No Room for Religious Hypocrisy!
I was asked for an explanation of 2:11-15. Here goes …
Notice the Block diagram of the passage. I added in color the antecedent for the pronouns to help give clarity to the passage. I also added ‘then’ where it was implied but not specifically stated to help with understanding.
What we have here is Paul’s testimony of a specific time when a group of so-called Jewish believers in the Messiah came to Antioch while Peter was visiting Barnabas, Paul and the church plant in Antioch. The so-called Jewish believers are IDENTICAL to the false teachers (aka Judaisers) trying to get the Gentiles in Galatia to put themselves back under the Law of Moses to be in the covenant community. Paul uses these previous events AFTER the Jerusalem counsel before the writing of Galatians to be an example of how PAUL stood up to this false teaching and its subtle adherence by even men of God like Peter and Barnabas.
Paul is confronting in Galatians any idea of putting Gentile believers under the Law of Moses and thus establishing the Separation of Jews and Gentiles BEFORE the New Covenant Started. Paul used these previous events to show how Paul Himself rebuked Peter, the leader of the Jewish Believers in Jerusalem. When so called Jewish believers showed up to Antioch, Peter changed and wouldn’t sit with the ‘unclean’ Gentiles believers in Antioch. This was Peter affirming the lie that Jews were some how better by their identity and submission to the Law of Moses. THIS WAS Hypocrisy.
Paul’s rebuke of Peter is the entire box in the diagram. It runs from half way through verse 14 to verse 21. This speech is a PERFECT explanation of WHY Gentiles are no longer under the Law of Moses like the Jews WERE. Through faith alone in Christ Jesus is justified (declared righteous in God’s sight) NOT by works of the Law. Paul was saying by Peter separating himself from the Gentiles when the Jews arrived he was saying HE WAS under the Law and the Gentiles WERE in SIN by not being a Gentile. Paul was having none of it. Just like He was having none of it in the letter to the Galatians.
Tomorrow I will talk further about how the letter is arguably the strongest defense of Justification by faith alone over against the condemnation of justification by works of the Law in the entire Bible.
WHAT should we take from this? THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO room for hypocrisy in the believers life. We can’t say people are saved through faith alone in Christ alone and then put stipulations of DOING certain good works to somehow ‘really’ establish a person right standing with God. This calls to mind … the charismatics saying without speaking in tongues their is no salvation, church of Christ saying their is no salvation without water baptism…the baptist that say their is no salvation without praying a prayer, walking an aisle, raising a hand or doing some religious act…the Roman Catholics who say JUSTIFICATION is not achieved unless the whole life after baptism is ‘atoned for’ personally by good works and purgatory!
Father, PLEASE help us to never be religious hypocrites. We know Your Word says my status with You is based solely on faith in Christ and His Work ALONE! This humbles us all. We need You to help us to never turn away from this pure Gospel. And may the good news of the Gospel CAUSE us to obey in WORSHIP NOT out of a desire to earn a standing with You.
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