September 15, 2010

9-15-10 Wednesday, 7:30 am Springfield, 65 degrees, partly cloudy.

It is the middle of the month. I am feeling refreshed after a night of rest and am ready for all that this day will bring. Life is so uncertain, and always an adventure. We will have our bimonthly executive staff meeting, celebrate staff birthdays, complete the third session of Life’s Healing Choices, the Spring 2011 small group series, etc, etc. Tonight I will attend the fourth session of the Dave Ramsey “Financial Peace University”. Audrey and I completed our budget last night using his online tool.

Gal 2:1-16
Paul opposes Peter in Antioch for being wishy washy about his theology. Peter ate with gentiles (which is against Jewish law, but which acknowledged their common faith in Christ) until “certain people came from James …. After they came, he drew back and kept himself separate for fear of the circumcision faction.” (11-12).

This is a critical issue for Paul, because either a person is justified before God through the sacrifice of Christ, or a person is justified by keeping the law. This was the hot topic addressed by Paul, who was thoroughly Jewish and fanatically kept the law up to the point that Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus. He summarizes his understanding in verse 16: “yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ , and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law.”

As a “religious leader” in today’s world, I am vigilant to teach and demonstrate faith in Christ as the heart of being a Christian, with good works following as the fruit of faith, not the price of pardon. John Wesley, in his journal for August 10, 1740 wrote that persons should not be considered justified without “clear assurance” that “God had forgiven their sins, bringing in a calm peace, the love of God and dominion over all sin” (from intro to Galatians in the Wesley Study Bible).

Guide me today Lord as I journey forward, planning, leading, serving, giving. Use me today as I fully surrender to your lordship and your will in my life.