GALATIANS 2:8

In this part of Galatians chapter two Paul is explaining the difference between his ministry and the ministry that some of the other apostles had. God gave Paul the ministry of taking the gospel of Christ to the gentiles, but the other apostles that Paul mentions here went primarily to the Jews. The lesson of this to the Galatians is clear. Since they were gentiles, then they should certainly be giving heed to the warnings and teachings from the Apostle Paul. Paul wrote in Galatians 2:8-9, “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, and Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship: that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.”

Paul mentions again several of his main points: 1. He was the apostle to the gentiles. 2. The other apostles perceived the gift and calling that was given to Paul, and they received him, encouraged him, and supported him. 3. Paul emphasizes “grace” when he speaks of salvation and when he speaks of the ministry that was given to him and the work that he did. Sometimes when we look at the life of the Apostle Paul; we think of all that he did. We see the dedication and the energy and the sacrifice and the effort and the sufferings and the accomplishments, and we hold him up as an example and we marvel. But when Paul spoke of these things he says that it was by the “grace” of God that it all happened. God gave the strength, God gave the motivation and the inspiration, God gave the spiritual gifts, and God gave the opportunity. Without the grace of God, it would not have happened. If you accomplish something or if you see someone else accomplish something, do not praise man for what was accomplished. Say what the Apostle Paul said. Say that it was by the grace of God.

Paul was the Apostle to the gentiles. Peter was an Apostle to the Jews. But, of course, they both preached the same gospel: salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In order to be saved a Gentile did not have to become a Jew, and a Jew did not have to become a Gentile. Each simply needed to repent of their sins and turn to Jesus. But if they were a Jew before they were saved, then they were still a Jew after they were saved. The difference was that now they were Jews that believed in Jesus. If they were Gentiles before they were saved, then they were Gentiles after being saved also. A Gentile did not have to become a Jew to be saved. That is still true, because the same gospel is still true. All that it takes to be saved is true faith in Jesus. There is no work, no water baptism, no church membership, no religious ceremony, or anything else that you need to do to be saved; other than repenting of your sins and trusting in Jesus.

The apostles in Jerusalem supported Paul in the ministry that he was called to: to take the gospel of Christ to the gentiles, but there was one request that they made to Paul regarding the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. Galatians 2:10 says, “Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.” Now you know the reason that when Paul went to the various regions of the Mediterranean world, he always took up collections for the poor believers of Jerusalem. The reason that the Jewish Christians of Jerusalem were so poor was because of the persecutions that they suffered. They lost their livelihoods and their homes because of their faith in Christ. It is good and godly for those who have been blessed with an abundance of material possessions to give help to those who are suffering the want of material things. Jesus said, “Give and it shall be given unto you.” Paul wrote in Second Corinthians, “God loves a cheerful giver.” And if you are going to give or take up collections, it is best to do it for God’s children, just like Paul did.

In Galatians 2:11 Paul continued with his theme that according to the gospel of salvation by grace through faith that had been revealed to him by Jesus Christ and by the Holy Spirit, it was not necessary for Gentiles to get circumcised in order to be saved. Paul wrote in 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 you, being a Jew, live after the manner of the Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why do you compel the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?”

What we are finding out in this history that Paul is giving us that not only was he instrumental in taking the gospel of Christ to the Gentiles, but Paul also had a very important influence on the apostles in making sure that they stayed true to the gospel of salvation by grace through faith in Christ. Evidently the apostles in Jerusalem had started to waiver in their application of the gospel to Jews and Gentiles. The truth is that any person on the earth, whether Jew or Gentile, gets saved only by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. If you have been a great sinner and have been saved from your sins by Jesus Christ like Paul was, then you will also understand the importance of keeping the gospel of grace pure and presenting it the way it should be presented. The way that Paul looked at it was that if anyone started compromising on the subject of the subject of the gospel, then that person needed to be opposed, even if that person was another one of the apostles.

Paul states the gospel and the way of salvation in Galatians 2:15-16. The Bible says, “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.”

