Jerusalem Council–Divisions Re: Circumcision

Acts 15:1–5
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It is difficult for many people to be convinced that salvation through faith in Christ alone is enough.  Our temptation is to establish standards, practices, and regulations in addition to faith. This is what Paul and his co-workers faced at this Jerusalem conference, which was about 20 years after Pentecost. This division started when some legalistic Jewish teachers came to Antioch and taught, that in order to be saved, a person had to be circumcised and obey the law (v. 1). In other words, you must first become Jews in order to become Christians. Paul and Barnabas knew that this was not simply an issue of fellowship, but was one of the fundamental doctrines of salvation by grace versus salvation by works. It was decided to send Paul and Barnabas and a few others to Jerusalem to discuss this problem with the apostles and the church leaders (v. 2).

These men told how many Gentiles had turned to the Lord (v. 3). When the men arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, including the apostles and the leaders (v. 4). At this point some Pharisees who had become followers of the Lord stood up and said, “Gentiles who have faith in the Lord must be circumcised and told to obey the Law of Moses” (v. 5). We must realize that the Jews in the Old Testament lived under the law. This law affected every part of their lives from the time they rose in the morning until they went to bed at night. It consisted not only of the Ten Commandments, but also of laws concerning the kind of clothing they wore, and dietary laws concerning foods.

This problem may not meet us today in precisely the same way; but we can still find divisions between classes of people, between nationalities, and between color of skin. We can only realize the true meaning of Christianity when all middle walls of partition are broken down. More than one Spirit-filled servant of God has had to enter open doors of opportunity without the support of churches and religious leaders.

Application

Every person must make the decision that was made at this Jerusalem council. Salvation is completely by grace, and is not dependent on my works in any way (Eph. 2:8, 9). Praise the Lord. He came to save sinners and not good people! Otherwise I would never make it to Heaven.