Acts 15:30-35 (ESV)
So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter. And when they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement. And Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, encouraged and strengthened the brothers with many words. And after they had spent some time, they were sent off in peace by the brothers to those who had sent them. But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.
The above versus come at the end of a major doctrinal decision by the church. And Act 15 all the leaders of the church came together to discuss a false doctrine that was being taught in the church. Someone in the church thought it was necessary for anyone to come to Jesus Christ, they also needed to be circumcised. The church made the decision that the act of circumcision was not necessary and that everyone comes to Christ through faith by grace, alone. The Church leadership then gave others the responsibility to tell members of the church this decision. The above verses are about that moment in which a letter was delivered to certain churches to set them free from the bondage of circumcision. After they were informed, Paul, Barnabas, Silas, and Judas, all began to teach and encourage. This is a key to spiritual growth. The first thing that was done was to lay down sound doctrine. The second thing was to build on that doctrine by the teaching of God’s word. That is the formula. There is no other formula.
No comments:
Post a Comment