Note 17 at Gal. 2:8: It is amazing to our way of thinking that God would have chosen Peter to share the gospel with the Jews and Paul to share the gospel with the Gentiles. Paul was steeped in Jewish law and tradition. He could have out-argued any religious Jew. And Peter was a near pagan himself. Who could have related to the Gentiles better than he? Yet, God's ways are higher than man's ways (Isa. 55:9).

The Lord doesn't want to argue men into salvation or get them to associate with those who are saved just because of friendship. Salvation has to be a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. "God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence" (1 Cor. 1:27-29; see note 11 at 1 Cor. 1:27, p. 864).