If you haven't got a Bible in front of you, I'd encourage you to do that right now.
Stick your hand up. Our hosts will come around and give you one to you.
You need it in front of you. Galatians chapter 2 is where we're up to.
Last week we were in Galatians chapter 2. We're moving on a bit further.
We saw in chapter 2 verses 4 and 5 last week that there were certain
professing Jewish Christians from Jerusalem who tried to compel Titus,
a Greek Christian, to be circumcised.
And the Apostle Paul refused to submit to this pressure.
And the reason he gives in verse 5 is that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.
That is, if Paul had given in for the demand for Titus to be circumcised under those circumstances,
he would have torpedoed the truth of the gospel.
And if he torpedoed the truth of the gospel, the Gentile mission was over.
Christ would have died in vain.
And you and I, I'm assuming the majority of us here are Gentiles,
would be still under the wrath of God for our sin.
That's how crucial this little interaction was for Paul.
Two centuries later, for us, and the impact for us two centuries later.
What's this gospel that Paul saw was so necessary to fight for?
The gospel is the good news that the privilege of getting right with God
was purchased fully when Jesus Christ died on a cross for our sins and rose again.
The gospel is the good news that the privilege of getting right with God,
being justified before God,
was purchased fully for us when Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sin and rose again.
And there is no other gospel.
There's no other gospel.
And the only way to enjoy this privilege is to put our trust in Jesus,
the Son of God who loves us and gave himself for us.
Justification by faith in Christ and what he has done.
And if you add any other requirements
which encourage people to rely upon their own working or their own willing,
you torpedo the gospel.
It becomes nothing.
If justification being right with God is not by faith,
it's not by anything.
And Paul took his stand on that point.
Titus will not be compelled to be circumcised.
The truth of the gospel will be preserved.
Now we launch into verses 11 to 14.
And the truth of the gospel is again at stake.
And the venue shifted now from Jerusalem to Antioch,
the place where the Gentile mission began.
And again, Gentiles are here being compelled to live like Jews.
In Jerusalem, the issue was circumcision.
In Antioch, the issue is Jewish dietary laws.
And in both cases, the gospel is at stake and Paul takes his stand.
In Jerusalem, the truth of the gospel was at stake through the possibility of false teaching.
In Antioch, the truth of the gospel is at stake because of false behavior, false living.
It's Peter's behavior here that denies the truth of the gospel.
And so today, I don't want to focus so much on what the gospel is
as much on how the gospel functions in our lives.
So there's three things I want us to see.
Those of you taking notes, three things, put it down in your piece of paper.
The heart of the gospel, the centrality of the gospel, and the power of the gospel.
I see people running, grabbing for notes.
There's no photo you can take.
Get a pen in front.
The heart of the gospel, the centrality of the gospel, the power of the gospel.
And the heart of the gospel we see in verses 15 and 16.
We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles 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 Jesus Christ that we may be justified by faith in Christ,
not by the works of the law, because the works of the law, no one will be justified.
That, those couple of verses there, is the reversal of the order you find in every other religion apart from Christianity.
To be justified there means to be right with God.
And every other religion is it is through some effort on our behalf.
There's always something that we must, some kind of divine law that must be obeyed,
some sort of ceremonial observance in order for us to become pleasing in the eyes of some deity.
And Paul comes along and says,
we're not put right with God through our effort.
We're not put right with God through any form of obedience.
We are justified by faith in Lord Jesus and only by faith in the Lord Jesus.
Now, this doesn't mean that Christians can live however they want.
I mean, because Paul says in verse 17 that Christianity is not about promoting a life of sin.
The issue here is getting the order right.
Last couple of weeks, we've been reading and hearing about this circumcision group that came down from Jerusalem.
They are Jews who believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
They had become Christians,
but they still wanted to keep circumcision and Jewish dietary laws as a way to ensure that you were truly saved.
Completely saved.
That was the problem.
And here we have,
in Galatians, and we see it clearly in these verses,
a battle between two orders.
And the central issue is three steps in these two orders.
The false teachers were saying,
step one, believe in Jesus Christ.
Step two, keep the law of God.
And step three,
then you can be sure you're fully saved.
