During this election season we are going to look at a
letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament in our Bibles today called
the Book of Galatians. As we have looked at this letter, we have been reminded that
whether or not you would consider yourself active or inactive in politics, you
cast your ballot every day in an election that has far more at stake that who
will be the leader of the free world for the next four years. Every day, we
cast a ballot in this election for one of two candidates. Either you cast a
ballot to vote to live your life as a religious-centered person; or you cast a
ballot to live your life as a gospel-centered person. And we have discovered
that this election has been going on for thousands of years.
This week, I would like for us to pick up where we left
off last week, where we are given a glimpse into a conflict that occurred
between two men who played a major role in the early church. And it is in this
conflict that we will see Paul reveal for us another timeless reason why we are
to vote no on religion. We are given a glimpse into this conflict in Galatians
2:11. Let’s look at it together:
But when
Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.
Paul begins this section of his letter to the members of
the churches of Galatia by sharing with them the story a major conflict that
occurred between himself and Peter, who was the undisputed leader of the twelve
closest followers of Jesus and the early church. This conflict is recorded for
us in another letter in the New Testament of our Bibles, called the book of
Acts, in Acts 14:26-15:2. After his first missionary journey, which resulted in
the gospel being proclaimed and the churches of Galatia being planted, Paul
returned to Antioch, which was his base of operations, and began to share all
that God had done through himself and Barnabas.
Peter, who also had been used by God to share the claims
of Christ and the message of the gospel with the non-Jewish world, came to
visit Antioch and rejoiced at the evidence of God’s activity. However something
happened between Peter and Paul the resulted in Paul being in open conflict and
opposition with Peter. Paul states that Peter stood condemned. In other words,
Peter was convicted of wrongdoing. Paul then reveals exactly what Peter did
that resulted in him being condemned in verse 12:
For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the
Gentiles; but when they came, he began
to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the
circumcision. The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result
that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.
To understand what is happening in this story, we first
need to understand the characters in the story and define some words. When Paul
refers to the coming of certain men from James, he is referring to Jewish
followers of Jesus who were from the church at Jerusalem. Gentiles were
non-Jewish followers of Jesus who did not follow the Jewish dietary laws. The party
of the circumcision refers to Jewish followers of Jesus in general.
Now that we know the characters in the story, let’s look
at the story. When Peter first came to Antioch, he was mixing and mingling with
the members of the church at Antioch, which was primarily composed of Gentiles.
And as Gentiles, these followers of Jesus did not follow the Jewish dietary
laws; they enjoyed BBQ ribs and pulled pork sandwiches. And Peter was hanging
out and eating some pulled pork and BBQ with them.
However, things changed when some Jewish followers of
Jesus from the church at Jerusalem came to Antioch. Paul explains that Peter
began to withdrawal and hold himself aloof. Peter separated himself from the
Gentile followers of Jesus. Peter stopped mixing and mingling with the Gentile
followers of Jesus. Peter stopped attending their BBQ’s. Instead Peter only
hung out with Jewish followers of Jesus at their BBQ’s and only ate Hebrew
national hot dogs. Paul explained that Peter’s change of behavior, combined
with the influence that he had as a leader, resulted in every other Jewish
follower of Jesus at Antioch following his example. Paul explains that the rest
of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy.
Now to understand what Paul is communicating when he uses
the word hypocrisy, we first need to understand what the word hypocrisy
actually means. Unfortunately, the charge of hypocrisy is often thrown around
like a grenade at followers of Jesus, usually in an inaccurate manner. The word
hypocrisy, in the language that this letter was originally written in, means to
join in playing a part or pretending. The word hypocrite was used to describe
someone who was an actor in the Greek theatre. In our culture today, we would
refer to such a person as a poser. A hypocrite creates a public impression that
is at odds with ones real motivations.
So, to be a follower of Jesus who strives to follow the
message and teachings of Jesus, yet sometimes falls short, is not to being a
hypocrite. A hypocrite is someone that says “here is the message and teachings
of Jesus, and you need to follow them, but I am not going to follow them”. A
hypocrite is someone who fails to follow the message and teachings that they
impose on others.
And that is exactly what Peter had done in Antioch.
Previously, Peter clearly and accurately communicated and advocated for a
gospel centered life and lifestyle that was based on faith and that strove to
follow the message and teachings of Jesus. But now, Peter was clearly
communicating and advocating a religious centered lifestyle that was based on
faith in Jesus plus keeping a list of rules in order to be right with Jesus.
Tomorrow, we will see Paul reveal how he responded to
Peter…
No comments:
Post a Comment