WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.520 So we find here a report from a meeting. 00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:13.500 And as a general rule, reports from meetings don't tend to make for very riveting reading. 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:17.679 And so we may come to Galatians 2 and think, 00:00:18.440 --> 00:00:25.640 this whole meeting seems kind of distant and remote and of limited interest to me. 00:00:25.640 --> 00:00:31.740 But I hope we'll see that the outcome of this meeting has huge implications for us. 00:00:32.520 --> 00:00:41.060 In fact, Tim Keller, the pastor in New York, says that God protected all of us that day in this meeting. 00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:42.780 So important is it? 00:00:42.820 --> 00:00:46.880 So we're going to think about why the implications of this meeting matter. 00:00:47.560 --> 00:00:49.060 Maybe to help us with that. 00:00:49.060 --> 00:00:57.160 You can find, I'm sure on public record somewhere, details of the Potsdam Agreement, 00:00:58.060 --> 00:01:01.240 or of what took place at the Yalta Conference, 00:01:01.760 --> 00:01:06.820 or how the Paris Peace Treaties of 1947 came to be. 00:01:07.659 --> 00:01:13.180 Again, I'm going to guess that not many of us will have a particular interest in those details. 00:01:13.180 --> 00:01:21.660 But the fact is, those meetings helped to form the basis of the peace and the freedom that we enjoy in our world today. 00:01:22.420 --> 00:01:33.600 Those meetings were really important in terms of carving a future marked by peace and freedom after World War II. 00:01:34.660 --> 00:01:41.420 And so likewise, when we come here to Paul's second visit to Jerusalem as a follower of Jesus, 00:01:41.420 --> 00:01:48.980 we find here the way of peace to God is made clear through this meeting. 00:01:49.620 --> 00:01:59.480 That freedom in Jesus Christ through the gospel of grace is secured for the whole church, for us, through this meeting. 00:01:59.659 --> 00:02:04.060 So it's very relevant at stake at this meeting. 00:02:04.480 --> 00:02:07.719 Is this question, will there be one church or will there be two? 00:02:07.719 --> 00:02:20.439 One, as John Stott puts it, was the vision of the church in Jerusalem big enough to see that the gospel of Christ was not a reform movement within Judaism, 00:02:21.000 --> 00:02:27.340 but to see it as good news for the world and the church of Christ as the international family of God. 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:33.560 In other words, was there going to be a situation where everybody would be forced to become Jewish, 00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:41.939 or will the church in Jerusalem recognize the grace of God to people regardless of culture without the need to become Jewish? 00:02:42.259 --> 00:02:43.400 That's a big question. 00:02:44.400 --> 00:02:49.479 And also tied up to this meeting, would there be one gospel or two? 00:02:50.120 --> 00:02:57.120 It takes us back to one of the underlying themes going on and the reason why Paul wrote this letter. 00:02:57.120 --> 00:03:04.020 In chapter 1, verse 6 to 7, he introduces us to those who are teaching a false gospel. 00:03:04.920 --> 00:03:12.000 Those who are saying, you need Jesus and you need to be following the Jewish ceremonial law in order to be accepted by God. 00:03:13.300 --> 00:03:16.540 Would the Jerusalem Council say, yes, that's absolutely right? 00:03:16.539 --> 00:03:27.919 Or would they follow Paul's gospel delivered directly from Jesus that says that acceptance is through God's loving kindness and sending Jesus as Savior alone? 00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:30.939 You don't need any of those Jewish ceremonies. 00:03:32.219 --> 00:03:35.399 So that's the reason why the meeting is important. 00:03:35.539 --> 00:03:40.139 Let's see how it plays out as we work our way through the text. 00:03:40.139 --> 00:03:45.599 First of all, we'll deal with the details in the first couple of verses as Paul defends his gospel. 00:03:46.559 --> 00:03:49.059 It's always helpful to ask questions of the Bible. 