Galatians 2:1–10

One of the traditions we have had over the last 25 years, or so, is every summer going on what we call Trek.  How many of you have actually been on Trek?  Most of the teens and all who have grown up here and lots of the adults over the years have gone on Trek.  One of the cool things that happen on a lot of Treks is walking along a knife edge. On one side there is a 1,000 ft. drop and then on the other side is another 1,000 ft drop.  And the goal is to stay on the top of the knife edge and not go too far to the left or too far to the right.  It is pretty important to keep your balance and stay on top of the knife edge. 

What I have come to realize over the years, of both Trekking and studying God’s word, is there are lots of knife edges in our lives.  The path we need to maintain in lots of theological issues is right in the middle between two wrong answers; two 1,000 ft. drops.  We, as humans often want to go to one extreme or the other.  Many times, however, the truth is found along the knife edge between the two extremes.  We have to resist the extremes and keep the two opposing forces in balance as we walk the knife edge of where God would have us to be.  We see this all over the place in Scriptures and in the letter to the Galatians! 

This morning, as we come to the 2nd chapter, we are going to find Paul walking a knife edge.  It is almost funny how he is struggling to keep right along the middle without falling off either side; preacher funning.  This knife edge he is on was important to him and the early church and we are going to find we must walk the same knife edge today; the first day of February, 2009.  Isn’t that a cool thing?  1,960 years ago in a province of the Rome Empire, 6,693 miles away, - according to Google Earth - in a culture that we would not be able to relate to at all, we end up walking the same knife edge.   Anyway, I think that is cool.  Because it shows the amazing dynamic nature or the living Word!   Let’s start reading chapter 2 and discover the knife edge and the 1,000 ft. drops on either side.  

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Galatians 2:1-2  Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation.

In chapter one, we learned Jesus called Paul from his life as a persecutor of the church to become a proclaimer of the Gospel.  He went straight to Arabia where the faith became his faith.  He did make one trip to Jerusalem for a couple weeks to talk to Peter and James and then he went to Syria and Cilicia where he worked among the Gentiles for 14 years. Let me pause there to allow 14 years to go by…  Then he went again to Jerusalem along with his missionary buddies Barnabas and Titus.  You kind of get the feeling Paul may have never gone again except a revelation told him to. 

Remember from chapter one, Paul made the case that the message of freedom came straight from Jesus and was not added too, nor taken away from, nor tweaked, nor trimmed, nor expanded, nor bended, folded, spindled, or mutilated.  The Gospel came to the Galatians straight from Jesus and was preached to them in its purity.  No one messed with the Gospel he preached to them. 

But now after 14 years…  Jesus told Paul, “Go to Jerusalem there are several important things you must do there.”  Let’s put on one side of the knife edge Paul’s independence from the Jerusalem church.  Paul has made a big deal that his message was not from people.

Galatians 2:2  I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain.

Paul goes to Jerusalem, after 14 years… of preaching the pure Gospel of Freedom to make sure his Gospel was in sync with their Gospel.  Jesus wanted Paul to see that the message was the same.  The pure Gospel Paul preached was the same as they preached to the Jewish people in Jerusalem and in the surrounding Judea.  So, let’s put on the other side of the knife edge Paul syncing with the Jerusalem leaders; the same Gospel.   

Galatians 2:3-6  Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 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. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you. As for those who seemed to be important-- whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance-- those men added nothing to my message.

Paul is still making the point that circumcision, along with the Law of Moses, was not a part of the Gospel.  There were some false brothers who were spies, who attempted to convince the Gentiles to become Jews.  But don’t worry Paul did not give into them, even for a second.  So, let’s put on the first side of the knife edge Paul’s unwillingness to give into the circumcision thing and note Paul calls them false brothers and spies.  Let’s write “One Pure Gospel” on this side. 

Galatians 2:7-8  On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews.  For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles.

Even though there were two missions, one to the Gentiles and one to the Jews, God had commissioned both.  There is only one pure Gospel, but there are two ministries.  Let’s put that concept on the other side of the knife; two ministries.  Paul recognized that God had blessed two different ministries. 

Galatians 2:9-10  James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

Paul can’t call James, Peter and John “pillars” they are reputed pillars.  Paul sees everyone as important.  Paul knows, better than most, that God can call anyone to be his messenger!  He doesn’t want to hype anyone.  There is an amazing lesson.  Paul doesn’t use titles, or honors, or offices.  Jesus must have told Paul what he told the other apostles in Matthew.

Matthew 23:8-11  "But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.  Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant.”

Let’s put that on one side of the knife edge; no pillars.

Yet it seems to mean a lot to Paul that these reputed pillars offered him the “Right hand of fellowship.”  This was an idiom of Paul’s day which meant support and friendship and cooperation, recognition of common purpose even a partnership.   We sort of do the same thing when we “shake on it.”  We seal an agreement with a hand shake.  This “right hand of fellowship” sealed a relationship in Christ between Paul and the leaders in Jerusalem.  They were one! 

So, on the other side of the knife edge we have to place Paul’s desire to be validated by the leaders of the Jerusalem church.  When Peter, James and John saw the grace God used to work in Paul, there was fellowship.  Let’s place fellowship on this side of the knife.

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Let’s see if we can put all this together and define both sides of the 1,000 ft. drop.  But let’s start by finding the knife edge.  It is pretty obvious that Paul was struggling back and forth in these 10 verses, but what exactly was the struggle?  Here is my best shot at this.  But this wasn’t easy. 

The knife edge Paul was attempting to walk was the unity of the family of God. God wants his church to be one.  Jesus prayed for unity.  Those who are in Christ are called to be one family.  That is the beauty of the Gospel.  No longer is there Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female.  God has only one family; we are all his children.  That is the edge Paul was walking.  He wanted all those, who believed in Jesus, to be one loving, fellowshipping family.  Let’s label the knife edge, “One Family.”  

