Know: Examine the true basis of unity among believers who are as different as the Jews and Gentiles.
Feel: Appreciate the level of tension and concern surrounding the issue of circumcision in the light of the gospel of grace.
Do: Determine to stand fast on the foundational doctrines of faith and grace.
Learning Outline:
Know: A Fresh Face on an Old Tradition
A How had God’s commands regarding circumcision become a legalistic tradition blinding many to the true means of salvation?
B Why is the gospel of grace the best means of unifying the widely diverse members of the church?
Feel: Trouble in the Church
A Why, despite the need for unity in the young church, did Paul feel it was necessary to publicly oppose Peter, who sought to take a less confrontational stand on Jewish customs?
B What grave dangers threatened those who didn’t want to confront the issue regarding circumcision?
Do: Unity in Diversity
A What challenges does diversity bring to our church?
B What do we need to do to identify and build on the true basis of unity without compromising the gospel?
Summary: By depending on Jewish traditions that blinded the early church to the critical matter of faith in Christ’s work, the church was in danger of losing its understanding of the gospel.
Learning Cycle
STEP 1—Motivate
Key Concept for Spiritual Growth: Unity is a key characteristic of the true Christian church, but it is not merely an avoidance of conflict or the papering over of legitimate differences. It must be founded upon the gospel.
Just for Teachers: Emphasize that while tolerance and mutual respect are usually what are called for in church life, sometimes Christian unity is best served by confronting error in a seemingly divisive way.
Are you a splitter or a lumper? In most disciplines (biology, for example), it becomes necessary to classify individual examples within a larger framework. Say that you have a green, scaly creature. Is it a reptile, an amphibian, or something entirely new and unheard of? If it is an amphibian, is it a frog? Is it a toad? Could it even be a salamander? Or again, is it entirely new? If you are a biologist, your answer may depend on whether you are a lumper or a splitter. The lumper will look for the category that the new specimen has most in common with and will tend to regard the differences as less important. The splitter will focus on the differences and will tend to multiply categories and subcategories in order to define narrowly the identity of the specimen. An objective observer will usually have to admit that they both have a point.
These two drives exist in the church, as well, and most of us will have a preference one way or the other. Lumpers will tend to seek unity. At worst, this tendency becomes the search for peace at any price, in which immorality or rank heresy is ignored or glossed over to avoid conflict.
Splitters will tend to divide the church over arcane matters of doctrine or practice that have little bearing on matters central to Christian faith. We all have heard of churches and denominations that multiply into myriad feuding factions. If we examined them closely, we would probably find a predominance of splitters in such groups.
Paul sought unity, and in that sense, he was a lumper. But he would not accept unity unless it was based upon the one gospel. He was not willing to accommodate those who preached another gospel that was not the gospel, and in that sense, he was a splitter. As Christians we must know when to be a lumper and when to be a splitter, and only God can give us the wisdom and discernment necessary for that.
Discuss With the Class: What is true unity in the New Testament sense, and why might people who are naturally disposed to be either lumpers or splitters fail to grasp the meaning of it?
STEP 2—Explore
Just for Teachers: Emphasize the importance of unity in the church as a way of revealing the unity and harmony embodied in the Godhead and the grace and peace God gives us as individuals.
Bible Commentary
I. The Foundation of Christian Unity (Review John 17:21 and 1 Corinthians 1:10–13 with your class.)
Unity in the Christian church was, and is, not just an organizational imperative but a theological imperative. As Jesus Christ envisioned the future of His church, one of the first things He wished for them was “that they all may be one” (John 17:21). There were many reasons for this goal. Obviously, the church would function more efficiently if its members were united in faith, practice, and goals. That’s why even secular organizations and even for-profit corporations often require employees to agree to a mission statement.
And for a body of people claiming to serve God or a higher purpose, disunity just looks bad. If the church is supposed to heal the rift between God and the human race, everyone else would (as the Beatles said) “love to see the plan.” And they can see the plan in the way the church functions before their eyes. When they see a church in disarray, they are somewhat justified in wondering if there is anything to it at all. So, unity helps us to represent God better to people who don’t know Him yet but might be open to the opportunity.
