Because of the things that are being said about Paul, he says some things about himself that might seem to be bragging in his defense.
Look at Galatians 1:13-24, we read, “For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not. Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia; And was unknown by face unto the churches of Judaea which were in Christ: But they had heard only, That he which persecuted us in times past now preacheth the faith which once he destroyed. And they glorified God in me.”
Paul was bragging in verse 14, when he said among the teachers of Judaism there was none his equal.
Sometimes when no one else will “toot” our horn, we have to “toot” our own horn.
Illus: Three boys are in the school yard bragging about how great their fathers are.
The first one says: "Well, my father runs the fastest. He can shoot an arrow, and start to run, and he gets there before the arrow."
The second one says: "Ha! You think that's fast! My father is a hunter. He can shoot his gun and be there before the bullet."
The third one listens to the other two and shakes his head. He then says: "You two know nothing about fast. My father is a civil servant. He stops working at 4:30 and he is home by 3:45!!"
Paul is telling the Galatians some of the impressive things about his life in his testimony, to refute some of the things that were being said about him. For example: He tells them that after his conversion he went to Arabia for three years and later returned to Damascus. Then he went to Jerusalem to see Peter, and James the Lord’s brother, and stayed with them fifteen days. All this took place in the first three years of his conversion.
But then we come to chapter two, and he tells us about going to Jerusalem again fourteen years later. Look at Galatians 2:1 “Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.” It is important that we notice that this time he took Barnabus and Titus with him.
The critics were saying that Paul preached one thing and Peter another. This was not true, there were not two gospels, Paul and Peter were in complete agreement.
The gospel of circumcision and the gospel of grace represents two different groups. (Jews and the Gentiles)
• The Jews were the people that Paul preached to.
• The Gentiles were the people that Peter preached to.
Both of them preached the gospel of grace, and scores of people were getting saved.
One of the heated topics that was surfacing at this time was about Jewish teachers teaching that Paul was not preaching what Peter was preaching, and that the Gentiles should also be required to be circumcised.
HOW DID PAUL PROVE THIS IS NOT WHAT THE JERUSALEM CHURCH REQUIRED?
Remember, I told you that when he went to Jerusalem the second time, he brought Titus with him. Titus was a Gentile that was uncircumcised. His father was a Greek.
The question was, when he went to Jerusalem to talk to Peter and the group, “WOULD HE BE REQUIRED TO BE CIRCUMCISED?” They knew Titus was an uncircumcised Gentile.
Look at Galatians 2:2-3, we read, “And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain. But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised.”
Paul knew that the gospel of grace ALONE that he had been preaching would be in “vain” if they had to also trust in the ritual of circumcision. God had given this gospel of grace to him by “revelation” (verse 2), and he went to Jerusalem to communicate this to the church leaders in Jerusalem.
The salvation by grace alone that Paul had been preaching, offended some of the Jews and got them stirred up against him. Even today, the teaching of salvation by grace gets some folks aroused. They believe that such teaching leads to “Loose Living.” What they fail to realize is that we who have been saved by the grace of God are motivated by love.
Love is the strongest motivation that a person can be moved by. The Lord said in John 14:15 “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
WHAT ABOUT ALL THOSE WHO CLAIM TO LOVE THE LORD AND DO NOT KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS? No matter what they say, the Lord states that if they loved Him they would keep His commandments.
Paul brought Titus to Jerusalem (an uncircumcised Gentile) to see if they would require circumcision. And he said in verse 3, “But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised.”
Paul recognized that false brethren had gotten into the church, wanting to put the church back under the bondage of the Mosaic law. Look at verse 4, we read, “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage.” But notice Paul would not give heed to what they were saying in the slightest.
The same false teaching that was taking place in Galatia was also taking place in Syria. Look at Acts 15:1, we read, “And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.”
They were promoting this false teaching, but Paul would not compromise with them. Look at verse 5, we read, “To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.”
