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The Danger of Compromise Galatians 2:1-5

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The Danger of Compromise Galatians 2:1-5 Study Notes Ed Underwood Galatians April 10, 2011 The Danger of Compromise Galatians 2:1-5 “To whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with you” (Galatians 2:5). In 49 AD a delegation of Judean religious teachers came to the predominately Gentile church at Syrian Antioch and started teaching the Christians that those who were not circumcised as followers of the Law of Moses could not be saved from their sin by simple belief in Jesus (Acts 15:1). They were part of a conspiracy to undermine the Gospel of grace sending emissaries of the lie to the daughter churches planted by the church at Antioch (Acts 15:23). The most vulnerable to the lie were the fledgling assemblies of the Roman province of Galatia. Paul and Barnabas had planted these churches on their first missionary journey (Acts 13-14). One historian describes the inhabitants of Galatia: “Fickleness is the term used to express their temperament. Their religious tendencies were marked by passion, ritualism, and mysticism.” (Lightfoot, The Epistle of Paul to the Galatians ) Paul’s response is swift and strong. He will not tolerate this false gospel—that works are essential to salvation—to take root in the lives of these new Christians and churches. On the eve of the Jerusalem Council, Paul writes his most passionate letter, reminding the church of the real basis of our salvation. In the first section of the epistle proper (1:11-2:21) Paul defends his apostleship. He begins by vindicating his gospel. The source of the gospel he taught was divine, not human. Paul received his gospel and the commission to preach it directly from the Lord Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus (1:11-24). When Paul did consult with the apostles fourteen years into his ministry (2:1-10), they affirmed his refusal to circumcise Titus to make Judaizing legalist happy. That would have undermined the Gentiles’ understanding of the gospel: Submitting to legalistic pressures to add works to grace undermines the gospel of Christ! Though Paul’s gospel came by direct revelation of the Lord Jesus, he made sure that his readers knew he preached the same gospel the apostles did. I. Paul, in defense of his apostleship, proves that his gospel came from God by sharing the story of a time when the apostles affirmed his refusal to circumcise Titus because that would compromise the message of the gospel of Christ (2:1-5). A. Fourteen years after Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, he went to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus (2:1-2a). 1. Barnabas recruited Paul from Cilicia to help him plant a church in Antioch (Acts 11:25-26). 2. In response to a direct revelation from God through the prophet Agabus that there was going to be a great famine, the church at Antioch took an offering and sent it to Jerusalem with Barnabas an Paul (“by revelation,” 2:2a, Acts 11:27-30). B. Paul took this opportunity to privately consult with “those who were of reputation,” probably the apostles to prevent his critics from undermining his ministry (2:2b). Note: It doesn’t seem that Paul is worried about the accuracy of his gospel and is seeking the approval of mere humans, even if they are apostles (1:11-17). “It seems rather that Paul feared that if he did not contact the Jerusalem apostles (Peter, James, and John) his critics might undermine his evangelistic work.” (Constable) C. The proof that they absolutely affirmed his gospel was that they upheld his emphatic refusal to circumcise Titus. Submitting to legalists in this way would undermine the gospel of Christ (2:3-5). 1. The controversy was stirred by pressures from false brethren —legalistic non-Christians trying to impose Judaism on Gentile Christians. 2. These spies weren’t concerned with the purity of Paul’s message, but with bringing Christians into the bondage of the law and their traditions. 3. Paul didn’t yield, even for a moment. 4. The reason he didn’t yield is because he knew that yielding to legalists on issues like this undermines the gospel of Christ—justification by faith apart from works of the law (see 2:16). II. To circumcise or not to circumcise? Circumcision was one of the primary examples of issues of Christian freedom in the New Testament. What can we learn from Paul’s response to the controversy? A. The argument of the Judaizing legalist: Since circumcision is the mark of the people of the covenant, it should be a prerequisite for being recognized as a Christian. B. Paul’s “inconsistent” response to the pressure to circumcise new Christians. 1. When the legalists spying out his freedom tried to force the leaders of the church at Jerusalem to compel Titus, a Greek man, to be circumcised, Paul refused. Why? So “that the truth of the gospel might remain with you (Galatians and other new Gentile converts).” (Acts 11:25-30; Galatians 2:1-5) 2. When Paul took Timothy, whose mother was Jewish, to join him as he planted churches on his 2nd missionary journey, Paul circumcised him. Why? “Because of the Jews who were in that region (Lystra and Iconium), for they all knew that his father was Greek.” (Acts 16:1-5. Paul typically took the gospel to the Jew first—Romans 1:16—by preaching in synagogues as he planted churches.) C. Paul’s consistent ethic concerning religious culture and the gospel of Christ—all for the gospel to win the lost (1 Corinthians 9:19-23). 1. Paul submitted his freedom in Christ to his calling to be an ambassador of Christ begging people to be reconciled to God (19; 2 Corinthians 5:20-21). 2. Paul’s freedom in Christ was situational—it varied according to the values, expectations, and cultures of the people he was trying to win to Christ (20-22). 3. Paul put the gospel first, meaning the reception of the gospel of Christ by the people he was trying to reach. For Paul, the gospel always came first—before freedom, reputation, pressures, or even persecution. His behavior among the lost was determined by their need to understand the gospel, not by his need to be free in his lifestyle, or by his need to be esteemed by religious people. The Bottom Line: Mature Christians should protect unbelievers/new believers from cultural or religious issues that confuse their understanding of the gospel of Christ! This is the beginning, not the end of our discussion of Christian freedom. The specific context of Galatians 1-2 speaks to those issues that are added to faith as requirements “to be saved” or to be assured of salvation. I know you have a lot of questions, hang in there and let the message of Galatians unfold, trusting God’s Word one verse, one paragraph at a time. His Bible will not disappoint you! .
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