293
See also: The Nature of Faith 236–41 ■ The Word Spreads 288–89 ■ Salvation Through Faith 301 ■
The Power of the Resurrection 304–05ACTS, EPISTLES, AND REVELATION
Paul and Barnabas, James, an
increasingly influential leader in
the Jerusalem church, cites the
prophet Amos to show that it was
always God’s intention that people
from other nations would “seek
the Lord” (15:17). Like Peter, he
concludes that “we should not
make it difficult for the Gentiles
who are turning to God” (15:19).A compromise
James proposes a compromise:
there will be no circumcision for
Gentile believers, but they will be
required to observe certain Jewish
dietary and cleanliness laws,
chiefly to ensure that Jewish and
Gentile believers can eat together.
James’s proposal is accepted, and
so believers from Jerusalem are
chosen to go back to Antioch with
Paul and Barnabas, bearing a letter
confirming the Council’s resolutions.
The Council of Jerusalem is a
watershed. It stresses above all the
importance of understanding that
God wants to reach out to Gentiles,
as He did with Cornelius and his
household, and the Gentile converts
Paul and Barnabas made in their
travels. This creates a consensusbetween God and His people, as
reflected in a famous clause from
the letter the Council sends to the
believers in Antioch: “It seemed
good to the Holy Spirit and to us
not to burden you” (15:28). In the
new “kingdom” that is therefore
established, Gentile believers
enjoy full and equal citizenship
with Jewish ones. Faith alone
gives entry. With these truths
firmly established, the rest of Acts
is dominated at the human level by
Paul, God’s “chosen instrument”
(9:15), for bringing the message
of the Gospel to the Gentiles. ■This decision preserves
the unity of the Church
and takes its reach beyond
that of Judaism.But the Council decides that
salvation does not require
adherence to the Law ...... Gentiles converting to
Christianity should be
circumcised, according
to Mosaic Law.Some argue that because
Christianity is the fulfillment
of promises made in the
Pentateuch ...The elders of the Church
meet in Jerusalem.... and makes no faith
distinction between
Gentile and Jew.Paul and Peter’s fight at Antioch
In his letter to the Galatians,
Paul describes a combative
encounter in Antioch with the
Apostle Peter over Jewish
dietary laws. Paul publicly
accuses Peter of inconsistency
and hypocrisy because Peter
sometimes eats with Gentile
believers, but at other times
refrains from doing so for fear
of offending Jewish visitors from
Jerusalem (Galatians 2:11–12).
Paul argues, “You are a Jew,yet you live like a Gentile ...
How is it, then, that you force
Gentiles to follow Jewish
customs?” (2:14).
These were difficult issues
for leaders of the early Church.
As shown at the Council of
Jerusalem, Peter and other
Church leaders eventually agree
that outreach to the Gentiles
was God’s initiative through
Christ and could not be ignored
by the Church.The rest of mankind
may seek the Lord,
even all the Gentiles
who bear my name.
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