Open Sesame

(Back to Study Home Page)   Sermon March 14, 2004
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March 14, 2004 - Matthew 13.51-53

Though the lesson this week is from Matthew, this study guide is from Acts 15.1-21 and the report of the Jerusalem Counsel which established guidelines for the proclaiming of the Gospel to the Gentiles.

Open It

  1. When faced with a problem, do you want someone else to solve it, or do you like to figure out for yourself what you should do? Why?

  2. What is most challenging to you about enforcing rules?

  3. When you think your opinion is right, how do you tend to express your view?

Explore It

  1. What were the men from Judea teaching the Christians? (Acts 15:1)

  2. On what did the men of Judea base their theology? (Acts 15:1)

  3. How did Paul and Barnabas respond to the teaching problem at Antioch? (Acts 15:2)

  4. How did the apostles determine to resolve the problem in Antioch? (Acts 15:2)

  5. When Paul and Barnabas arrived in Jerusalem, how did the church receive them? (Acts 15:4)

  6. What did the believing Pharisees say? (Acts 15:5)

  7. How did the church leaders respond to the Pharisees? (Acts 15:6)

  8. What did Peter say to the party of the Pharisees? (Acts 15:7-11)

  9. How did James summarize his views? (Acts 15:13-21)

  10. How did James deal with the circumcision question from a biblical standpoint? (Acts 15:15-18)

  11. What practical judgment did James make? (Acts 15:19-21)

  12. What did James mean by his concluding statement? (Acts 15:21)

Get It

  1. What was wise about using a council to deal with the thorny issue of how non-Jews could be saved?

  2. How was the problem of this council larger than the issue of circumcision?

  3. Why were Paul, Barnabas, Peter, and James the right men to resolve the conflict?

  4. What areas of your faith create conflict within you?

  5. What beliefs or practices do Christians add to the gospel?

  6. How can we remind ourselves to require of new believers only what God requires?

Apply It

  1. Where can you get help resolving an issue about which you are unsure?

  2. This week, what change in your schedule can you make to allow enough time for studying God's Word?

NOTES

Acts 15:1ff: The delegates to the council at Jerusalem came from the churches in Jerusalem and Antioch. The conversion of Gentiles was raising an urgent question for the early church-do the Gentiles have to adhere to the laws of Moses and other Jewish traditions to be saved? One group of Jewish Christians insisted that following the law, including submitting to the rite of circumcision, was necessary for salvation. The Gentiles, however, did not think they needed to become Jewish first in order to become Christians.

Acts 15:2ff: The question of whether the Gentile believers should obey the law of Moses to be saved was an important one. The controversy intensified largely due to the success of the new Gentile churches. The conservatives in the Jerusalem church were led by converted Pharisees (Acts 15:5) who preferred a legalistic religion to one based on faith alone. If the conservatives had won, the Gentiles would have been required to be circumcised and converted to Judaism. This would have seriously confined Christianity to simply being another sect within Judaism.

Acts 15:2ff: It is helpful to see how the churches in Antioch and Jerusalem resolved their conflict: (1) the church in Antioch sent a delegation to help seek a solution; (2) the delegates met with the church leaders to give their reports and set another date to continue the discussion; (3) Paul and Barnabas gave their report; (4) James summarized the reports and drew up the decision; (5) everyone agreed to abide by the decision; (6) the council sent a letter with delegates back to Antioch to report the decision. This is a wise way to handle conflicts within the church.

Acts 15:20-21: James' judgment was that Gentile believers did not have to be circumcised, but they should stay away from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality (a common part of idol worship), and from eating meat of strangled animals and from consuming blood (reflecting the Biblical teaching that the life is in the blood-Leviticus 17:14). If Gentile Christians would abstain from these practices, they would please God and get along better with their Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ. Of course, there were other actions inappropriate for believers, but the Jews were especially concerned about these four. This compromise helped the church grow unhindered by the cultural differences of Jews and Gentiles.

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