Recognizing God’s Direction

Acts 15:12-21

Carnal people approach everything from a purely human standpoint. While they talk about spiritual power, the emphasis is on human effort. For example, if you’ve ever watched a PBS station very much, you’ve seen their telethons and fund raising efforts. They make no claims of depending on God or being led of God. How many times do “Christian” stations use identical tactics, but profess it is God’s doing? Politicians use music and movie stars to get people to come to rallies. How often do churches and evangelists do the same thing? If it doesn’t produce a large enough crowd or enough money, they fire the person in charge and use someone else. Did God mess up? Or was it just the person?

As a result of the focus on human effort, carnal people do not distinguish between human results and spiritual results. When Paul and Barnabas “declared all things that God had done with them,” in Acts 15:4, the carnal Christians heard only what Paul and Barnabas had done. Since it didn’t coincide with what they believed, it needed to be fixed. After Peter’s recitation, they realized there might be more involved.

“Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.” (Acts 15:12)

When they actually listened to Paul and Barnabas, It was obvious that God had in fact saved gentiles and filled them with the Spirit even though they did not keep the law. Clearly, God was satisfied, doing these miracles in them.

“And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me: Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.” (Acts 15:13-14)

After the crowd had listened to Paul and Barnabas again and realized that it was God who’d done these things instead of just Paul and Barnabas, James recapped what Peter had said. He then summed up a number of prophecies including ones by Amos, Isaiah, and Malachi. It was not just one obscure prophet, or prophecy, but a major theme of prophecy. It is what God has said.

“And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things. Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.” (15:15-18)

God’s plan of salvation was made before creation. He didn’t have to keep changing the plan. Both covenant theology and dispensationalists imply God had to keep changing his plan because of man’s sin. God ordained Jesus to atone for man’s sin even before sin existed, according to I Peter 1:20. “Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” The prophecies were statements of God’s intent.

If God knows what he wants, and he directs some one to do things a certain way, what right do we have to demand something different? As Romans 14:4 asks, “Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.” They don’t answer to us, but to God. James then advises them as to what the Holy Spirit would have them to do.

“Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.” (Acts 15:19-21)

First James advises that they not cause confusion by demanding that they keep the Law. He does recommend that they set certain guidelines for behavior because the Jews scattered around the world would be offended by certain behavior, and thus they’d lose their testimony to them. A genuine love for Christ ought to produce a love for our brethren that keeps us from doing things that they find offensive. I Corinthians 8:8-9 states, “But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse. But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.”

Eating meat that had not been properly drained of blood is not sin, and does not bring judgment, for example, but our decision could stand in someone else’s way. When we knowingly cause them to stumble, we have sinned against them. I Corinthians 8-11 and Romans 14-15 deal with this subject in depth.