Galatians 2:11-14. 11But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the [Jews]. 13And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14But 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?”
In this passage, Paul is telling us a story about when the Apostle Peter came to visit him in the city of Antioch. Paul’s church in Antioch had Jews and Gentiles in it. Jews are “God’s people” who God rescued from Egypt through the Red Sea (do you remember that story?). Gentiles are anyone who is not a Jew.
Before Jesus came and died on the cross, the Jews lived under what was called “The Law.” The Law was all of God’s rules that you can read in the Old Testament. These rules included what you could eat and what you could not eat. Some foods were considered “clean,” and some “unclean.” But the Jews took this even further by saying that all Gentiles were also “unclean.” This meant that they thought it was a sin for Jews not only to eat Gentile food, but also to eat with the Gentiles.
But when Jesus came to us, he got rid of all the “clean and unclean” laws. All those rules were supposed to point to Jesus anyway. Jesus is clean and we are unclean. But now that Jesus has come, we don’t need the old rules. We have Jesus, and he makes us clean in our hearts by forgiving all our sins when we trust in him.
I know this can all sound very confusing, but the bottom line is that Jesus doesn’t care what we eat (of course, he’d like for us to be healthy), and he doesn’t care who we eat with. In fact, as Christians, we should all be willing to eat and hang out with each other whether we are Jew or Gentile, black, brown, or white, boy or girl, rich or poor. With Jesus, there are no divisions, only unity.
When Peter came to Antioch, he ate Gentile food with the Gentiles. But when the strict Jews showed up, he stopped eating with the Gentiles and would only eat with other Jews. So, Paul had to yell at Peter. Why? Because Jesus doesn’t pick favorites, and neither should we.
Do something together: Using a multi-colored candy (like M&Ms), distribute the candies by color to each family member. Next have everyone just grab a handful of candies. Which was more enjoyable?
Because of Jesus: We don’t have to try to make ourselves clean by separating from others.
With Jesus: We have clean hearts because he takes away our sins.
Pray: Father, I don’t want to be like Peter in Antioch. I don’t want to show favoritism to certain people. Help me love everyone the same. Amen.
