Galatians 2:11–16
11 When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Peter before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
For those who trust in God - those who are familiar with the Law of Moses and the teachings of Jesus, it’s fairly easy to believe in the general principals of our faith - and in particular the moral law that Christianity teaches.
It is easy to believe in the Word, and it is easy to apply that word to other people. What is not so easy is to apply that word to our own lives.
Judging others is an easy game to play. But we need to be careful, because it’s a game full of peril.
We all know the teachings of Jesus about taking the planks out of our own eyes before warning others about the specks in theirs, but it’s a lesson we haven’t learned very well.
We have to be careful how we go about applying the word of God to the lives of other people.
King David was a man who had a passion for justice and a great zeal for the Word of God, yet when the prophet Nathan confronted him over his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, at first, he just didn’t see his sin.
He was quite happy to apply the word of God to others - but could not recognise how that word spoke about him.
In Galatians 2 we have Peter, set free from the restrictions of the law who was now able to live like a Gentile when in their presence. He was free to break age-old taboos like eating and socialising with them when it suited him.
But as soon as he felt external pressures from his own people, he backed off to live the old way of exclusion and isolation. He reverted to the old way of judging the Gentiles as impure.
It’s this hypocrisy that Paul deals with when he confronts Peter: “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews? We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
What Peter was doing was applying the law of God to the lives of the Gentiles, but not to himself - he preferred to live in the freedom of the Gospel.
Another example is the story of Simon, who was delighted to open his home to welcome Jesus, but at the same time closed his heart to the woman who anointed the feet of Jesus.
Simon was absolutely right in naming her as a sinner, but what he missed was that this sinner was performing the duties of love and of hospitality that the law and the traditions suggested that he should’ve been performing in the first place.
We often judge others - we often apply the Word to them - but not to ourselves, and because of this we become intolerant and unloving.
One of the biggest tragedies in the Church today is when you hear of people who reject God because of the way that Christians have treated them.
We are (or at least we should be!) the first to admit that we are not perfect, and that the only perfect member of our Church is Jesus Himself, but is this the message that we convey?
There is nothing worse than a holier-than-thou Christian.
Yes, of course we need to speak out against sin and injustice that we see around us, but there is a right way and a wrong way of doing it.
The world needs to see us set an example by our own faithfulness, but a faithfulness that comes from God, not from ourselves.
Those who don’t know Christ need to see Him living in our lives.
And one of the best ways of doing that is to allow the Spirit to change our own values. We do have that choice.
As Paul puts it in Colossians 3, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” In the next verse he says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom.”
Notice the wording here - Let the peace of Christ rule, Let the word of Christ dwell. In other words, it’s an option. It is up to us to allow God to work in and through us, and as a result of that, any criticism or advice that we give will be given in love.
How that criticism is received is not our concern. We can’t change the way people feel - we need to trust that the Spirit of God will work in the hearts of others to convict them of their need to change.
What we need to do is remember that we are forgiven much, and then to love much.
We need to develop a Godly humility and faithfulness, because that is the best witness we can give to others.
Remember that we are not personally responsible for the choices of others, but we are responsible to set an example by our lives.
That’s what it means to be an ambassador for Christ.
We are the ones who allow God to make His appeal through us. We are instruments of His reconciling love, people who are called to reach out to sinners with compassion, just as Jesus was not afraid to reach into our dark world to pluck us from the consequences of our sin.
John 3:17 says, “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”
Psalm 103:10 says, “He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.”
The Word that God applies to our lives is the word of forgiveness and of love.
And the most amazing thing is that as we turn to God, we find that God is already turned towards us, calling us to be loved and to love.
How different this world would be if we could apply the same grace and forgiveness to the lives of others - and live that word within our own lives.
Maybe we too need to realise that just like Jacob, David, Paul, Peter and the sinful woman who anointed Jesus' feet, we are forgiven much.
Maybe then we would be able to apply that word to our lives and love much, much as we are loved.
