comes from the party being addressed (Romans, II Corinthians, Ephesians, etc.)
Galatians is an early letter of Paul's (perhaps the earliest?) It takes its name from the audience to which Paul was writing: the churches of Galatia. Where was Galatia? Today we know that area as Turkey. It was a region first visited by Paul and Barnabas in Acts 13 and 14.
Paul's main concern in writing this letter is that the Galatians seem to be forsaking the gospel that he preached to them. He gets right to the point: "I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel." (vs. 6) We will hear more about this "different gospel" later, but it appears to be a message of works-oriented legalism rather than one of trusting in God's grace and the Holy Spirit.
Paul is clear that such a teaching contrary to the gospel he preached is really no gospel at all. He goes so far as to say that even an angel preaching a different gospel should be rejected and cursed rather than believed!
Paul is adamant about one other thing in Galatians 1: His gospel is not a human creation, but a divine revelation. He goes to great lengths to demonstrate that he did not receive instruction from a human source as it pertains to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but received it from God Himself. Paul is not trying to win favor from people, but is only concerned with pleasing God. (vs. 10)
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