Ten Lies About God: Lies on How to Be Saved and Walk with God

“TEN LIES ABOUT GOD #4: LIES ON HOW TO BE SAVED AND WALK WITH GOD” GALATIANS 2:11-14 INTRO: When President Bill Clinton’s cabinet stood before the public and certified his innocence with Monica Lewinsky, many with no first hand access to the facts were persuaded by their testimony. His later confession created a bitter pill for many to swallow. Some of these good people got caught in a bad lie. Prominent people can create some powerful lies. Dr. Erwin Lutzer in his Book, TEN LIES ABOUT GOD, identifies some commonly held beliefs about God and His dealings with man. While these ten lies are believed and circulated in American culture today, these lies have been around since the fall itself. In fact, in our text, lies about God were promoted in the early Church. one region of Asia Minor (Modern Turkey) suffered from a particularly powerful lie created by a prominent person. In the letter to Galatians, the Apostle Paul confronts a lie that changed the very nature of the gospel. The lie added works to faith. What this lie does is to invalid- ate God’s Grace and make it null and void. Grace is the free gift of God offered to undeserving sinners such as us all. If we add works to Grace it is no longer grace and Salvation becomes something that God owes us for our works. Paul said in Romans 11:6, “And if by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” Salvation from the first to the last must be either of grace or of debt. These things are so directly contrary to each other that they cannot be blended together (Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Concise Bible Commentary. The Master Christian Library Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR ). Else grace is no longer grace - The very nature of grace is lost. And if it be of works, then it is no more grace: else work is no longer work - But the very nature of it is destroyed. There is something so absolutely inconsistent between being justified by grace, and being justified by works, that, if you suppose either, you of necessity exclude the other. For what is given to works is the payment of a debt; whereas grace implies an unmerited favour. So that the same benefit cannot, in the very nature of things, be derived from both (John Wesley). Paul combats and confronts the lie and the liar in our text and sentences him to serious condemnation. The “Galatian Heresy”, as it came to be known, twisted the whole process of salvation and sanctification. The lie confused people about how to be saved and how to walk with God. Paul explains his arguments against this distorted message in the later part of Chapter 2 through Chapter 5 of Galatians. To prepare his readers, Paul narrates how this same distortion divided the Church at Antioch. Let us look at this as we think on the subject, “Ten Lies About God: Lies on How to Be Saved and Walk With God.” I would have you note first that… (1) PROMINENT PEOPLE CREATE POWERFUL LIES GALATIANS 2:11-13—“But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation.” A. THE BEGINNING OF THE ANTIOCH CHURCH. The Church in Antioch began among Gentile believers with little or no experience under the Mosaic Law. The Jerusalem Church sent an apostolic representative, Barnabas, to inspect and report on the situation. Barnabas reported back to the Church at Jerusalem of their genuine conversion and the Holy Spirit’s work among them. He did not require Gentile believers to submit to circumcision or perform any other ceremonial rights required by Moses. Under the teaching of Paul and Barnabas the Antioch grew and flourished. In fact, Acts 11:19-26 tells us—“Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only. And some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which, when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the LORD Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord. Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch. Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” The Church at Antioch had a great and glorious beginning but let us see… B. THE BEGINNING OF THE PROBLEM (v12a). Peter joined Barnabas and Paul in Antioch for a time of joint ministry. The trouble began when a delegation of Jewish believers from Jerusalem began attending the Church. In verse 12 we read, “For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.” Peter “withdrew and separated himself..”, the original wording leads us to believe this process occurred over some time. Fear always leads to a lack of faith! Notice the words, “fearing them which were of the circumcision.” When Peter first came to Antioch, he mingled with the Gentiles and ate with them; but after these visitors arrived, he withdrew himself and put up the old Jewish barriers again. The reason was fear (1). Proverbs 29:25 tells us, “the fear of man bringeth a snare…”. Friend, what fears are keeping you from following and doing the will of God? What fear is holding you back from being some one great for God? ILLUS: Fear doesn't want you to make the journey to the mountain. If he can rattle you enough, fear will persuade you to take your eyes off the peaks and settle for a dull existence in the flatlands. -- Max Lucado, Christian Reader, Vol. 32, no. 3.

This was THE BEGINNING OF THE PROBLEM—Peter’s fear and withdrawal but it also led to … C. THE BLUNDER PETER MADE (v12b). Fear caused Peter to falter. The blunder he made was a result of three things: 1. Peter lost sight of the vision at Joppa, which opened his understanding to God’s work with the Gentiles (Acts 10). 2. Peter forgot about God wondrously saving Cornelius (a Gentile) and his whole household (Acts 10). 3. Peter forsook his fellowship with Cornelius even though he had earnestly defended Cornelius and his newfound faith to those who questioned it (Acts 11).

