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The six verses of the passages before us are striking on many accounts. They are striking, if we consider the event which they describe: Here is one Apostle rebuking another! They are striking, when we consider who the two men are: Paul the younger rebukes Peter the elder! They are striking, when we remark the occasion: This was no glaring fault, no flagrant sin, at first sight, that Peter had committed! Yet the Apostle Paul says, “I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.” He does more than this: He reproves Peter publicly for his error before all the Church at Antioch. He goes even further: He writes an account of the matter, which is now read in two hundred languages all over the world. It is my firm conviction that the Holy Ghost means us to take particular notice of this passage of Scripture. If Christianity had been an invention of man, these things would never have been recorded. An imposter, like Mahomet, would have hushed up the difference between two Apostles. The Spirit of truth has caused these verses to be written for our learning, and we shall do well to take heed to their contents.

There are three great lessons from Antioch which I think we ought to learn from this passage:

1. The first lesson is that great ministers may make great mistakes.
2. The second is that to keep the truth of Christ in his Church is even more important than to keep peace.
3. The third is that there is no doctrine about which we ought to be so jealous as justification by faith without the deeds of the law.
The Article of the Month for September is unusual in that rarely does even the mention of the fallibility of ministers heard in the Church today. Put another way, ministers are too often deemed to be "above the law", and especially so among themselves where there is an unwritten code which I have often referred to as the "fraternity of elders". But Ryle thought it good that this subject be addressed for the sake of the Church and all its members.

You can read this article here: The Fallibility of Ministers

For later reading, it can be found in the Article of the Month page on the main website.

Some may be wondering why this Article of the Month notification has been posted a day early. To those who have a vested interest in this board, it should be obvious. [Linked Image]

In His service and grace,

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simul iustus et peccator

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