Galatians: Weeks 6 and 7 (well, and 5 too)

Galatians 2:11-21
When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face for 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 so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law, no one will be justified. If, while we seek to be justified in Christ, it becomes evident that we ourselves are sinners, does that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not. If I rebuild what I destroyed, I prove that I am a lawbreaker. For through the law, I died to the law, so that I might live for Christ. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!

Okay, so I skipped posting last week because I was catching up on my memorization. And I intended to write this post on Friday, and then I blinked...and here we are on Monday. But here we go!

What has struck me about this entire passage and the one before is this: it was Christians causing division in the church. In Week 5’s verses, Paul refers to some “false brothers.” I did some research to find out more about these false brothers, but really didn’t come up with much. But here’s what I surmise...they were Christians. They might have been confused, deluded, or divisive, but I imagine they had good intentions (kind of like those Pharisees). Most likely they were not pagan worshippers who were dressing up like Christians, sneaking into the church and trying to convert people back to the pagan religions. I imagine they were Jewish Christians who were having trouble letting go of their rich history and traditions. I mean, Jewish law governed ALL of life. The “truth of the Gospel” that Paul was preaching rocked their entire system of existing. Paul goes on in this passage to describe what happened with even Peter. Peter, a pillar in the church, also fell prey to the hypocrisy plaguing the early church.

So what I take away are these two main points:
1) Test everything against the truth of the Gospel. Obviously that includes what you’re reading, what you’re seeing on television and what you’re hearing on the radio. But it also includes what your parents say, what your pastor says, what your friends tell you and even what famous, well-respected Christians are saying (and publishing). While they may be well intentioned, they may possibly be wrong. I’m not saying you can’t trust anyone; I am saying to be discerning.

2) Be careful when you begin speaking with authority. I’m definitely guilty of this. We sometimes are quick to share “what the Bible says” when we really don’t know where it says it. Or we quote things we have heard or read, and relay it as if it is truth - only because we assume the person we heard it from must be correct. I don’t want to become a “false brother” who is inadvertently trying to enslave people.

Obviously I could comment on much more from these passages, but this is what I’ve been pondering the past couple weeks. As usual, would love to hear your thoughts.

Mount Hermon: Day Two - Service

The recurring theme for me today was service. My writing is a gift from God to serve in ministry. The outcome of my writing may or may not be a book. My service may be to write encouraging notes to people I encounter. But the point is, I am supposed to serve others with my written words. I don’t think this theme is completely revolutionary to me, but I constantly need to be reminded of my true and only purpose.

My day began lazily, with no real events until after lunch. I spent my time choosing my workshops, catching up with my friends (did I mention we’re in the “party cabin”?) and responding to some emails. After lunch, I rebelled and skipped orientation to take a walk and shoot some photos. I’ll include a few of my favorites at the end of this entry.

Kim Bangs, of Regal Books, facilitated my first workshop, entitled “Dream Big: Taking a Concept/Idea to Developed Writing Idea.” I loved her enthusiasm and encouragement, particularly as she reminded us not to apologize for our ideas. Her workshop started my recurring theme when she said “Your main reason for writing is to serve the God who gives us the gift to write.” She questioned whether or not the eleven brothers in the story of Joseph missed their destiny because they got hung up on Joseph’s destiny. This idea fit perfectly with the discussion I’m preparing on envy for women in my church. Sometimes we are so consumed by the gifts God bestowed on others that we fail to use the gifts He granted us to serve. So timely!

I questioned whether or not I would enjoy our keynote speaker, Dick Foth, because I did not know who he was. After listening to him tonight, I realized how wrong I was to doubt. He engaged the audience with his humor and stories, but delivered a powerful message about Jesus. Again, he emphasized the eternal impact our writing can have on others and our need to focus on that. He entitled his series “Writing in the Sand and Other Things Eternal.” In referencing John 8, where Jesus deals with the Pharisees and the adulteress they want to stone, Foth said that Jesus engaged people - for just a moment - and made an eternal impact. Like writing in the sand, our writing is a vapor. But the truth of what we write will be of eternal significance. What we write must point people to Jesus. He then explored the simplicity of Jesus. He noted that people often warn us not to take anything away from who Jesus is, but he felt we are more inclined to add things to Jesus. He gave a wonderful illustration using a bottle of water and a bottle of coke. Water is simple; it’s two hydrogen and one carbon. It is vital to our existence, and our body is largely made up of it. Coke contains water, but has an extremely complicated formula. We bathe in water, not in coke. We wash with water, not with Coke. Why? Because water is cleansing and Coke leaves behind a bunch of junk. If you go without water for more than five days, you can die. If you drink too much Coke, it can be toxic to our health. Jesus is the water, simple and yet life-giving, cleansing and vitally important. When we add things to Jesus, like we do to make Coke, we get a bunch of junk...and can even make Him toxic. Keep in mind, however, His simplicity is profound. Our total dependence on Him is the only way we will have an eternal impact on the hearts of others.

In the coming days, I hope to do three things with my blog: 1) share with you some of my main take-aways from the sessions (like I did above), 2) provide you with some interviews of people I meet here so you can get to know some of the awesome friends I’m making, and 3) if you’re a writer, encourage you in your writing and share any tidbits of information that might help you.

As promised, here are the pictures.