On one side of the knife edge of one family is independence.  Paul was tempted to ignore the Jerusalem church, write off all those Jewish knuckleheads and do his own thing with his Gentile churches.  He went 14 years without them; he didn’t need them. He could have just said, “Hey, we don’t want to have anything to do with those legalist and judgmental twerps with all their Jewish rules.  If we just mind our own business and stay away from, “Them” then we can have our own happy family.”  We can have unity.  We can have one family. We can do our own thing. There can be oneness through isolation. We can have our own freedom and let the rest of the world go where they want in their own little hand baskets.   I think that was the temptation to Paul.  I have to ask, is it a temptation to us?

The other side of the knife says the way for everyone to be one family is for everyone to conform. If you Gentiles want to be part of our Jewish family then you need to be just like us.  You need to be circumcised.  You need to follow our rules.  You need to be a Jew to be part of THE family.  This side says everyone must be exactly the same in order to be one family.  If you are not like us, then you are out!  What’s the big deal?  Circumcision and the other Moses Laws are all basically good.  Paul could have fallen off this side of the edge by saying, “Let’s all just get along and give in to them.”  There could have been oneness through concession. 

But Paul was unwilling to be seduced by either side:
-There is the essence of the Gospel that must not be messed with.  There are such things as false teachers.  There is wrong that must not be tolerated. We can’t compromise the Gospel! If the Gospel is messed with it can cease to be the Gospel. Paul could have just circled the wagons and given into isolation.

-On the other hand there is pressure to be unified.  We need to get along with each other. We don’t need to be so hard nosed. This whole thing called “church” needs to be one.  We can’t keep hammering each other. Let’s compromise.  The squeaky wheel…  Do whatever it takes to please them.  Paul could have given into concession.

-But on the other, other hand; there is freedom in Christ.  Each of us is called only to please Jesus.  We don’t need approval of anyone, but Jesus. It’s just me and the Lord and we are tight. “I am not going to give up my freedom for anyone.  Forget ‘em.” There is a lot of pull to isolation.

-But on the other, other, other, hand, this right hand of fellowship thing is really cool.  “They will know we are Christians by our love…”  “Just be nice. Don’t worry. Be happy. Just get over it.”  There is the pull of the dark side.

So, Paul, in his dealings with the Galatians and his relationship with the Jerusalem church, was walking a knife edge between independence and conformity; between doctrine and compromise, between isolation and concession.  How did Paul walk in the unity of one family?  How did Paul walk the knife edge of unity in freedom?  How did Paul resolve this?  And I guess I need to ask, even though I don’t want to, how do we walk in the unity of freedom? There a couple of clues about the how in the text of Galatians 2. 

1) Respond to Jesus.  For Paul he had no choice.  Jesus pushed him. Remember the revelation thing.

Galatians 2:2  I went in response to a revelation.

Paul went to Jerusalem because Jesus told him to.  We need to be listening and watching for opportunities and open doors to engage others who are in Christ.  I believe if we are paying attention we may very well see opportunities to be involved with other Christians.

2) Know the heart of the Gospel. 

Galatians 2:2  I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles.

As we continue our study in Galatians we are going to hear the heart of the Gospel.  We need to know the essentials of the Gospel.  What is and what is not indispensable. There are parts we cannot allow to be tweaked by anyone. Fellowship is found in the heart of the message.

3) Recognize the grace given by God in other missions.  

Galatians 2:9  James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.

When we can see the grace of God at work in other people’s ministry, we can offer the right hand of fellowship.  Look for the God’s work in others.  That will help us to see everything doesn’t have to be exactly the same.  I’m sure Paul’s Gentile churches in Galatia looked different than the Jerusalem church.  God loves variety.  There are over 500,000 species of beetles.  Watch for the hand of God in the ministry of others. 

4) Help the poor. 

Galatians 2:10  All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

I think this is a special insight.  The Gentile churches sent financial add to their Jewish family.  It is hard to ignore those you help.  Helping others changes your heart toward them and their heart toward you.  Wow.  An important way to the unity of freedom is through literal kindness offered to others. Join with others in helping the poor.

I suspect we will find other clues about walking in the unity of freedom as we work through the rest of Galatians and then again, as later this year, we work through Romans.  This knife edge that Paul is walking is fascinating and very much real for us as well.  Here is the fun part; it is another step in our discovery of freedom in Christ.

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Read it with me with emphasis on the freedom:

Galatians 5:1 It is for (freedom) that Christ has set us free.

The first step toward that freedom is… “Not Pleasing Others.”  We are called to be his servants. 

Second Step: You must “Make the Faith your Faith!”  You must adopt this thing called faith into your own heart.  Freedom requires independence. 

But both of these steps must be balanced with the 3rd step. 

Third Step: “Be in Fellowship.” In order to be free we can’t do it alone.  We need the right hand of fellowship.  We need to be a part of group of people who love and encourage us and who are there with grace for us.  To be a part of that kind of fellowship we need to offer grace and accept grace.  We will come back to this thought at the end of Galatians, but let me say here, that freedom in Christ is found within the his gracious body of; that we know as church.  Freedom goes hand in hand with fellowship! 

Every time I go on Trek and walk a knife edge I am reminded of my walk with Jesus.  There are often dangerous falls on either side of a truth.  The unity and fellowship of one family is important to my freedom. It is not found in ignoring everyone else.  That is a 1,000 ft. drop.  The fellowship of unity is not found in being conformed to other’s expectations. That is another 1,000 ft. drop.  Our freedom is found in keeping the balance between the two, on the knife edge of one family. 

Los Alamos Church of Christ
February 1, 2009