The Unity of the Gospel October 15, 2011

Key Thought: The church was in danger of losing its understanding of the gospel because of dependence on Jewish traditions that opposed faith in Christ’s work.

1. Have a volunteer read Galatians 2:3-5

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.

B. Why were the Jews so concerned about the Gentiles being circumcised?

C. Personal Application: What challenge does the SDA church today have that may parallel the circumcision issue?

D. Case Study : One of your relatives states, “Why do people try to put Jewish traditions that were fulfilled in Christ onto Christian believers? Things like circumcision, Passover, what we eat, and Sabbath-keeping are no longer necessary to us.” How would you respond to your relative?

2. Have a volunteer read Galatians 2:6-10

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.

B. How do the callings of Peter and Paul and their ministry show both diversity and unity in the early church?

C. Personal Application: Is there a similar calling of different persons, personalities, and cultures today? Is the message the same, or is it different? How can we have diversity and still keep unity?

D. Case Study : One of your friends states, ”What does it mean that Peter was the apostle to the Jews as Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles? I thought Peter was the head of the church and he and Paul preached mostly in Rome?” How would you respond to your friend?

3. Have a volunteer read Galatians 2:11-13

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.

B. Why was Peter so easily led back into the comfort of his Jewish brethren and led to ignore the Gentile believers?

C. Personal Application:Do you have a comfort group in your church? Is there a person or group of people you tend to ignore or not spend much time with? What can you do to remedy this problem?

D. Case Study : One of your neighbors states, “Why do Adventists have two conferences in many states, one black and one white? Does this show unity or disunity? Is this an example of diversity in opportunities or an archaic leftover from previous years when necessity compelled two conferences?” How do you respond to your neighbor?

4. Have a volunteer read Galatians 2:13,14

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.

B. How did Barnabas get caught up in Peter’s move toward Judaizing the gospel?

C. Personal Application : How can we learn to keep ourselves from being swayed by peer pressure and those around us into wrong thinking and practice?

D. Case Study : Think of one person who needs to hear a message from this
week’s lesson. Tell the class what you plan to do this week to share with
them.

(Note: “Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.” MH p. 149)

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