Even from close to the beginning of the church, there have been differences in understanding the message of Jesus. In this chapter we do see how the church worked out those differences. Letting go of their past and their traditions was hard, but they did it. I see the holy spirit at work even though he is not mentioned by name.
From the NIV, I see a couple of lines that really stand out for me. “3 The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad.” (Acts 15:3). And then in Antioch, “30 So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31 The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message.” (Acts 15:30,31).
Your turn.
I think it’s interesting that we see a matter settled. Agreement.
Then directly after, we see a disagreement that was sharp enough to cause Paul to go with Silas and Barnabas to go with Mark. They parted from each other.
That makes me ponder about how the Church has so many denominations at this point in time..
Yes. In some ways, it’s a wonder there aren’t more.
A few thoughts:
Verse 5 – I think it’s interesting that the English translation implies the believers STILL belong to the Pharisees. Is that how the Greek reads? At what point did believers leave Judaism altogether?
Verse 19 – “My judgement is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.” What does this mean for me? Do I make it difficult for people to turn to God? Do I place my cultural/behavioral expectations on people so even if they want to believe they feel they have to abandon their identity in order to fully belong? I keep coming back to the verse that says, “His lovingkindness leads us to repentance,” convicted that it is God’s love through me that will draw people, not arguing or condemning. The next thought is, how can people feel I love them without compromising my integrity. Usually it is through staying silent about where we disagree until the Holy Spirit prompts me to say something. One time I was in an airport waiting for a flight and a man struck up a conversation with me about religion. We were talking about how similar the religions are, and he concluded by saying they are basically the same. That was when I felt the Spirit’s prompting, and with great sadness I told him I couldn’t agree; that we have different beliefs about who Jesus is. I can’t remember if I said much more than that, but it was a meaningful conversation. I sometimes wonder what happened to him. All that to say: combativeness makes enemies, but love and compassion open doors to hearts.
As to verse 5, yes, the Greek is even simpler in describing these men as “from the party of Pharisees.” The split between Judaism and Christianity took place over a few centuries, before there were no longer individuals who considered themselves Jewish Christians.
As to verse 19, I’m thinking that there is still a point where the gospel has to be shared, and that may seem like a barrier, but there it is. But the council’s decision to eliminate any other requirements other than baptism and receiving the holy spirit is completely appropriate.