Gal 2:11-14 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. (12) For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. (13) And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. (14) But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
The Pope claims that he is the successor of the Apostle Peter, insisting that Peter was the first Pope. If that be so, and it isn’t, then how is it that none of the Popes (let’s call them the papacy) have ever accepted a rebuke? They will not receive correction – not even from God’s own Word. The Papacy, Rome insists, is infallible and its declarations are to be received as God’s truth. Martin Luther and the other reformers were branded as heretics for revealing from God’s own Word – the Bible – that the false gospel Rome was in fact, a lie.
Did the “successor of Peter” accept the correction? Nope.
This spirit is the same that we see in hypocrites today who hide in the church. Just like the Pharisees who hated the Son of God Himself, so today those of the same ilk not only refuse correction and twist the Scriptures, they also hate those who “dare” call them out on their lies.
How a person responds to biblical, true correction when they are in error speaks volumes about their real character. None of us enjoy being corrected – we have to admit we were wrong and our flesh doesn’t like that. Nevertheless, if we are truly following Christ, we will accept a biblical rebuke given out of sincerity, realizing that we are fallible beings who must walk humbly before our God.
The wicked are not so.