Jump Start # 2351

Galatians 2:13 “And the rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.”

Even Barnabas. What explosive words those are. It was Barnabas who was the great encourager. It was Barnabas who stood up and defended Paul when the Jerusalem church was afraid of him. It was Barnabas who was willing to give Mark a second chance after he deserted them on Paul’s first journey. We all would love to have a Barnabas in our lives. What a true friend he was. I tend to think Barnabas smiled a lot. I don’t know that, but that’s how many encouragers are. You just look at them and they smile. They make you smile because they are smiling. Upbeat. Positive. Seeing the best in others. Hopeful. Never giving up. There are too many gloom and doom folks in the church. All it takes is one Barnabas to get people back to Jesus and the hope of Heaven. You just gotta love Barnabas.

But now on this page of our Bible, it’s “even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.” Barnabas and hypocrisy do not belong in the same sentence. Not the encourager. Not Barnabas. It’s like the baseball scandal of years ago when some where caught cheating. The famous Shoeless Joe Jackson was one of them. Supposedly, a kid said to him, “Say, it ain’t so, Joe.” And, when we read this passage, we want to shout, “Say it ain’t so, Barnabas.” But it was so.

Peter, the first to preach to Gentiles and even defend eating with the Gentiles, now turned on the Gentiles. He feared the Jews. He refused to associate with Gentiles. All that he had said to Cornelius seemed to go away. He was acting as if he was too good for Gentiles. The pressure got to Peter. He followed these prejudiced Jews. And, now, even Barnabas was part of this mess.

Every church has bumps and things that they have to work through. Sometimes our attitudes are not where they need to be and we must correct them. In many ways, Peter was acting like Diothrephes in 3 John. He refused to accept some that John had sent. Here, Peter is refusing to accept Gentiles. Peter was acting as if God was a respecter of persons. The Jews were in and the Gentiles were out and they may never get in. This was a major problem. Paul is the one to correct it. He had spent a long time with Gentiles. He is known as the apostle to the Gentiles. This is not something that we each can have our own opinions on. Either the Gentiles were saved the same as the Jews, or they weren’t. There is no neutral or middle ground here. If the Gentiles were out, then Cornelius was out. It also meant that Paul was spreading error, by allowing Gentiles to be saved the same as the Jews.

Paul confronts Peter face to face. An apostle correcting an apostle. There was no shoving, shouting or duel to the end. Paul had God on his side. The discussion that took place in Acts 15, and the events at Cornelius’ house, the Lord’s promise and even the prophecy way back to Abraham set the standard of what was right. Peter was wrong here. Peter was being a hypocrite. Peter needed to change his ways and his thinking.

Many lessons here:

First, leaders can be wrong. Although Peter was inspired by the Holy Spirit, it did not make him sinless. His choices and his walk had to match the words he preached. Preachers make mistakes. Elders make mistakes. Our judgment can be clouded by the influence of others. It’s tough when that happens. Leaders can be wrong. What is never wrong is the word of God.

You can tell a lot about a person’s character when they are presented with facts that show that they are not right. Most push the defensive button and try to find a way to save face and turn things around. Pride can color our reason. A humble man will appreciate knowing that he has done things incorrectly. He wants to be right and his hope is in the Lord, and not himself. Some want to roll up their sleeves and have a real knock down fight when questioned about something they said or did. That’s the wrong spirit. That’s not what the Lord would want.

Second, the pressure of others, especially family, can cloud our judgment and cause us to not stand with the Lord. For Peter, it was the Jews. He feared them. They were powerful, loud and aggressive. They were the drive to crucify Jesus. Sometimes elders are pressured by their wives and they may not do as they ought to because they “fear” trouble at home. Some use the threat of leaving to get their way. Unless you change, we will leave they say. I’ve noticed every church building that I have ever been in has a door. Some just need to use it. Anyone who uses pressure, threats or intimidation to get what they want doesn’t have the right heart to begin with. Use that door! We must follow the Bible, even if it goes against what our family wants or what others want. Every religious body has had a period of division in its history. There are always those who want to change, and often that change isn’t helpful, needful or even right. Some like to change for the sake of change. They like being different. Some tire of doing things the same way. Traditions, they scream, are killing us. So, they want a new tradition. The tradition of being different.