Paul stood his ground and did not cave in. Look at verse 6, we read, “But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:”
Paul was not intimidated by these troublemakers. They wanted to make an issue of the fact that Titus (a Greek) had never been circumcised. Paul said they were correct, Titus had not been circumcised and not only that, he was not going to be circumcised.
HE TELLS US WHY HE IS NOT GOING TO BE CIRCUMCISED -- Because when he went before the counsel in Jerusalem they knew he had not been circumcised and THEY DID NOT REQUIRE IT.
Look at verse 7-10, we read, “But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:) And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.”
WHAT CAUSED THIS MAJOR PROBLEM in the church? Peter did! While the devil used the false teachers, he also used Peter’s hypocrisy to cause a problem.
Peter’s influence in the Jerusalem church was great among the Jews. Paul was not as popular because he was called to be a missionary to the Gentiles, and the Jews had no dealings with them in the past and this idea that salvation is for the Gentiles had not really caught on with some. But Peter seemed to talk out of both sides of his mouth.
Illus: A good example of this is Martin Sheen, the Hollywood actor. He appeared in a commercial sponsored by Sarah Brady’s Handgun Control people, attacking our Second Amendment rights to bear arms. Listen, if he believes so strongly that guns promote violence, what does he think he has done most of his adult life by making all the movies he has appeared in with guns and violence. This is hypocrisy!
Paul had this confrontation with Peter in Galatians 2:4-11, “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me: But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:) And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do. BUT WHEN PETER WAS COME TO ANTIOCH, I WITHSTOOD HIM TO THE FACE, BECAUSE HE WAS TO BE BLAMED.”
We see hypocrisy in the life of Peter. He seems to be one of these fellows who agreed with whoever he was with at the time, and this gave Paul’s critics ammunition against him.
For example, in Jerusalem, when Peter was with Paul and Titus, he seemed to be with them. At other times he seemed to be with Paul’s critics, and did not take a strong stand for salvation by grace alone when he was with them.
Paul did not appreciate Peter’s “wishy washy” stand, and he publicly confronted him. In Jerusalem they heard his presentation of this revelation that the Lord had given him, and were in complete agreement with him. They did not say, “No, you can not do that!”.
Instead he said, in verse 10, they only made one stipulation, “Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.”
But later, when these troublemakers got alone with Peter and pressured him, he did not take the strong stand he once took in the presence of Paul in Jerusalem. These critics thought that Peter and the leaders in Jerusalem were not supporting Paul .
Peter makes us think of many folks we find in the church. It is refreshing to come into contact with folks who STAND ON WHAT THEY BELIEVE AND THEY ARE NOT TOSSED AROUND BY PEER PRESSURE.
If we have core values, then no matter who we are with, or where we are, we are driven by them.
Illus: In February of 2003, many of the protesters in this country and around the world decided they would protest in the streets against the war in Iraq. We are told that millions attended these protest marches.
They asked President George W. Bush about the protest and if it would affect his decision on going to war. He said, “No, not in the slightest.” He then went on to say that he did not make decisions based on focus groups but on right and wrong, and Saddam Hussein was an evil man killing thousands of his own people and someone had to stop him.
This is a president with core values. You might not agree with him, you may not have voted for him, you may not even like him, but he is not like the common politicians that make decisions based on polls and large protest groups.
Peter seemed to lack those values, but Paul certainly had them. Peter did not waver on his confession of the truth, but acted in a contradictory manner, saying one thing and doing another, as a classic hypocrite
But look what Paul said in verse 11, “But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.”
They had a problem in the church and Paul felt that cause of the problem was Peter’s indecisiveness. Peter's example made a significant difference in what others did because of the respect they had for him as an apostle and a church leader. Peter had publicly contradicted himself and Paul publicly rebuked him.
What are the lessons we can learn from this situation, both from Paul's role in proclaiming the truth and Peter's role in playing it safe?
We must recognize that what happened between Paul and Peter is an example for our instruction, so we can avoid what Peter and the others did, and imitate what Paul did.