00:03:49.179 --> 00:03:52.379 So let's ask our interrogation questions here. 00:03:52.479 --> 00:03:55.000 First of all, where does the meeting happen? 00:03:55.439 --> 00:03:58.219 Verse 1, we're told it happens in Jerusalem. 00:03:58.979 --> 00:04:02.319 Jerusalem, the center of the early Christian faith. 00:04:02.500 --> 00:04:04.659 Jerusalem as the mother church. 00:04:05.579 --> 00:04:09.259 Jerusalem, the place where Christians at that time were still attending the temple. 00:04:09.259 --> 00:04:11.739 We're still going to pray at the set times of prayer. 00:04:11.819 --> 00:04:16.779 So it was still very much connected to Jewish religious practices. 00:04:17.279 --> 00:04:18.939 When did the meeting take place? 00:04:19.779 --> 00:04:28.539 Again, verse 1, we're told it happened 14 years later, 14 years after the conversion of Paul. 00:04:28.959 --> 00:04:31.860 So we can date it to sometime around 46 AD perhaps. 00:04:31.860 --> 00:04:41.180 This is 11 years after his very brief 15-day visit to Jerusalem that he talked about in chapter 1, verse 18. 00:04:41.740 --> 00:04:46.319 Again, this is another way of Paul reminding the people, I was independent of the apostles. 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:48.639 They didn't teach me the Bible. 00:04:48.740 --> 00:04:50.939 They didn't teach me the gospel that I'm sharing. 00:04:51.040 --> 00:04:54.080 I was chosen by Jesus directly. 00:04:54.079 --> 00:04:57.379 Who was involved in the meeting? 00:04:57.819 --> 00:04:59.579 Well, there was Paul, obviously. 00:04:59.680 --> 00:05:04.699 And we've heard in chapter 1 of his testimony of God changing his life by sending Jesus. 00:05:04.839 --> 00:05:09.180 He had been a persecutor of the church, but God chose him. 00:05:09.300 --> 00:05:10.639 God revealed his son in him. 00:05:10.939 --> 00:05:12.860 And now he's on this mission to the Gentiles. 00:05:13.479 --> 00:05:16.360 Also there with Paul is Barnabas. 00:05:16.360 --> 00:05:21.800 Barnabas, who was also on that Gentile mission with Paul. 00:05:22.220 --> 00:05:26.139 And significantly, Paul says, I took Titus along also. 00:05:26.259 --> 00:05:28.340 We'll think a little bit about Titus in a moment. 00:05:28.480 --> 00:05:29.360 Titus is a Greek. 00:05:30.180 --> 00:05:33.740 So he is a product of this Gentile mission. 00:05:34.180 --> 00:05:36.639 He is somebody who is uncircumcised. 00:05:36.699 --> 00:05:39.480 So he's not following the Jewish ceremonial law. 00:05:39.520 --> 00:05:42.520 So he becomes a test case for the church in Jerusalem. 00:05:42.520 --> 00:05:45.560 Church in Jerusalem, what are you going to do with Titus? 00:05:46.399 --> 00:05:50.259 So on the one hand, they've got these visitors, Paul and Barnabas and Titus. 00:05:50.500 --> 00:05:56.600 And then we've got Peter, James and John, the pillars of the church, the leaders of the church. 00:05:56.699 --> 00:06:04.639 So in verse 2, now we're told halfway through that he brought the gospel, presented the gospel privately to those who seem to be leaders. 00:06:05.180 --> 00:06:10.800 And then in verse 9, we meet James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars. 00:06:10.800 --> 00:06:14.540 So these are the leaders of the church in Jerusalem. 00:06:14.540 --> 00:06:17.640 So this is a conference between these two groups of people. 00:06:17.740 --> 00:06:22.040 Now, why does Paul arrive in Jerusalem? 00:06:23.080 --> 00:06:27.520 Verse 2, I went in response to a revelation. 00:06:29.400 --> 00:06:30.360 What's that about? 00:06:30.360 --> 00:06:33.900 We find out in Acts chapter 11. 00:06:33.960 --> 00:06:36.120 As it happens, we'll be studying this passage this evening. 00:06:36.240 --> 00:06:39.000 Acts chapter 11, verses 27 to 30. 00:06:39.699 --> 00:06:43.220 There's a man called Agabus, a New Testament prophet. 00:06:43.620 --> 00:06:49.160 And led by the Spirit, he predicts that there'll be a great famine spreading throughout the Roman Empire. 00:06:49.160 --> 00:06:58.340 And the church in Antioch, where Paul and Barnabas are, they decide that they want to send a gift to help the poor Christians in Jerusalem. 