AN INCONSISTENT WALK
GALATIANS 2:1-14
But when I saw that they were not acting consistently with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, "If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?" – Galatians 2:14
Introduction: A man was sitting at a stop light one morning. The lady in front of him was going through papers on the seat of her car, and when the light changed to green, she did not obey its command. She remained in her idle position until the light turned red again. So he began screaming epithets and beating on his steering wheel. His expressions of disgust were interrupted by a policeman, gun drawn, tapping on his window. Against his protests of, “You can’t arrest me for hollering in my car,” the officer ordered him into the back seat of his police car. After about two hours in a holding cell, the arresting officer advised him he was free to go. He said, “I knew you couldn’t arrest me for what I was yelling in my own car. You haven’t heard the last of this.” The officer replied, “I didn’t arrest you for shouting in your car. I was directly behind you at the light. I saw you screaming and beating your steering wheel, and I said to myself, “What a jerk. But there is nothing I can do to him for throwing a fit in his own car.” Then I noticed the cross hanging from your rear view mirror, the bright yellow “Choose Life” license tag, and the “Jesus Is Coming Soon” bumper sticker, and I thought you must have stolen the car.” – (Copied)
When Paul went to Jerusalem he found inconsistencies within the church there. Paul knew that the proper standard of conduct is “the truth of the gospel” (v.14). As Paul analyzed the situation, He saw that Peter and the others “were not straightforward.” We get our word “orthopedic” from the Greek word used here (orthopodeo). They were not walking straight with their feet, but contrary to the truth of the Gospel. They were being inconsistent in their behavior. We need to examine our walk to insure that we are not sending the wrong message to those with whom we have daily contact. What is the effect of walking inconsistently? Why do we walk inconsistently? How does God say we should be walking?
I. The effect of walking inconsistently.
A. We must understand that there are three kinds of believers in church: Believers, Unbelievers, and Make-believers. (Kent Crockett’s Sermon Illustrations) Those who are Make-believers influence both the believers and unbelievers with their inconsistencies.
B. It causes believers to join in our inconsistencies.
1. Galatians 2:11-14 “Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy. But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, "If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?”
2. In 1520 one man brought smallpox to Mexico, where it cost three and one half million deaths. Another man, who landed in England in 1348, was responsible for spreading the Black Death, "Bubonic Plague," the greatest killer Great Britain has ever known. Likewise, one inconsistent or disloyal church member can hurt the whole church. Listen to Paul: "...if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it." (1 Corinthians 12:26). It does not take many bullets from a rifle to kill a man. One bullet can kill. It does not take many deadly diseases to bring death to the human body. One deadly disease can bring death. It does not take the breakage of many bones to cripple the hand. One broken bone can cripple. The Bible teaches, "One sinner destroys much good". (Ecclesiastes 9:18) – Robert G. Lee, SERMONIC LIBRARY, p. 46.
3. One inconsistency can destroy a work of God.
4. Galatians 5:9 “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.”
C. It cause unbelievers to reject Christ due to our inconsistencies
1. Romans 2:18-24 “... know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? You who say, "Do not commit adultery," do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? For "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you"
2. When we behave in a manner inconsistent with our profession of faith, those who are unsaved notice our hypocrisy and lower their opinion both of Christ and biblical Christianity.
3. Ted and his son, Robert, farmed together. Often, as they worked in the fields, Ted would urge Robert to attend church with him. Most times Robert declined, electing to spend his Sunday mornings relaxing at home with his new wife. One day, as Robert operated the combine, Ted jumped on to ride a few passes across the field with him. This time they talked about soybeans... how theirs were doing, and whether they should sell them at the current prices. As they talked, Ted spotted a large rock in the combine’s path. Rocks and combines do not mix. If ingested into the combine, a rock can do very costly damage. Ted jumped down and picked up the rock, placing it on the combines platform until he could put it somewhere out of harm’s way. The next pass took them to the border of Leon’s field. Ted and Leon had been at odds for some time over a land dispute. As Robert drove the combine beside Leon’s field, Ted lifted the large rock and heaved it into Leon’s field, where maybe his combine might find it. As he returned to the cab and closed the door, Robert looked at him. "If that’s what being a Christian is all about," he said, "I want nothing to do with it."