We must stand firm with the Lord. The pressures of others when they are not Biblical, must not move us.

Third, Peter seems to get things right once again. Peter sure seems like a yo-yo to us. Confessing the Lord, then denying the Lord. Cutting off the ear of one who came to arrest Jesus but, also, crying for the Lord to save him because he was sinking in water. Courageous and fearful. Strong and weak. Preaching to Gentiles and then standing away from Gentiles. Peter is certainly one on a journey. The Lord loved Peter. He was patient with him. And, so many of us stand in Peter’s shadows. There are days that we are strong, vocal and standing with the Lord. There are other days when we are sitting with the enemy.

There would be more good coming from Peter after this. God uses Peter to write first and second Peter. Powerful books that deal with tough times, fiery trials of persecution, false teachers and the coming of the Lord. Peter would encourage believers to be strong against the pressures of wrong. How those words must have reminded him of the days when he wasn’t strong. God wasn’t finished with Peter. And, God isn’t finished with us either. More days to shine that light. More times to encourage. More times to teach. We make mistakes. We say the wrong things. We sin. God doesn’t throw us under the bus. Sometimes others might, but not God. He’s still there waiting on us to get our hearts and minds in the right place.

Finally, hypocrisy can be stopped. It’s not a life sentence. It’s not like once you have it, you’ll always have it. There as a time when Peter wasn’t this way. Then there was a time, later on, when Peter was not like this. Hypocrisy is more the state of the mind and the emphasis is upon how others view us. The hypocrite wants to look good before others. He is more concerned about image and presence than he is the relationship with God. Hypocrisy leaves when a person focuses back upon God. That’s where we ought to be all along.

I’ve heard people say, “I know a church that says what I’m doing is fine.” So. I could probably find a dozen churches to agree with you. The church doesn’t save you. The church can be wrong. It’s God that matters. When we focus upon pleasing God and doing what He says, we really do not care what others think. Peter the hypocrite is not how we define him. He found the courage to stand up to the Jewish pressure. He found the faith to walk with the Lord. And, in doing that, his hypocrisy left.

Through the years we change. We learn. We grow. We see things better. And, with this, our hearts grow. Our faith grows. We become better. We become more like Jesus.

Did Barnabas change? We are not told, but I just want to think that he did. It’s hard to hear the words of Paul and continue to stay a hypocrite. Only a prideful fool would do that. Yes, I want to think that Barnabas learned some lessons. Sometimes we can follow a preacher as he walks away from the Scriptures. We love the preacher. He’s such a good person. But all that can blind our eyes to what is said in the Bible. Peter, Paul and Barnabas, all together here. What a powerful group.

Don’t let someone pressure you into leaving what the Scriptures teach. How fitting, within the same book of Galatians, Paul warns that if he or an angel from Heaven were to preach a different Gospel, let him be accursed.

Powerful words for then and for now.

Roger

Jump Start # 1204

Galatians 2:13 “The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.”

  Yesterday we took a look at the subject of hypocrisy. Jesus called the Pharisees hypocrites several times in Matthew 23. Now, we read about some of the early leaders getting mixed up in hypocrisy. In our passage, Paul confronts the apostle Peter. Before this, it was Peter who first preached to Cornelius, a Gentile. It was Peter who led the way in accepting Gentiles into the fellowship of God’s grace. Now, Peter felt the pressure from the Jews. They didn’t want Gentiles. They felt Gentiles had to at least become circumcised, becoming pseudo Jews, to be accepted. There was a huge discussion about this in Jerusalem. Paul was there. Barnabas was there. Peter was there. The Holy Spirit revealed that circumcision was not a requirement for salvation. God had spoken. That news was taken into neighboring congregations. All seemed good. It did, until Peter felt the pressure from some Jews who would not accept what God said. Crumbling to that pressure, Peter refused to associate with the Gentiles. He was too good for them. He had nothing to do with them. This after all those things showing otherwise. Peter’s influence trickled down to others, including Barnabas. They got caught up in this hypocrisy.