00:06:59.060 --> 00:07:03.260 So Paul is there because he's delivering this gift. 00:07:03.920 --> 00:07:07.620 And as he's there, he takes the chance to meet with the leaders. 00:07:07.620 --> 00:07:14.180 Now, this is important because he's saying to them, remember this, it was God that sent us to Jerusalem. 00:07:14.519 --> 00:07:20.420 It's not as if Peter and James and John are calling him up to appear before them. 00:07:21.000 --> 00:07:26.360 This isn't Paul being taken to the headmaster's office because he stepped out of line, in other words. 00:07:26.360 --> 00:07:30.240 And what does he do at this meeting? 00:07:30.300 --> 00:07:32.220 What's this meeting all about? 00:07:32.939 --> 00:07:34.520 Again, reading into verse 2. 00:07:34.939 --> 00:07:41.439 He set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. 00:07:42.060 --> 00:07:42.860 Notice the tense. 00:07:43.020 --> 00:07:44.960 The gospel I preach. 00:07:45.020 --> 00:07:46.819 This is his continuing message. 00:07:46.939 --> 00:07:48.800 This is important for the people in Galatia. 00:07:49.560 --> 00:07:52.360 That gospel that I've been sharing for 14 years. 00:07:52.360 --> 00:07:56.280 That gospel that I presented to Peter and James and John in Jerusalem. 00:07:56.360 --> 00:07:59.600 Is the same gospel that I'm bringing to you. 00:07:59.800 --> 00:08:03.439 Is the same gospel that you find in this letter. 00:08:05.100 --> 00:08:07.240 But something perhaps surprising. 00:08:08.040 --> 00:08:10.860 Is he highlights the fact that he did this privately. 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:12.860 Verse 2, continuing. 00:08:13.480 --> 00:08:16.600 I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders. 00:08:17.020 --> 00:08:21.199 For fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. 00:08:21.199 --> 00:08:30.979 Now that might sound as if Paul is concerned that he's somehow, perhaps, got his message wrong. 00:08:31.439 --> 00:08:33.939 And so he's coming to Peter, James and John for clarification. 00:08:35.179 --> 00:08:37.519 But that's not what's going on. 00:08:37.840 --> 00:08:45.720 After all, in chapter 1, he's been very clear on the fact that he received his gospel directly from the Lord Jesus. 00:08:45.720 --> 00:08:49.139 He is so confident in the truth of the gospel he's preaching. 00:08:49.460 --> 00:08:51.360 That he would say, verses 6 to 9. 00:08:51.440 --> 00:08:55.920 If I deviate even slightly, let me be eternally condemned. 00:08:56.720 --> 00:09:00.160 He's absolutely persuaded that he has the true gospel. 00:09:00.300 --> 00:09:01.740 So that's not his concern. 00:09:02.540 --> 00:09:08.500 His concern is that there are these false teachers who are trying to undermine his gospel. 00:09:08.500 --> 00:09:16.080 And his concern is that if the Jerusalem church doesn't say very clearly, Paul is right and they are wrong, 00:09:16.700 --> 00:09:18.500 then his ministry will lack fruitfulness. 00:09:19.179 --> 00:09:21.139 Because there will always be those doubts and questions. 00:09:21.259 --> 00:09:22.340 Are there two gospels? 00:09:22.440 --> 00:09:24.059 Which gospel should I listen to? 00:09:24.580 --> 00:09:31.779 So his concern in this meeting is, will Jerusalem take a clear stand for the gospel of grace alone? 00:09:32.639 --> 00:09:34.259 So that's the heart of the issue. 00:09:34.980 --> 00:09:37.500 So it can seem kind of distant and remote in some respects. 00:09:37.500 --> 00:09:40.539 But the heart of the issue is, what is the essence of the gospel? 00:09:41.379 --> 00:09:43.320 Is it the message of the false teachers? 00:09:43.960 --> 00:09:44.779 Yes, you need Jesus. 00:09:44.899 --> 00:09:49.419 But you also need moral and religious performance if you want God to accept you. 00:09:49.480 --> 00:09:55.639 If you want to be part of the kingdom, then you need to have all these practices set up before you can join. 00:09:55.759 --> 00:09:58.580 Or is it Paul's gospel from Jesus? 00:09:58.700 --> 00:10:01.399 That Jesus has done everything for us. 00:10:01.440 --> 00:10:05.100 That he has lived perfectly fulfilling the law that we can't. 00:10:05.100 --> 00:10:10.259 And he's died as a sacrifice, as a substitute for us, to bring us to God. 00:10:10.300 --> 00:10:14.180 And that's a gift of grace, not something we earn or deserve. 