Urged to a Life of Love

“The truly astonishing thing for many modern readers (were we to notice) is how Paul continues. Right after he says that he wishes his theological opponents would overachieve and cut off more than they were currently advocating, he then goes on, in the next breath, to urge the Galatians to a life of love. The Galatians had been called to liberty but should not use that liberty as an occasion for serving themselves. Rather, they should by love serve one another (v. 13). In plain language, Paul is urging the self-castration of his adversaries in v. 12 and is urging an ethic of love in verse 13. And he goes on. The whole law is summed up in the second greatest commandment, which is to love our neighbors as we love ourselves (v. 14). He then warns the Galatians against biting and devouring one another, lest they consume one another (v. 15). All of this immediately follows his avowed desire that the world’s population of eunuchs might rise. Clearly, if we accept the inspiration of Scripture, the love he is urging in verses 13-15 is not what our modern sentimentalist age believes that it is” (A Serrated Edge, pp. 61-62).