Colossians 3:15-17
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
11 When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Peter before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
For those who trust in God - those who are familiar with the Law of Moses and the teachings of Jesus, it’s fairly easy to believe in the general principals of our faith - and in particular the moral law that Christianity teaches.
It is easy to believe in the Word, and it is easy to apply that word to other people. What is not so easy is to apply that word to our own lives.
Judging others is an easy game to play. But we need to be careful, because it’s a game full of peril.
We all know the teachings of Jesus about taking the planks out of our own eyes before warning others about the specks in theirs, but it’s a lesson we haven’t learned very well.
We have to be careful how we go about applying the word of God to the lives of other people.
King David was a man who had a passion for justice and a great zeal for the Word of God, yet when the prophet Nathan confronted him over his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, at first, he just didn’t see his sin.
He was quite happy to apply the word of God to others - but could not recognise how that word spoke about him.
In Galatians 2 we have Peter, set free from the restrictions of the law who was now able to live like a Gentile when in their presence. He was free to break age-old taboos like eating and socialising with them when it suited him.
But as soon as he felt external pressures from his own people, he backed off to live the old way of exclusion and isolation. He reverted to the old way of judging the Gentiles as impure.
It’s this hypocrisy that Paul deals with when he confronts Peter: “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews? We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
What Peter was doing was applying the law of God to the lives of the Gentiles, but not to himself - he preferred to live in the freedom of the Gospel.
Another example is the story of Simon, who was delighted to open his home to welcome Jesus, but at the same time closed his heart to the woman who anointed the feet of Jesus.
Simon was absolutely right in naming her as a sinner, but what he missed was that this sinner was performing the duties of love and of hospitality that the law and the traditions suggested that he should’ve been performing in the first place.
We often judge others - we often apply the Word to them - but not to ourselves, and because of this we become intolerant and unloving.
One of the biggest tragedies in the Church today is when you hear of people who reject God because of the way that Christians have treated them.
We are (or at least we should be!) the first to admit that we are not perfect, and that the only perfect member of our Church is Jesus Himself, but is this the message that we convey?
There is nothing worse than a holier-than-thou Christian.
Yes, of course we need to speak out against sin and injustice that we see around us, but there is a right way and a wrong way of doing it.
The world needs to see us set an example by our own faithfulness, but a faithfulness that comes from God, not from ourselves.
Those who don’t know Christ need to see Him living in our lives.
And one of the best ways of doing that is to allow the Spirit to change our own values. We do have that choice.
As Paul puts it in Colossians 3, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” In the next verse he says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom.”
Notice the wording here - Let the peace of Christ rule, Let the word of Christ dwell. In other words, it’s an option. It is up to us to allow God to work in and through us, and as a result of that, any criticism or advice that we give will be given in love.
How that criticism is received is not our concern. We can’t change the way people feel - we need to trust that the Spirit of God will work in the hearts of others to convict them of their need to change.
What we need to do is remember that we are forgiven much, and then to love much.
We need to develop a Godly humility and faithfulness, because that is the best witness we can give to others.
Remember that we are not personally responsible for the choices of others, but we are responsible to set an example by our lives.
That’s what it means to be an ambassador for Christ.
We are the ones who allow God to make His appeal through us. We are instruments of His reconciling love, people who are called to reach out to sinners with compassion, just as Jesus was not afraid to reach into our dark world to pluck us from the consequences of our sin.
John 3:17 says, “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”
Psalm 103:10 says, “He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.”
The Word that God applies to our lives is the word of forgiveness and of love.
And the most amazing thing is that as we turn to God, we find that God is already turned towards us, calling us to be loved and to love.
How different this world would be if we could apply the same grace and forgiveness to the lives of others - and live that word within our own lives.
Maybe we too need to realise that just like Jacob, David, Paul, Peter and the sinful woman who anointed Jesus' feet, we are forgiven much.
Maybe then we would be able to apply that word to our lives and love much, much as we are loved.
Colossians 3:15-17
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”