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Reputation on Trial
One of the most valuable of all your possessions, as a Christian, is your reputation.
A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold. Proverbs 22:1
It is essential that we have a good reputation as believers. Why? Simply put, all believers in Jesus Christ are to consider themselves, not only as disciples and learners, but as representatives of Jesus for the purpose of bringing unbelievers to the point of placing their faith in Jesus for salvation. In order to be successful, the very first thing we need is to have a clean and holy reputation. We need to be believable.
The apostle Peter spoke about this. Let's have a look:
Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.
¶ Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. 1 Peter 2:11-16
It can take a while to build a good reputation. Paul experienced that, as we will see shortly.
As I just said, it takes a while to build a good reputation, but you can lose it in a second.
Many years ago, King Solomon wrote, “Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment, And cause it to give off a foul odor; So does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.” Ecclesiastes 10:1
Our reputations and our testimonies are related. It is when we have a good clean reputation that we can share a believable testimony.
And our testimonies are important. We may be called upon to share our testimony before unbelievers.
It appears that, in the not too distant future, we could be called upon to give testimony before 'the authorities'.
But Jesus says we don't need to panic regarding what we are to say. He said, 9 “But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them. 10 “And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations. 11 “But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. Mr 13:9 -11
The apostle Paul was no stranger to giving his testimony. There are three instances recorded in scripture where his testimony is recorded.
The first was in Acts 9, and the writer, Luke, is writing it down as Paul must have given it to him. It is simply an account of how Paul came to faith in Christ.
On the second occasion, Paul is on trial before the Jews. This is recorded in Acts 22.
On the third occasion Paul is before King Agrippa. By this time Paul has been in prison for about a year.
All three accounts are a bit different from each other. But they form a good example for us to follow. The difference between the three testimonies basically has to do with who he is talking to. The first time we read about his personal testimony would be when he shared it with Luke, his travel companion. Luke recorded Paul's conversion experience in the the book of Acts.
That testimony was information for the early church. The second was when Paul gave his testimony before a hostile Jewish audience, and in accordance with that, certain points needed to be emphasized. In the last recorded example Paul is before a smaller, non-hostile group, and we can sense the more intimate sharing of his faith.
But having noted all of the above, it is God who leads us into what to share, when and to whom.
Sometimes we must share it before believers. We do this, usually, just before becoming members of a local congregation.
In our section of scripture that we are considering in Galatians, we find a mix of two things. Paul tells about a time that he was before the elders of the Jerusalem church … but present in the group were some 'fake' believers.
But actually, to call them 'fake' may not convey who they really were. What we have here in Jerusalem is a body of believers whose theological background has not really been put to the test.
These believers, particularly the leaders, had been taught by Jesus. But they also had been raised in Judaism.
What did they know about ministering to Gentiles? Almost nothing.
If we were to examine the ministry of Jesus during his three years of preaching, we would find very little about the gospel going out to the Gentiles. As a matter of fact, John states, “He came unto His own (race) but His own received Him not.”
When Jesus was asked to minister to a Gentile, He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Mt 15:24
Paul is standing before the Jerusalem church leaders for the purpose of stating his specific calling to Gentiles, and this forced them to question what the gospel should look like when it is presented to a non-Jewish audience.
In their cases, they were practicing Jews who could no longer meet in Jewish synagogues. They had lost their welcome there …Why? It all because they believed that Jesus was who He claimed to be.
But Jesus instituted the church. This gave them a place to meet with each other and share their common belief that Jesus is the Messiah. But what about dropping some of their Jewishness? And what about keeping the Jewish festivals or Holy Days? It is almost as if they had not given this any thought.
By the time this 'meeting' was over, some decisions were made, the leaders gave Paul the 'right hand of fellowship', endorsing his ministry to the gentiles.
Paul, in his own defense to the Galatian Christians, is retelling his history. He is giving a detailed testimony. Here are the 'components' of his testimony. These are things that you and I should look at as we answer the question, “If I were sharing my testimony, what would I include?”
Here is Paul's testimony in 'point form'.
Here is who I (Paul) was 11 – 14
But here is who I am 15-17
My history since becoming a believer 18-20, 21-24
My endorsement 2: 1-10
My credibility 2:11 - 14
The accusations against me – that I am not preaching the truth
False teachers traveled through the province of Galatia, essentially following Paul's footsteps, 'correcting' Paul's false teaching, thereby discrediting his entire ministry.
Paul wants to bring them back to the truth. To do that, he now has to begin by proving that he indeed had been sent to them by God.
Paul has had his reputation ruined. So he begins his approach by first offering his personal testimony. As he writes, he is answering these questions:
Am I a true servant of God or not?
