Galatians 2:11-14 Standing Up for Right
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: May 29, 2020 Galatians 2:11-14
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
(Understanding the Text) We know several things from this passage. First of all, in Antioch it was the custom of Jewish and Gentile Christians to eat together. As a church, they were the first “bilingual” church. Antioch was the first blended church. It was the example of what a church of mixed cultures and languages should be. God gave it what it needed for success. There were several prophets. In addition, they sent out missionaries to others, so they were a church ready to spread the gospel to others. Second, Peter visited, so maybe other apostles visited also. However, It seems that John was not with Peter on this visit. When Peter first came, he went along with the custom of Antioch. Then some men came from James in Jerusalem. I imagine they confused poor Peter by playing on his need to be an example to the Jewish Pharisaical Christians, just as later they would send poor Paul into the temple as a sitting duck for his enemies for the same reason.
I don’t blame Peter. I blame James and Barnabas. Barnabas should have known better. He had been on a missionary journey. He had argued against circumcision for Gentile Christians. He had been loving the Christians of Antioch as his brothers for a while, yet he thought that the Jewish Christians from Jerusalem were right. Paul does not say whether Barnabas actually stopped eating with the Gentile Christians or whether Barnabas simply defended the Jews who did not eat with Gentiles. I think the latter partly because I just really like Barnabas, but also because I think Paul would have used stronger words than “led astray” if Barnabas had actually carried out such a betrayal of his beloved brothers in Christ.
It was necessary to call Peter out before everyone because his “sin” was public. Paul’s accusation is that Jewish Christians did not live according to Jewish rules, so Gentile Christians should not be required to live according to Jewish rules. I think Paul’s point is that the Jewish Christians were picking and choosing which rules that they would still follow. Thus, none of the rules (outside Biblical commands) were sacred. For this reason, it was hypocritical to expect those of another culture to live by the rules of the Jewish culture when the Jewish Christians themselves had discarded many of those cultural rules. Paul’s point was that this was about two cultures, not about right and wrong.
(Revelation of God) God has so much patience with us messy humans. We seem to take two steps forward and on step back in our Christian lives all the time. Peter was the one who had opened up the gospel to the Gentiles (following the Spirit’s leading, of course), yet here he was reverting to the Jewish customs of pre-resurrection days. He did not see the negative repercussions that would result from his attempts to please different factions. It seems that he must have taken the criticism well based on his later mention of Paul in his letter and the fact that Paul does not condemn him further.
(Application / Prayer) My application for myself is that I must be careful not to make the mistakes that Barnabas or Peter made at Antioch. As I deal with various groups of Christians, I pray to always be true to You, and not allow my culture or my peers to influence me to act wrongly. I pray for Your Spirit and guidance in my actions and words, as well as in everyone else’s hearts, actions, and words. It’s all about love.