When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he was clearly in the wrong … 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 … (Galatians 2:11, 14).

Did you catch the title: behaving the Gospel?

We are of course to believe the Good News—and that believing must get translated into certain ways of behaving.

Our current theme is Disagree Deeply, Love Deeper Still.  We’re thinking about unity and how it works in the face of significant disagreement.

And we have two situations of disagreement this week, one in Acts 15, the other in Galatians 2.  Both remind us that unity is a matter of behaving the Gospel as well as believing it.  Here’s the background to Paul’s report of his conflict with Peter, as described in Galatians 2:

Antioch, about 300 miles north of Jerusalem, has become something of a headquarters for Paul’s church-planting work in the Gentile world.  Embracing Gentiles into the initially all-Jewish Jesus movement was no small task, and engendered no small amount of discussion, debate and disagreement.  We read last week in Acts 15 about the “Jerusalem Council” that met to determine how Gentiles would be welcomed into the Jesus movement: must they become Jews first?  No, it was decided, Gentiles could become Christ-followers without conforming to Jewish Law and cultural norms.

So at some point, Peter pays a visit to Antioch.  At first, he is happy to eat with Gentile believers, which likely means he wasn’t eating kosher.  Further, he was violating a Jewish norm: observant Jews would not enter into “table fellowship” with Gentiles; it was a “boundary marker” for them.  It is also probable that the context is worship, particularly the Lord’s Table (communion, eucharist).

Peter begins his visit to Antioch by acting out the truth that in Christ there is neither Jew not Gentile; therefore, Jewish and gentile Christ-followers are free to enjoy meals together.  However, Paul tells us, “when certain men came from James”—that is, when some representatives from the capital-H Headquarters in Jerusalem arrived—Peter stopped eating with Gentiles.  And Paul got in Peter’s face about it.

What Peter was doing—his behaving—was not in line with the Gospel.  Jesus has broken down the wall separating Jews and Gentiles into clearly-boundaried categories or classes—how can Peter, very likely the church’s senior leader, stop behaving as if Christ hadn’t torn down the dividing wall?

If Paul hadn’t gotten in Peter’s face, the church could have talked unity all they wanted: “We are all one in Christ!”  But their behavior would have communicated even more clearly: people like you don’t have a seat at our table.  

Their behavior would demonstrate that they didn’t really, fully believe the Good News.  And when that happens, some faces may need getting into.

That was then; what about now, what about us, what about you?  With whom would we not “break bread” … and are we sure we’re drawing boundary lines where Jesus wants them drawn?  How is God calling you to behave the Gospel in some specific way, towards some specific person or people?