Acts 15

We have been following the growth of the church under the leadership of the Holy Spirit at the hands of the Apostles. To this point, any opposition or problem was the result of opposition from without, that is, largely from Jewish leaders who opposed the Christian faith. We will see the conflict from within in today’s passage. Jewish folk who had come to the faith in Jesus Christ, but believed that to be truly Christian one had to keep Jewish rituals as well as have faith in Jesus as Savior.

• The church council in Jerusalem (Acts 15:1-35)
  • The problem (Acts 15:1&2)
    • The rite of circumcision
      • The background (Genesis 17:10-14)
        • A covenant which assured Abraham’s heirs that God would bless them and provide a land for them in which to dwell
      • Circumcision was to be a means of reminding them of God’s promise
  • Can a Gentile truly be a Christian without keeping Jewish rituals?
    • What is the basis of our salvation?
    • Is it faith in Jesus as the one who forgives our sin and gives the gift of Eternal life or is there something else we must do?
    • If we must do something else, is our salvation by faith or by our works?
      • Ephesians 2:8&9
        • For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.
      • Titus 3:5-7
        • Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us…
      • Romans 10:4-13
        • For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
  • The procedure (Acts 15:3-6)
    • A trip to Jerusalem
      • A consultation with church leaders concerning this matter
      • This was an important matter because it would impact the church from this day onward
      • On their way they passed through Phenice and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles
    • Stating the case (Acts 15:5-6)
    • The discussion (Acts 15:6-21)
      • Peter’s case is built on the experience of ministering to Gentiles (Acts 15:7-11)
      • James’ case is built on Old Testament Scripture (Acts 15:15-18)
        • These verses are from Amos 9:11-12
  • The peaceful solution (Acts 15:22-35)
    • The message conveyed
      • Representatives (Acts 15:22)
      • Letter (Acts 15:23-29)
    • The message received (Acts 15:30-32)

The problem was resolved when God’s people were seeking to know the truth, were open to the viewpoint of others, observed the evidence, and followed God’s Word. That’s a winning formula for Biblical conflict resolution.