Peter’s Defense of His Gentile Mission
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Having a covering
When Paul was called. The man who wrote a third of the NT.
The man who had apostolic authority.
The man who recieved revelation from God.
The church planter.
The missionary .
The man that was able to perform miracles.
Saul later name Paul had a covering. He did not opporate outside of His covering .
Acts 13:1-3Acts 13:1-3 “1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.”
What would convince a charismatic that the cerebral (intellectual rather then emotional) theological discourses that pass for sermons in emotionless orthodoxy can call people to genuine faith? What would convince those in a formal tradition that the faith of those who have responded to emotionally charged charismatic preaching is authentic?
We have these preconceived ideas of what preaching is and how church should look based upon our traditions .
What should the Pastor speak about.
How the music should sound
Have you ever noticed the ones that always do the complaining are the ones not doing anything in the church.
Well I thought Christianity is a white mans religion.
Oh I thought Christianity is for political control and to control the masses.
I thought it was exclusively for Jewish people.
Christianity is an exclusive teaching; it is an intolerant teaching. I do not say this because I am intolerant, but because I am concerned about your soul. If you say that Christianity is not exclusive and intolerant, then you must say that one religion is as good as another, and I am here to deny that.
Authentic Christianity (3), 214
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones
1 Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.
2 And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him,
3 saying, “You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!”
Having heard that the gentiles recieved the word of God.
God challenged Peters bias’s, now challenging the other Christians of that time bias’s.
Before this moment it seems that only converted Jews where Christians.
But they still obeyed the customs of Judaism. What they eat who they fellowshipped with.
There was no social intercourse between those who where uncircumcised and the circumcised.
How sad it is when man-made rules designed to protect our holiness and bring us close to God prevent us from seeing and rejoicing when God grants salvation to those who had not known his grace.
Imagine if church was this way we had so many activities so much excitement. we fail to see when Gods is moving. When a soul gets saved. When maturity happens .
Or imagining targeting the exciting things but neglect the main things that God has for His church. Which is unity, love, the grace of God , purity, fellowship.
Or we want the charismatic! The emotion, the lights, and completely miss God.
Or I want the cerebral and completely miss or over intellualize God.
There was some gentleman some years back. Who was a great friends of mine. Started to explore with apologetics.
They accused Peter with making himself ritually unclean by entering and eating in a Gentile’s house.
They failed to see what God was doing.
Sometimes we can live in the excitement of the work and completely miss God.
The primary issue here is that Peter sat and ate with Gentiles.
The issue here isn’t that Peter preached and baptised a gentile its the fact that he ate with them.
This is a form of pride of course
Its easy to preach to one.
In the spirit of pride.
Its easy to preach to one because theres something you think they need to know theres something that I have that you don’t got.
That has its place but its sometime entirely different to sit where someone sits.
The reason this was such a big deal because eating with someone was a mark of acceptance and fellowship.
Thats why Jesus was under allot of preasure when He was accused with eating with tax collectors and sinners.
16 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?”
In 1988 George H. W. Bush campaigned for a kinder, gentler America. As the Cold War stumbled toward a conclusion, however, his hope proved to be illusive (deceptive). The peace payment arrived in red ink. The American economy soured, unemployment rose to post-Depression-era highs and a new wave of violence racked urban centers in North America. The one remaining superpower was tormented by a wave of self-doubt as voices across the country asked, “What is wrong with America?” A new wave of media experts pointed their fingers at the traditional scapegoats: immigrants, ethnic minorities, the urban poor and hardened criminals. Many Christians found comfort in their angry denunciations ( public condemnations).
The scribe and Pharisees where Jewish nationalist and everything that was wrong with the Promise land where tax collectors and sinners.
The tax collectors where Jewish people who worked for Rome. They bought a franchise that gave the exclusive right to collect taxes in a particular area.
But there was no cap on how much they could gather. And it was protect by the government and Roman Soldiers.
So Jesus publicly said these people are my disciples. The fact that Jesus ate with them showed that He accepts them and fellowships with them
But Jesus didn’t affirm them! He didn’t condone what they did and said it was right. but He loved them.
God wants us to love.
But we love without hypocrisy. Love with hypocrisy is void of truth .
In other words I love just enough to keep you in the condition that you are. But I don’t love you enough to tell you the truth.
2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.”
This very act was forbidden in Jewish circles.
12 for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.
Paul does give us a understanding who or who we are not to eat with.
9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people.
10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world.
11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.
Those who are named a brother.
This is one who isn’t repentant.
17 If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?”