And this brings us to the theological point. The church represents God to the extent that it is His body on earth (Rom. 12:5, 1 Cor. 12:12–27, Eph. 3:6, 5:23). If we leave aside the fact that a body is a functioning unity of many parts (not that this distinction of diversity isn’t important too), the church, in a sense, is Christ. Christ is God, and God is a harmonious unity of three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If the church is to reflect God, it should be a harmonious unity of the different personalities included in it. If this is not true most of the time, if the church is not consistently working toward this ideal, it becomes just another organization dedicated to perpetuating itself and serving selfish agendas. It really is that simple.
At the same time, Christian unity is not just unity or harmonious relationships among the members. Christian unity is unity in Christ. In the early church much of the disunity that manifested itself resulted from misguided confidence in human leaders, as Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 1:10–13. And, to an extent, this misguided confidence also had much to do with the Galatian dilemma. Paul’s opponents knew that they could cast doubt and suspicion on Paul as a person and, perhaps, inspire confidence in themselves because of their charisma, personal qualities, or sheer brazen self-assuredness. In contrast, Paul focused on the one true gospel, which should be the true unifying force among Christians.
Consider This: What are some of the more obvious pitfalls of placing one’s confidence in human leaders as opposed to in Christ Himself?
II. Let’s Talk About Circumcision (Review Galatians 5:2–6 with your class.)
It is often said that Paul’s opponents, referred to as Judaizers, wanted converts to Christianity to become Jews, and that is true. Some take this statement to mean that the Judaizers wanted to require Gentile Christians to become circumcised and observe other, more recondite, Jewish customs. Most scholars agree, though, that this was not true of all Judaizers. Furthermore, there was a place for righteous Gentiles in both the normative Judaism of the time and in the scheme of some Judaizing Christians. There was a class of people known as God Fearers: Gentiles who adopted some Jewish beliefs, customs, and practices. They participated in synagogue life, to some extent, and were accepted to a degree. But they were not full converts, primarily because they had not been circumcised. As such, the status they occupied was decidedly second class.
The Christian church at the time had not yet reached a consensus on what to do with or about Gentile converts, but they existed and played a major part in the early Christian churches. It was a fait accompli, in that sense.
It seems from the available biblical evidence that the church leaders in Jerusalem, while Jewish themselves and largely obedient to Jewish laws and customs, did not take an active part in the controversy as it was taking shape. Others, most notably the Judaizers whom Paul confronted in Galatia, actively took it upon themselves to “improve”the Gentile converts, holding out the prospect of a higher level of belonging or spiritual attainment to Gentiles who undertook full conversion to Judaism. An elite corps of superconverts, if you will.
Paul rightly saw this agenda as undermining the unity and equality before God that should exist in the church. The Judaizers distorted the gospel by suggesting it could be improved or fortified by something else and that people who added (or subtracted) that little something somehow occupied a higher place. This is why Paul states in Galatians 5:2 that anyone circumcised under such an assumption does himself no good and possibly does himself spiritual harm.
Consider This: We all have our ideas of how a good Christian should look or act. Some of these are rooted very deeply in upbringing or indoctrination in a given tradition. Some of our ideas may even have some scriptural basis. How can we avoid polluting the gospel by attempting to control people with our own ideas of how they should look or act?
STEP 3—Apply
Just for Teachers: Use the following questions to help your students to understand the importance of true Christian unity.
Thought Questions:
In what ways did Paul strive to promote unity within the church, even as he confronted error and slander?
How might the arguments of the Judaizers have made sense to people who only half understood the gospel? (After all, circumcision was biblical.)
Application Questions:
How can we identify when a given policy or practice—whether erring in the direction of strictness or laxity—is destructive of unity in the gospel?
Peter’s actions in pretending to adhere to customs he no longer regarded as relevant (Gal. 2:11–13, Acts 10:28) might, in some contexts, be seen as concern for unity. When does a desire to protect others’ sensibilities become, as in this case, cowardice and hypocrisy?
