Citygate Church Citygate Church

About this talk:

About this talk:

This section refers to a visit Paul made, with Barnabas and Titus, to Jerusalem and confirms that both his gospel and his ministry were endorsed by the leaders of the church in Jerusalem. 

Paul’s first visit to Jerusalem has already been referred to in 1:18-19, recorded in Acts 9:26-30. He now continues his account of his post-conversion activity by recalling a second visit to Jerusalem “after fourteen years” (v 1); or possibly 14 years after his conversion. Either way, Paul has spent a ‘silent decade’ in Syria and Cilicia (1:21), based in Tarsus, his home town (Acts 9:30). There is plenty of debate over which visit Paul now refers to in 2:1. The possibilities include:

The visit of Acts 11:30. This was, “in response to a revelation” (v 2) which may refer to Agabus’s prophecy, “that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world” (Acts 11:28). Paul and Barnabas then take the collection to Jerusalem. This seems most likely to me.

The visit of Acts 15:2. The debate about circumcision arose because, “Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers” (Acts 15:1). Paul, along with Barnabas were sent “to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question” (Acts 15:2). In my mind, the lack of any mention of this visit in chapter 2 seems to rule out this option.

Another, unrecorded visit. Because these details could fit both, or neither of the above visits, another may be in view.

False teachers dogged Paul wherever he went and seem to have visited the newly planted churches in Galatia after Paul had moved on. Hence, many of his letters include sections in which he warns about false teachers or counters false teaching (eg. 2 Corinthians 11:13; 2 Timothy 2:17-18). The strength of his words in Galatians reflects how high the stakes were. If the true gospel could not be preserved (v 5), not only would he have run in vain (v 2) but, in the following section, he says Christ would have died for nothing (see 2:21)! Vs 3-5 remind us, with reference to Titus, of one of the primary matters of dispute between Paul and the other teachers. Taking the uncircumcised Titus with him to Jerusalem, where he would mix with Jewish leaders in the church, could have been perceived as a very provocative move cf. Acts 21:28; 24:6). But the fact that, “not even Titus...was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek” shows how “those esteemed as leaders” accepted Paul’s gospel practices. If this visit to Jerusalem is the one referred to in Acts 15:1ff, perhaps the presence of Titus provided something of a test case for the central matter in question there, circumcision.

It is clear that James (the brother of Jesus), Peter and John recognised the authenticity of both Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles and the gospel he was preaching, confirmed by “they added nothing to my message” (“added nothing to me,” ESV) and “gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship” (“accepted Barnabas and myself as partners and shook hands on it,” NEB). They recognised and endorsed that Paul and Peter had different, equally legitimate, spheres of ministry. The enormity of this moment for the future of the gospel cannot be underestimated.

The one request Paul records the apostles in Jerusalem making to him, v 10, was “that we should continue to remember the poor” and may favour the view that Paul and Barnabas were in Jerusalem because of the collection for the famine. Either way, there is no doubt that Paul was happy to continue to remember the poor, as evidenced by his references elsewhere to giving (eg. Romans 15:25-26; 2 Corinthians 8 & 9) and to caring for widows (eg. 1 Timothy 5:16).

About this talk:

‘As in verse 1 he asserted the divine origin of his apostolic commission, so now he asserts the divine origin of his apostolic gospel. Neither his mission nor his message was derived from man; both came to him direct from God and Jesus Christ’ (John Stott). So here in this section Paul is seeking to explain his apostolic credentials to those who may be doubting him because of the impact the Judaizers (including “certain men [who] came from James,” 2:12) are having on the Galatian churches.

Paul’s assertions that “the gospel I preached is not of human origin” (v 11) and that “my immediate response was not to consult anyone” (v 16) are not to be read as arrogance but as a defence against his opponents who claim his message can be dismissed because he must have invented it or got it from someone else. This gospel is such a controversial departure from many of the ways of Judaism that he and his message are being criticised widely by those who have come to the Galatian churches after he had moved on. Obviously in the end Paul goes to Jerusalem (1:18 and 2:1) and is endorsed by the other apostles, but it is not even they from whom he received the gospel.

Paul’s story is well known to us, but is completely remarkable nonetheless. He had a shining set of Jewish credentials: “circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless” (Philippians 3:5-6). And here he describes his passion for God’s honour and for the historic Jewish faith, vs 13-14. The only other times the New Testament uses the word translated here as“ destroy” (v 13) are also in regard to Paul - in 1:23 and Acts 9:21 - and makes clear how fiercely he was opposed to Jesus and his followers (see also Acts 8:3;9:1-2;22:3-5;26:9-11). His purpose had been no less than to literally destroy this new movement.

Paul’s opposition to Jesus gives some insight to the discontinuity that existed between the Jewish faith andthe growing Jesus movement. We often stress the Bible’s continuity from Old Testament to New Testament,and rightly so - it is one developing story in which the New can only really be understood as we see itbuilding on the Old. But just as there is continuity, there is dramatic discontinuity in terms of the five keymarks of second temple Judaism mentioned on page 2.

We’ve probably all heard contemporary stories of people who were completely changed from violent opposition to Christianity to an encounter with Jesus that led them instead to follow him. It may be helpful to recount one of those stories here, but also to encourage people about their own turnarounds and how God can turn around anyone he chooses.

In contrast to Paul’s former initiative and activity described in vs 13-14, we then have the initiative and activity of God: setting Paul apart, calling him by grace and revealing his Son to him - all for the purpose “that I might preach him among the Gentiles,” which thereafter became Paul’s ambition in life - “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation” (Romans 15:20).

