Isaiah 19:1-21:17; Galatians 2:1-16; Psalm 59:1-17; Proverbs 23:13-14
Don’t you find the story of Paul's and Peter’s conflict so
interesting? I do. I’ve always wished I could have been a fly on the wall for
the events conveyed in Galatians 2:11-16. Truth be told, I find a great deal of
comfort in the fact that two of God’s most fruitful servants fought, disagreed
and then reconciled over an issue. It makes them somehow seem more human, you
know? And I find comfort in the fact that Peter seems to have struggled with
being one way with one group of people and another way with a different group
of people – that’s a very human problem, wouldn’t you agree? Sadly, it’s not
just junior highers who are tempted to be one way with this group of friends
and another way with a different group of friends.
Anyway, in today’s New Testament reading, Paul begins to
open up a topic that he will spend more time on the chapters to come, namely
this: Peter (and, we’ll soon see, the Galatians) accepted a gospel that said
Christ died for all, no matter their race; yet when a group appears with a different
theology, one that says someone actually needs to be Jewish (i.e., circumcised),
then Peter starts to separate himself from the Gentiles. Acting one way with
one group, and a different way with another. Ah, Peter.
Paul confronts Peter for his hypocrisy and corrects him in
front of everyone, basically saying that if Peter doesn’t even still keep the
Jewish laws (in this case, the law Peter broke was eating with Gentiles), then
how can he hold the Gentiles to the Jewish laws?
And then there are those beautiful words of verse 16: “We know
that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus
Christ.” This theme, already present in Romans, will be hugely significant in
Paul’s letter to the Galatians. He wants them to know that it’s Jesus who saves, not circumcision, not clean hands, not food laws – not anything that the
Jewish traditionalists (here called the circumcision party [see vs. 12]) would
have the Gentiles believe. A faith in Jesus is what saves you, and Paul will
spend the coming chapters restating and restating that fact to the believers
in Galatia who seem all too eager to look for some reason aside from Jesus for
their salvation.
Now on to the proverbs for today. If you don’t have kids,
you probably didn’t think too much about it. But for those of us with small
children, this proverb cannot be overlooked: “Do not withhold discipline from a
child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. If you strike him with
the rod, you will save his soul from Sheol.” Obviously, there are lots of
theories out there about effective ways to discipline children and I’m not
going to turn this post into a “to spank or not to spank” platform. Additionally,
the proverbs are not promises – they are generalizations – meaning that if you
follow the words of the proverbs, generally
these outcomes will follow. But it’s not a guarantee. Still, these words force
me to take a pause and consider my discipline habits. I don’t want to indulge my
children, nor be reluctant to discipline them for fear that they won’t like me
or something like that; I want to guide them and help shape them into kind,
compassionate people who are able to think of others besides themselves. No
small task, I know. But, thankfully, God is merciful (maybe especially to
parents of young kids?) and so He allows plenty of grace as my husband and I
navigate these waters.
Thank you, Jesus, not just for your grace, but for the truth
that when it comes to salvation, it doesn’t matter who I am but who YOU are.
Nothing - not race, culture, socio-economic class, occupation, gender, age –
nothing affects my salvation, only my faith in you. Thank you!
- Esther McCurry
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