STEP 4—Create
Just for Teachers: In Galatians we see Paul confronting people who might be called apostles of disunity, if not apostles as such. While Paul’s opponents represent an extreme example of the spirit of disunity—often based upon completely arbitrary matters—this tendency exists in all of us. We may all place (or misplace) extreme value and importance on things that, in the light of the gospel and its message of grace for all, fade into irrelevance and unimportance. The following activity will help us all to recognize and change this tendency in ourselves.
Ask your class: “What do you regard as the outward manifestations of inward Christianity? Why do you regard this as important?” Be careful not to pass judgment on what anyone says.You are acquainted with the personalities and biases of your class; be careful with anything that might have a tendency to get controversial or personal.
Adjust My Preferences
Welcome! Please set your reading preferences below.
You can access this panel later by clicking the
preference icon
in the top right of the page.
Key Texts: Philippians 2:2
The Student Will:
Learning Outline:
Know: A Fresh Face on an Old Tradition
Feel: Trouble in the Church
Do: Unity in Diversity
Summary: By depending on Jewish traditions that blinded the early church to the critical matter of faith in Christ’s work, the church was in danger of losing its understanding of the gospel.
Learning Cycle
STEP 1—Motivate
Key Concept for Spiritual Growth: Unity is a key characteristic of the true Christian church, but it is not merely an avoidance of conflict or the papering over of legitimate differences. It must be founded upon the gospel.
Just for Teachers: Emphasize that while tolerance and mutual respect are usually what are called for in church life, sometimes Christian unity is best served by confronting error in a seemingly divisive way.
Are you a splitter or a lumper? In most disciplines (biology, for example), it becomes necessary to classify individual examples within a larger framework. Say that you have a green, scaly creature. Is it a reptile, an amphibian, or something entirely new and unheard of? If it is an amphibian, is it a frog? Is it a toad? Could it even be a salamander? Or again, is it entirely new? If you are a biologist, your answer may depend on whether you are a lumper or a splitter. The lumper will look for the category that the new specimen has most in common with and will tend to regard the differences as less important. The splitter will focus on the differences and will tend to multiply categories and subcategories in order to define narrowly the identity of the specimen. An objective observer will usually have to admit that they both have a point.
These two drives exist in the church, as well, and most of us will have a preference one way or the other. Lumpers will tend to seek unity. At worst, this tendency becomes the search for peace at any price, in which immorality or rank heresy is ignored or glossed over to avoid conflict.
Splitters will tend to divide the church over arcane matters of doctrine or practice that have little bearing on matters central to Christian faith. We all have heard of churches and denominations that multiply into myriad feuding factions. If we examined them closely, we would probably find a predominance of splitters in such groups.
Paul sought unity, and in that sense, he was a lumper. But he would not accept unity unless it was based upon the one gospel. He was not willing to accommodate those who preached another gospel that was not the gospel, and in that sense, he was a splitter. As Christians we must know when to be a lumper and when to be a splitter, and only God can give us the wisdom and discernment necessary for that.
Discuss With the Class: What is true unity in the New Testament sense, and why might people who are naturally disposed to be either lumpers or splitters fail to grasp the meaning of it?
STEP 2—Explore
Just for Teachers: Emphasize the importance of unity in the church as a way of revealing the unity and harmony embodied in the Godhead and the grace and peace God gives us as individuals.
Bible Commentary
I. The Foundation of Christian Unity (Review John 17:21 and 1 Corinthians 1:10–13 with your class.)
Unity in the Christian church was, and is, not just an organizational imperative but a theological imperative. As Jesus Christ envisioned the future of His church, one of the first things He wished for them was “that they all may be one” (John 17:21). There were many reasons for this goal. Obviously, the church would function more efficiently if its members were united in faith, practice, and goals. That’s why even secular organizations and even for-profit corporations often require employees to agree to a mission statement.
And for a body of people claiming to serve God or a higher purpose, disunity just looks bad. If the church is supposed to heal the rift between God and the human race, everyone else would (as the Beatles said) “love to see the plan.” And they can see the plan in the way the church functions before their eyes. When they see a church in disarray, they are somewhat justified in wondering if there is anything to it at all. So, unity helps us to represent God better to people who don’t know Him yet but might be open to the opportunity.
