Non Recte | Not Correct

"When I saw that they were not following the truth of the gospel message, I said to Peter in front of all the others..." — Galatians 2:14 (NLT) 

Galatians 2: 11-21 shows the readers a conflict between two chosen men, Peter and Paul. The conflict started with a trivial matter, which was "sit with". Verses 12 to 13 (NKJV) say, "for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy. 

At a glance, we can see that Peter's attitude in this story was wrong. I say wrong because he did not show his wisdom as one of Jesus' closest apostles. By separating himself from the Gentiles, he showed his inconsistency. His act seemed like a hypocrite. But here, I can't blame him totally. If I were in his position, I might do the same because as a leader of Jerusalem church I had to keep my reputation as a great apostle who already won three thousand Jews to become Jesus' followers. 

By reading this section, we get the first point that even though someone as great as Peter - one of  Jesus' disciples - who lived closely together with Jesus, could still fall into a dilemma applying faith in truth.

  

The second point is how Paul showed his consistency and deeper understanding in the truth of the gospel. In Galatians 2:14, Paul saw that they did not walk uprightly according to the truth of the gospel so he said it to Peter before them all. He corrected this publicly that God's love and the Salvation were not hampered by the works of the law. Jesus saved all people, both the Jews and Gentiles, so that Peter should not shun the Gentiles but embrace them as those who also have a share in God's plan of salvation. 

Here, I appreciate Paul's bravery when he corrected Peter publicly although I may not agree in correcting people in public. Matthew 18: 15 says, "moreover if your brother sins, go and show him his fault when the two of you are alone. If he listens to you, you have regained your brother." However, Paul must have a strong conviction for his action - as Peter was a leader who set an example for all. 

The third point is about the characteristic of believers, who live righteously in Christ, which is a change in life. In Verse 20, Paul emphasized that as a believer there must be a real change in life. Paul also said that we must be crucified with Christ so that there can be a real change in life. Therefore we must repent so that the Holy Spirit can bring about changes. Don't wait until we experience difficulties, then we want to be changed by God. Now is the time for us to submit ourselves to be totally changed by God.

By learning those three points above, I really hope that we also learn about the gospel truth. For me, with the promised salvation, Jesus asked me to spread his love to everyone around me without discrimination. Beside that, I need to be wise in examining the questions of faith I find in this life. Then the important thing is to let the Holy Spirit work so I know well what Jesus wants from me as his follower.

Reflection on Galatians 2: 11-21 by Paulus Renggo

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