In Galatians 2:16 three times Paul mentioned how we are justified and three times he mentioned how we are not justified. First let’s define exactly what justification is. Justification refers to a judicial pronouncement from the greatest of all judges. If you have been justified by God then you have been pronounced innocent, free of guilt, and without condemnation. If you have been justified, that means that God has examined you and judged you and found no fault and pronounced you to be just. How can that be since you and I are sinners? It can be, because of Jesus. When you believe in Jesus you become connected to His work on the cross and the benefits of that death and sacrifice are given to you. This is a wonderful thing. It is how to get into heaven, and it is how to be rightly related to God. Paul wrote clearly how a person becomes justified. He said it three times. He said in this verse talking about being justified, “by the faith of Jesus Christ,” “we have believed in Jesus Christ,” and “that we might be justified by the faith of Christ.”

We are told three times how we are justified, and then we are told three times how we are not justified. Paul wrote in Galatians 2:16, “a man is not justified by the works of the law,” and again, “not by the works of the law,” and finally, “by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” There is no good deed that you can do, and there is no commandment that you can obey that can cause you to be justified. The reason is that even if you could keep the works of the law from this time forward, that would not take care of the sins that you have already committed. That is why it was so important and so necessary for Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. If Jesus had to die for our sins, that in itself is proof that there is no work that we can do to obtain salvation or justification.

Knowing that we are justified by faith and faith alone and not by any work that we can do, is a source of great joy and comfort to the true believers. We know that God accepts us freely and completely, not because of anything that we have done or will do, but because of Jesus. Our guilt and our judgment is taken away forever. We do not live under heavy burdens or obligations or guilt. We know from experience what Jesus meant when He said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Notice the phrase that is used in this passage when faith is mentioned. Galatians 2:16 speaks of the “faith of Jesus Christ” and “the faith of Christ.” In other words the faith belongs to Christ. It is His faith. If you have this true faith that resulted in your salvation and your justification, then the true author of the faith that you have is Jesus Christ. Not only is the justification a gift from God, but the very faith that is the means of justification is also a gift from God. If you have faith in Christ, it is only because God by His grace put that faith in your heart. After all, it is “the faith of Christ.”

Giving the same message concerning salvation that this passage gives, Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Even though this great salvation from Christ is a free gift that cannot be earned or worked for in any way, that does not mean that there is a license to do wrong: much to the contrary. One of the results that God wants to see in every person’s life who has been saved is a new and better life: a life that is more able to keep the moral and ethical standards of His Word.

That is the very point that Paul is trying to make in Galatians 2:17-19. He wrote, “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.” Ones of the reasons that God saves us is so that we will stop making the mistakes of our former lives, and start doing the things that please Him. If we do not do that, there will be a price to pay. Sin is still sin. “Be not deceived, God is not mocked. Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap.” Beware. You never know the price that you may have to pay if you do the thing that is not lawful. Do the right thing until the stars fall, because God is a holy God. Yes, justification is by faith alone, but do not ever think that gives you the okay to do the wrong thing.

There is a link between faith and practice. You should do the right thing because you are justified, not in order to become justified. You were saved by putting your faith in Christ and what He did for you on the cross, and the link between what Christ did for you and the things that you do in your current life is given in Galatians 2:20. It says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives 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.”

The crucifixion of Christ on the cross was meant to accomplish more than just the salvation from our sins. It was also meant to provide a means to enable us to live a new and a better life. One way that it does this is by a total connection that believers have with Jesus and all that Jesus accomplished, including all that He accomplished on the cross. When we believe in Christ, we have a spiritual condition of being “in Christ.” We are identified with Christ, His death on the cross, His resurrection to new life, and His future forever. In looking back, we are identified with the crucifixion of Christ. That truth and that thought can help us to live the life that we now need to be living as servants of God.

Sin has everything to do with human selfishness. When human beings go after what they want in a self-centered and selfish way, they will sin. If you understand that as far as God is concerned, you died on the cross when Jesus died, then that understanding will help you to live a new life for God. Dead people do not do much. As a matter of fact, they do not do anything; and one of the things they do not do is sin. They do not lust, they do not steal, and they do not lie; because they are dead. Paul referred to the same concept in Romans 6:11 where he wrote, “Likewise reckon you also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” If you will just remember that you have been crucified with Christ and that you are dead, it will be that much easier to give yourself to the new life in Christ that God wants you to have.

There are many benefits to knowing Christ as Savior. One benefit is forgiveness of sins and life forevermore. Another benefit is the capability of keeping the moral principles of the law, which they who attempt to justify themselves by the law will never be able to achieve. You can enter into these benefits today if you will turn to Christ.

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