Galatians 2:1-10(Freedom from Division

Title: Freedom from Division

Text: Galatians 2:1-10

Introduction: This week I seen a video from a church about a baptism that went badly.

Nobody drowned or got hurt or anything but, it didn’t go as planned.

The pastor and the person getting baptized were standing in front of the whole congregation in the water and the pastor asked him if he professes Jesus to be His Lord and savior and the man responds by saying “I am Jesus”.

The pastor is shocked with what he just heard and says “What did you say”? The man responds by saying “I’m Jesus. I’m back boys”.

So this makes for a very awkward moment.

The pastor addresses the congregation and says “Jared is having some theological issues, so he is not going to get baptized today”.

Then he turns to Jared and says ‘we are just going to continue our service now, you can go ahead and go out that way now”

The Pastor then goes ahead and prays.

Now this might sound funny but, this is the world we live in.

A lot of people don’t come to Christ because they feel like they don’t need Him because Jesus isn’t the Lord of their lives. They are.

But one day every tongue will confess and every knee will bow and profess that Jesus is Lord!

Paul’s letter to the Galatians addresses critical issues in the early church, particularly the tension between Jewish and Gentile believers.

In our passage today, Paul recounts a key event in his ministry: his visit to Jerusalem to meet with the other apostles to confirm the gospel message he was preaching.

This moment highlights the importance of unity within the body of Christ, as well as the unwavering truth of the gospel.

Galatians 2:1–10 ESV

1 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. 2 I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. 3 But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. 4 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— 5 to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. 6 And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. 7 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8 (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), 9 and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

1. The Gospel of Grace Is Unchanged (vv. 1-5)

Paul’s visit to Jerusalem, after fourteen years of ministry, was to ensure that his message aligned with the apostles in Jerusalem.

This wasn’t because Paul was doubting the gospel message or anything like that.

It was for the sake of unity and everyone being on the same page.

This was a pivitol moment in the life of the Church. Some believe that Acts chapter 15 closely correlates to our text in Galatians as it discusses the council of Jerusalem.

Which was the gathering of early church leaders to discuss whether the jewish rite of circumcision should be enforced for Gentiles to join the Christian Faith.

It was decided that they didn’t have to be circumcized but should obbey the commands to not eat meat offered to idols and not to participate in sexual immorality.

Key Verse: “We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you” (v. 5).

Paul emphasizes that the gospel he preaches is not a man-made gospel. Despite external pressures or controversies, the gospel of grace—freedom through Christ—remains unchanged.

But we try to change grace, which is God’s unmerited favor.

There are so many different self help books out there. We see commercials every day that try to define what success looks like for us.

We hear so many different feel good rah-rah pep talks. All of those things have one thing in common.

They all try to tell us that we are in control, right?

We have this never ending appetite of striving, of feeling good enough, of achieving something.

Control is something we all have struggled with from the very beginning.

If you go back to Genesis and Adam and Eve. You see how they struggled with control.

They were told that they could eat from any tree in the garden except one.

The tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Then they had the serpent come by and he tempted them to sin and eat of the one tree God said not to.

Struggling with giving God control can be deeply personal and complex.

For many of us, it stems from a desire to hold onto things that feel familiar or within our grasp.

Letting go of control and trusting in God's plan requires a leap of faith that can be challenging when life is uncertain or when we’re facing difficulties that seem too big to handle.

One common struggle is the fear of the unknown. It’s natural to want to steer your life in a direction that feels safe and predictable,

and when you surrender control to God, you’re essentially trusting that His plan, even if it’s different from yours, it is better in the long run.

That uncertainty can be scary, and it might feel like losing the picture you imagined for your own life.

Another struggle is the desire for perfection or immediate results.

We often want things to happen on our own timeline, especially when it comes to personal goals or outcomes we hope for.

Giving God control means trusting that His timing is perfect, even when it doesn’t align with our own.

For some, the struggle also lies in the feeling of wanting to prove ourselves, or even a belief that if we aren’t constantly working to control everything,

that we are not doing enough or aren’t being responsible enough.

It can feel like surrendering control is equivalent to not caring or being passive, when in fact, it can be an active choice to trust God.

Freedom isn’t doing what we want, when we want, how we want because even if we could, we wouldn’t be happy with the results.

We would be frustrated with people and how they handled something or how it didn’t achieve the result we imagined.

It just makes us a slave and a prisoner to ourselves.

True freedom happens when we choose to trust God with the outcome

Application:

No matter how much culture or tradition tries to influence the church, we must hold firm to the truth of the gospel: salvation is by grace through faith, not by works of the law.

