When an addition changes the gospel
The Galatian dispute is not a minor disagreement about preferences. If Gentile believers must take on additional identity markers to belong fully to God’s people, then Christ’s work is no longer treated as sufficient.
Galatians 1
The crisis
Identify what has unsettled the churches and why Paul treats a distorted gospel with such urgency.
Galatians 1–2
The gospel’s source
Trace both God’s initiative in revealing the gospel and the church’s recognition of Paul’s ministry.
Galatians 2
Justification by faith
Ask what makes a sinner right with God and why no human achievement can complete Christ’s work.
The shared table
Doctrine becomes conduct
Peter’s withdrawal teaches something false through behavior: that Gentile believers do not fully belong without becoming like Jews.
Central question
Why does Paul treat the way believers share a table as a test of whether they are walking in line with the gospel?
Discuss
- What was being added to faith in Christ, and why did that addition threaten the gospel?
- How can Paul receive the gospel by revelation and still submit his ministry to public recognition and accountability?
- What did Peter’s table choice communicate to Jewish and Gentile believers?
- What modern entrance requirements can quietly threaten equal belonging in Christ?