The Book of Acts: Lesson 31

Acts 15:1-12

Teaching Schedule

August 17th: Catholicity

August 24th: Acts 15: 1-12.

August 31st: Acts 15:22-35

September 7th: Acts 15:36-41, Acts 16:1-5.

September 14th: Acts 16:6-10 - Brunch

September 21st: Acts 16:11-40

September 28th: Acts 17:1-15

October 5th: Acts 17:16-34

October 12th: No Class

October 19th: Acts 18:1-22 - Brunch

October 26th: Acts 18:23-28, 19:1-7

November 2nd: Acts 19:8-20

November 9th: Acts 19:21-41

November 16th: Acts 20:1-12 - Brunch

November 23rd: Acts 20:13-28

November 30th: No Class

I. The Controversy at Antioch (vv. 1–2)

Acts 15:1–2 “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.”

The Dispute Raised (v. 1)

Certain men from Judea teach that circumcision is required for salvation.

The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary Chronological Comparison—Paul’s Letters and Acts

LETTERS

ACTS

Paul the Persecutor

Gal. 1:13–14

Acts 7:58; 8:1–3

Paul’s Call/Conversion near Damascus

Gal. 1:15–17

Acts 9:1–22 (etc.)

To Arabia

Gal. 1:17b

Return to Damascus

Gal. 1:17c (three years)

Flight from Damascus

2 Cor. 11:32–33

Acts 9:23–25

First Visit to Jerusalem as a Christian

Gal. 1:18–20

Acts 9:26–29

To the Regions of Syria and Cilicia

Gal. 1:21–22

Acts 9:30 (Tarsus from Caesarea)

(visionary experience—2 Cor. 12:1–10)

To Antioch

(see Gal. 2:11–14)

Acts 11:25–26

Antioch Famine Fund/Second Visit to Jerusalem

Gal. 2:1–10

Acts 11:29–30/12:25

First Missionary Journey

Gal. 4:13–15

Acts 13–14

Return to Antioch

(see Gal. 2:11–14)

Acts 14:26–28

Judaizers to Antioch/Antioch Incident

Gal. 2:11–14

Acts 15:1–2

Judaizers to Galatia

(Cf. Gal. 1:6–9; 3:1; 4:17–5:12; 6:12–13)

Paul Writes Galatians (from Antioch)

Gal. 6:11

Paul and Barnabas Go Up to Jerusalem/Third Visit

Acts 15:2–29

Return to Antioch/Reading of Decree

Acts 15:30–35

Galatians 2:11–14 “But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?””

Customs of Moses

How can one be saved?

Enculturation

Protective Enculturation in the Old Testament

Divinely inspired in the Pentateuch

Civil Law, national holidays and dietary taboos

Attitude toward race or blood lineage (Ezra 10:9–15, Lk 10:29-37)

Ezra 10:9–15 (ESV)

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month. And all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have broken faith and married foreign women, and so increased the guilt of Israel. Now then make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.” Then all the assembly answered with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as you have said. But the people are many, and it is a time of heavy rain; we cannot stand in the open. Nor is this a task for one day or for two, for we have greatly transgressed in this matter. Let our officials stand for the whole assembly. Let all in our cities who have taken foreign wives come at appointed times, and with them the elders and judges of every city, until the fierce wrath of our God over this matter is turned away from us.” Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah opposed this, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supported them.

Luke 10:29–37 ESV

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

The gospel message becomes disenculturated, freed from the protective shell, so that it may take root in a thousand different cultural and political soils and bring them to full expression.

In Acts 10, we see Peter being convinced by dreams and by Cornelius conversion that the whole Old Testament marriage of culture and religion is now dissolved and the ceremonial law abrogated.

This teaching strikes at the heart of the gospel of grace.

The subject of justification

The Dispute Contested (v. 2)

Paul and Barnabas strongly oppose the teaching.

discord and fierce debate

The church at Antioch appoints Paul, Barnabas, and others to go to Jerusalem to consult the apostles and elders.

Elders of the congregations in Jerusalem

Established the authority of church councils

II. The Journey to Jerusalem (vv. 3–4)

Acts 15:3–4 “So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the brothers. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they declared all that God had done with them.”

Encouragement Along the Way (v. 3)

Paul and Barnabas pass through Phoenicia and Samaria, reporting the conversion of Gentiles.

delegation to Jerusalem (Southern Baptist Convention)

conversion - epistrophe / turn around

worldview conversion not cultural change

The news brings great joy to the believers.

Reception at Jerusalem (v. 4)

They are warmly welcomed by the church, apostles, and elders.

Paul and Barnabas report what God had done through them.

Catholicity of the early church

They identified closely with one another.

What God had done through them

Acts 11:17–18 “If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.””

III. The Debate in Jerusalem (vv. 5–6)

Acts 15:5–6 “But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.” The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter.”

The Objection of the Pharisee Believers (v. 5)

Some believers from the party of the Pharisees insist that Gentiles must be circumcised and keep the law of Moses.

It is necessary

To keep the law

The Deliberation of the Apostles and Elders (v. 6)

The leaders gather to consider the matter carefully.

Will the movement continue as a Jewish sect alongside the Pharisees and Sadducees, or will it become a separate religion entirely?

Peter, Paul and Barnabas, James

IV. Peter’s Testimony (vv. 7–11)

Acts 15:7–11 “And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor been able to bear? But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.””

Peter’s Appeal to God’s Work (vv. 7–9)

God chose Peter to bring the gospel to the Gentiles.

Content Clause

God’s choice, there should be no debate.

God gave them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to the Jews.

kardiognostes (Acts 1:24)

bear witness by giving the Holy Spirit to confirm that the Lord saves Gentiles by faith in Christ Jesus.

God made no distinction between Jews and Gentiles, cleansing their hearts by faith.

Peter’s Rebuke of Legalism (v. 10)

He challenges the idea of placing a yoke on the disciples that neither Jews nor their ancestors could bear.

Jeremiah 31:33 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

Ezekiel 37:14 “And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.””

Ezekiel 37:23–24 “They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. “My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes.”

Peter’s Affirmation of Grace (v. 11)

Salvation comes through the grace of the Lord Jesus, the same way for both Jews and Gentiles.

The Mic drop moment in this debate

How a person is justified is stated definitively here. Justification is given through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, not the customs of the law. (Romans 1-3).

Romans 3:21–26 “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

The damn breaks on the past. The new covenant promises make the old covenant obsolete.

Hebrews 8:13 “In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”

Mark 2:21–22 “No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.””

V. The Response of the Assembly (v. 12)

Acts 15:12 “And all the assembly fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.”

The Silence of the Assembly

The gathered believers fall silent, acknowledging Peter’s testimony.

Agendas, ignorance

Truth, sanctification

God’s mission to bless all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3 “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.””)

The Attention to Paul and Barnabas

They listen as Paul and Barnabas recount the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

Overwhelming evidence

Proconsul in Cyprus (Acts 13:12 “Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”)

Pisidia Antioch (Acts 13:48–49 “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region.” “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.” )

Cripple man in Lystra

Stoning in Iconium, preaching in Derbe

God was behind their ministry among the Gentiles.