Passage of the Day - December 21, 2010

Acts 15:13-35

 ¹³After they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, "Brethren, listen to me.

 ¹⁴"Simeon has related how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name.

 ¹⁵"With this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written,
    ¹⁶'AFTER THESE THINGS I will return,
         AND I WILL REBUILD THE TABERNACLE OF DAVID WHICH HAS FALLEN,
         AND I WILL REBUILD ITS RUINS,
         AND I WILL RESTORE IT,
    ¹⁷SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK THE LORD,
         AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME,'
    ¹⁸SAYS THE LORD, WHO MAKES THESE THINGS KNOWN FROM LONG AGO.

 ¹⁹"Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,

 ²⁰but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.

 ²¹"For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath."

 ²²Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas--Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren,

 ²³and they sent this letter by them, "The apostles and the brethren who are elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles, greetings.

 ²⁴"Since we have heard that some of our number to whom we gave no instruction have disturbed you with their words, unsettling your souls,

 ²⁵it seemed good to us, having become of one mind, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

 ²⁶men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 ²⁷"Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will also report the same things by word of mouth.

 ²⁸"For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials:

 ²⁹that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication; if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well. Farewell."

 ³⁰So when they were sent away, they went down to Antioch; and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.

 ³¹When they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.

 ³²Judas and Silas, also being prophets themselves, encouraged and strengthened the brethren with a lengthy message.

 ³³After they had spent time there, they were sent away from the brethren in peace to those who had sent them out.

 ³⁴[But it seemed good to Silas to remain there.]

 ³⁵But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and preaching with many others also, the word of the Lord.

One of the difficulties we have is deciding which laws apply to us as Christians, and which ones don’t.  We know that we are not under the law, but under grace.  However, as a community of believers, what should we expect out of each other.  There is no real debate about adhering to the Ten Commandments.  As for the rest of the law, it appears that the only things we are expected to adhere to are not eating things sacrificed to idols (Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians narrows it down to knowingly eating), not drinking blood, and no fornication (sexual sin).  That is how serious God takes sexual sin.  Perhaps we should stop playing games with what the Bible has to say about sex.