The Higher Obligation

Sunday, Sept 15, 2024

Start with Application Testimony

[Give people an opportunity to share how they applied what we learned last week]

Last week’s question: How does the way you listen to God, need to change or mature this week? How do you need to include others in your listening?

INTRO

Paul has concluded his third missionary journey and is headed to Jerusalem

The Lord has been warning Paul that he is going to experience imprisonment and suffering when he goes back to Jerusalem - but Paul is also sure that the Lord is sending him there

Paul and his traveling companions have just spent time with Philip and the other Christians in Caesarea, who also warned him and tried to stop him

When they couldn’t convince Paul to stay away from Jerusalem, they chose to support his decision and trust God with whatever would happen

READ

Question to consider as we read:

What does it mean to be free in Christ?

Acts 21:15–26 CSB

15 After this we got ready and went up to Jerusalem. 16 Some of the disciples from Caesarea also went with us and brought us to Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we were to stay. 17 When we reached Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters welcomed us warmly. 18 The following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. 19 After greeting them, he reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 When they heard it, they glorified God and said, “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law. 21 But they have been informed about you—that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to abandon Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or to live according to our customs. 22 So what is to be done? They will certainly hear that you’ve come. 23 Therefore do what we tell you: We have four men who have made a vow. 24 Take these men, purify yourself along with them, and pay for them to get their heads shaved. Then everyone will know that what they were told about you amounts to nothing, but that you yourself are also careful about observing the law. 25 With regard to the Gentiles who have believed, we have written a letter containing our decision that they should keep themselves from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from what is strangled, and from sexual immorality.” 26 So the next day, Paul took the men, having purified himself along with them, and entered the temple, announcing the completion of the purification days when the offering would be made for each of them.

EXAMINE

What are the key points in this passage?

#1 | People are hearing unfounded rumors and have concerns about Paul

The rumor is that Paul is instructing Jews to give up their culture and traditions

Acts 21:21 “But they have been informed about you—that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to abandon Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or to live according to our customs.”

Even though these things weren’t salvation issues, they were still important to Jewish identity and heritage

This wasn’t about sin, it was about offense

Following the Law of Moses was not required for Jewish Christians - so if true, the rumor would not mean that Paul was teaching people to sin

However, we can imagine how offensive it would be if Paul were teaching Jews to give up their heritage and traditions, which had been uniquely given to them by God

And Paul understood the importance of not creating unnecessary offense (Consider 1 Corinthians 10:32–33)

#2 | The Elders advise Paul to lay these rumors and concerns to rest

They chose the most practical way to address the concerns

Acts 21:24 “Take these men, purify yourself along with them, and pay for them to get their heads shaved. Then everyone will know that what they were told about you amounts to nothing, but that you yourself are also careful about observing the law.”

It was more immediately effective for Paul to simply demonstrate he still honored Jewish customs, than to try to publicly refute the lie with verbal arguments

The only barrier to this solution would have been Paul’s own rights and freedoms

Paul could have said “he didn’t have to do anything” or “wasn’t obligated to prove anything to anyone”

But again, we can see his thinking in 1 Corinthians 9:19–21 “Although I am free from all and not anyone’s slave, I have made myself a slave to everyone, in order to win more people. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win Jews; to those under the law, like one under the law—though I myself am not under the law—to win those under the law. 21 To those who are without the law, like one without the law—though I am not without God’s law but under the law of Christ—to win those without the law.”

#3 | Paul’s freedom in Christ allows him to adopt the boundaries of others

Obligations to culture, traditions, and rules can actually be barriers to unity

When we bind ourselves too tightly to these things, we only associate with others who hold the same convictions

While these things may have value, our obligation to them is a lower obligation than our obligation to love others and pursue unity in the Body of Christ

For Paul, Freedom in Christ meant he was free from the lower obligations of culture and traditions, so that he could be bound to the higher obligations of love and unity (1 Cor 9:21)

Consider his instructions to the church in Rome:

Romans 13:8 “Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

Romans 14:13–18 “...decide never to put a stumbling block or pitfall in the way of your brother or sister. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. Still, to someone who considers a thing to be unclean, to that one it is unclean. 15 For if your brother or sister is hurt by what you eat, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy, by what you eat, someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore, do not let your good be slandered, 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever serves Christ in this way is acceptable to God and receives human approval.”

APPLY

Explore and apply the passage with these questions:

[Allow the conversation to go where people take it - we want people to feel the liberty to explore the topics of the passage that stand out to them. Select the questions from below that you think are right for the conversation, or add your own. Questions should be focused, yet open-ended. Wherever the conversation goes, help your group “land the plane” on the core idea of the lesson when you wrap up.]

What questions do you have as you think through this lesson?

How does Freedom in Christ look different from the way we might typically think of freedom?

Have you thought about love and unity as an obligation given to you by Jesus? How does that effect your approach to it?

Where we want to “land the plane”

In Christ, our freedom is a gift that enables us to meet people wherever they are, share their burdens, and even conform to their boundaries in order to build bridges and foster unity. Just as Jesus did not hold on to His own rights, our liberty is a gift that we are called to willfully lay down in service to others. If we do this, we will see God build a community with us that is strong and fosters growth and freedom in others.

Application question for the Week

[Encourage people to provide an answer now, if they are able - to provide an opportunity for accountability and praise reports the following week.]

How is God calling you to make yourself a “slave to everyone” this week? Refer to 1 Corinthians 9:19-21

REFLECT

Prayer Points for Today

Ask the Lord to teach us to understand the freedom we have in Christ, and how to use it for the benefit of others, the way that Christ did.

FOOTNOTES

The Nazarite Vow. The Apostle Paul may have participated in something similar to the Nazirite vow. In Acts 21:23–27, the elders in Jerusalem advise Paul to purify himself and four other men “who are under a vow” to demonstrate that he lives in observance of the law. Paul does so and pays for the other men to have their heads shaved, likely to end their vow. While this sounds similar to the Nazirite vow, the text doesn’t specify what type of vow these men were under. Stuart Chepey suggests they were poor Nazirites who could not afford to complete the vow (Chepey, Nazirites, 189). If this is the case, Paul’s ritual cleansing may have been linked to a Levitical need for purification, which would have allowed him to pay for the fulfillment of the four Nazirite vows (Chepey, Nazirites, 166–67). Scripture does not specify why someone would undertake the Nazirite vow. Tony Cartledge argues that the Nazirite vow was a conditional vow that looked forward to answered prayer rather than selfless devotion to God (Cartledge, “Unconditional,” 422). Chepey notes that the vow was widespread and transcended social classes. He further notes that it was customarily taken in times of sickness and destitution during the time of the Jewish war (Chepey, Nazirites, 186). Times of festivals were also opportunities to take Nazirite vows, especially Pentecost (Chepey, Nazirites, 194). J. Chase Franklin, “Nazirite,” ed. John D. Barry et al., The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

Another Israelite might associate himself with Nazirites by defraying the cost of their offering; this was regarded as a pious and charitable action. The elders’ proposal, then, was that Paul should associate himself with the four Nazirites when they discharged their vow in the temple and pay their expenses. F. F. Bruce, The Book of the Acts, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 406.