This is all interesting because a hypocrite doesn’t have to fake everything to be guilty of hypocrisy. Peter still believed in Christ. He still wanted the kingdom to grow. His hypocrisy was in a small area, how he treated Gentiles. Everywhere else, he seemed to still be clicking along fine with the Lord. This form of hypocrisy is harder to detect. Overall Peter was doing everything right. Overall Peter was genuine. But in this one area, he slipped. It happened to Peter, it can also happen to us.

We can be hitting on all cylinders but hold a touch of prejudice in our hearts. That hypocrisy will hurt us and eventually come out. Prejudice isn’t always about skin color. It can be, but there are other forms. We can be prejudiced toward someone who moves in to our area. They have not grown up here. They are not one of us. The way we talk about “them,” and treat “them” becomes obvious because we do not allow “them” to be one of “us.” There can be age prejudice. Old toward young and young toward old. We can be prejudiced against ideas, change, and doing things differently. Not unscriptural, but different. Starting services at a different time. A different way of having meetings or classes. Some are flat out against all things different, even if different is an improvement.

Our passage also shows us the two sides of influence. Peter was influenced by the Jews and then he influenced Barnabas. Hypocrisy spreads, like mold in a basement corner. I wonder why Peter didn’t stand up and speak out against ignoring the Gentiles. He didn’t. I wonder why Barnabas didn’t stand up and speak up against Peter. He stuck his neck out for Paul when the Jerusalem church didn’t want anything to do with him. But now, Barnabas goes along. He avoids. He shuns. It must have really hurt these Gentile Christians. It’s one thing to be ignored by others, but when Barnabas, who was named that by the apostles because he was the son of encouragement, and Peter, the one who walked with the Lord, one of the chosen apostles, when they also refused to accept Gentiles, they must have been crushed. How terrible this was. Jesus had been with Samaritans, but Peter wouldn’t have anything to do with them. Jesus included a tax collector among the apostles, but Peter wouldn’t have anything to do with them.

Hypocrisy is wrong and it hurts. It distorts the image of Christ and leaves a sour taste in the mouth of others. All the sermons that Peter had preached could be taken away by one foolish act of hypocrisy.

There is another strong point in this text. Paul confronted Peter to his face. He didn’t tell the other apostles. He went to Peter. He had a showdown with him. Peter had no proof, evidence nor hope of being right. He was so wrong. And what happened is that Peter changed. He stopped the hypocrisy. That’s the great hope in all of his. It’s not once a hypocrite, always a hypocrite. No sir! Peter changed. Read his letters. Notice who he writes to. His message is for all.

It takes a lot of courage to do what Paul did. He had faith in Peter. He knew that Peter wasn’t thinking. We do that. We say things that we shouldn’t. We often do not mean those things, but they just come out. When told, we apologize and stop. We learn. We get better. It’s hard telling someone that he is wrong. Kindness and love are the threads that run through such a conversation.

I read a book years ago about the “little Pharisee in each of us.” I tend to agree with that. I think that is something conservative minded people have to work on. We can be so narrow that we don’t allow anyone through the front door. There is a bit of Peter in all of us. We must watch it and catch it and work on getting it out of us. The young college kid with goofy hair, coming in late, wearing last week’s clothes, can bother the suit and tie crowd, but you know, he’s there. He didn’t skip out. He didn’t stay in bed. Or, the young lady who is tattooed and pierced and this week has pink hair. We may see her coming in and silently pray that she  does not sit by us. Why? There’s that little bit of Peter rising to the surface. Or, the person who has some slight mental issues. Or, the guy who smells. Or, the person who wants to know everything. The little Peter in us can make us think, “why don’t they go some where else.” Really? Maybe God thinks that about us! Going into all the world, means everyone of the world. That includes someone who is from the middle East. That includes someone who rides a Harley. That includes someone who rides the bus. That includes me.

We call can have a bit of hypocrisy in us. It doesn’t mean that we’ve tossed in the towel. Peter hadn’t. But there were some folks Peter didn’t want around. We can be the same.

The solution to all of us? Look at Jesus. Look where He went. Look who He spent time with. EVERYONE. That’s the hope. Be like Jesus. Compassion and love replace prejudice and hatred.

So, as you look in the mirror today, do you notice Peter standing behind you? You’re not alone. Work at driving all the prejudice, hypocrisy and wiggly thinking out of your heart. You’ll be a better person when you do and you’ll help more people when you do.

Roger