00:10:15.180 --> 00:10:19.879 And the outcome of the meeting will show us how things fall. 00:10:19.879 --> 00:10:24.200 So the outcome is that grace wins. 00:10:24.299 --> 00:10:26.259 The gospel of grace wins. 00:10:26.360 --> 00:10:28.320 And we see this in two ways. 00:10:28.419 --> 00:10:33.039 First of all, we see that Paul's friend, Titus, is welcomed. 00:10:33.039 --> 00:10:42.379 So again, the story of Titus may seem small, but it's very significant in what it represents. 00:10:42.500 --> 00:10:44.360 So Titus, as we said, was a Greek. 00:10:45.500 --> 00:10:48.539 He was uncircumcised, but he's a Christian. 00:10:49.319 --> 00:10:56.259 In the church in Antioch, which was made up of Jews and Gentiles, he was accepted into fellowship. 00:10:56.259 --> 00:11:00.819 So the question is, now that he's come to Jerusalem, what's going to happen? 00:11:01.639 --> 00:11:06.240 Will they accept that he's been saved by Jesus or will they demand something else? 00:11:07.620 --> 00:11:14.659 And we're told in verse 4 that there's a threat because there are spies. 00:11:14.759 --> 00:11:23.259 This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 00:11:23.259 --> 00:11:30.559 There are some people, these false teachers, sometimes known as Judaizers, who want this to stop, 00:11:30.639 --> 00:11:35.000 who want Paul's message of salvation by grace alone to stop. 00:11:35.899 --> 00:11:39.340 They have a slogan in Acts chapter 15 and verse 1. 00:11:39.700 --> 00:11:40.980 They lay their slogan out. 00:11:41.179 --> 00:11:46.299 Unless you're circumcised according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved. 00:11:47.460 --> 00:11:49.799 So that's their alternative gospel. 00:11:49.799 --> 00:11:53.799 And so they're attacking Paul, saying, Paul's messed up the gospel. 00:11:54.139 --> 00:11:57.719 He's messed up the connection between Jesus and the law and Jerusalem church. 00:11:57.799 --> 00:11:58.859 You need to fix this. 00:11:58.939 --> 00:11:59.939 You need to step in. 00:12:00.959 --> 00:12:02.039 So what's the outcome? 00:12:02.819 --> 00:12:03.359 Verse 3. 00:12:04.419 --> 00:12:09.939 Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 00:12:10.059 --> 00:12:13.219 Titus is welcome without the need for ceremonies. 00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:18.599 The big point, grace is recognized as the only condition for membership. 00:12:18.600 --> 00:12:22.080 In Antioch and in Jerusalem and for everywhere. 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:29.259 The Jerusalem church know and affirm the gospel equation that we spoke about, 00:12:29.360 --> 00:12:32.480 that it's Jesus plus nothing that equals everything. 00:12:33.340 --> 00:12:38.740 They affirm that message that we're saved by Jesus alone, that we don't contribute, 00:12:38.879 --> 00:12:41.259 we don't bring our works to the table. 00:12:41.259 --> 00:12:49.039 In actual fact, the point of those Old Testament ceremonial laws were to be a reminder that you cannot be holy enough. 00:12:49.580 --> 00:12:52.779 You cannot make yourself acceptable to a perfectly holy God. 00:12:53.080 --> 00:12:56.439 So these false teachers are actually getting that upside down, 00:12:57.000 --> 00:13:02.679 thinking that those laws were there so that we might climb the ladder to get to God. 00:13:02.679 --> 00:13:04.539 So they're giving a false message. 00:13:04.679 --> 00:13:06.539 They're giving a false hope. 00:13:06.859 --> 00:13:13.279 And that message is rejected by the church in Jerusalem as Titus is welcomed. 00:13:14.259 --> 00:13:17.839 Because Paul knows, and the church in Jerusalem knows, 00:13:18.239 --> 00:13:26.740 that trying to save ourselves by our works is like being on a treadmill, going nowhere. 00:13:26.740 --> 00:13:30.259 We desperately perhaps want to get to know God. 00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:31.799 We'd love to be a friend of God. 00:13:31.879 --> 00:13:34.980 But if we're thinking that we have to make our way there, 00:13:35.039 --> 00:13:40.320 we will find ourselves exhausted and desperately disappointed. 