372
August 1931
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
ers, Paul expressly says that they were “accursed.” We may learn from the strong language of the council, as well as from the heated words of Paul, that it was no light decision at which the council arrived. III. T he D ecision W as A uthoritative (A cts 15:25-29). The men who carried the message from the council to the local churches were men who had “hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” They were not self-appointed, nor were they bearing a message which they them selves had thought out. Rather, they were the appointees of the council, and they bore the council’s message, which in truth was the message of the Holy Spirit. “It seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us,” the message read. The only prohibi tions laid upon the Gentile Christians were those which applied to Jews and Gentiles alike (v. 29). The principle established here is funda mental. Today there are many things which are being urged as requisites for salvation. Among these are baptism, mem bership in evangelical churches, the re ception of the Holy Spirit as a special enduement, etc. But the decision of the Holy Spirit, as voiced in the first church council, is that nothing—absolutely noth ing—-is necessary for salvation except faith in Jesus Christ. When one has ac cepted Christ, certain things, such as bap tism, church membership, etc.;'; may and nearly always will follow, but they follow because salvation has been received, and not in order that it may be obtained. This lesson reveals the fact that law and grace are essentially different, and that legality of any kind cannot be com bined with the gospel of the grace of God. The law is shown to be, not a means of obtaining salvation, but a way of revealing the need for it (cf. Gal. 3:24)'. The law says, “Do and live.” The gospel says, “Believe and live.” The law de mands perfection and inflicts the death penalty if perfection is not attained. The gospel offers perfection as a free gift, in and through the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 1 :30). The law causes men to ex amine themselves and their own works. The gospel leads men to examine Christ and His-works. IV. P aul ’ s R eport of the C ouncil (G al . 2:1, 2, 9, 10). In the Epistle to the Galatians, Paul es tablishes his authority as an apostle, and therefore his right to speak with finality, upon the fact that the council at Jerusa lem had recognized him and had given to him, through its leaders, James, Peter, and John, the right hand of fellowship, with the full understanding that he was to carry the gospel to the Gentiles, while they took it to the Jews. Lesson Questions Acts 15 :22. What discussion led to the meeting of the Jerusalem council (15: 1-5) ? Who were sent from Antioch to meet with this group (v. 2) ? Who were the chief speakers (vs. 7-11; 12; 13-21)? Who were chosen to bear the council’s message to the believers in Antioch and elsewhere? How are these men described? Vs. 23, 24. In what form was the mes sage sent? Why was it advisable to send
BLACKBOARD LESSON
ney, and how a great many of them had believed. After that, James, another apostle, rose up and said, “We shouldn’t bother the Gentile Christians with all these puzzling questions. Let us send them a letter and tell them that we are glad they have be lieved the gospel and, if they live good lives, then others will know that they are believers, and that is enough.” So it was agreed to send the letter. And when the Gentile Christians read it, they were very happy. When Americans go to people of other countries to tell them about Jesus, they do not say to them, “You must dress like an American and live like an American before you can become a Christian.” No, those things are not necessary, because the thing which makes them a Christian is believing in Christ. SEPTEMBER 27, 1931 Review: The Spread of Christianity In Asia Golden Text'. “They rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gen tiles” (Acts 14:27). * * * Lesson 1. “The Gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 1:6-9; 2:1-8. Golden Text, Acts 1 :8. The gift of the Holy Spirit was neces sary for the carrying out of the purposes of God within and through the church. The coming of the gift hinged upon the ascension of Jesus Christ. The possession of the gift was purely a matter of grace. When the disciples were gathered in Je rusalem, the Spirit was poured out upon them, and they were by this means united in one body and empowered to bear testi mony for the Lord Jesus Christ. Witness ing for Him was to be their chief busi ness on earth. Lesson 2. “The preaching of the Apos tles.” Acts 4:1-14. Golden Text, Acts, 5: 29. The preaching of the apostles resulted in their arrest by the leaders of the nation of Israel. The Jews felt they must si lence the apostles’ preaching, or else their own religion might be overthrown. Ac cordingly, the apostles were arraigned and charged with blasphemy. But they answered that they could not do differ ently than they had done, since it was God who was working through them, both in the matter of their preaching and in the healing of the lame man. As the spokes man of the group, Peter addressed the company on the subject of the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth and then pointed to the lame man, who had been healed, as an evidence of the fact that Jesus was alive and present with power to do that which the prophets had said would be done tvhen Messiah should come. Lesson 3. “Social Service in the Early Church.” Acts 4 :32-35; 6:1-4; 2 Cor. 9: 1-7. Golden Text, Acts 20:35. While there was at first such unity among the early saints that they held their possessions as common property, it was not long, before dissension arose. This led to the appointment of a group of
*
Judas (surnamed Barsabas) and Silas with Paul and Barnabas ? Vs. 25-29. What advice did they take to the Christians at Antioch ? Did they make clear that salvation was to be re ceived by faith alone and not by adher ence to the law of Moses (Eph. 2 :8, 9) ? What restrictions were placed upon the Gentile believers ? Gal. 2 :1, 2, 9, 10. How does Paul make clear that he was appointed to take the gospel to the Gentiles, while others of the apostles were chosen to preach “unto the circumcision” ? Golden T ex t Illustration Dr. Halbeck, a missionary in India, tells of two lepers he once saw sowing peas in the field. One had no hands, and the other had no feet. The one who had hands was carried on the back of the one who had feet, the former holding the bag of seed and dropping the peas, while the latter pressed them into the ground with his feet. Thus, between them, they did the work of one. “Through love be servants one to an other” (Gal. 5:13). C hristians W orking T ogether A cts 15:6-12 Memory Verse : “God is no respecter of persons’’ (Acts 10:34). , Approach : You remember that one of the hard things which Paul and Barnabas had to endure on their missionary jour ney was that many of the Jews didn’t
7*
y
-4
♦
•4)
w a n t t h e m to preach the gospel to the people of other nations. The Jews said among them selves t h a t t h i s good news was just for the Jewish peo ple, and they were unwilling to share it w i t h o t h e r s . When they found that t h e apostles
54
9
»
went right ahead telling it to every one, they said, “If the Gentiles are to become Christians, too, then they should first have to obey all of the Jewish laws.” They grew so angry about all of this, that Paul and Barnabas and some other men were chosen to meet with the apostles at Jerusalem to decide whether or not the Gentiles had to become Jews before they could become Christians. Lesson Story : So they met together at Jerusalem, and Peter was the first to talk. He said, “God makes no difference be tween Jews and Gentiles. Whoever be lieves in the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved.” Then Paul and Barnabas told how the Gentiles had received them on their jour-
A
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker