Preserving The Gospel (Galatians 2:1-10)
We have been studying Paul's letter to the Galatians on Sunday nights. This is a very emotional book. You might find yourself yelling at times if you read through it aloud. Paul is very passionate about the Galatians and the gospel that they allow men to distort. In the first chapter, Paul explains how the gospel he preaches is not his gospel. He didn't have the luxury of making it up, and he did not learn from men who made it up. This gospel was given to him directly from Jesus. The words of Paul are equivalent to the words of any other apostle. These teachings are as close as we can get to the commands of Christ. So it makes sense for Paul to want to protect what he has been entrusted with.
At the end of Chapter 1, Paul explained that he was teaching the gospel he received from the beginning. He didn't feel any need to check with the apostles and make sure that his gospel was the true gospel. Then, after three years, he finally went down to spend fifteen days with Peter, but there is no indication that he gained any additional information from that experience. He says that he met with him.
Fourteen Years Later (1-2)
Galatians 2:1--2 (ESV) --- 1 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. 2 I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.
It was fourteen years before Paul felt a need to go to Jerusalem, and, even then, it was only because God had revealed the need to him. There wasn't an overwhelming concern that he had been preaching the wrong thing, but he felt the need to make sure that he "was not running or had not run in vain." The gospel that he was preaching would be set before those who seemed influential privately so that they could weigh in on it.
This shows humility in Paul. He wasn't overly proud of his gospel. He was willing to hold it up and let others weigh in. But he wasn't going alone. He took Barnabas with him. Barnabas was well known for his great faith in Jerusalem. He sold his land and gave all the proceeds to provide for his brothers and sisters in Christ. He also took Titus. Titus was a Gentile who was uncircumcised. His presence would verify that Gentiles are being transformed and becoming faithful enough to preach and teach the gospel.
They Added Nothing (3-6)
Galatians 2:3--6 (ESV) --- 3 But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. 4 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in---who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery--- 5 to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. 6 And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)---those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.
We come to a section full of parenthetical phrases, making it hard to track what's being said. First of all, he says that Titus was not forced to be circumcised. The influential Jewish Christians in Jerusalem did not force Titus to be circumcised because that's not what Christ asked believers to do. He even says that those who "seemed to be influential... added nothing to me." There was no change in his gospel. The Gentiles are saved because of their faith and submission to Christ. They are not saved because they are circumcised or keep some Jewish law.
False Brothers
First, he says, "False brothers secretly brought in... slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery." What does all of that mean? The problem in Galatia is this; there are enemies in the camp. When we think of spies, we think of enemies who are trying to find our weaknesses so that they can exploit them. Notice what these false brothers have chosen to pick on, "our freedom which we have in Christ Jesus." They are trying to "bring us into slavery."
Bringing Slavery
This idea is more clearly described in Romans 6-8, but let's keep our focus on this text. Circumcision is going to be brought up multiple times in this book. It is the opinion of Jewish Christians that Gentile Christians should keep the OT Law. Can you imagine going from living a Gentile life to living a Jewish life? That would be a lot of work. Plus, how does Jesus fit into this?
These opinionated Jews see the Gentle Christians as lawbreakers. They want them to change and be more righteous like them. But Paul said that's bringing them into slavery. Forcing people to do something God doesn't require, Jesus doesn't require, and the leading Christians in Jerusalem don't require it. It's a distortion of the gospel! It's not loving to place a greater burden on people's backs than God does. This is making the gospel about us and not about God.
Freedom In Christ
Do you feel free in Christ? Paul says that Christians experience freedom in Christ, but I fear that most Christians feel tied down in Christ. There may be a constant feeling that we aren't good enough or doing enough to be loved by God. But Satan is working to make us feel this way. God gave his son to die for you because he loves you more than you ever dared to believe he would.
We sing "Jesus loves me" to our kids because we want them to know that he does. We also sing it because we want to ingrain that in ourselves. Jesus does love me, and it's not because I did everything right. His love is not dangling in front of me like a carrot, urging me to sacrifice a little bit more so I can earn his love.
Freedom in Christ means that I am not bound by the Old Testament law or by any law to find God's approval. I have God's approval through faith in Christ and submission to the will of God. Now, my goal is to try to discern his will by observing the life and teachings of Jesus and his apostles. That's not something I'm enslaved to for love and affection.
The Right Hand of Fellowship (7-10)
Galatians 2:7--10 (ESV) --- 7 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8 (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), 9 and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
The last part of this section reemphasizes what was already said, but he adds names to these influential people. He says that James (the brother of Jesus), Cephas (Peter), and John (the apostle) all gave him and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship. They were pillars in the church in Jerusalem. They made it clear that the freedom of the Gentiles in Christ will not require them to keep the Old Testament Law.
He also makes the point that these pillars, these influential people, are no better than Paul. In verse 6, he said, "what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality." God doesn't have a hierarchy of men. There is no partiality toward Peter, making him Pope. The apostles are servants for our sake, not rulers over us. Paul is not intimidated by them, but he is glad to have fellowship with them.
What Do We Need To Know?
I want us to focus on the fact that Paul does not submit to anyone who wants to distort the gospel. This section points out that he went down to Jerusalem to ensure that he wasn't doing his work in vain. When he got there, he found that everything he was teaching aligned with the apostles and leaders in Jerusalem. I get the impression that he was willing to stand up and defend his point of view, but that wasn't necessary. Everyone already agreed that the Gentiles were free from the Old Testament Law. Acts 10-11 are all about this with the conversion of Cornelius.
We need to know that God has not saved us from slavery to sin to make us slaves to the law. Gentiles will not be forced to be circumcised. Nor are we under the ten commandments. We are free. These things have nothing to do with our salvation. We want to discern the will of God and sacrifice our bodies to serve him, but it's not because we are slaves to God. We are his sons and daughters. We want to make our Father proud!
The third thing we need to know is that men will come in to spy out our freedom. To them, it won't be about making our Father proud. The Christian life will be about keeping the master from whipping you. Paul teaches us how to serve.
What Do We Need To Do?
Protect and preserve the gospel of freedom. God teaches us to be harmonious and submit to one another with love, but we must learn the limit. Freedom in Christ is not something we sacrifice. It might have been easier to get circumcised, but Paul puts his foot down. He will not submit to false teachers. He says that this is slavery and deteriorating our freedom in Christ.
Have you ever added anything to God's word? Maybe you see the danger in something, so you think it would be best to create a law against it. Are there things you have taught people to do or restricted people from doing that have nothing to do with Christ? Aren't we slave drivers when we do this? What makes us think we know more than someone else about something that the scriptures don't reveal? When we do this, we are blind to our pride and jealousy.
We don't protect the gospel by restricting people's freedoms in Christ any more than we protect the people of our country by taking their guns away.
Now, this isn't just open-ended. I'm not saying that what is in the scriptures is all a matter of interpretation. I'm talking about protecting the gospel from various applications of scripture. We need to be humble when we apply scripture to things like technology, evangelism, worship, what we eat or drink, or how we spend our time. We don't protect the gospel by restricting people's freedoms in Christ. Our goal is to ascribe appropriate applications. I don't speak like Bobby Bushay's momma, saying, "Football is of the devil," "Technology is of the devil," "Alcohol is of the devil," or "Disney movies are of the devil." We don't treat people who use or watch those things as though they are pure evil and unloved by God. I know the devil can use anything to pull us away from God and godliness. He can also use television to destroy us. Should we ban all television? What about video games, mobile phones, or the internet? Maybe we should ban hanging around certain types of people. It might be prudent to avoid certain people if they cause you to sin, but we aren't lost for trying to maintain a family relationship, and we don't need to make a law about that which God has not spoken.
Sometimes we struggle to trust the gospel. We lack faith in the love of God, thinking, "God couldn't accept you as you are right now." But he accepts you with a heart that is submitting to him. He expects that submitting heart to be true to the commitment, but he accepts you and loves you before you fix everything wrong in your life. Don't let anyone tell you anything different. Don't beat yourself up for your shortcomings. The blood of Jesus is enough to cover that.
If you are willing to submit to Christ, the first things he calls for you to do is confess, repent, and be baptized for the forgiveness of all your sins. God works in the baptism and makes you a holy child of his.
If you have already submitted to Christ, remember that your salvation is not based on your sacrifice. It's based on his sacrifice for you. Our sacrifices lay up treasures in heaven because we love God more than anything on earth.