II. The reason for walking inconsistently.
A. Fear of Man
1. Proverbs 29:25 “The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe.”
2. Not wanting rejection, ridicule, or to be under a microscope.
3. Aaron yielded out of fear of the people and made the golden calf. King Saul cared more about be honored and accepted by the people than he cared about acceptance from God. Pilate feared that he would have accusations made against him before Caesar and violated his conscience delivering Christ to the mob. Peter feared a little girl and denied his Master.
B. Wrong Company
1. 1 Corinthians 15:33 “Do not be deceived: ‘Evil company corrupts good habits’”.
2. "The rotten apple spoils his companion."- Benjamin Franklin
3. 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 (HCSB) “Do not be mismatched with unbelievers. For what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? 15 What agreement does Christ have with Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?”
4. "Better to have the right enemies, than the wrong friends." – copied
C. Uncommitted Minds
1. James 1:8 “He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
2. James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
3. A. T. Pierson gives the following illustration: Suppose you had a thousand-acre farm and someone offered to buy it. You agree to sell the land except for one acre right in the center which you want to keep for yourself. Did you know that in some areas the law would allow you to have access to that one lone spot? And that you would have the right to build a road across the surrounding property in order to get to it? So it is with us as Christians if we make less than 100-percent surrender to God, heart, mind, and soul. We can be sure that the devil will take advantage of any inroad to reach that uncommitted area of our lives.
D. No Separation
1. 2 Corinthians 6:17 “Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you."
2. Ezekiel 44:23 “And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.
3. Some mistakenly think that they are free to sin, just so long as they aren’t hypocrites about it; that the worst form of sin is hypocrisy. Often one hears it said, “I know I’m not perfect, but at least I’m not hypocritical about it.” A few years ago in Texas there were two men who robbed a bank. One wore a ski mask and the other did not. They both were captured and ultimately appeared before the judge for sentencing. The one without the mask could have stated, “Look, I know that robbing the bank was the wrong thing to do, but at least I was not hypocritical about it. I didn’t try to cover up who I was. I was open and honest. That should be worth something as far as leniency is concerned.” The judge sentenced both of them to the same time in prison. - Haddon Robinson.
III. The call to walk consistently.
A. We are to walk as children of light
1. In a biography of Queen Marie Antoinette, it tells about the queen’s attempts to disguise herself in order to attend parties, dances, and balls undercover, but her walk always gave her away. When she walked, she glided with arrogance. Her majestic and purposeful walk was her trademark. She could never successfully disguise her identity at masked balls, because no matter how she dressed, she still walked like a true Queen. We are to walk like God’s children – children of the Light. - copied
2. Ephesians 5:8 “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”
B. We are to walk in the light.
1. 1 John 1:6 “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”
2. Tiger Woods was invited to come to a convention of blind golfers. He asked the golfers how they were able to know what direction to hit the ball. One blind golfer explained that the caddy went out ahead of him with a little bell which he would ring as he stood near the hole. The blind golfer would then hit the ball toward the sound of the bell. Tiger asked how well it worked, and the blind golfer said that it worked so well he was willing to take on Tiger Woods for a round of golf; and just to make it interesting, was willing to bet $10,000 he could beat him. Well, this just blew Tiger’s mind. A blind man was willing to bet the world Champion in golf. So, the bet was made. Tiger said, "OK. What time do we tee off?" And the blind man said, "11:30 pm--tonight!" The point of this joke, in the dark we cannot see anything. But, when we walk in the light, not only will we be able to see, but others around us will be able to see as well. – copied
3. Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”
C. We are to walk circumspectly
1. Ephesians 5:15 See then that you walk circumspectly (carefully, precisely, always watching), not as fools but as wise.”
2. Walking circumspectly simply means that we walk through our lives watching for the snares the enemies of our souls place about our path and looking for opportunities to honor and glorify Christ.
3. Anyone who has ever walked in the desert has learned that you must be careful of where you step. There are both flora and fauna that can be harmful to you if you do not watch where you step – lest you get stuck or stung.
D. We are to walk honestly and uprightly
1. Romans 13:13 “Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.”
2. Christ instructs us to “walk honestly”. That is the belt of commitment in the Christian’s armor, the belt of truth. It’s walking without hypocrisy, walking committed to win, walking in full daylight; willing to be exposed because we’re upright and honest as we bear the name of Christ and live for the Lord.
3. Ephesians 4:17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind.”