Ga 1:10 ¶ For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Ga 1:11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
Who am I ?
Here is who I was 13 – 14
13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.
But here is who I am
Here is God's call on my life – to be a missionary to the gentiles.
“My initial response to the call … I spent 3 years with God in the Arabian desert.” 15 - 17
Ga 1:15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
“My history since becoming a believer – I connected with the apostle Peter, and with the Jerusalem church 'pastor', James (the second)” 18-20.
Ga 1:18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!)
“Then, because of my past reputation, I withdrew to a distant area until my 'conversion to Christianity' would become common knowledge in the churches of Judea”
21 – 24
Ga 1:21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, "He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy." 24 And they glorified God because of me.
My endorsement – “I went to see the Apostles for endorsement as a missionary to the Gentiles.”
“(The church 'council' by which I was interviewed included a few spies. But there was no problem)
The apostles 'added nothing to me'; in other words, the gospel to which I was committed was exactly the same as theirs.” 2:1 – 10
Ga 2:1 ¶ Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me.
2 I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.
3 But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek.
4 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in — who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery--5 to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.
6 And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)— those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.
7 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8 (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), 9 and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
“ My credibility - And here is some evidence verifying that what I (Paul) claimed as being the true gospel, is exactly what I preached.” 2:11-14
Ga 2:11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step 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 force the Gentiles to live like Jews?"
To be clear, Paul is saying that the true gospel which he preaches is salvation by grace without any add-ons from Judaism. This is the gospel which he originally preached to the Galatians, so in case they were thinking that Paul preached a different gospel elsewhere, the answer would be, No … this is the gospel I preach everywhere.
Coming up -
The accusations against me– The 'Circumcision Party' claimed that Paul's gospel was flawed. What was their version of the gospel? Christianity is … the Jewish religion as normal, except that Jesus is recognized as the Messiah.
However, as we will see in an upcoming chapter, their premise, that Law-keeping must be included as a means to salvation, was seriously flawed. Paul clearly points this out, as we will see shortly.
Reputation and Testimony. It is sad that Paul has to explain himself to a church full of people that he had personally led to faith in Jesus. How terrible that this giant of a missionary has been so degraded by false teachers. Satan is out to ruin your reputation as well. You need to be aware of that. Be very careful. Your reputation is worth more than gold. Treasure it. Be ready to use your testimony when you least expect it.
A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold. Proverbs 22:1
It is essential that we have a good reputation as believers. Why? Simply put, all believers in Jesus Christ are to consider themselves, not only as disciples and learners, but as representatives of Jesus for the purpose of bringing unbelievers to the point of placing their faith in Jesus for salvation. In order to be successful, the very first thing we need is to have a clean and holy reputation. We need to be believable.
The apostle Peter spoke about this. Let's have a look:
Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.
¶ Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. 1 Peter 2:11-16
It can take a while to build a good reputation. Paul experienced that, as we will see shortly.
As I just said, it takes a while to build a good reputation, but you can lose it in a second.
Many years ago, King Solomon wrote, “Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment, And cause it to give off a foul odor; So does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.” Ecclesiastes 10:1
Our reputations and our testimonies are related. It is when we have a good clean reputation that we can share a believable testimony.
And our testimonies are important. We may be called upon to share our testimony before unbelievers.
It appears that, in the not too distant future, we could be called upon to give testimony before 'the authorities'.
But Jesus says we don't need to panic regarding what we are to say. He said, 9 “But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them. 10 “And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations. 11 “But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. Mr 13:9 -11
The apostle Paul was no stranger to giving his testimony. There are three instances recorded in scripture where his testimony is recorded.
The first was in Acts 9, and the writer, Luke, is writing it down as Paul must have given it to him. It is simply an account of how Paul came to faith in Christ.
On the second occasion, Paul is on trial before the Jews. This is recorded in Acts 22.
On the third occasion Paul is before King Agrippa. By this time Paul has been in prison for about a year.
All three accounts are a bit different from each other. But they form a good example for us to follow. The difference between the three testimonies basically has to do with who he is talking to. The first time we read about his personal testimony would be when he shared it with Luke, his travel companion. Luke recorded Paul's conversion experience in the the book of Acts.
That testimony was information for the early church. The second was when Paul gave his testimony before a hostile Jewish audience, and in accordance with that, certain points needed to be emphasized. In the last recorded example Paul is before a smaller, non-hostile group, and we can sense the more intimate sharing of his faith.
But having noted all of the above, it is God who leads us into what to share, when and to whom.
Sometimes we must share it before believers. We do this, usually, just before becoming members of a local congregation.
