Religion & Spirituality:Christianity
Hello and welcome to Lechem Panim! In our study of Acts 15 we have been talking about the events set in motion by this group of Judaizers (or Jew-makers) who came to the new Gentile Christians in Antioch and tried to impose upon them all of the ceremonial Law of Moses; specifically the right of circumcision. This caused quite an uproar, so that Paul and Barnabas traveled to Jerusalem to have the council give an official answer to this issue. And, after some debate, a decision is reached. And the council concludes that all the evidence shows that the Gentiles have already been fully accepted by God (having the Holy Spirit and the transformation of heart and life that goes along with Him); and so they prescribe only a few rules for the Gentiles to obey not in order to live lives of legalism, but to protect them from immorality and help preserve their relationships with their Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ. And we expounded each of those last week. But now the time has come for the decision to be brought to the church in Antioch. And so it says in…
Acts 15:22-23 (NKJV)— 22 Then it pleased the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas who was also named Barsabas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren. 23 They wrote this letter by them: The apostles, the elders, and the brethren,
To the brethren who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.
Now notice the loving language of this letter. They call them “the brethren who are of the Gentiles”. So right from the outset they are communicating that the gentile Christians ARE indeed one of them.
Acts 15:24 (NKJV)— 24 Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words {[The word translated “troubling” (from anaskeuazo) is “a military metaphor for plundering a town.”]}, unsettling your souls, saying, “You must be circumcised and keep the law”—to whom we gave no such commandment—
And so the council is reiterating that these Judaizers who had come to them had no authority or sanction from the Jerusalem Council and therefore what they said could be disregarded. And in a similar way with us, if anyone tries to place us under the law, we can know that they are not speaking with God’s (or the true Church’s) authority and can therefore (standing on the authority of the Word of God) reject what they are saying and cling to salvation by grace through faith alone. Now next they write…
Acts 15:25-26 (NKJV)— 25 it seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And so the council sends to them men who have been tested; men who have risked life and limb for the sake of the Gospel.
Acts 15:27 (NKJV)— 27 We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will also report the same things by word of mouth.
Judas & Silas— Now the reason they did this was because if only Barnabas and Paul were sent, the people might say, “Well, of course these two men would give us this kind of report.” So they send along Judas and Silas as well in order to confirm to the gentiles that this was indeed the decision of the council. Now the rest of the letter once again ties all this back to the moving hand of God and how He Himself was leading. It says…
Acts 15:28-29 (NKJV)— 28 For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: 29 that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well.
And that is all. No in-depth theological treatise. Just a loving letter releasing them from all obligation to live under the law. Now after the men receive this letter from the council, it says…
Acts 15:30-31 (NKJV)— 30 So when they were sent off, they came to Antioch; and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the letter. 31 When they had read it, they rejoiced over its encouragement.
Comfort & Liberation— And that is what always happen wherever the TRUE Gospel is proclaimed. The Gospel of Christ is always one of consolation, comfort, and liberation. The Law (in the end) brings condemnation because it is a mirror that shows us how ugly our spiritual condition really is. But the Gospel brings hope that in Jesus we have received forgiveness from sin and the power to live a life that the Law had no power to help me live. Now after this it says…
Acts 15:32-34 (NKJV)— 32 Now Judas and Silas, themselves being prophets also, exhorted and strengthened the brethren with many words. 33 And after they had stayed there for a time, they were sent back with greetings from the brethren to the apostles.
34 However, it seemed good to Silas to remain there.
Silas Stays— Now Silas and Paul obviously got along really well together. Silas must have really like Paul, enjoyed working with him, and probably learned a lot from him. And so he stays in Antioch with Paul and Barnabas to help grow the church there. It says…
Acts 15:35 (NKJV)— 35 Paul and Barnabas also remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.
And Paul and Barnabas were actually the pastors of the church there in Antioch.
The First Diversity— Now the challenge that the Church will continue to face after this council is not just the salvation by grace alone issue. Rather, it is how to bring together people from all different races and people groups; people who often had very little in common except their faith in the Lord Jesus. They had their own cultures and subcultures; different histories; different traditions and practices; they had different customs and even languages. And so to try to imagine how you can bring unity and oneness to such a diverse group would be difficult. One solution is simply to decide that it is impossible and not do it. Instead, [segregate, isolate, and study each other with suspicion.] But that approach [profoundly affects Christianity’s effective and attractiveness]. It leads to snobbery and a generally judgmental atmosphere, which would betray the teachings of Jesus and His desire to see His followers be one as He and the Father are one (John 17); and Christianity would lose it’s appeal. Now the other solution is to lay down our presuppositions at the feet of Christ and choose to imitate Him (as Ephesians 5:1 tells us to do) and [become tolerant, understanding, and accepting.] Now that of course doesn’t meant we are to tolerate sin or sinful lifestyles. [James mentioned a few laws the the Gentile believers should see, with an understanding that basic morality and living for God would cover the rest.] But nothing brings greater joy and glory to God than believers of all different racial and ethnic backgrounds and all different social strata coming together in worship of Christ and around the fulfillment of His mission.
These 5 Fingers— [In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy demanded that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn't. "What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" asks Linus.
"These five fingers," says Lucy. "Individually they're nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold."
"Which channel do you want?" asks Linus. Turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, "Why can't you guys get organized like that?”]
The Three Results— Now this decision by the council accomplished three practical things. First, it preserved and strengthened the unity of the Church, keeping it from splitting into two extreme “law” and “grace” groups. Rather, they demonstrated the right kind of compromise. They didn’t compromise on doctrine (which is always wrong, as Jude 3 warns us about), but were willing to give and take in the practical arrangements of life so that the various members could work and live together in love and unbroken harmonious fellowship.
Secondly, this united decision allowed the Church to present a united witness to lost Jews (Acts 15:21). And the compromise of the gentiles allowed Jews to be drawn to the Christian faith without being repelled by unneeded offense.
Third, this letter brought blessing to all who heard it. Not only was this letter read to the gentile believers in Antioch, but Paul (on his second missionary journey) also shared this letter with all the churches he had founded on his first missionary journey. The result was that those churches grew in their faith and also in their numbers (Acts 16:5).
Christ of The Andes— This week I read an interesting story of how [Years ago, a large statue of Christ was erected high in the Andes on the border between Argentina and Chile. Called "Christ of the Andes," the statue symbolizes a pledge between the two countries that as long as the statue stands, there will be peace between Chile and Argentina. Shortly after the statue was erected, the Chileans began to protest that they had been slighted -- the statue had its back turned to Chile. Just when tempers were at their highest in Chile, a Chilean newspaperman saved the day. In an editorial that not only satisfied the people but made them laugh, he simply said, "The people of Argentina need more watching over than the Chileans.]
Share The Grace— You know, it’s amazing what impact one person can have in bringing unity in a situation. And the way you and I can help do that is by being careful not to put stumbling blocks in front of people by forcing them to conform to what might not be a theological belief, but more of a traditional practice. We can easily fall into the trap of thinking that we are honoring and obeying God with our traditionalism, structure, and legalistic requirements when in fact we may be creating distance between God and others. Freedom and life are what we give others when we share with them the true message of the Gospel, not rules and ceremonies. And so let us share that life; that freedom in Christ Jesus with those to whom we witness. Amen.
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