The fear of man will always cause us to falter. It was Peter’s fear that caused him to withdraw and separate himself from the Gentiles. It was Peter’s fear which lead him to keep silent. D. THE BLINDED PEOPLE WHO FOLLOWED (v13). Prominent people can create powerful lies. Peter was one of the most respected apostles and a pillar in the Church in Jerusalem. Whatever Peter did would influence numerous uninformed people. They would and did follow his lead. Even Barnabas fell into the trap, amazing his missionary companion, Paul. Peter’s decision to boycott the Gentiles involved more than a mere social choice. When Church leaders or television evangelists abandon faith and morality, they damage the faith of many! A choice of whom to eat with hardly seems noteworthy. Peter did not openly modify the gospel message nor did he teach a different gospel verbally. Why did Paul consider Peter’s behavior to strike at the very heart of the Christian message? To answer that question let us note also that… (2) POWERFUL AND DANGEROUS LIES CAN BE EITHER VERBAL OR BEHAVIORAL GALATIANS 2:14—“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?” A. NOTICE HOW PAUL DESCRIBES WHAT HAPPENED (v14):  He saw them (not heard them).  He observed them withdraw from fellowship with Gentile believers.  He interprets their behavior as not being “..straightforward about the truth of the Gospel.” “They walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel.” Walked not uprightly-- literally, "straight": "were not walking with straightforward steps." Peter and Barnabas were not walking uprightly. What we believe determines how we behave. Because Peter and Barnabas were confused about spiritual truth; they were unable to walk a straight line. Notwithstanding Peter's character, yet, when Paul saw him acting so as to hurt the truth of the gospel and the peace of the church, he was not afraid to reprove him (Matthew Henry. Matthew Henry’s Concise Bible Commentary. The Master Christian Library Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR). Peter and the others behavior communicated a lie about the Gospel. While they were not telling lies, they were living lies. B. NOTHING COULD BE MORE FUNDAMENTAL OR ESSENTIAL THAN UNDERSTANDING HOW TO SATISFY GOD’S REQUIREMENTS. This seemingly harmless behavior communicated a serious lie about God. Does a person need to have faith in Jesus and be a circumcised observer of the law? When Paul saw that Peter and the others did not live up to that principle which the gospel taught, and which they professed, namely, That by the death of Christ the partition wall between Jew and Gentile was taken down, and the observance of the law of Moses was no longer in force; as Peter's offence was public, he publicly reproved him (Matthew Henry. Matthew Henry’s Concise Bible Commentary. The Master Christian Library Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR). The “truth of the Gospel” is not only something for us to defend (v5), but it is also something for us to practice (2). The truth of the gospel—which teaches that justification by legal works and observances is inconsistent with redemption by Christ. Paul alone here maintained the truth against Judaism, as afterwards against heathenism (2Timothy 4:16-17). C. NOWADAYS PUBLIC LYING HAS BECOME SO COMMON IN AMERICA THAT WE HARDLY CONSIDER PETER’S ACTIONS A PROBLEM. ILLUS: According to polls reported by USA Today, Americans lie-and are lied to-much more than we realize. Citing statistics from the book The Day America Told the Truth, the newspaper reported that 91% of Americans lie routinely (3). But Paul considered Peter’s behavior such a serious threat that he confronted Peter publicly. Note the blaring rebuke Paul gave to Peter, “you are a Jew, said Paul to Peter, “but you used to live like the Gentiles, with no barriers between you and the other Christians. Now you want the Gentiles to live like Jews, doing what you did not even do yourself!” There is a very great difference between the prudence of St. Paul, who bore with, and used for a time, the ceremonies of the law as not sinful, and the timid conduct of St. Peter, who, by withdrawing from the Gentiles, led others to think that these ceremonies were necessary (Matthew Henry. Matthew Henry’s Concise Bible Commentary. The Master Christian Library Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR). The Gospel must NOT BE COMPROMISED either verbally or behaviorally. We can communicate a lie about God with our lives just easily as with our lips. In fact, a powerful and dangerous lie need not to be spoke to entrap even good people. (3) EVEN GOOD PEOPLE CAN GET EASILY TRAPPED IN A BAD LIE GALATIANS 2:13—“And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him: insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation.” A. PETER FEARED THE CONSEQUENCES OF LIVING OUT THE TRUTH IN FRONT OF THE JEWISH VISITORS. Maybe Peter anticipated fierce criticism. Rather than face their censure head on, he withdrew from the Gentiles. We must not be afraid to stand up for the truth whether it be among the heathen, i.e. the lost, or among the brethren! Peter was a good man, who because of fear, got trapped in a bad lie. This same Peter, through fear of man (Proverbs 29:25), was faithless to his own so distinctly avowed principles (Acts 15:7-11). We recognize the same old nature in him as led him, after faithfully witnessing for Christ, yet for a brief space, to deny Him. "Ever the first to recognize, and the first to