Why Do Christians Become Hypocrites – Galatians
Why do Christians Become Hypocrites?
Together Church | Pastor Jerry Wells
October 11, 2027 | Series: Galatians
Introduction
The main idea of Galatians is the gospel without additives.
(Christ + works=justification) versus (Christ + nothing=justification)
Another way to describe the false gospel of the Judaizers is with the word legalism.
Being legalistic by definition means being strictly adherent to the law. In that sense, legalism is a good thing. All Christians should be law abiding Christians, citizens, employees, and students. Without law there would be no order.
But in the contemporary church, legalism has taken on the meaning of describing members of the church who have adopted the false gospel of the Judaizers.
(Christ + works=justification=legalism)
Legalism is a contemporary word used to describe the same theological problem that Paul had with the Judaizers.
In Galatians 2:11-14 there is a situation that blows my mind.
Peter—the restored denier, the first apostle to get eyes on Jesus after he rose from the dead; the Pentecost preacher; the miracle worker; the first apostle to be arrested for preaching the gospel; the first apostle to witness gentiles receive the Holy Spirit; a renowned pillar and defender of the doctrine of grace—became a hypocrite.
Barnabas-the early church encourager; the generous giver; the missionary partner of the apostle Paul- also became a hypocrite.
Both men withdrew from eating with gentile believers in Antioch to follow the example of the Judaizers who believed that to eat with uncircumcised gentiles would make them unclean!
And get this! These meals were considered love feasts according to Jude 12 and the early church fathers. And it was common for communion to be served at these love feasts in the church.
Peter and Barnabas stepped away from the very meal that celebrates the cross that makes Jews and Gentiles one family. On a scale of one to ten, this story has to be near the top of the list of one of the greatest examples of hypocrisy in all of scripture.
Legalism and love are incompatible.
This should cause all of us as Christians to consider this reality: If men like Peter and Barnabas can become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace, then so can we!
Why do Christians, even fully devoted followers of Christ like Peter and Barnabas, suddenly become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace?
So, let’s take a look at our text today for our answers.
Body
- The First Reason: We can be controlled by the fear of man (vv. 11–14)
Gal 2:11-14
11 Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed;
12 for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.
13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.
14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, “If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?
NKJV
The clear answer in the text in verse 12 is fear of the Judaizers. Peter withdrew because he feared “certain men from James.”
He feared losing their respect. He feared losing his reputation among the Jews.
When you fear man, you will end up following the wrong man!
The result of Peter’s fear was….
13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.
Fear is contagious. Courage is contagious. But only one of them protects the gospel of grace.
Why do so many Christians become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace?
The first reason is the fear of man.
- The Second Reason: We can forget the purpose of the law (vv. 15–18)
Gal 2:15-18
15 We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles,
16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not!
18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. NKJV
Here in verse 15, Paul quotes an old Jewish erroneous perspective. “We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the gentiles….”
Paul does not believe this. He is using irony. He is saying something he doesn’t actually believe in order to expose its weakness.
We know that Paul does not believe this because of what he wrote in Romans.
Romans 3:10
10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;
NKJV
Paul then brings down the theological hammer:
“A man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ.”(verse 16)
In the scripture there is a multi‑layered explanation of the purpose of the Law.
- The law of God reveals His righteousness and His justice
Psalm 119:172
“All Your commandments are righteousness.”
The law reflects God’s character and His righteous expectations.
- The law of God guides God’s people in righteous living
Psalm 119:105 — “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” The law provides direction and clarity.
- The law of God reveals and defines sin
Romans 7:7 — “I would not have known sin except through the law.” The law exposes what sin is and makes us conscious of it.
Romans 3:20 — “Through the law we become conscious of our sin.”
- The law of God restrains sin and transgression
Galatians 3:19 — “It was added because of transgressions…” The law was given to restrain and limit sin in God’s people. And this includes the law of death.
- The law of God exposes the moral depravity of all mankind.
Romans 5:20
“The law came in so that the trespass might increase.”
The Law exposes how deep sin runs by revealing rebellion in the heart.
Romans 7:13
“Through the commandment sin might become exceedingly sinful.” The Law magnifies sin so we see sins true ugliness in us and why we deserve death.
- The law of God reveals that we are all slaves to sin.
John 8:34 — Jesus’ Direct Statement
“Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.”
Romans 3:9 — All Humanity Under Sin
“Both Jews and Greeks… are all under sin.”
“Under sin” is slavery language — under its power, authority, and dominion.
Sin is not just an act; it’s a power that rules.
- The Law Acts as a Guardian to lead us to the gospel of grace.
Galatians 3:24 — “The law was our guardian until Christ came…” The law guides, disciplines, and points us to our need for justification by faith alone in Christ alone.
The scripture says the law is good for at least six solid reasons, but…
- It has no power to make guilty sinners not guilty.
- It has no power to make the unclean clean.
- It has no power to transform the sinner into a saint.
- It has no power to transform the children of the devil into the children of God.
Only the gospel of grace through Jesus Christ can justify sinners.
We are all born with the nature to be legalistic.
If we as Christians forget the purpose of the law, we will drift back into legalism.
And here’s the results according to Paul.
17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not!
18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. NKJV
If we become legalistic…
- We make Christ look like a minister of sin (verse 17)
Paul’s logic: If Christ’s death is what justifies us, and we fall back into legalism, we are sending the message Christ got it wrong. We make Christ look like a sinner who deceived us.
- We rebuild the very theological idea that Christ came to destroy. (verse 18)
Legalism is a prison. If we drift back into legalism, we are rebuilding the prison Christ tore down.
We become anti-Christ to what Christ taught and a stumbling block within the church!
Why do so many Christians become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace?
The second reason Paul gave is that we forget the purpose of the law.