Paul's gospel vindicated in Jerusalem,
as we saw last week.
Step one, believe in the Lord Jesus.
Step two, you are saved in that moment.
And step three, you are now set free in order to obey God.
You do,
so it's a question I would pose to you now.
Do you say,
I will obey in order to be loved by God?
Or do you say,
I'm already loved by God in Jesus Christ,
and therefore I'm set free to a life of obedience?
One is a religious order.
The other is a gospel order.
These are not two different arms of the same faith.
This is not two different denominations
with slightly different emphasis.
These are two orders.
This is two different worlds.
This is two different religions
that result into very different kinds of obediences.
One is an anxious obedience
because you never know whether you've actually done enough.
It's also selfish.
It's a selfish obedience
because the motive for doing every good thing
is to get something from God.
It's an obedience which is anxious,
it's selfish,
it's joyless,
it's a burden.
But what if you obey
because you've already got everything as a gift?
What if you've already gotten love
and intimacy
and a secure future
and you've got acceptance?
What if you've already got that?
And that's what the,
that's a fundamental issue,
the core issue of Christianity.
It's in Jesus,
the God of this universe
who we get to call Father.
We're encouraged to call our Father.
Father affirms us
in a way that no earthly father
can possibly affirm their children.
Always.
In Jesus,
we receive the praise of the praiseworthy.
You are my much loved child.
Always.
And this is the God who says that,
the God to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden.
This is the God who says,
you are my much loved child
in Jesus Christ.
Obedience that flows from that
is totally different.
The motivation would be joy,
not anxiety.
The motivation wouldn't come
from an empty heart.
It comes from a full heart,
an affirmed heart,
a loved heart.
Obedience is not selfish
because I can love and give
and serve for God's sake
and my neighbour's sake
and not for my sake.
It's radically different.
See the difference in these two orders?
Two different ways of living.
And notice verse 20 where it says,
I have been crucified with Christ.
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.
See when you become a Christian,
you put your faith in Jesus Christ
and it says in verse 20
that you are crucified with Christ.
The Bible also says
that we are raised with Christ.
What does that mean?
It means that when you put your faith
in Jesus Christ,
you are united with Christ.
You have a new life with Christ.
You see,
God sees you free
from all condemnation
condemnation
as if
you were the one
who died on the cross
for your sins.
Your sins are paid for.
But not only does Jesus take my sin,
he also
gives me his righteousness.
On the cross,
God treated Jesus
as if
he had done
everything that I've done
and you've done.
And when you put
your faith in Jesus,
God treats me
as if I've done
everything that Jesus
has done.
And now,
the Christian lives
knowing that God
honors them like that.
two very different
orders
that create
two very
different lives.
That's the heart
of the gospel.
That's how it impacts
our life.
Now let's see
how it functions
in our lives.
Verses 11 to 13,
let's go back to there.
This is the centrality
of the gospel.
When Cephas
came to Antioch,
I opposed him
to his face
because he stood
condemned.
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.
The other Jews
joined him
in his hypocrisy
so that by their hypocrisy,
even Barnabas
was led astray.
This would have to be
one of the most
tense moments
in the New Testament.
Here are two
leading apostles,
one head
of reaching the Jews,
one head
of reaching the Gentiles,
and face-to-face
open conflict
with each other.
So let me remind you
of some of the back story
that's going on here.
Cephas,
who we know
as the Apostle Peter,
was Jewish
and the Jews
had practiced
for centuries
a ceremonial law.
You see it everywhere
in the Old Testament.
There were two aspects
of Old Testament worship
of God.
One was the ceremonial laws
about things
that they could not eat,
things that they couldn't wear,
clothing that they weren't
allowed to wear,
things that they couldn't touch.
They had to stay
ceremonially clean
or they couldn't go
and worship God
on the Sabbath.
And the Gentiles
living around them
didn't have those laws
and didn't obey
those laws
and so they were
regarded as unclean.
And it wasn't hard
for Jews
to consider themselves
morally superior
to all those
unclean Gentiles.
And apart from those laws,
there were also
sacrificial laws.
Animals were sacrificed
to atone
for the sin of the Jews.