2. God’s Grace Is for All (vv. 6-9)

Paul explains that the apostles in Jerusalem, particularly Peter, James, and John, extended the “right hand of fellowship” to him and recognized that his ministry to the Gentiles was valid.

Key Verse: “They saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews” (v. 7).

Despite their different ministries (Peter to the Jews, Paul to the Gentiles), they were united in their commitment to spread the same gospel.

We all have different ministries that God calls us too.

For some, they are called to show a lot of mercy to others and extreme compassion.

That could be serving food to others, going to the nursing home, helping those who have been forgotten by society

For some it may be a teaching ministry, whether thats to children, teens or adults.

They have been equipped with the ability to relay spiritual truths in a way that is easy for people to understand so they can apply them in their lives.

For others, they may be gifted in evangelism, and sharing God’s story of salvation with others in a non threatening way to reveal to people their need for Jesus.

There are countless other ministries out there.

The point is that Paul and Peter worked through their differences because they both had the same goal in mind and that was to spread the gospel.

Application:

The gospel transcends cultural and ethnic boundaries.

We are all equally in need of God’s grace and are all in need of His love.

God’s gospel of grace is for everyone.

We cant pick and choose who is worthy to come. John 3:16 said “for God so loved the “world”. Not for God loved “some”.

Yet we have some traditions and churches that teach that.

There are churches that hold to the calvinistic doctrine of election which says some are destined to hell and some are destined to heaven and there is nothing you can do to change that.

One of the biggest supporters of Calvinism is John MacArthur. Who teaches great on a lot of topics. Just not this one.

Jesus' life and message reflected that grace is for everyone.

He reached out to people who were marginalized or considered outcasts by society—like tax collectors, sinners, and even Gentiles—showing that the gospel wasn’t just for a select group but for anyone who would listen and believe.

This universal offer is rooted in God’s desire to reconcile all people to Himself, providing forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus.

This doesn’t mean that everyone automatically accepts or understands the gospel, but the offer is extended to all.

Some may wrestle with it, some may reject it, but the invitation is there for everyone.

It’s about God's grace reaching out to all, and the gospel is the way He draws people toward Him, regardless of who they are or where they come from.

An illustration that comes to mind is the story of a great banquet, which Jesus tells in Luke 14:15-24.

In this parable, a man prepares a grand feast and invites many guests.

But when the time comes for the banquet, those invited begin to make excuses and don’t come.

In response, the host tells his servants to go out into the streets and alleys, bringing in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.

And when there is still room, the host tells the servants to go out to the highways and byways to invite even more people, saying, “Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full” (Luke 14:23).

The illustration reflects that the gospel is for everyone.

The original guests (representing Israel or those who were first offered God’s promise) rejected the invitation, so the invitation was extended to everyone—those who were often seen as the least likely to be part of the banquet.

The man preparing the feast (symbolizing God) wanted his house to be full, so he didn’t limit the invitation to just the “worthy” or “expected” guests, but made it open to all.

In the same way, God offers His grace to everyone, regardless of their status or past.

The banquet is a picture of the kingdom of God, and the invitation to join in His love and salvation is open to all who will accept it.

This story can help illustrate that the gospel is not just for a select few, but for anyone who is willing to come and receive it,

regardless of who they are or what they’ve done.

It's a call to all people, from all walks of life, to come to the feast.

3. The Only Requirement: Remember the Poor (v. 10)

In the final verse, Paul reminds the Galatians of the one thing the Jerusalem apostles asked of him: to remember the poor, which was a call for compassion and practical love.

This shows that the gospel isn’t just a theological message but one that transforms how we live and care for others.

Application:

As we hold fast to the truth of the gospel, we must also live it out through acts of love, justice, and mercy, especially for those in need.

Conclusion: In Galatians 2:1-10, we see a moment of unity in the early church, where diverse leaders—Paul, Peter, James, and John—agree on the core truth of the gospel.

Despite differing cultural backgrounds and ministries, they are united by one thing: the message of grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

Let us also hold fast to this unchanging gospel and extend its message to all people, remembering always to love and care for the poor.

This passage challenges us to uphold the integrity of the gospel and live out its implications in our relationships with others.

You might be saying yeah...yeah...yeah… I know the gospel. I know Jesus. I know it’s for everyone.

Do you? do you really?

Do we know the gospel is for that person who get’s on our last nerve?

Do we know the gospel is for that co-worker we cannot stand to be around?

Do we know the gospel is for that person at school that everyone makes fun of?

Do we know the gospel is for that grocery clerk at bank teller that never smiles?

Do we know the gospel is for that person we see in arm or leg brace, or shares that they have cancer?

Do we know the gospel is for that drug addict who feels like there is no hope for them?

If we know, then why don’t they know?