An argument between the disciples

One of my favorite verses of all time is Galatians 2:20-21 which says,

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me.  I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"

But not until this morning did I know the context in which it was written.  And now I love it even more!

It was written by Paul (formerly Saul), who was a former zealous Jew who breathed murderous threats to the disciples and intentionally persecuted Christians.  He says about himself about that former time, "I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers!" Later God appeared to him on a street with a bright light and caused Paul to be blind for 3 days.  When his eyes were opened, scales fell from them and he could see physically and spiritually and he was immediately baptized and after regaining his strength, scriptures say he "at once!" began preaching the gospel in synagogues.  This guy truly did a 180 and had one heck of a testimony!!!

He is writing to the church of Galatia who has been swayed by some Jewish Christians that you still have to follow the law even if you are a Christian.  Not true, so Paul is setting the record straight.

The disciples were hesitant to accept Paul because of his history persecuting them but after they saw what God had done in him, Peter, James and John gave he and Barnabus the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to him.  They agreed that Paul and Barnabus should go to the Gentiles, and Peter, James and John to the Jews.

Peter to the Jews = Paul to the Gentiles

But apparently,  Peter was teaching the Jewish Christians that they still had to live by the law.

SO Paul calls him out in front of all the disciples.  Galatians 2:11-21...

¹¹ When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he clearly was in the wrong. ¹² For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group.¹³ The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. ¹⁴ When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? ¹⁵ “We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles ¹⁶ know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in^[d] Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified. ¹⁷ “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners, doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not! ¹⁸ If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker. ¹⁹ “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. ²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.²¹ I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”^[e]

Thankful for Paul setting the record straight so that I can know the truth!


IT DOES MEAN that we truly die to self and are crucified with Christ, we no longer have to worry about our flesh making all the right choices, because we will fail EVERY time.  It is He that lives and lives in us.  We are NOT bound to the law or it's rules.  We no longer are a slave to family traditions, American traditions or Christian traditions.  We live by faith.

IT DOES NOT MEAN that we can live life however we want.  Yes, the Lord extends grace to us without measure and can and will forgive anything and everything if we are repentent, but we ARE still held accountable.  We now depend on His grace and forgiveness and not on the sacrifices for redemption and the rituals of the faith/our religion.

Why do we have the law then? Is the law opposed to the promises of God?  NO!

²³ Before the coming of this faith,^[j] we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. ²⁴ So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. ²⁵ Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. ²⁶ So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, ²⁷ for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

I am so thankful that Christ paid the price so that we can live a life full of joy and redemption!   I can't wait to get to heaven knowing that God saves all types, kinds, colors and religions!  We are all one in Christ but only through the gospel of Jesus and none other!!!