From Pastor Bob

Setting: Antioch, Syria - 1st century - Early Christian Church
The Apostle Paul to Apostle Peter - "Remember the sheet!"
Apostle Peter -"What sheet?"
Paul - "You know-the sheet with all the animals-clean and unclean-all of which the Lord instructed
you to eat."
Peter -"Uh-oh, I'm in trouble now."

As in much of scripture, God's truth is best understood in the context of the actions and reactions of
the people of the early church. The great truth emphasized by Paul in his letter to the Galatians,
justification by faith alone, is a central doctrine of the Lutheran faith. It was clarified in the early
church by frequent actions and reactions of the early believers.

Peter, slow to understand that the gospel was intended for all people, was given a vision by God
which taught that God loves and desires to save all people. The vision found immediate clarification
in Peter's encounter with Cornelius, a non-Jewish seeker who was led to Christ and became a true
believer. Peter solidly defended Cornelius' right to live as a Christian. Later, however, Peter was
influenced by Jewish Christians sent by James to back away from his support for Gentile Christians.
The Apostle Paul quickly chastised Peter for this, and emphasized this action in his letter to the
Galatians.

The Galatians were under the persuasion of "The Circumcision Group." who wanted to add Jewish
ceremonial law to justification. Paul absolutely chastises this action, reacting with a sound
condemnation of the circumcision group, emphasizing that justification by faith alone is just what it
says it is - by faith alone.

Dr. Rod Spidahl, at our recent Pastor's school, highlighted that the doctrine of justification by faith
was saved by giving it to the Gentiles. Had it been kept for only Jewish Christians, it would have
quickly been compromised, with Jewish law and regulation piled on. The giving away of this great
doctrine, to Gentiles, and then to even the Barbarians, preserved its purity.
Dr. Spidahl insists we should do the same-offer this great doctrine to the least likely. The church
continues to define its truths in action and reaction. Tell the stories and doctrines of Jesus!

When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. Before
certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to
draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the
circumcision group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even
Barnabas was led astray.

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them
all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force
Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

"We who are Jews by birth and not 'Gentile sinners' know that a man is not justified by observing the
law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified
by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.

Galatians 2:11-16