Conflict resolved!

Acts 15:12-21

¹² Everyone listened quietly as Barnabas and Paul told about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

¹³ When they had finished, James stood and said, “Brothers, listen to me. ¹⁴ Peter has told you about the time God first visited the Gentiles to take from them a people for himself. ¹⁵ And this conversion of Gentiles is exactly what the prophets predicted. As it is written:

¹⁶ ‘Afterward I will return
and restore the fallen house of David.
I will rebuild its ruins
and restore it,
¹⁷ so that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord,
including the Gentiles—
all those I have called to be mine.
The Lord has spoken—
¹⁸ he who made these things known so long ago.’

¹⁹ “And so my judgment is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. ²⁰ Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood. ²¹ For these laws of Moses have been preached in Jewish synagogues in every city on every Sabbath for many generations.”

This passage begins with believers listening intently to Paul and Barnabus’s account of God moving amongst the Gentiles (non-Jewish population).  There appeared to be no distinction between Jewish Christians and gentile Christians in terms of the Holy Spirit moving in their midst.  This was exciting and good news although there was much debate at the time over whether gentile believers needed to be circumcised to be truly saved.

So, who was right?  James reminds the believers that the prophets of old spoke of God’s intention to include the Gentiles in his plans.  It seems a compromise was put forward to keep the peace and end confusion.  The gentile Christians did not need to be circumcised however they were asked to be careful to not get involved in activities connected with idols, to guard the morality of sex and marriage, to not serve food offensive to Jewish Christians—blood, for instance.’   The motivation behind this was not to burden gentile believers with the requirements of the law because Jesus had made a new way.  At the same time the Jewish and Gentile believers needed to live side by side, not cause each other offence and love one another.  I am reminded of how freeing and inclusive the gospel of Jesus truly is.  We are set free from the Old Testament requirements of the law – Jesus met those conditions for us.

Thank you, Lord, that your plan for salvation includes all peoples.  Thank you, Jesus, for setting us free and help us to love and respect our Christian brothers and sisters.

Written by Ps. Ainslie Woods