“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth 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” (Galatians 2:20).
TEXT — Galatians 2:11-21
Message
Contentions or disagreements among believers must not be permitted. Such must be promptly extirpated once they arise. Instead, believers should edify and encourage one another through proper conduct, excellent disposition and rancour-free mien. Strife is out of place for the heaven-bound saint because, “The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with”.
When Paul saw the error of his fellow apostle, Peter, in engaging in double standards in his relationship with the Gentiles in Antioch, he spoke against it. He “withstood (Peter) to the face, because he was to be blamed”. Paul did not hesitate to draw Peter’s attention to his act of indiscretion. Nor did a humble Peter interpret the rebuke as a personal attack to spark a reprisal. The affair was not a messy one to raise questions about their salvation.
Both were “crucified with Christ” who lived in them. The presence of the Lord in their lives gave no allowance for disruptive and aggressive disputes unbecoming of heaven-bound pilgrims. The two apostles displayed Christian maturity and meekness as taught by the Lord. Later, Peter, in an epistle speaks of Paul in complimentary terms, describing him as “our beloved brother Paul… (with) wisdom given unto him”.
Only genuine believers can overcome the temptation to be dragged into barren arguments and debates that tend to bring division among the brethren and reproach to the church. Away from the church, believers must exercise admirable restraint in our dealings with those not of the faith of Christ. We need to infect the world with the love of the Prince of peace. Our personal Christian credentials must speak eloquently louder than the precepts we routinely chant.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
My God is great