Galatians 2
Paul Accepted by the Apostles
1Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. 3Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you.
6As for those who seemed to be important—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance—those men added nothing to my message. 7On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles,[a] just as Peter had been to the Jews.[b] 8For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. 9James, Peter[c] and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. 10All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
Paul Opposes Peter
11When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. 12Before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. 13The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.
14When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?
15"We who are Jews by birth and not 'Gentile sinners' 16know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
17"If, while we seek to be justified in Christ, it becomes evident that we ourselves are sinners, does that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not! 18If I rebuild what I destroyed, I prove that I am a lawbreaker. 19For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. 20I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"[d]
Footnotes:
[a] Galatians 2:7 Greek uncircumcised
[b] Galatians 2:7 Greek circumcised; also in verses 8 and 9
[c] Galatians 2:9 Greek Cephas; also in verses 11 and 14
[d] Galatians 2:21 Some interpreters end the quotation after verse 14.
4 comments:
Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
17But what if we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then find out that we are still sinners? Has Christ led us into sin? Of course not! 18Rather, I make myself guilty if I rebuild the old system I already tore down. 19For when I tried to keep the law, I realized I could never earn God's approval. So I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ. 20I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I am not one of those who treats the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die.
I should read this every morning. It is funny how quickly humans can get legalistic, I know i struggle. However, Paul gives us a beautiful synopsis of why we do not have to!!!
read boys read!!
In Christ,
cas
Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
17But what if we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then find out that we are still sinners? Has Christ led us into sin? Of course not! 18Rather, I make myself guilty if I rebuild the old system I already tore down. 19For when I tried to keep the law, I realized I could never earn God's approval. So I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ. 20I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I am not one of those who treats the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die.
I should read this every morning. It is funny how quickly humans can get legalistic, I know i struggle. However, Paul gives us a beautiful synopsis of why we do not have to!!!
read boys read!!
In Christ,
cas
Right on, cas. It comes across as a refresher course on our salvation, even to Peter. I think that this is one of the harder lines to walk in Christianity, that we have repented our sins, and we try to live our life for Christ, and do those things that He would want us to do, yet if we try and live by "the letter of the law", we invariably become legalistic. I realize that the answer is in Paul's synopsis, but I think that this paragraph should be more well known for that reason. I've seen so many young believers, myself also a guilty party at one time, who fall in love with the Lord, and quickly follow in Peter's footsteps, preventing the spread of the Gospel. We have all come from different places, and if we attempt to ONLY associate with other Christians, there will be no new believers.
13The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.
Lord, help us to be loving, understanding, and devoted followers of Christ, yet moreover, help us to remember the true meaning of grace, and to spread Your message so that others might learn of Your amazing grace. Help us not to hypocritical or become legalistic, except for one law, that the only way to You is through Christ. Thank you father, and continue to cultivate this band of brothers.
Amen
crb
Great chapter that touches on lots of relevant points.
I agree with cas and crb that there is the temptation to swing to one of two extremes...legalism or "it's my life i'll do what i please." The balance of humility and freedom (the bond-servant identity Paul mentions in several of his letters) is an ongoing learning process for me.
Shifting to a small phrase that really hit me when I thought about how the current Church (at least lots in the South) sees itself...in vs. 10 after Paul had gone and met with the apostles (those in charge) and received fellowship from them, the ONLY thing they asked Paul to be sure to continue to do was to remember the poor.
Ouch! It seems it is so much easier to be the legalist and hide behind that, than to be the servant to the poor/remember the poor. I haven't looked too much into the passage to know historically what Peter was refering to, but it must be a HUGE deal to the early church, since that was the "All they asked" message to Paul.
It is also wild that even the apostles wrestled with pleasing men rather than God (harkening back to chapter 1). In vs. 11-13 we see that Peter "was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group." I don't think this excuses our struggles in this area, but we need to be gracious and encouraging to one another in this arena. It is obviously a huge temptation.
"I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"
Praise God for His grace manifested in the life, death, resurrection of His son. Especially this Advent season.
Lord, praise you for salvation that rests on your work and not our own. Praise you for grace that extends beyond a confession of faith in you. Praise you that you hold us up in the midst of the swelling storms in this "present evil age." Lord, give each of us courage and humility to live uprightly with you and for your glory. Bless each of these men today at work and at home. Guide their hearts and minds into deeper trust and love with you.
In Christ's name,
ER
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