00:13:42.580 --> 00:13:44.879 Thinking that we can prove ourselves, 00:13:45.200 --> 00:13:49.620 that we can earn our way to God is, to use Paul's word, slavery. 00:13:49.620 --> 00:13:52.659 It's a false hope. 00:13:54.060 --> 00:13:56.279 We can't go up to God. 00:13:56.360 --> 00:13:58.940 He is too perfect and too holy. 00:13:59.600 --> 00:14:04.659 But in the gospel, the wonderful news is that God and Jesus has come down to us. 00:14:06.080 --> 00:14:10.080 In grace, he has provided all that was lacking. 00:14:10.460 --> 00:14:12.700 He has come to save us. 00:14:13.200 --> 00:14:16.980 And Paul is relentless in defending this. 00:14:16.980 --> 00:14:20.060 So in verse 5, he says, we didn't give in to them for a moment 00:14:20.060 --> 00:14:23.320 so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you. 00:14:24.259 --> 00:14:26.320 Saved by grace alone is gospel truth. 00:14:26.480 --> 00:14:28.180 Anything else is a dangerous lie. 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:33.120 And Paul will not allow anybody to distort that message. 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:36.320 Faith in Jesus alone is true freedom. 00:14:36.500 --> 00:14:39.379 Anything else is slavery, Paul says. 00:14:39.440 --> 00:14:43.279 And so he draws a line in the sand he will not cross. 00:14:43.279 --> 00:14:48.539 And he wants the Jerusalem church to stand clearly with him as they do. 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:55.439 And so the gospel of grace is defended through the outcome of this meeting. 00:14:56.399 --> 00:15:03.079 Now there's one implication for us to think through as we think about Titus being welcomed in Jerusalem. 00:15:03.639 --> 00:15:06.779 Because we live in a wonderful time in history, I think. 00:15:07.299 --> 00:15:10.360 You know, we have so many opportunities for education and travel. 00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:13.980 And we've got new cultures moving around all the time. 00:15:14.060 --> 00:15:15.220 New people coming and going. 00:15:15.659 --> 00:15:18.460 A place like Edinburgh, especially in a couple of weeks. 00:15:18.840 --> 00:15:21.779 There'll be so many different cultures and so many different nations. 00:15:22.300 --> 00:15:29.899 And gospel churches have a great chance to show the power of the gospel in our very makeup. 00:15:30.860 --> 00:15:34.680 We can say the gospel of God's grace is so powerful. 00:15:34.679 --> 00:15:42.000 And the reconciling work of Jesus is so profound that look at the people who make up this church. 00:15:43.000 --> 00:15:45.959 It would be a wonderful thing if people could walk in and say, 00:15:46.259 --> 00:15:49.359 Well, here are rich and poor and they're enjoying fellowship together. 00:15:50.099 --> 00:15:54.759 Here are different nations and different cultures, sometimes with historic hostilities. 00:15:55.019 --> 00:15:57.859 And they know and they love one another. 00:15:57.860 --> 00:16:03.360 Here's a majority culture that loves to welcome minorities in. 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:12.159 That as a church, in our church life and culture, we can give living proof to the power of God's grace. 00:16:13.419 --> 00:16:17.600 And again, I've said this before, but one of the things I'm so thankful for about Buclue, 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:20.860 because we've got this location, we've got this history. 00:16:20.980 --> 00:16:26.840 There is this wonderful heritage of welcoming Christians and non-Christians from all around the world. 00:16:26.840 --> 00:16:28.519 It's been going for a long time. 00:16:29.920 --> 00:16:32.560 That's a great thing to give thanks to God for. 00:16:33.879 --> 00:16:40.780 And so what we need to do as a church is we need to be clear that there is only one gospel message for every kind of person. 00:16:41.420 --> 00:16:44.620 So we believe in exclusive truth, as does everybody. 