228 – PAUL PUTS PETER IN HIS PLACEMay 14, 1961
Henry F. Kulp
Galatians 2: 11 - 14 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation. But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?
We have been telling you that Paul has been proving his apostleship and gospel, the message that he preaches. It had been under fire from the Judaizing teachers, they had gone about trying to disrupt his work, and to disrupt his work and the message he preached, they first said that he was not a true apostle. He had never had an apostleship among the 12, and then they said the message he had was not a true message. So Paul sets out to prove that he is an apostle. Not one of the 12, but a special apostle, and that he has a message directly from God.
1/ He proves this in three different ways. First of all, he received his apostleship and his message directly from God. His message was a revelation from God.
Galatians 1: 11 - 21 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not. Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia;
Secondly, he proves his apostleship and his message by his recognition by the apostles. They gave him the right hand of fellowship.
Galatians 2: 1 - 10 Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also. And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain. But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised: And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me: But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:) And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.
Then thirdly he proves his apostleship in his message by his rebuke and reasoning with Peter.
Galatians 2: 11 - 21 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation. But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Here comes a great message which every Christian should know almost by heart, and know the meaning thereof. Because some folks say that Peter is the rock upon which the church is built. What a wobbly kind of rock Peter would make. Here he had to be met face-to-face by Paul and put in his place by Paul.
2/ Here is the man who is called the rock of the church bringing discredit upon the grace of God, disgrace upon the Church of Christ, and he has to be put in his place.
3/ This all took place in Antioch, a Gentile City where there was a large church, composed mainly of Gentile believers, with some Jews. Paul and Barnabas had labored for a long time and Peter came there for a visit. I suppose he was welcomed with open arms. It must have been a joyful thing for the Apostle Paul to welcome Peter, and to have him labor with him in preaching the Word of God at Antioch. At first, they had a wonderful time together. Together, they went out of the homes of the believers, and sat at their tables and ate with them and had fellowship around the table.
4/ Then some brethren came from Jerusalem. They were rigid law-keepers. They called themselves Christians, and perhaps they were – I don’t know. Possibly they were, but they had never been delivered from legalism.
Galatians 2: 12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
You will notice, that certain came from James, for he had taken over the church in the holy city. He was the leader there. And he headed a group that were great sticklers for the law. They were Jews who had been won to Jesus Christ. They were convinced He was the Jewish Messiah—and that was all. The middle wall of partition was still standing as far as they were concerned. They were called the sect of the Nazarenes. Even the Sanhedrin put up with them, and James was the Chief Elder among them.
5/ Let us get a better look at this group which came down from James.
Acts 21: 17 - 21 And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present. And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law: And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
Here we have Paul’s last visit to the church at Jerusalem.
Notice, Verse 17 That when Paul and his group came to the Holy City, they were received gladly. And then the day following, Paul went in to James.
You will notice it was not James who opened his home to Paul—he had not been among those who had gathered to welcome the great apostle on the previous night. Paul had to go to James. And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly—that means in detail, what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry. He went and told him—the others—about the ministry God had given him, out in the wilderness, and at later times by special revelation. He made known to him the Gospel of the Grace of God, and what happened by his ministry unto the Gentiles.
6/ Notice their response—They glorified the Lord and said—they quickly changed the subject, you will notice, to a matter that could only embarrass the Apostle Paul – the record does not say one word about their agreeing to help the Judean believers to understand Paul and his God-given ministry. Instead, they pointed out how many thousands, and that means tens of thousands of their converts—all, were zealots of the law, and urged him, since they had been informed that he had apostatized from Moses, he ought to silence the rumors by publicly taking part in a Nazarite vow. This is the group—this is even later then when he wrote the epistle to the Galatians, and they are still legalists, and they are still standing up to Paul, you can imagine the effect that these men had when they came down to Antioch. And Peter, at once realized that his reputation was at stake. They should find him meeting with Gentile believers and go back to Jerusalem and report this, it might shut the door on him there—he might be finished. So what did he do? He withdrew from them, and he no longer ate with them. Actually, what was Peter saying? He had no longer blasphemed, nor had become a thief. He apparently was more religious than ever. He had become a religious separatist. He just withdrew from the Gentiles. He didn’t eat with them.
7/ Could anyone find fault with Peter for this attitude? He didn’t want to destroy his ministry in the Holy City. He didn’t want his brethren to turn their backs upon him. He was just saying, I am being as wise as a serpent and as harmless as a dove. Sure, I’m compromising a bit, but I have to do it to continue my ministry. If these men go back to James and report what has happened here, that will be the death-knell for my ministry there.
8/ Notice what it is at the heart of the whole thing. Fearing them of the circumcision. He had the fear of man in his heart.
In Proverbs 29: 25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.
Here we read the fear of man bringeth its snare. Contrast that in the previous chapter, Proverbs 28: 14 Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.
Here we are reminded of the happiness of the man who feareth. In other words, he feareth God. But in this verse, in Proverbs 29: 25 we have the fear that is to be avoided. The fear of God is most becoming to the saints. The fear of man is most destructive. How many saints have had their lives ruined thereby. Take Abraham, who is the father of the faithful.
