Part of the attack on the gospel that happened in the Galatian churches was pointed at the apostleship of Paul. If Paul was not an apostle from God, then his gospel could be doubted. Paul does not defend his apostleship to ground his authority, but the truth of his gospel. Paul asserts that he received the gospel directly from God, not from man. To defend this claim, Paul turns to his own testimony, and his former life filled with rage and violence. And, ironically, it is these sins themselves that help prove the goodness and truth of the gospel.