00:16:45.019 --> 00:16:51.220 We believe that Jesus is the only way to be saved, the only way to have our sins forgiven, the only way to peace with God. 00:16:51.220 --> 00:16:56.820 But at the same time, we want to remain absolutely open to whoever comes through our doors. 00:16:57.259 --> 00:17:06.259 We want to be so careful not to put any barriers in the way to people coming to fellowship with us or coming to faith in the Lord Jesus. 00:17:06.680 --> 00:17:08.640 So we've got this exclusive truth. 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:11.299 But that exclusive truth is about a gospel of grace. 00:17:11.380 --> 00:17:18.299 So it makes us an inclusive community, or at least it should, so that we can celebrate grace together. 00:17:18.299 --> 00:17:30.119 I wonder, most of us are just a bit old enough to remember perhaps watching when the Berlin Wall was torn down live on TV. 00:17:30.899 --> 00:17:35.240 Do you remember those scenes as people came with the sledgehammers and the wrecking ball came? 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:44.119 And that barrier dividing a city, dividing even families, was ripped down as freedom broke out. 00:17:44.119 --> 00:17:48.459 Well, the gospel of grace has greater power. 00:17:49.039 --> 00:17:52.679 It can explode all the barriers between different kinds of people. 00:17:53.219 --> 00:18:01.939 That's what we're finding here, that Greeks and Jews did not hang out together except for the gospel of grace. 00:18:02.079 --> 00:18:07.839 And so Titus is welcome as a reminder of the power of the gospel to break down those barriers. 00:18:07.939 --> 00:18:11.119 So let's never give up the gospel. 00:18:11.119 --> 00:18:20.000 The second way that we see that grace wins is not just that Paul's friend Titus is welcome, but that Paul's gospel is welcomed. 00:18:21.079 --> 00:18:24.759 So again, we've said it before, there's this accusation coming from the false teachers. 00:18:26.219 --> 00:18:31.419 That whereas there are these super apostles, Peter and James and John over in Jerusalem, and they've got the true gospel. 00:18:32.019 --> 00:18:37.659 They're saying to the people in Galatia, that Paul that you're hearing from, he's got a lesser gospel. 00:18:37.779 --> 00:18:39.239 He's got a mixed up gospel. 00:18:39.240 --> 00:18:41.819 He's maybe a second class apostle. 00:18:43.220 --> 00:18:46.000 But there's the gospel of Peter, and there's the gospel of Paul. 00:18:46.539 --> 00:18:48.359 Paul is wrong, they're accusing. 00:18:48.960 --> 00:18:52.500 They're saying we need to teach Jesus plus the laws of Moses for people to be saved. 00:18:53.740 --> 00:19:01.019 And so even as Paul describes the meeting, and as we look at his language, I think he's trying to correct that thinking. 00:19:01.019 --> 00:19:05.039 So look at the way Paul writes about Peter and James and John. 00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:15.720 In verse 2, middle of verse 2, I did this privately, presented the gospel privately to those who seemed to be leaders. 00:19:16.539 --> 00:19:21.559 And then in verse 6, as for those who seemed to be important, whatever they were, it makes no difference to me. 00:19:22.059 --> 00:19:24.139 God does not judge by external appearance. 00:19:24.140 --> 00:19:30.020 And then in verse 9, James, Peter, and John, those reputed to be pillars. 00:19:30.140 --> 00:19:31.460 Now he's not being rude. 00:19:31.580 --> 00:19:32.460 He's not being arrogant. 00:19:32.600 --> 00:19:35.620 He's not trying to demean Peter, James, and John. 00:19:35.860 --> 00:19:40.700 He is saying God doesn't judge by external appearance that we're all saved by grace. 00:19:40.820 --> 00:19:43.120 We all have equal standing as apostles. 00:19:43.119 --> 00:19:45.339 Therefore, you can listen to me. 00:19:45.419 --> 00:19:51.379 And we'll discover from the outcome that they recognize Paul equally with them as an apostle. 00:19:51.859 --> 00:19:57.319 So in chapter 1, the emphasis for Paul is, I was independent of the apostles. 00:19:57.439 --> 00:19:59.319 They didn't teach me the gospel. 00:19:59.519 --> 00:20:01.139 I received it directly from Jesus. 00:20:01.659 --> 00:20:05.719 Now his emphasis is, my gospel is identical to theirs. 