And this brings us to the theological point. The church represents God to the extent that it is His body on earth (Rom. 12:5, 1 Cor. 12:12–27, Eph. 3:6, 5:23). If we leave aside the fact that a body is a functioning unity of many parts (not that this distinction of diversity isn’t important too), the church, in a sense, is Christ. Christ is God, and God is a harmonious unity of three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If the church is to reflect God, it should be a harmonious unity of the different personalities included in it. If this is not true most of the time, if the church is not consistently working toward this ideal, it becomes just another organization dedicated to perpetuating itself and serving selfish agendas. It really is that simple.
At the same time, Christian unity is not just unity or harmonious relationships among the members. Christian unity is unity in Christ. In the early church much of the disunity that manifested itself resulted from misguided confidence in human leaders, as Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 1:10–13. And, to an extent, this misguided confidence also had much to do with the Galatian dilemma. Paul’s opponents knew that they could cast doubt and suspicion on Paul as a person and, perhaps, inspire confidence in themselves because of their charisma, personal qualities, or sheer brazen self-assuredness. In contrast, Paul focused on the one true gospel, which should be the true unifying force among Christians.
Consider This: What are some of the more obvious pitfalls of placing one’s confidence in human leaders as opposed to in Christ Himself?
II. Let’s Talk About Circumcision (Review Galatians 5:2–6 with your class.)
It is often said that Paul’s opponents, referred to as Judaizers, wanted converts to Christianity to become Jews, and that is true. Some take this statement to mean that the Judaizers wanted to require Gentile Christians to become circumcised and observe other, more recondite, Jewish customs. Most scholars agree, though, that this was not true of all Judaizers. Furthermore, there was a place for righteous Gentiles in both the normative Judaism of the time and in the scheme of some Judaizing Christians. There was a class of people known as God Fearers: Gentiles who adopted some Jewish beliefs, customs, and practices. They participated in synagogue life, to some extent, and were accepted to a degree. But they were not full converts, primarily because they had not been circumcised. As such, the status they occupied was decidedly second class.
The Christian church at the time had not yet reached a consensus on what to do with or about Gentile converts, but they existed and played a major part in the early Christian churches. It was a fait accompli, in that sense.
It seems from the available biblical evidence that the church leaders in Jerusalem, while Jewish themselves and largely obedient to Jewish laws and customs, did not take an active part in the controversy as it was taking shape. Others, most notably the Judaizers whom Paul confronted in Galatia, actively took it upon themselves to “improve”the Gentile converts, holding out the prospect of a higher level of belonging or spiritual attainment to Gentiles who undertook full conversion to Judaism. An elite corps of superconverts, if you will.
Paul rightly saw this agenda as undermining the unity and equality before God that should exist in the church. The Judaizers distorted the gospel by suggesting it could be improved or fortified by something else and that people who added (or subtracted) that little something somehow occupied a higher place. This is why Paul states in Galatians 5:2 that anyone circumcised under such an assumption does himself no good and possibly does himself spiritual harm.
Consider This: We all have our ideas of how a good Christian should look or act. Some of these are rooted very deeply in upbringing or indoctrination in a given tradition. Some of our ideas may even have some scriptural basis. How can we avoid polluting the gospel by attempting to control people with our own ideas of how they should look or act?
STEP 3—Apply
Just for Teachers: Use the following questions to help your students to understand the importance of true Christian unity.
Thought Questions:
Application Questions:
STEP 4—Create
Just for Teachers: In Galatians we see Paul confronting people who might be called apostles of disunity, if not apostles as such. While Paul’s opponents represent an extreme example of the spirit of disunity—often based upon completely arbitrary matters—this tendency exists in all of us. We may all place (or misplace) extreme value and importance on things that, in the light of the gospel and its message of grace for all, fade into irrelevance and unimportance. The following activity will help us all to recognize and change this tendency in ourselves.
Ask your class: “What do you regard as the outward manifestations of inward Christianity? Why do you regard this as important?” Be careful not to pass judgment on what anyone says.You are acquainted with the personalities and biases of your class; be careful with anything that might have a tendency to get controversial or personal.