In our section of scripture that we are considering in Galatians, we find a mix of two things. Paul tells about a time that he was before the elders of the Jerusalem church … but present in the group were some 'fake' believers.
But actually, to call them 'fake' may not convey who they really were. What we have here in Jerusalem is a body of believers whose theological background has not really been put to the test.
These believers, particularly the leaders, had been taught by Jesus. But they also had been raised in Judaism.
What did they know about ministering to Gentiles? Almost nothing.
If we were to examine the ministry of Jesus during his three years of preaching, we would find very little about the gospel going out to the Gentiles. As a matter of fact, John states, “He came unto His own (race) but His own received Him not.”
When Jesus was asked to minister to a Gentile, He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Mt 15:24
Paul is standing before the Jerusalem church leaders for the purpose of stating his specific calling to Gentiles, and this forced them to question what the gospel should look like when it is presented to a non-Jewish audience.
In their cases, they were practicing Jews who could no longer meet in Jewish synagogues. They had lost their welcome there …Why? It all because they believed that Jesus was who He claimed to be.
But Jesus instituted the church. This gave them a place to meet with each other and share their common belief that Jesus is the Messiah. But what about dropping some of their Jewishness? And what about keeping the Jewish festivals or Holy Days? It is almost as if they had not given this any thought.
By the time this 'meeting' was over, some decisions were made, the leaders gave Paul the 'right hand of fellowship', endorsing his ministry to the gentiles.
Paul, in his own defense to the Galatian Christians, is retelling his history. He is giving a detailed testimony. Here are the 'components' of his testimony. These are things that you and I should look at as we answer the question, “If I were sharing my testimony, what would I include?”
Here is Paul's testimony in 'point form'.
Here is who I (Paul) was 11 – 14
But here is who I am 15-17
My history since becoming a believer 18-20, 21-24
My endorsement 2: 1-10
My credibility 2:11 - 14
The accusations against me – that I am not preaching the truth
False teachers traveled through the province of Galatia, essentially following Paul's footsteps, 'correcting' Paul's false teaching, thereby discrediting his entire ministry.
Paul wants to bring them back to the truth. To do that, he now has to begin by proving that he indeed had been sent to them by God.
Paul has had his reputation ruined. So he begins his approach by first offering his personal testimony. As he writes, he is answering these questions:
Am I a true servant of God or not?
Ga 1:10 ¶ For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Ga 1:11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
Who am I ?
Here is who I was 13 – 14
13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.
But here is who I am
Here is God's call on my life – to be a missionary to the gentiles.
“My initial response to the call … I spent 3 years with God in the Arabian desert.” 15 - 17
Ga 1:15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
“My history since becoming a believer – I connected with the apostle Peter, and with the Jerusalem church 'pastor', James (the second)” 18-20.
Ga 1:18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!)
“Then, because of my past reputation, I withdrew to a distant area until my 'conversion to Christianity' would become common knowledge in the churches of Judea”
21 – 24
Ga 1:21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, "He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy." 24 And they glorified God because of me.
My endorsement – “I went to see the Apostles for endorsement as a missionary to the Gentiles.”
“(The church 'council' by which I was interviewed included a few spies. But there was no problem)
The apostles 'added nothing to me'; in other words, the gospel to which I was committed was exactly the same as theirs.” 2:1 – 10
Ga 2:1 ¶ Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me.
2 I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.
3 But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek.
4 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in — who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery--5 to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.
6 And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)— those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.
7 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8 (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), 9 and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
“ My credibility - And here is some evidence verifying that what I (Paul) claimed as being the true gospel, is exactly what I preached.” 2:11-14
Ga 2:11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step 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 force the Gentiles to live like Jews?"
To be clear, Paul is saying that the true gospel which he preaches is salvation by grace without any add-ons from Judaism. This is the gospel which he originally preached to the Galatians, so in case they were thinking that Paul preached a different gospel elsewhere, the answer would be, No … this is the gospel I preach everywhere.
Coming up -
The accusations against me– The 'Circumcision Party' claimed that Paul's gospel was flawed. What was their version of the gospel? Christianity is … the Jewish religion as normal, except that Jesus is recognized as the Messiah.
However, as we will see in an upcoming chapter, their premise, that Law-keeping must be included as a means to salvation, was seriously flawed. Paul clearly points this out, as we will see shortly.
Reputation and Testimony. It is sad that Paul has to explain himself to a church full of people that he had personally led to faith in Jesus. How terrible that this giant of a missionary has been so degraded by false teachers. Satan is out to ruin your reputation as well. You need to be aware of that. Be very careful. Your reputation is worth more than gold. Treasure it. Be ready to use your testimony when you least expect it.