It was God's way
of saying that
no matter how hard
you try with the ceremonial laws,
no matter how hard
you try to keep yourself clean,
you're going to fail.
you'll never be good enough,
you're never going to be clean enough
and so there's going to need
to be atonement
for your sin.
And Jesus comes along
as Lord and Saviour.
Number one,
no need for sacrifices anymore
because Jesus
fulfilled them all
with the sacrifice
of himself on the cross
at number two ceremonial laws.
They all pointed to Jesus
and his sacrifice
and him
through his sacrifice
wiping away sin
and making all people
clean in him.
So only in Jesus
can we be truly clean
and acceptable
in God's presence.
Now the twelve apostles
were Jews
and so it was pretty hard
for them in this.
Jesus was however
pretty explicit.
Mark chapter 7
where he told them
that in him
they were clean,
they didn't need
the dietary laws
but it was still hard.
All of their lives
they had regarded
themselves as the clean
ones and the Gentiles
as the unclean ones.
It was hard for them
to eat with Gentiles
and yet Peter himself
had heard this teaching
from Jesus' lips
and also in Acts chapter 10
and 11
Peter gave this
massively vivid vision
to show him
that there was no longer
any racial divisions
and all food
was clean
and that he should
eat with Gentiles
in which case
he immediately
does with Cornelius.
He goes into the house
of Cornelius
who's a
filthy Gentile.
And in fact
in verse 12
here we notice
that Peter
did eat
with the Gentiles
and then
something happened.
Peter withdrew
from the Gentile
Christians
not because
of theological
conviction.
He hadn't
changed his views.
the issue here
according to verse 13
is hypocrisy.
He hadn't
changed his mind
hadn't changed
his convictions
he changed
his behaviour.
It didn't align
with his
theological convictions.
See Paul here
is not saying
Peter
that's a little bit
rude.
he's actually
saying
your behaviour
is hypocritical.
What caused it?
He feared
criticism
from a
small
but powerful
pressure group
that had
come from
Jerusalem
to Antioch.
And Paul
sees
something
deeper here
than simple
table manners
or rudeness.
He calls
it
not acting
in line
with the
truth
of the
gospel.
Your behaviour
is undermining
the gospel.
See verse 14
when I
saw
that they
were not
acting
in line
with the
truth
of the
gospel
I said
to
Cephas
in front
of them
all
you
are
a Jew
and yet
you
live
like a
Gentile
and not
like a
Jew
how is
it
then
that
you
force
Gentiles
to
follow
Jewish
customs
we
who
are
Jews
by
birth
and
not
sinful
Gentiles
know
that
a
person
is
not
justified
by
the
works
of
the
law
but
by
faith
in
Jesus
Christ.
You see
Peter and
Barnabas
here
and others
with them
went back
into
attitudes
of racial
superiority
and exclusivity
that the
Jews
historically
held
over
Gentiles
and Paul
says
Peter
you're
not
living
in line
with the
truth
of
the
gospel
and the
word
that
Paul
uses
here
in the
original
language
is
orthopadio
it's where
we get
the English
word
orthopedics
Peter
you are
not
straight
walking
with the
gospel
you're
diverting
in your
life
away
from
the
truth
of
the
gospel
you're
not
straight
walking
the
truth
of
the
gospel
had
not
shaped
this
particular
area
of
Peter's
life
he was
too
concerned
about
the
approval
of a
powerful
minority
group
he had
it in
his
head
it
wasn't
in
his
heart
now
it's
essential
for us
to see
here
the
magnitude
of what
Paul
is
saying
he's
saying
that the
gospel
is
truth
it
is a
message
with
a set
of
claims
it
includes
facts
that need
to be
embraced
and
believed
but
secondly
and just
as
crucial
the
gospel
truth
has a
vast
number
of
implications
for
our
lives
everything
in
life
must
be
brought
in
line
with
the
truth
of
the
gospel
and
Paul
looks
at
Peter
an
apostle
who
frankly
is
more
advanced
in the
Christian
faith
than
anyone
in
this
room
and
tells
him
Peter
you've
forgotten
the
gospel
now
if
Peter
needs
to
hear
it
we
need
to
hear
it
he
was not
walking
in line
with the
truth
of
gospel
it
was
Paul's
way
of
saying
you
are
not
applying
the
implications
of
the
gospel
in
the
way
that
you
are
treating
people
of
other
races
and
also
the
