Dying and Deliverance

The purpose of this book is a search for understanding of Paul's witness about the distinction between the Word of God as Law, and the Word of God as Gospel. To some this may sound strange. But the Letter to the Galatians, direct from the Apostle to one of the churches he founded, manifests the tension between law and gospel, along with their respective functions and unique purposes in the life of the church. The tension comes to light in Galatians 2:19. Paul preaches the tension's result, cast in terms of dying in relation to one side of the tension (law), and living in relation to the other (gospel). The Apostle's instruction responded to the conflicted life of the Galatian church. Now his message about the supremacy of God's redemptive act in the crucified Christ comes to us in our own time and throughout our own conflicted journey. Paul's message is a word on target for people whose religious struggle is, at bottom, theological and spiritual. This is the focal point of the book, Dying and Deliverance. Grace and peace to you in your study, and most of all, deliverance!

""Gilthvedt's study is alive to human experience and alert to the struggle among ancient and modern Christians to grasp God's liberation for life in Jesus' death. This book will reward your engagement with the scriptural intensity and evangelical promise of Paul's letter to the Galatians.""
--David L. Tiede, Professor of New Testament and President Emeritus, Luther Seminary


Gary Gilthvedt (PhD, St. Andrews) was ordained in Roseau, Minnesota, in 1967. He served parishes in Minnesota, the Dakotas, Idaho, and Montana, and taught religious studies at three Lutheran colleges. His degrees are from Concordia College (Moorhead), Luther Seminary, Vancouver School of Theology, and the University of St. Andrews, Scotland. His wife, Mary, is a musician and Lutheran pastor. They live in East Grand Forks, MN.