The events recorded in vs 17-21 correspond with those in Acts 9. After spending time in Damascus, we read that, “After many days had gone by” Paul left Damascus and, “came to Jerusalem.” Here we discover those “many days” were in fact three years (v 18). It is not until 14 years after his conversion that Paul spent amore extended time in Jerusalem (2:1). Vs 18-19 refer to Acts 9:26-28 and v 21, “Then I went to Syria and Cilicia” refers to Acts 9:30.

About this talk:

Unlike our custom, which is to write our name at the bottom of a letter, ancient letter-writers did so at the beginning. In his letters Paul uses a variety of phrases and descriptors to introduce himself. Here it is, “an apostle - sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father.” Given the context / occasion for this letter, he will expand on his credentials in 1:11-2:10, but here he is simply, “an apostle,” an official representative / delegate sent with authority.

And as he will argue in 1:11-2:10, he was sent directly by God himself: “the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ” (1:11-12). This will become a key part of his argument: that the controversial message he established the Galatian churches with is not a deviation from God’s plan of salvation (as his detractors were claiming), but the very thing God was planning all along and which culminated in Jesus Christ.

Most of Paul’s letters come not just from himself, but from those he is working alongside and this one is sent by Paul and “all the brothers (and sisters) with me.” Which begs the question: Where is he writing from and who are those brothers and sisters? Most commentators believe this is Paul’s earliest letter (or possibly 1 & 2 Thessalonians). If so, it was probably written around AD 48 or 49, possibly during the “long time” he spent at Antioch (Acts 14:28). The material in chapter 2 supports this suggestion given that he would surely have mentioned the Jerusalem council of Acts 15 if it had been written after that.

He is writing, of course, “To the churches in Galatia,” a region in modern day central Turkey. Paul visited this area on each of his missionary journeys (Acts 13&14, Acts 15:36-18:22 and Acts 19:1-21:14) and had planted churches in Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, often amid great opposition. He knew them well and cared for them greatly as their father in the faith.

In vs 3-5 Paul gives his customary greeting, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Grace and peace are two great markers of the gospel: the grace of God is how his blessings come to us, peace with God is the result of those blessings. There follows a brief summary of the gospel he has been preaching and which they had believed - “the Lord Jesus Christ who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” There is so much contained in that one sentence! Consistent with the rest of the New Testament letters, it communicates the essential features of the good news.

It is worth noting that this is the only one of the 13 Pauline letters in the New Testament that does not include a prayer, praise or thanksgiving after his greeting. Even his first letter to the Corinthians expresses gratitude and confidence, despite their numerous problems and compromises. But not here, such is his concern for them that he dives right into the issue and what is at stake!

The degree of his concern is presented straight away, vs 6-7: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - which is really no gospel at all.” Astonished is a translation of the same word used of the crowd’s reaction to Jesus’ teaching and of the disciples’ reaction to Jesus calming the storm. Paul is amazed, shocked, horrified at what is happening. And his implication is that in turning to a ‘different’ gospel, they are in fact deserting God himself, “the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ.”

Such are the stakes of the Galatian churches being drawn away from the gospel of grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone - they are deserting God and his provision of salvation

About this talk:

Jesus’ death and resurrection makes a way for everyone of us to come home. We will explore this theme by the looking at one of the most famous Bible stories; ‘the lost son.’ It tells of a son who took his inheritance and moved out of home but found it did not satisfy. Against all odds his Father welcomed him back with Joy!

About the Talk:

The story of the early church is one of huge expansion and huge opposition:

- Expansion: 3,000 were added to the church on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41); “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (2:47); “many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand” (4:4); “more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number” (5:14); “The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly” (6:7).

- Opposition: Peter and John are seized and put in jail (4:1-3); on being released they are “commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus” (4:18); the Sadducees arrest the apostles and put them in jail (5:17-18); they are re-arrested, flogged and ordered not to speak of Jesus any more (5:27-40); Stephen is falsely accused and brought before the Sanhedrin where false witnesses testify against him (6:11-15); Stephen is stoned to death (7:54-60).

On the day of Stephen’s death, “a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria” (8:1). Saul, “began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison” (8:3). And yet against all the odds, this most unlikely setting at the start of ch 8 becomes the occasion for an expansion of the church’s mission. Just as the opposition in ch 4 led the church to pray, “Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness” (4:29) and despite the imprisonment, flogging and threats in ch 5, “they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah” (5:42), here in ch 8, persecution just means the mission expands (rather than contracts) because the disciples’ attitude is: whatever happens, the mission continues.

So in ch 8, we have an account of the believers in general on mission - “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went” (8:4) - and Philip in particular on mission - “Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there” (8:5). In British culture we can have a general concern about being in a post-Christian culture and how that makes being a witness difficult. And we can have a personal concern that if we become witnesses we may offend people or encounter rejection. And yet in the anti-Christian culture of first century Palestine, it seems that nothing will hold the church back. They take both expansion and opposition to be the normal circumstances for the gospel and so the mission must continue, however tough some of their situations are.

The believers are also confident of God’s sovereignty (as expressed in their prayer in Acts 4:24-30). They know he is at work in / behind the opposition - “They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen” (4:28) - and so they trust God is working even when things look bleak. Jesus had said, “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (1:8) and here God is fulfilling that promise through opposition: “all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.” God is using the persecution following Stephen’s death as the means of the mission going forward.

Saul’s intent was to destroy the church (see also his accounts in 22:4-5 and 26:9-11) and there are many today who would be delighted to see the church cease to exist - those who hate our message that contradicts the narratives of our day, those who believe we trust on fairy tales, those who believe as Richard Dawkins does: ‘I think of religion as a dangerous virus…I think a case can be made that faith is one of the world’s great evils, comparable to the smallpox virus but harder to eradicate.’

But nothing should hold us back. God’s mission will advance against all the odds a