People Pleasing Causes Problems, Again

Week 6

11 But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. 12 When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile Christians, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. 13 As a result, other Jewish Christians followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.

14 When I saw that they were not following the truth of the gospel message, I said to Peter in front of all the others, “Since you, a Jew by birth, have discarded the Jewish laws and are living like a Gentile, why are you now trying to make these Gentiles follow the Jewish traditions?

15 “You and I are Jews by birth, not ‘sinners’ like the Gentiles. 16 Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.”

17 But suppose we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then we are found guilty because we have abandoned the law. Would that mean Christ has led us into sin? Absolutely not! 18 Rather, I am a sinner if I rebuild the old system of law I already tore down. 19 For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God. 20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die. Galatians 2:11-21 NLT

Today we pick up at the second half of chapter two of Galatians. Paul has spent the entire first chapter and beginning of the second expressing his deep concern for the state of the Galatians faith. Remember, he is alarmed by their acceptance of false doctrine preached by the Judaizers requiring the Gentile Christians to practice the Jewish laws and customs in order to be saved. Paul reminded the Galatians that he taught the true Gospel message given to him by God; a message that was supported by the leaders in the faith and pillars in the church. Now, in the middle of chapter two, Paul shares about a confrontation with Peter.

Paul confronted Peter for one reason: hypocrisy. The circumstances may not seem so serious to us, but it was causing quite a hoopla in Antioch (of Syria), which was essentially the headquarters for the Gentile church and home base for Paul’s ministry (NLT Life Application Study Bible, pg. 1986). Peter, who had the responsibility to preach to the Jews, ate with uncircumcised Gentile Christians when he first arrived in Antioch (v. 2:7, 11). But when his friends showed up, he was afraid of their criticism, so he stopped eating with the Gentiles (v. 12). While Peter might have been trying to keep harmony amongst everyone, Paul felt strongly that Peter’s actions were hypocritical. Peter’s hypocrisy wasn’t just a personal issue. His decision influenced others, causing them to be led astray (v. 13).

Interesting set of verses, don’t you think? Although the primary focus in this text is about not departing from the true faith, there is also a secondary message about the effect of our actions. How often do we make choices to not express our faith because we are afraid of what others may think of us? It may be subtle at times, but it does happen: deciding to not say grace at restaurant, slipping in a curse word when we are with others that do so, forsaking a Biblically-based stand on something in order to blend in with the crowd? In this sense, we are hypocrites, just like Peter. We, too, are leading others astray—our own children who are watching us like hawks, our friends who are weak in their faith (maybe even just in that particular area of their life), a stranger who reads our “Jesus Saves” bumper sticker right before we wave our fist in their face for cutting us off.

Hypocrisy happens all the time. So what is the solution? Paul sets the example: We need to confront one another. It sounds icky. It feels impossible. But when our purpose is serving God and preserving the truth of the Gospel message, we have to call one another out on our hypocritical behavior. It is our business, because we are the body of Christ designed to look out for each other.

Paul did it publicly, because it was a public problem; it needed to be addressed in front of others for the sake of others. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t confront each other privately, as well. No matter how we do it, we must stick to the facts and speak with loving-kindness. Look back at the verses for an example of how we should handle a confrontation with a fellow believer. Paul first stated clearly what Peter was doing wrong and addressed the consequences of his actions (v.14). Then he established truth from the word of God, which must be the foundational motivating factor in any confrontation (v. 15-16).

This set Scripture passage may seem complicated, as Paul jumps back and forth discussing the issue with Peter as an example for the problem with the law. Essentially, his point is this: The law cannot save. Only Christ can save. No matter how hard we try to do it all perfectly, we will find ourselves failing. But as we let go of the law—the requirements we put upon ourselves—and allow the life of Christ to live within us, we will be able to live fully for God. Paul sums it up best of all: “So I live in this earthly body by trusting the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.” (v. 21)

Lord Jesus, thank you for filling our earthly bodies with life, your life, when we believe in you as Lord. God, please help us to live in a way that does not make Jesus’ death on the cross, nor your amazing grace, meaningless. Father, we pray that you would unpack these principles for our understanding and application. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Faith Walking

• Do you empathize with Peter in this passage or find yourself cheering on Paul?
• What actions in your life are hypocritical?
• Confess any hypocrisy and ask for the strength to be strong in the faith.

The Next Step

Grab a piece of paper or index card and pen. Write down Galatians 2:20-21. Post it somewhere visible and repeat it throughout the days ahead. Each time pray for God to give you understanding and faith to believe His word in a personal way.

Faith Walking Challengers…
How has this series affected your faith walk? We’d love to hear from you, both prayer concerns and praises. Be sure to leave a comment and let us know, or leave the link to your blog post!

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© 2007 All rights reserved by Elisa Pulliam.

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