00:20:05.779 --> 00:20:09.059 There's only one gospel for the whole world. 00:20:09.059 --> 00:20:12.440 And we see that in the language as he reports on this meeting. 00:20:13.599 --> 00:20:21.259 The end of verse 6, those men added nothing to my message. 00:20:22.099 --> 00:20:32.679 Verse 7 and 8, we see that it's the same God recognized to be at work in Peter's mission to the Jews and Paul's mission to the Gentiles. 00:20:33.519 --> 00:20:38.700 That there are two different audiences, but there is one gospel. 00:20:39.059 --> 00:20:43.159 That's a really important practical point for us. 00:20:43.859 --> 00:20:47.559 That the substance of the gospel remains unchanging. 00:20:47.779 --> 00:20:49.740 That must be the case. 00:20:50.220 --> 00:20:54.980 But our presentation of that gospel varies depending who we're talking to. 00:20:55.659 --> 00:20:56.940 So we're talking to our kids. 00:20:57.440 --> 00:20:59.279 And we speak about the gospel in one way. 00:20:59.639 --> 00:21:03.639 We talk to somebody from another culture, maybe from another religious background, 00:21:03.639 --> 00:21:05.379 who's never read the Bible before. 00:21:05.380 --> 00:21:08.000 We might talk about the gospel a different way to them. 00:21:08.060 --> 00:21:11.700 To people who were brought up in church, we speak the gospel in a different way to them. 00:21:11.780 --> 00:21:13.520 The substance is the same. 00:21:14.240 --> 00:21:15.880 But the way we talk about it varies. 00:21:16.620 --> 00:21:19.020 And that's what we see in the book of Acts. 00:21:19.040 --> 00:21:22.880 That's what we see in the ministry to Jews and Gentiles. 00:21:22.920 --> 00:21:26.860 And that's something that can be true for us too in the way that we talk to people. 00:21:26.859 --> 00:21:31.639 As we get to know what's their worldview, what have they discovered so far, 00:21:31.719 --> 00:21:33.699 what's their understanding, what are their thoughts on Jesus, 00:21:33.879 --> 00:21:39.139 and we can shape how we present the unchanging gospel to them. 00:21:40.679 --> 00:21:44.659 They're also, verse 9, welcomed into fellowship. 00:21:44.660 --> 00:21:53.220 And they were given the right hand of fellowship because they recognized the grace given to me. 00:21:53.340 --> 00:21:58.120 They recognized God at work in and through Paul. 00:21:58.440 --> 00:22:03.540 And then in verse 10, something that may seem slightly out of tangent, 00:22:03.900 --> 00:22:07.000 but ties in with why Paul was there in the first place. 00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:10.620 All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, 00:22:11.100 --> 00:22:12.840 the very thing I was eager to do. 00:22:12.839 --> 00:22:18.699 So remember, Paul is there sent by Antioch to bring a gift to the poor. 00:22:19.159 --> 00:22:21.079 And so this is a way for the church to say, 00:22:21.240 --> 00:22:25.480 let's make sure that we keep that same solidarity where we're caring for one another, 00:22:25.579 --> 00:22:27.299 where we're caring for the poor. 00:22:27.659 --> 00:22:29.619 And Paul says, I was eager to do that. 00:22:29.699 --> 00:22:31.759 We've got the same heart on that matter. 00:22:31.919 --> 00:22:33.139 We care for the poor. 00:22:33.259 --> 00:22:35.859 We love one another wherever we're from. 00:22:35.859 --> 00:22:38.439 Again and again, the point is being made by Paul. 00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:39.939 There's only one gospel. 00:22:40.459 --> 00:22:41.980 There's only one way of salvation. 00:22:41.980 --> 00:22:43.360 Whoever we are. 00:22:43.420 --> 00:22:45.120 And that's the way of the cross of Jesus. 00:22:45.319 --> 00:22:47.680 That's the way of grace. 00:22:48.680 --> 00:22:55.440 And like Paul, God's church is called to maintain that truth, 00:22:55.920 --> 00:22:59.000 to guard that truth with our lives, 00:22:59.720 --> 00:23:03.620 to defend that truth against error, 00:23:03.619 --> 00:23:08.759 and to live out that gospel in our lives, 00:23:09.279 --> 00:23:10.579 in our fellowship, 00:23:11.179 --> 00:23:13.799 in the way that we offer hospitality, 00:23:13.799 --> 00:23:19.859 in the way we practice reconciliation with those who wrong us. 00:23:20.399 --> 00:23:20.899 Why? 00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:25.319 Because freedom in Christ is everything. 