Comparing Notes

Scripture – Galatians 1:18-24: ¹⁸Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. ¹⁹I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother. ²⁰I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. ²¹Later I went to Syria and Cilicia. ²²I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. ²³They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” ²⁴And they praised God because of me.

Reflection: – So after three years Paul went to meet Peter and get acquainted with him. For two weeks or so they stayed together. I wonder what those conversations were like.

While in Jerusalem Paul also met James, the Lord’s brother. From what we can tell, Peter and James were the primary leaders of the church in Jerusalem – the so-called “mother” church.

Paul strikes me as a somewhat stubborn fellow. I think he struggled with personal pride and ego throughout his ministry. That’s probably why it took him so long to get together with Peter and James. Yet the fact is he needed to compare notes with them. His faith and understanding of Christ had pretty much been worked out on his own. He needed to check with those who had literally walked with Christ and make sure he was on the same page.

There are times I have great ideas or interpretations of scriptures. Still, I need to check with other Christians and get their take on my thoughts. Sometimes it turns our I’ve really missed the mark.

In this day and age, when people choose their spiritual beliefs from all kinds of sources, how do you choose what to believe? Who is a mature Christian you can go to and compare notes?

An Invitation: For anyone interested in sharing their personal reflections from this week’s readings, you are invited to come by the Tim Hortons donut shop at Dix-Toledo and Northline in Southgate this Sunday morning at 9:45am. We’ll have a cup of coffee and see what the Lord has been teaching us this week.