83 Galatians

Here we have Paul's letters to the Galatians, Philippians, and Philemon. Aside from the fact that they're all in the Bible and are pretty heavy on the Jesus references, these books also have one other thing in common: they were all really, truly, and actually written by Paul the Apostle.
Weirdly enough, there are quite a few books in the Bible that are written by Paul (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Hebrews, ). Others (like Ephesians and Colossians) are questionable. But, Galatians, Philippians, and Philemon? They're made up of 100% authentic Pauline wisdom. So what kinds of answers will you get straight from the pen of the guy who's arguably one of the most important writers in the history of Christianity? Knowing that these ideas were written by one of the main guys in the early church means that they come from a source that a whole lot of people trust.

Old vs. new.

It's the age-old battle. Should we stick to doing things the way we've always done them? Or should we try a new approach? Old ways aren't always the best ways. In Galatians, Philippians, and Philemon, Paul's struggling a lot with the way things have always been done. According to lots of people, since Jesus is the Jewish messiah, that means that Christians need to be following Jewish laws, too. God gave his commandments to Moses thousands of years ago and nothing's changed since then.
But Paul thinks that Jesus is like the latest iPhone. He's shiny and new and makes all the stuff that's come before him seem obsolete. Paul believes that Jesus's life and death did away with the need for the law. After all, why do we need to go down some thou-shalt-not holy checklist every day when Jesus says all you need is love? Naturally, this didn't go over well. People do tend to freak out when anyone tries to change longstanding traditions. Just look at some of the historical fights we've had over the years. Should we free our slaves? Why? Things are cool the way they are. Should women vote? That would be a disaster! You get the picture. Paul was willing to toss out the old and embrace the new. As a result, he was able to lead Christianity into the future where it became a powerhouse of faith (over 2.1 billion served today). He was like the Steve Jobs of the first century.

Galatians

When Paul sits down to put pen to parchment to write to his friends in Galatia, he's not exactly feeling good about them. Even though Paul founded the church there and explicitly told them everything they ever needed to know about Jesus, the Galatians haven't exactly been toeing the line. It seems some outside agitators have come to town and let everyone know that Christians need to be following Jewish law in order to get in good with Jesus. That means that some of the guys will need to say bye-bye to their foreskins. But Paul thinks this is a terrible idea. Even though he was born and raised Jewish, he knows that God doesn't want Christians to follow every little bit of Jewish law. And how does he know this? Jesus told him. See, way back when, Paul used to persecute the church. That is, until he saw a vision of Jesus and he immediately started running around telling everyone that Christianity was awesome. It was one convincing vision. As long as you have Jesus in your heart, it doesn't really matter what you've got going on with your body. The law is slavery. Jesus is freedom. Which are you gonna choose?