Out of Step with the Gospel

Have you ever messed up? Check your pulse, then yes. You've messed up and i've messed up, probably since you woke up, at least in the last hour. But when we mess up, we're in good company. Has anyone messed up as gloriously as Peter? One minute the rock, the next minute Satan, one minute swinging his sword to begin (as he thought) a final battle, the next minute ashamed of his saviour, one minute the pentecost preacher, the next minute eating at the kosher table in Galatia.

We read about this last incident in Galatians 2:11-14. Paul opposed Peter, and the rest, to their faces, because they were out of step with the Gospel. Now, pausing a second to rejoice that being in step with the Gospel means eating bacon, we have to recognize that we mess up, we sin, we lie, cheat or steal, because we all too often don't understand the consequences, the reality, that our sins create.

In 'No Other Gospel' Josh Moody points out that Peter messed up, and we mess up, because of four things.

What you do as a Christian needs to come out of what you believe.
I believe that it's my role to love and lead my wife, and that for a Christian, leadership is service, which is why i currently hear the whir of the washing machine. What we do needs to match up with what we believe. If we believe in a just God who will judge sin, we'd better not sin, if we believe that this God has sent His Son to die in our place, we'd better repent, and work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We should spend our time, talents and treasure on our eternal city, not the one we see around us now. Peter forgot that, and forsook the gentiles. What we believe about the risen Christ and His bride needs to inform every area of our lives, other wise we'll constantly be messing up.

What you actually do shows what you really believe.
We hoard instead of tithe because (even if only for a moment) we believe that we can provide for our families better than Jesus can. Peter moved tables because (even if only for a moment) he believed you had to be a Jew before you could be a Christian. We're never too busy to do the things we want to do. You're not 'too busy,' to go to church, you just have something you'd rather do. You can talk the talk as much as anyone, you can teach sunday school, serve on a board, do whatever, but your actions, finally, will speak louder than your words.

What you do will change what other people believe.
Teenagers are a fascinating people group. It's amazing to see how the leaders of each group of teens will influence those around them. But it doesn't stop in high school, and it was going on in Galatia. Peter's actions spoke louder than his words, and he led people astray, even Barnabas. Because what you do changes the people around you. As a leader, people will follow what you do far more quickly than what you say. If i am never sharing my faith, it doesn't matter how often i teach on it, my teen group won't be either. If i'm never giving money to church, it doesn't matter how often i tell them it's a good idea, my teens won't either.

What you do will change what you believe.
Sin is death by a thousand paper cuts. Will one sin shipwreck your faith? Probably not. But that same sin over and over again, will leave you weaker and defenseless. Because what you do changes what you believe. if you're always skipping Bible reading and private prayer, eventually you won't think those things are important. if you're always seeing movies filled with nudity, eventually you'll think it's ok. Peter believed that salvation was by faith alone, but if he'd kept on eating at the kosher table, he would have believed in justification by circumcision eventually.

The Gospel teaches us that we are a whole. Our hearts and our hands, our minds and our eyes, are all part of us, and what we do with them matters. If the Gospel has truly ruined our heart for any of it's rivals, the outside will be consistent with the inside. But if not, we'll always be messing up and taking others with us, unless someone confronts us to our face.