The lessons most applicable to us today fall into several categories, such as:
I. WE ARE TO BE STEWARDS
WHAT KIND OF STEWARDS SHOULD WE BE? We should be STEWARDS OF THE GOSPEL. It is the responsibility of every Christian to take that which has been entrusted to us and treat it with utmost care. What has been delivered to us must now be delivered to others in its purest form, neither polluted nor diluted.
Look at 2 Timothy 2:2 “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.”
Look at the words “the same”. We have a responsibility to be true to the teachings of God’s Word and pass it down to those who will preach it once we are gone.
As a pastor, I have the responsibility to make sure that in this pulpit, only the WORD OF GOD IS PREACHED. Also, I have the responsibility that when I am no longer filling this pulpit that another gospel preacher will fill this pulpit.
That is not to say that you as a congregation do not have a right to say who will fill this pulpit once I am not longer here, but it is to say, if I do my job correctly and preach the Word of God week after week, and educate you on the Word of God, you as a congregation will not allow a preacher in this pulpit to preach a watered down gospel.
Paul was a faithful steward of the gospel, but Peter buckled under pressure. Peter allowed himself to be intimidated by the "party of the circumcision".
Paul accused him of blatant hypocrisy as he acted one way when they came and another way after they left. Peter was not honest in what he did, nor true to his stated beliefs, and led others to wrong conclusions in the process.
God given influence comes with responsibility.
Illus: Many today in Hollywood make all kinds of movies to influence people to do evil, but they take no responsibility for their actions. Someone wisely said, “Real power comes not from the barrel of a gun, but the lens of a camera.”
Illus: During an evening address to roughly 1,000 people at the Abeloff Convocation Center, Spike Lee, 46, explained that while any country's military strength can subjugate, the ability to ''dominate, shape and twist the way people think through culture -- music, movies, clothes, Coca-Cola and McDonald's'' -- is the true source of America's power.
God had given Peter influence and he used his influence in the wrong way. WITH INFLUENCE COMES RESPONSIBILITY!
Peter failed to be reliable! In Paul's words, Peter's actions spoke for themselves and condemned him even if Paul had never said a word.
One of the most glaring problems with what Peter did was the unreasonable INCONSISTENCY OF HIS BEHAVIOR. Peter and many of the others had accepted a gospel of grace for themselves, but demanded conformity to the law for others.
Look how Paul deals with this inconsistency in Peter’s life. Look at Galatians 2:14, we read, “But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?”
Peter was guilty of setting a double standard, one for the Jews and another more strenuous one for the Gentiles.
Consistent expectations which are based upon a reasonable application of the truth are mandatory if we are to be faithful stewards, responsible and reliable witnesses for Christ!
We learn from this encounter between Paul and Peter that WE ARE STEWARDS and -
II. WE ARE TO BE SERVANTS
WHAT KIND OF SERVANTS? We are to be SERVANTS THAT CAN ACCEPT CORRECTION.
It is not stated in the scriptures, but it certainly seems to be implied. When Paul confronted him publicly, Peter evidently took the correction in a right manner, because we do not read anywhere in the scriptures where he resisted the correction.
He demonstrated a humble and teachable spirit, willingly accepting Paul's rebuke.
Some say, “Why didn’t Paul rebuke him privately according to Matthew 18.” Because Peter had publicly committed this sin of hypocrisy and it had to be dealt with in a public manner.
Because of his humility and respectable attitude, Peter's standing as an apostle was not permanently damaged even though he had by all estimates been guilty of serious error.
When the Council in Jerusalem took place some time later, Peter's leadership was obviously respected by Paul and the rest, because he had proven to have a humble and teachable heart.
Conclusion:
Peter did fall. His behavior was inexcusable as he catered to the demands of the opponents of grace. Therefore as Paul held his ground, we find a classic case of truth prevailing over falsehood, grace prevailing over law.
What we believe and what we do, make a difference in the transmission of the truth of the gospel to the next generation.
The reason we have churches today that have forsaken the Word of God is that church members did not contend for the faith.
Remember that -
I. WE ARE STEWARDS
II. WE ARE SERVANTS