implication
of
the
gospel
in
your
fear
of
this
pressure
group
how
dare
you
fear
them
what
do
you
care
about
their
affirmation
of
you
you've
got
a
greater
affirmation
now
there
are
some
beliefs
that
are
foundational
beliefs
we
might
want
to
call
those
beliefs
world
views
they
are
beliefs
that
profoundly
impact
how
we
view
our
interactions
with
this
world
and
with
other
people
and
the
gospel
is
one
of
those
world
view
defining
beliefs
in
fact
for
the
Christian
it
is
the
world
view
defining
belief
the
gospel
impacts
everything
in
your
life
the
way
we
do
our
work
the
plans
that
we
have
for
our
career
is
shaped
by
the
gospel
including
do I
take
that
promotion
or not
massive
implications
for that
the way
you think
about those
sorts of
issues
in
our
society
of course
we do
it's
more
money
of course
we're
going to
take
it
not for
the gospel
shaped
person
the way
we spend
our money
is shaped
by the
gospel
our
relationships
our
family
shaped
by the
gospel
our
sexuality
is shaped
by the
gospel
our
attitude
to the
poor
the
needy
the
vulnerable
is shaped
by the
gospel
the way
we handle
conflict
is shaped
by the
gospel
the way
we treat
people
who think
differently
even about
same-sex
marriage
is shaped
by the
gospel
the truth
of the
gospel
goes
everywhere
in life
there's not
a corner
it does
not
touch
and it
does not
reform
does not
inform
and does
not
shape
it is
the
framework
by which
the
Christian
sees
and
evaluates
everything
and notice
what
happens
here
Paul
doesn't
say
to
Peter
you've
broken
the
racism
rule
he could
have
legitimately
said
that
he could
have
jumped
out
a bunch
of
Bible
verses
and
racism
is wrong
stop it
Peter
you've
been
racist
that may
in that
moment
it may
have
restrained
Peter's
will
and his
behaviour
but it
wouldn't
have
transformed
his
heart
he
doesn't
do it
he
certainly
wants
Peter
to stop
it
but
instead
what he
does
is
in order
to get
Peter
to stop
it
he
chases
his
heart
he
chases
Peter's
heart
you
say
you
believe
the
gospel
it's
in your
mind
Peter
but
has
it
changed
your
heart
you
see
the
shared
core
value
of
all
humanity
is
that
we
want
to
be
valued
we
want
to
know
that
our
lives
matter
we
have
a
desperate
hunger
to
feel
a
sense
of
worthiness
and
for
some
of us
on
father's
day
we
might
be
feeling
that
our
fathers
didn't
give
us
that
and
the
main
reason
is
because
we
fear
that
we
don't
matter
that
we
have
a
worthlessness
and
it's
why
we
consistently
turn
to
places
and
things
that
give
us
that
sense
of
value
we
can
do
it
in
a
multitude
of
ways
for
some
of us
it's
education
romance
the
need
to
have
a
romantic
relationship
family
in
every
case
we
are
attempting
to
justify
ourselves
we're
trying
to
show
ourselves
that
I
matter
and
Peter
makes
the
mistake
here
of
doing
that
his
Jewishness
is
biggest
is his
biggest
identity
marker
in this
moment
something
other than
the gospel
of Jesus
Christ
is his
new
identity
here
it's
his
biggest
thing
it's
the
thing
that
makes
him
feel
like
he
matters
and
it's
a
daily
temptation
for
us
all
including
us
as
a
church
every
single
Christian
group
and
denomination
or denomination
necessarily
has many
distinctive
beliefs
and practices
that
have
less
to
do
with
core
gospel
beliefs
and
more
to do
with
specific
convictions
about
ethical
behavior
or
church
policy
and
politics
and
we
don't
walk
in line
with the
gospel
when we
stress
our
distinctions
in those
things
in order
to
demonstrate
to
ourselves
or
others
that
our
church
or
our
particular
group
is
superior
or
the
best
one
another
way
we
do
it
is
by
practicing
classist
nationalistic
or racist
attitudes
working
class
Christians
may have
a
distaste
for
Christians
from
wealthier
or
more
socially
refined
backgrounds
and vice
versa
Christians
from
one
political
persuasion
may be
upset
by those
from
another
end
of
the
spectrum
very
talented
Christians
may feel
unhappy
that
people
they
consider
mediocre
are
treated
as
equal
parts
with
them
in
the
church
those
who
have
been
around
the
longest
and
contributed
the
most
feel
superior
to
those
who
have
just
entered
the
door
for
the
first
time
socially
polished
Christians
feel
uncomfortable