draw back from great truths" [ALFORD]. B. ALL THE OTHER JEWS IN THE CHURCH IN ANTIOCH SAW PETER’S ACTIONS AND FOLLOWED HIS LEAD. This split Jewish believers and Gentile believers. This unspoken lie lead to division in the Church. By his actions Peter in effect was teaching that there were two bodies of Christ, Jewish and Gentile. And that was heresy (4). No doubt, it also offended the Gentiles who began to wonder if they had truly been saved or if something else should be added to their faith in Jesus death on the Cross. These Jewish believers who had previously enjoyed their fellowship with their new “brothers” in Christ now withdrew from them. They were good men who got trapped in a bad lie. Dissembled Likewise—Greek, "joined in hypocrisy," namely, in living as though the law were necessary to justification, through fear of man, though they knew from God their Christian liberty of eating with Gentiles, and had availed themselves of it already (Acts 11:2-17). The case was distinct from that in 1Co. 8:1-10:33; Rom. 14:1-23. It was not a question of liberty, and of bearing with others' infirmities, but one affecting the essence of the Gospel, whether the Gentiles are to be virtually "compelled to live as do the Jews," in order to be justified (Galatians 2:14) (Jamison, Faussett & Brown Commentary on Galatians. e-Sword. Copyright 2000-2009. Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide). C. AT LAST, EVEN BARNABAS WAS TRAPPED BY THEIR BAD LIE. It must have crushed the Apostle Paul who now stood as the lone Jew among the Gentile believers. The pressure must have been great for Barnabas to succumb because he was from Cyprus, a Gentile Center, and was involved in a missionary program with Paul to reach the Gentiles with the gospel (5). Barnabas’ defection hurt for several reason:  Barnabas birth name was Joseph but the Apostles renamed him “son of encouragement” which characterized his ministry. He typically smoothed things over and brought healing to relationships (Acts 4).  Barnabas certified Paul’s conversion and introduced him into the Jerusalem Church. This was no small task since Paul had earned a reputation for savage persecution of believers. Paul had become the most feared man among the Churches at that time (Acts 9).  Barnabas headed the first apostolic delegation from Jerusalem to investigate the Church in Antioch. His report authenticated their genuine conversion and welcomed them into the fellowship of believers (Acts 11).  Barnabas identified solid teaching as the basic need of the Antioch Church. He personally recruited Paul who was languishing in Tarsus at the time (Acts 11).  According to Galatians 1, Paul and Barnabas had journeyed to Jerusalem to seek clarification about Gentile responsibility to the Mosaic Law. Now, even Barnabas who had brought Paul and the Apostles together, who had brought Jerusalem and Antioch together, who had brought Antioch and Paul together now joins those who split the Church’s fellowship. Even Barnabas": one least likely to be led into such an error, being with Paul in first preaching to the idolatrous Gentiles: showing the power of bad example and numbers. In Antioch, the capital of Gentile Christianity and the central point of Christian missions, the controversy first arose, and in the same spot it now broke out afresh; and here Paul had first to encounter the party that afterwards persecuted him in every scene of his labors (Acts 15:30-35) (Jamison, Faussett & Brown Commentary on Galatians. e-Sword. Copyright 2000-2009. Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide). Barnabas was a good man trapped by a bad lie. All of them-Peter, the other Jewish Christians, and Barnabas-were guilty of hypocrisy because while they were confessing and teaching that they were one in Christ with the Gentiles, they were denying this truth by their conduct (6). CLOSING: Lies about God wreak havoc among Christians. What Peter had initiated created a public scandal and deserved Paul’s public rebuke. Peter stood condemned. He was acting contrary to his own convictions, was betraying Christian liberty, and was casting a slur on fellow believers. Such behavior needed this severe reprimand (7). Lies about God are rampant in our world today. Every time Barna or Gallup survey supposed Christians they reveal almost unbelievable inconsistencies. Seemingly good people appear unable to distinguish between truth and error. Look at the large numbers of good people deceived each week by these televangelists who promote lies in the name of Christ. There are serious consequences in failing to grasp the truth about God. Perhaps you have followed a large number of other believers without checking to see if their conduct squares with Scripture. Let us stand with Paul and not end up as good men trapped in a bad lie. NOTES: 1. Warren W. Wiersbe. Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament. Pg. 520. 2. Wiersbe. Pg. 520. 3. Robert J. Morgan. Nelson’s Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations & Quotes. Pg. 443. 4. John F. Walvoord & Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge Commentary on the New Testament. Pg. 595. 5. Walvoord & Zuck. Pg. 595. 6. Walvoord & Zuck. Pg. 595. 7. Walvoord & Zuck. Pg. 595.

(ORIGINALLY PREACHED BY BROTHER BRYAN L. BROWNING, PASTOR OF BEECHMONT BAPTIST CHURCH, BEEHCMONT, KY AT MEADOWSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH, PITTSBURG, KS, MARCH 9, 2001. REVISED AND PREACHED AT BEECHMONT BAPTIST CHURCH, MAY 24, 2009).