Galatians 2:11-16 (NIV)
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.”
Paul shows us in this section that Christians, even Christian leaders, even apostles, are not immune to social pressure. But he also shows us that folding to that pressure is decidedly not okay, and is, in fact, hypocrisy, a deadly sin that must be confronted for the sinner’s own good.
Paul first shows how the hypocrisy demonstrated itself. Peter had come to Antioch, and while he was there he had lived out the truth of the gospel, that in Christ all are brothers and sister, and lose their former identity based on language, social status, gender, former religion or descent (Romans 10:12; Galatians 3:28-29). That is until “certain men came from James.” These men were Judaizers, who were very cautious about accepting gentiles as full members of the Church.
After these men showed up, Peter hung out with them and the other Jewish Christians, no longer openly associating with the gentile Christians out of fear of being censured by those brothers from the Jerusalem Church. His subtle compromise drew others to separate themselves as well, including even Barnabas, Paul’s partner in his first mission trip to the gentiles.
Paul recognized this for what it was: the deadly sin of hypocrisy. Peter was acting differently for these Jewish Christians than he acted when they weren’t there. And even though it wasn’t comfortable, Paul cared too much about Peter’s soul and the souls of those who were being led astray by his example to let it go.
His confrontation, sticking to the sin in question and never shading into an ad hominem attack, focused on his change in behavior. When the Judaizers weren’t present, Peter lived like a non-denominational Christian, enjoying the fellowship and close association with both Jewish and gentile Christians. But when the Judaizers came, he snapped into their mold, acting as if he thought that the Jewish believers were somehow more legitimate in their Christianity than those who had not been circumcised.
Paul pointed out to him, in front of everyone, that his own gospel taught that salvation came only through faith in Jesus’ finished work, and that circumcision, dietary regulations and dress codes did not add anything to it. His challenge was for Peter to be consistent in living out what he believed, and what he taught others, and to not let peer pressure make him into a hypocrite.
Father, this speaks so clearly to us today, calling us to not get caught up in the exclusionary politics which operate so strongly in some denominations, which prevent partnership in the essential work of growing the kingdom of God, and which serve only to divide and fracture the body of Christ, making it ineffective. And it challenges us to be firmly loving when one of our brothers and sisters is led astray into sin, whether by peer pressure, carelessness, or bad examples. Their souls are far too precious to You (and should be to us as well!), to allow them to continue in sin. However, as Paul so wonderfully modeled for us, such confrontation of sin must be done in love, with great care for the individual, and without resorting to personal attacks or attacks against the person’s character or assumed motives. The goal must always be to draw them away from their sin, back into being a powerful and effective witness for the gospel. Thank You, Lord, for helping me to see this so clearly. Amen.