around
people
who
are
socially
awkward
or
marginal
and vice
versa
we
may
respond
to
all
this
in
exactly
the
same
way
that
Peter
has
here
in
apparent
well
mannered
and
polite
ways
where
he's
just
gradually
pulled
back
and
it's
not
true
fellowship
and
unity
we
politely
might
even
sit
near
people
in
church
but
we don't
eat
with
them
we
don't
fellowship
with
them
we
don't
really
become
friends
with
them
we
don't
socialize
with
them
we
don't
share
our
lives
with
them
our
homes
with
our
possessions
with
them
we
keep
our
relationships
formal
and
see
people
and see
people
and
none
of it
is in
line
with
the
gospel
none
of it
is
walking
straight
with
the
gospel
without
the
gospel
our
hearts
have
to
manufacture
self
esteem
by
comparing
the
group
I
belong
to
with
all
other
groups
and
naturally
whichever
group
I
belong
to
is
the
most
superior
group
I'm
using
the word
I
there
you know
for all
of us
not
me
personally
but the
gospel
tells us
we are
all
unclean
without
Christ
and in
Christ
all
clean
we not
only
don't have
the right
to feel
superior
to anyone
else
in the
gospel
we don't
have the
need
for it
either
the
gospel
is all
we need
the
gospel
is the
only
form
of
worth
and
value
that's
not
achieved
it is
received
it
doesn't
go
up
and
down
based
on
my
performance
in
the
last
week
or
the
last
month
the
gospel
is
the
end
of
every
struggle
in
this
matter
the
gospel
is
the
center
of
the
Christian
faith
it
is
the
center
of
our
lives
the
gospel
must
not
just
be
something
that
we
wrestle
with
in
our
minds
it's
something
that
must
sit
firmly
in
our
hearts
and
change
our
affections
our
heart
and
my
heart
needs
is
thinking
about
the
gospel
praying
about
the
gospel
rejoicing
in
the
gospel
singing
about
the
gospel
and
doing
that
in
every
area
of
our
lives
and
right
down
to
the
very
depths
of
our
being
the
image
I
have
here
is
a
snack
food
you know
like a
vending
machine
you know
a Coke
drink
machine
thing
and
you put
a coin
I've
had this
happen
it's
very
annoying
put a
coin
in
and
it
disappears
but
you
don't
hear
the
clunk
where
it's
actually
useful
for
you
and
I
don't
know
you
kick
the
thing
and
whack
it
you
try
to
get
the
coin
so
you
can
get
the
drink
you
just
paid
for
or
a
chocolate
bar
and
you
desperately
wanting
this
thing
that's
the
image
I
have
here
the
coin
needs
to
go
in
not
just
here
it
needs
to
go
clunk
the
gospel
needs
to
not
just
come
in
here
the
gospel
needs
to
go
clunk
that's
when
you
get
the
goods
has
my
this
is
unfortunate
I
think
but I
think
the
coin
hasn't
dropped
for so
many
people
sitting
in
so
many
churches
the
gospel
sits
in
our
heads
as
a
set
of
propositions
that
must
be
defended
but
it
needs
to
drop
into
our
hearts
and
transform
our
lives
if
the
gospel
is at
the
center
of
your
life
that's
my
question
is
the
gospel
at
the
center
of
your
life
in
such
a
way
that
you
are
orthopedio
walking
straight
with
the
gospel
well
that's
the
heart
of the
gospel
center
of the
gospel
now
the
power
of the
gospel
verse
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
see
there's
a weird
paradox
in
these
verses
I
no
longer
live
but
Christ
lives
in
me
he
says
I
don't
live
because
Christ
does
and
then
he
says
the
life
I
now
live
seems
like
a
contradiction
I
no
longer
live
and
the
life
I
now
live
and
Christian
the
old
life
is
gone
it
is
hidden
in
Christ
it
has
disappeared
Jesus
becomes
our
worth
our
value
but
at
the
same
time
we
live
the
same
life
but
now
out of
gratitude
to
him
and
the
gospel
has
the
power
to
change
the
motivations
of
your
heart
it
changes
your
personal
identity
it
changes
your
social
identity
it
changes
every
identity
about
you
as a
church
our
vision
is not
to conform
people to
certain
moral
standards
even
biblical
moral
standards
our
vision
is not
to
constrain
people's
actions
in this
church
or outside
this
church
in society
our
vision
is for
hearts
to be
changed
by the
power
of the
gospel
as
Paul
went
after
Peter's
heart
our
vision
is to
go
after
hearts
if
people
can see
the
worth
and the
value
of the
Lord
Jesus
and the
worth
and the
value
he gives
us
in the
gospel
it
changes
everything
in
life
this
is our
passion
at
St.
