For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. (Gal. 2.8)
When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. (Gal. 2:11)
When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? (Gal. 2:14)
When I see other church leaders who are clearly in the wrong, how do I approach the situation in a way that doesn’t cause damage to the ministry that they are doing? Paul clearly believed that God was at work in the ministry of Peter, yet there came a time when Paul had to rebuke Peter in front of the others. Peter’s actions were causing damage to the Gentiles, and he didn’t realize it!
This is the struggle I am facing: I see people who are doing God’s ministry, and doing much for the kingdom of Heaven, yet they are also doing things that are causing damage to the people that God has called me to minister to! Like Paul telling the story to the Galatians, I need to explain to the people I’m ministering to that these actions are not right, yet without disparaging the work of the ministry that these good, Godly men are doing.
What do you think? How do I follow the example of Paul today?
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