Genesis 12: 11 - 13 And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
Genesis 22: 11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
Here we see that twice he denied his wife because he feared man. The fear of man was most destructive in the father of the faithful.
9/ Then we come to Aaron.
Exodus 32: 22, 23 And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot: thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief. For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
There we see Aaron fashioning the golden calf, and he is confronted with his sin—Aaron said, let not the anger of the Lord wax hot, thou knowest the people that they are set on mischief, for they said unto me—let us make gods which shall go before us. As for this man, Moses, that brought us out of the land of Egypt, we don’t know what has become of him, and so, he made the calf. He said it was because of the people. He put the blame on the people, but of course, he was to be blamed because he feared the people. He had the fear of man, and it was a snare unto him.
10/ Then you can take the man after God’s own heart, David, in I Samuel 21: 10 And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.
Here we read that David fled from Saul because he feared Saul. Oh, what a terrible thing it is to fear man. The fear of man is a snare and is destructive in the life of the saint. Paul tells some words that are important.
Galatians 1: 10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
Where he says, do I seek to please men? For if I yet please men, I would not be the servant of Christ. I would be the servant of man. And this is the very thing that Paul brings out to Peter. Peter became the servant of James and the legalists there in Jerusalem. He had the fear of men—he feared them and he was no longer the servant of Christ in this matter. He lost his testimony completely, and he withdrew and separated himself from the Gentiles. And Paul said, I withstood him to the face—then notice, Verse 14 But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?
I said unto Peter, before them all. Paul was right out in the open. He exposed Peter, right in the midst of all those who had followed him.
11/ Then notice the sad result of Peter’s sin. It looked like a church split. It looked like there might be two churches there at Antioch very soon, for the Jews would go to one, and the Gentiles to another. It was bad enough for Paul to see Peter acting the way he did. But to see the result was too much for Paul. It cut Paul to the quick to have his intimate companion, his fellow-worker, Barnabas, to go along with Peter as well as some Jewish believers.
12/ We learn from this that not one of us lives unto himself, but actions and words are bound to have a telling effect upon the lives of others about us.
13/ Notice the word, dissimulation. That is a rather fine-sounding word. It is just the ordinary word for hypocrisy. The other Jews became hypocrites likewise with him and so did Barnabas. They may have covered their hypocrisy by saying, we are doing this to glorify God, but all the time they are being hypocrites, pretending to be something they are not.
14/ How did Paul possibly have the audacity to speak to Peter like this? He was given a special place among the Twelve, their can be no question about that at all.
Matthew 16: 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
He was given the keys to the Kingdom.
Acts 1: 15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)
There in the upper room, waiting for the Day of Pentecost Peter took charge as they elected one to take the place of Judas.
Acts 2: 14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
On the Day of Pentecost, Peter was the one who explained that these men were not drunk—that they were filled with the Holy Spirit, and so we can go on. Peter was the Christ-appointed leader of the Messianic Church, and here he is confronted by Paul. This proves that Paul had more authority than Peter, especially at this time. Peter’s use of the keys of the Kingdom were done, because the time had come to set aside the Kingdom. Peter had received the Kingdom message in Matthew 10, and it was limited to Israel, and on the Day of Pentecost, Peter preached to Jews and proselytes.
Acts 2: 10 Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes,
And Peter preached, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Now, remember, there was not a Gentile present at that time. Only Jews and proselytes. Peter preached baptism for the remission of sins. Paul’s message was entirely different. Paul’s authority supersedes Peter’s at this point.
15/ I Timothy 1: 16 Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.
Paul says, I obtained mercy that in me first—that word, first, is important, remember it. Then he says, that Jesus Christ might show forth all long-suffering for a pattern. Now, remember the word, pattern, because the word, first, and pattern, are important. What does it mean in Paul first? After the resurrection of Christ, many Jews were saved before Paul was.
Acts 4: 4 Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.
We learn in Acts 4: 4 that Christ had 5,000 disciples months before Paul obtained mercy. They were saved when Peter preached to Israel. They were first before Saul of Tarsus, or Paul was first.
I Timothy 1: 15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
You see here that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am first—Paul says. Why should we call Paul the first sinner? Adam and Eve were the first sinners, and millions of sinners lived and died before Saul of Tarsus was born. What does it mean? Paul is the protose—he is the first—he is the file-leader over these who come to Christ by the grace message, and he is the pattern—the one who is to be followed, as the pattern of one who believes in Jesus Christ. It is his message, what he calls my gospel, that is the redeeming message of this present day and age. Not the message of Peter but it is the message of Paul.
16/ How did Peter take all of this? How did he take this rebuke? I am sure at first he was startled, as he looked at Paul, and then I presume he bowed his head and his face became blood-red. He realized how guilty he was, and Peter sat in silence as Paul talked to him.
Galatians 2: 7 - 9 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:) And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
After realizing he, Peter, had been fearing man instead of God, he along with the other Apostles gave Paul and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship.
Proverbs 9: 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
AMEN
Ref: 05/14/1961 / 228 PAUL PUTS PETER IN HIS PLACE / 01/31/2021
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