WHAT ABOUT THE GENTILES?

SUMMARY OF KEY EVENTS Peter’s visit to the house of Cornelius (At.10) Report to the church in Jerusalem about Gentile conversions (At.11.1-18) Mission to the Gentiles in Antioch (At.11.19- 26) Paul’s first missionary journey to Cyprus and the region of Galatia (At.13-14) Report to the church at Antioch about Gentile conversions(At. 14.24-28)

ONE PROBLEM - TWO KEY EVENTS The problem: Since Jesus was the Jewish messiah, what should gentile believers be required to do to become followers of Christ? The meeting in Antioch After Paul and Barnabas’ return from 1st journey Recounted that gentiles came to faith Judean believers argued that gentile must become Jews first Paul and Barnabas argued against The problem in Galatia Jewish believers vs. Gentile believers

THE LETTER TO THE GALATIANS The question of when and to whom North – South theory Most likely written before the Jerusalem council - - Does not mention the results of the Jerusalem council -- The language of the letter is strong and uncompromising Dealt with the question of whether Gentile Christians should follow Jewish rituals, particularly circumcision

THE CONTENTS OF THE LETTER Three principle parts: Paul’s ministry to the Galatians -- Recounted what he did after his conversion -- Confronted the disciples for their hypocrisy Appeal to the Galatians to live a life of faith -- Paul was surprised that they had abandoned his teaching so quickly -- The example of Abraham -- Implied that they had “fallen away from grace” The implications of belief -- Life controlled by the Spirit

THE JERUSALEM COUNCIL (49 AD?): ACTS 15 Paul and Barnabas present their case The challenge by some Pharisee believers regarding the relationship of Gentiles to the Jewish messiah The testimony of Peter at Cornelius’ house: “He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.” (At.15.9) “Why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? “(At.15.10) Proclaimed that “through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved”. (At.15.11) James, the leader of the council concluded “that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God”(At.15.19) A letter addressed to the Gentile believers

THE DECREES “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well.” (At.15.28, 29)

DISCUSSION Do you believe that the gospel is truly universal in its appeal and application? What is the “bare minimum” that one needs to believe to be a Christian? To live as a Christian? What cultural “ concessions” should be/could be made when taking the gospel across cultural and ethnic lines?

“ The decision of the Jerusalem Council was the watershed of world evangelization in the Book of Acts. Once it was determined that the Jewish culture was not an essential part of the gospel, the gospel was freed from its cultural bonds and seen to be a universal message of salvation to all men. While this was a change that required a total reorientation on the part of Jewish Christians, it was not a change without considerable precedent, in both the Old Testament and the New Testament gospels.” Bob Deffinbaugh https://bible.org/seriespage/3-cults-christianity-and-culture-acts-151-31

“The universality of the gospel necessitated a distinction between Christianity and culture. Christianity can exist in any culture, but each culture will have certain beliefs, values, or practices which contradict Christianity and therefore must be laid aside. The Jewish emphasis on external righteousness by outward conformity to rules had to be put aside, for salvation is obtained by faith alone, apart from works. The Gentile practices of idolatry and immorality also had to be rejected as contrary to one’s calling in Christ. Any conformity to culture which hinders the preaching of the gospel should also be forsaken. It all seems quite simple, doesn’t it? However history reveals the difficulty which the saints have had in consistently relating Christianity to culture.”

PAUL’S SECOND JOURNEY A journey to encourage the established churches and report the results of the Jerusalem council Paul and Barnabas separate over John Mark Barnabas and Mark went to Cyprus Paul and Silas went through Galatia and on to Europe Timothy joined them at Lystra Prohibited by the Holy Spirit to journey into the region of Bithynia Journeyed to Troas where Paul had a vision of the “man from Macedonia,” an unknown region to Paul