- I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose. Galatians 2:21 – Christ died for no purpose. Wow, to say something like that Paul must have a good reason behind it, and surprise, he does. Paul was sharing that if somehow we could be righteous, to be good enough through our own actions to be with God, then what was the point of Jesus’ death. It would have served no purpose if we could have reached the state of perfection with God through our own deeds. Jesus’ death was not purposeless though. He died because it was impossible for us on our own to “good enough” to be with God. You can never reach God without Jesus. Take a moment today to thank God that He made a way for you to come to Him through Jesus. Without Jesus, we would have no hope, no joy, nothing. Yet now, we have everything in this life because of Jesus. Remember that. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 532
- 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. Galatians 2:12-13 – Paul here is speaking of Peter and a mistake that Peter was making in how he was handling himself around certain people. Peter, being free from the Jewish law because of the salvation of Jesus, would eat with Gentiles, which was a perfectly acceptable practice. Yet, when certain Jews came around, Peter would separate himself from the Gentiles, refusing to eat with them because according the Jewish law that’s not something you are allowed to do. Rather than resting in the freedom that Jesus gives, Peter was placing himself back under the law due to fear of what the Jewish people may think of him. As a result of this he led many other believers in Jesus to do the same, even Barnabas, Paul’s companion, began to follow Peter’s lead in this sin. As we grow and mature in Christ, and especially when we begin to take leadership roles within the body of Christ, we must acknowledge the truth that we will have people watching our lives and following the example of how we live for Jesus. They will base how they talk by how we talk, and they will begin to live like we live. Which isn’t a sinful thing for them to do, as long as the one they are following, aka you and me, are following the example of Jesus. Let’s then make every effort to match the life of Jesus with how we live. Let’s love like He loves, talk like He would have us talk, and live in a way that follows the example He left for us. So when someone younger in the faith begins to follow our lead, the example they are truly following is Jesus’. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2391
Daily DEVO 