Paul then recounts his return visit back to Jerusalem fourteen years after he had made his first visit. He took Barnabas and Titus with him on this visit to Jerusalem and the details are given in Acts 15:1-22. Paul, as well as the other apostles, stand before the Jerusalem Council to discuss the issue of salvation. It appears that some of the Jews were trying to add circumcision as a prerequisite for salvation. The apostles stood firmly against this belief and concluded that salvation is only by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Now, the false teachers within the churches of Galatia were again trying to oppose the true message of the gospel and establish certain prerequisites in order to be saved. Paul wanted his readers to know that the gospel he preached was the same gospel of the church in Jerusalem and this message was directly from God, not man (2:2-5). Furthermore, the Holy Spirit who worked in Peter to preach the gospel to the Jews was the same Spirit which worked in Paul to preach salvation to the Gentiles (2:6-8). The only difference between Paul and Peter was that they spoke the gospel to distinct groups of people, but the message of the gospel was still the same. Peter, James, and John (the main leaders in the church at Jerusalem) detected the spirit of grace within Paul and the “right hand of fellowship” which was a sign of partnership (2:9-10) was given to him. The gospel has not changed since the time of the first sin of Adam and Eve. Salvation has been promised to be given by grace through faith. Although Jesus Christ had not yet died during the times of the Old Testament, by faith they looked forward to the One whom God had promised to save them from sin. We now are able to look back and put together God’s plan from the beginning and salvation is still by grace through faith. Paul wrote to defend the purity of the gospel and guard it from those who attempted to distort its’ message. We also should stand up for the gospel!
Dear God, help me to never compromise the message of the gospel!