00:23:25.319 --> 00:23:28.079 And without the message of grace, 00:23:28.079 --> 00:23:30.179 we have nothing. 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:36.000 It's this wonderful, life-changing truth that Paul defends, 00:23:36.059 --> 00:23:38.599 and we are called to defend. 00:23:38.599 --> 00:23:42.939 Some of you, I guess, 00:23:43.019 --> 00:23:44.779 will have seen, perhaps many times, 00:23:44.980 --> 00:23:46.619 depending on your levels of patriotism, 00:23:47.000 --> 00:23:48.919 the movie Braveheart, 00:23:49.819 --> 00:23:51.000 from the 90s. 00:23:52.240 --> 00:23:55.740 Lots of heart-stirring scenes in that movie. 00:23:56.399 --> 00:23:57.939 One that came to mind this week, 00:23:58.000 --> 00:23:58.859 thinking about this theme, 00:23:58.939 --> 00:24:02.799 was that scene where William Wallace is on his horse 00:24:02.799 --> 00:24:04.559 before the troops, 00:24:04.700 --> 00:24:07.440 Scottish troops about to go into battle against Edward's army, 00:24:07.599 --> 00:24:09.559 and the troops are looking a bit scared, 00:24:10.059 --> 00:24:10.759 a bit shaky. 00:24:10.879 --> 00:24:12.619 They're quite a ragtag bunch. 00:24:13.319 --> 00:24:16.559 And William Wallace delivers one of those great speeches 00:24:16.559 --> 00:24:17.460 where he says, you know, 00:24:17.519 --> 00:24:19.159 they may take our lands, 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:21.279 I've got sore throats, I'm not going to shout, 00:24:21.480 --> 00:24:24.139 but they will never take our freedom. 00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:27.220 This week, as I was reading, 00:24:27.220 --> 00:24:30.079 I came across words from Martin Luther, 00:24:30.740 --> 00:24:32.299 16th century reformation, 00:24:32.299 --> 00:24:35.579 that echo that call for the Christian church. 00:24:35.639 --> 00:24:36.960 When Martin Luther was writing, 00:24:37.339 --> 00:24:39.440 the church was beginning to be persecuted 00:24:39.440 --> 00:24:42.319 for trusting in the Bible alone 00:24:42.319 --> 00:24:45.440 and trusting in salvation by grace 00:24:45.440 --> 00:24:47.440 through Jesus Christ alone. 00:24:47.519 --> 00:24:49.180 And here is what Martin Luther says. 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:51.419 Here's his call to freedom. 00:24:51.940 --> 00:24:52.339 He says, 00:24:52.339 --> 00:24:55.240 We will suffer our goods to be taken away, 00:24:55.599 --> 00:24:58.079 our name, our life, 00:24:58.799 --> 00:25:00.419 and all that we have, 00:25:00.420 --> 00:25:02.240 but the gospel, 00:25:03.240 --> 00:25:04.140 our faith, 00:25:05.180 --> 00:25:06.200 Jesus Christ, 00:25:06.660 --> 00:25:08.519 we will never suffer 00:25:08.519 --> 00:25:11.519 to be taken from us. 00:25:12.259 --> 00:25:14.380 Freedom in Christ was everything 00:25:14.380 --> 00:25:15.140 to Paul, 00:25:15.940 --> 00:25:17.039 to Martin Luther, 00:25:17.700 --> 00:25:18.800 may it be everything 00:25:18.800 --> 00:25:20.200 to us 00:25:20.200 --> 00:25:21.400 as a church. 00:25:21.400 --> 00:25:26.060 овали by even book O that we have 00:25:30.440 --> 00:25:31.540 for a trial, 00:25:31.540 --> 00:25:37.440 and the word from Sh 00:25:37.440 --> 00:25:38.740 got藤, 00:25:38.740 --> 00:25:38.900 are not regarding the power of the faith 00:25:38.900 --> 00:25:39.640 and the command하하, 00:25:39.640 --> 00:25:40.440 because we are participating in space 00:25:40.440 --> 00:25:41.120 in the Bible. 00:25:41.240 --> 00:25:41.880 We have to hold on the people 00:25:41.880 --> 00:25:42.480 in the Bible, 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:43.580 and listen to all that we have 00:25:43.580 --> 00:25:43.840 on this way. 00:25:43.940 --> 00:25:44.259 Do not understand the 00:25:44.259 --> 00:25:44.420 words that you are 00:25:44.460 --> 00:25:45.240 going to heaven 00:25:45.240 --> 00:25:46.640 to keep and have 00:25:46.640 --> 00:25:47.340 if you are really 00:25:47.600 --> 00:25:48.220 to stop and follow 00:25:48.220 --> 00:25:48.440 on thisь.