As you read this chapter, a feeling you may get is that Paul is being quite condescending towards the church leaders.

In verse 6, he says of them, “from those who seemed to be something—whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man—for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me.”

And again in verse 9, towards the apostles he said, “and when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars…”

Does Paul really have no regard for church leaders? Do we feel emboldened by Paul’s example - withstanding Peter “to his face”, pointing out Peter’s flaws publicly and even talking about it in such an open letter?

Let us ask ourselves: who/what do we submit or humble ourselves to?

If we only submit to men, we may end up like the Galatians, who were being led astray by false teachers (Gal 1:6, Gal 3:1), not questioning whether what they were being taught was true to the gospel they had received.

But if we do not discern our own hearts, we may end up submitting to our own egos and self righteousness. And we may become like the false apostles instead, who always undermined Paul’s authority by criticizing him (2 Cor 10:10), so they could gain eminence in the church (2 Cor 10:12, 11:12).

I am sure Paul actually acknowledged and respected the other apostles. Being fellow servants of Christ, he would have known their labours and understood their difficulties. He taught others to acknowledge and submit to such men (1 Cor 16:16), and he himself was also obedient to the church’s sending and the apostles’ instructions on multiple occasions in Acts (Acts 21:17-26)

But Paul submitted to the gospel above all other authorities. He lived to God and not for himself (Gal 2:19-20). When he stood up against Peter openly, it was because his actions concerned the truth of the gospel, not out of any selfish or misguided desire. 

Let us always remind ourselves who our Master is. When we know clearly who it is who approves or disapproves us, the One whom we seek justification from, this will naturally teach us when to submit, and when to speak up.

We may be the more compliant sort, or we may find ourselves often questioning or even challenging the decisions made by others. Whichever type we are, let us reflect on whether our choice and actions reflect our true allegiance.