Paul's
this
is our
motivation
to
God's
word
it
our attitude to leadership.
It changes our attitude to even ourselves
and our own hearts.
And in that sense, when that happens,
we become truly transcultural when that happens.
A church that exists, that reflects,
that embraces, that enjoys a rich cultural diversity
and yet because of the power of the gospel,
we rise above all of those things,
our Jewishness, our gentleness
and whatever else you want to attach to that
and we form a new community in Christ
with a new set of gospel-shaped values
that we're pursuing because we are his much-loved children.
That's what it means to be transcultural.
That's our vision.
It is worth us remembering as we close up
that Paul is speaking still in this moment to Peter,
the great apostle Peter.
We are not above receiving this rebuke from Paul ourselves.
Paul finishes by reminding Peter here
that the whole of the Christian life
is about living in line with the gospel
in all areas of your life
for the whole of your lives.
We must continue on as Christians
as we started as Christians,
as we begin by the gospel of grace,
so we continue with the gospel of grace
and so we finish with the gospel of grace.
As Paul affirms here in verse 21,
Do not set aside the grace of God
for if righteousness could be attained through the law,
Christ died for nothing.
There is no other gospel.
You can't add to it.
You add, you nullify it.
It becomes nothing.
Jesus Christ either does everything for you
or he does nothing for you.
We cannot combine our merit and his grace
and end up with a better product,
a better righteousness.
If our right standing before God
is in any way contributed to by our merit,
then Jesus' death is meaningless in history
and it's meaningless for you personally right now.
And yet when we look down on other people,
we're adding to it.
We're adding to it.
It's coming from a heart that says,
I'm superior.
It's not coming from the gospel.
It's coming from a heart that says,
I'm superior.
Let me just drive this home for you.
We can't contribute anything.
Imagine for a moment that your house was on fire
but your whole family managed to escape
and you're on the front yard
and I come over.
I come running over to see what I could do
and you're all on the front yard.
Your dog, your cat,
you've got goldfish out and everything.
You're all on the front yard.
You're all safe.
And I say to you,
let me show you how much I love you.
And I run into the house and I die.
And you would go,
well, that was weird.
That's tragic.
That's stupid.
What a pointless waste of life.
Imagine your house was on fire
and you're trapped inside
and I call,
I come running over
and I call out,
let me show you how much I love you.
And I run in
and I rescue you.
I managed to save the whole family,
the cat, the goldfish, everything,
but I perished myself.
You would think that was true life.
That was true love
to give his life for us.
If we could get ourselves
on the front lawn,
if we could save ourselves
in any measure whatsoever,
Christ died for nothing.
It was pointless.
It means nothing.
If on the other hand,
we realize that we cannot save ourselves,
his death means everything.
It means so much
that we will spend
the rest of our lives
for the one
who has given himself for us
in joyful service of him,
bringing our whole lives
into line with his precious gospel,
or for patio,
straight walking with him.
Amen.