- The Third Reason: Forsaking the new covenant. (vv. 19–20)
Gal 2:19-20
19 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.
20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
NKJV
This is the heart of Paul’s argument: We can become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace when we forsake the new covenant.
“For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.” Verse 19
Through the law, I died to the law. This is covenant language. A covenant does not end until there is the death of the one who made it. The old covenant ended at the cross when Jesus died, representing the one who made the old covenant. Paul died to the law with Christ when He came to faith in Christ.
And then Paul declares what happened to him when he entered into the new covenant with God through Jesus Christ.
- “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Verse 20
Paul is saying that in the new covenant, He is justified and sanctified, not by his life, but by the life of Christ in Him. And now, he lives by faith in what Christ has accomplished for Him and in Him. This is the greatest blessing of the new covenant.
Why do so many Christians become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace?
The third reason Paul gave is we forsake the new covenant to go back to the old one. What a tragedy!
Conclusion
21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”
NKJV
Paul ends with a thunderclap:
“If righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”
Putting our faith in the law covenant to save us is not a small error—it is a denial of the sufficiency of the cross.
Legalism does not just weaken the cross-it insults the cross.
Paul’s closing argument in this verse is that if we put our hope in the law for our justification, we are declaring the cross unnecessary and the sacrifice of Jesus is null and void.
Who are the legalistic Judaizers within the church today?
I have been in our church for 42 years and not one Judaizer has come into our church and taught that the men in our church had to be circumcised to be saved.
So if the works being added to Christ is not circumcision, what are the works being added to Christ that characterize Judaizers in the church today?
- There are those churches who believe that you must adopt certain church practices to be justified.
- Some require baptism to be justified.
They treat baptism as the moment of salvation rather than the sign of salvation.
- Some require church membership to be justified
They treat membership in their church or denomination as a requirement to be justified.
- Some require specific rituals or sacraments to be justified
Communion, confession, confirmation, and catechism.
- Some require adherence to Old Testament ceremonial laws to be justified.
Dietary laws, Sabbath days, Sabbath regulations, and festivals.
- Some require speaking in tongues to be justified.
- There are those within the church who claim that you must adopt certain personal practices to be justified or to prove you are justified.
A fence law is a personal law that is not found in scripture that some believers adopt to keep them from the temptation to sin or keep weaker brothers from the temptation to sin.
Fence laws can be very beneficial to our spiritual life and the spiritual lives of our weaker brothers. For example, when I was single, I personally concluded that having a romantic dating relationship was not good for my spiritual health. So I created a fence law for myself.
A fence law becomes a false gospel the moment you require everyone else to climb your fence to be righteous!
People in the church become like the Judaizers when these personal fence laws become a requirement for all Christians to be justified or a proof you are justified.
Since the founding of our nation, there have been a countless number of legalistic movements within the church that have turned fence laws into requirements to be justified or proof that you are justified. The list is impressive.
- No drinking
- No dancing
- No playing cards (because “cards = gambling”)
- No going to movies
- No secular music
- No rock music in worship
- No watching sports
- No board games or puzzles with “magic” themes
- No reading fiction
- No dating
- No celebrating holidays (Christmas trees, Easter eggs, etc.)
- No pants or shorts for women for any reason, only dresses
- No shorter hair for women
- No longer hair for men
- No facial hair for men
- No short sleeve shirts for men
- No makeup
- No jewelry
- No tattoos
- No piercings
- No coffee or caffeine
- No soft drinks
- No playing pool
- No bowling
- No going to the beach
- No mixed swimming (“men and women shouldn’t swim together”)
- No work on Sundays
- No eating out on Sundays
- No shopping on Sundays
- No sports on Sundays
- No birth control for any reason
- No public education
- No modern bible translations
- No topical sermons-only verse by verse sermons
Judaizers in the church today are those who say you must follow these man-made rules to be justified or you must follow them to prove you are justified.
They will not normally tell you that you are not saved. They will compel you to keep these rules to be holy and the implication is that if you do not keep these rules than you are not holy.
If you are invited to join a church, a denomination, a parachurch movement, a Christian School, or a holiness movement within the church that is legalistic, run for your life!
If you have already joined one, run for your life!
(My personal story with my late wife and children-Because I led my family to join a home-schooling group whose leader was legalistic, I became like Peter and Barnabas. I became a hypocrite. I led my family to live in a legalistic way that contradicted the gospel of grace.)
Galatians 2:11–21 is a warning and a call.
Warning 1:
Even the strongest believers like Peter and Barnabas can become hypocrites and live in a legalistic way that contradicts the gospel of grace.
Call 1:
If that has happened to you, return to the simplicity and power of the gospel of grace:
Christ + nothing=justification
Do not set aside the grace of God for legalism. Stand firm in the gospel of grace. Live by faith alone in Christ alone for your salvation. Walk in the freedom Christ purchased and trust Christ to live His life in you and through the new you. Cling to Grace!
Cling to grace because grace is the only thing that clings back!
Warning 2:
Even some of the most faithful members of a church can die and still be lost in their sins.
How is that possible?
There have been many faithful church members who have never understood the gospel of grace and who died expecting God to save them because of their works.
Jesus talked about them in Matthew 7:21-23
Matt 7:21-23
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
NKJV
Jesus says He will not know you if you expect to be saved because of your works. If you trust in your works to justify you, your name is not written in His book of life.
Call 2: Believe in the gospel of grace through Jesus Christ and be saved. Trust completely in His work for you!
Invitation
If you are a Christian but you have become legalistic and a hypocrite like Peter and Barnabas, repent. Peter and Barnabas did. God restored them and used them in powerful ways.
If you have never understood the gospel of grace until today, be saved from your sins by turning away from your works to save you and put all your hope for salvation from sin in the work of Jesus Christ for you!