Let Us Not Burden Them

Hey everyone, please return to your seats and we will continue our worship this evening with the reading and preaching of God's Word.

It's good to see you all. For those of you who are visiting, my name is Sean. I'm one of the pastors of Trinity Cambridge Church.

It's my joy and privilege to preach God's Word to you this evening.

Please turn with me in your Bibles to Acts chapter 15.

Acts 15 · chapter mention

We've been going through a series in the book of Acts and we are in chapter 15 today.

I originally intended to cover the entire chapter.

Well, not the entire chapter, but up to verse 35.

However, when I finished the sermon, it was twice as long as it was supposed to be.

So, I'm just going to preach up to verse 21 today.

It's because there's a lot of thorny, complex theological issues in this passage that it's going to take some time to deal with.

So, I'll address the rest of the passage next week.

So, we'll just read from Acts chapter 15 verse 1 to verse 21.

Acts 15:1

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.

We are often clawing our way, trying to earn and pay for the salvation you have freely given us in Jesus.

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.

But Lord, will you teach us in your Word that you have decided in your sovereign will

not to burden us beyond our repentance and faith in Jesus.

that we might be saved by grace through faith in Him.

We pray that you have decided in your sovereign will not to bring that truth home to every single person here.

That they might experience the joy and freedom that comes

only when we look to Christ

and trust in Him alone for our salvation.

in Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Acts chapter 15 verses 1 to 21.

Acts 15:1–21

But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers.

Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom of Moses,

you cannot be saved.

And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them,

Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem

to the apostles and the elders about this question.

So, being sent on their way by the church,

they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria,

describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles

and brought great joy to all the brothers.

When they came to Jerusalem,

they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders

and they declared all that God had done with them.

But,

some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees

rose up and said,

it is necessary to circumcise them

and to order them to keep the law of Moses.

The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter.

And after there had been much debate,

Peter stood up and said to them,

Brothers,

you know that in the early days,

God made a choice among you,

that by my mouth,

the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.

And God,

who knows the heart,

bore witness to them

by giving them the Holy Spirit

just as He did to us.

And He made no distinction

between us and them,

having cleansed their hearts by faith.

Now, therefore,

why are you putting God to the test

by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples

that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?

But we believe that we will be saved

through the grace of the Lord Jesus

just as they will.

And all the assembly fell silent

and they listened to Barnabas and Paul

as they related what signs and wonders

God had done through them among the Gentiles.

After they finished speaking,

James replied,

Brothers,

Listen to me.

Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles

to take from them a people for His name.

And with this,

the words of the prophets agree,

just as it is written,

After this,

I will return

and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen.

I will rebuild its ruins

and I will restore it

and the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord.

That the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord.

And all the Gentiles were called by my name,

says the Lord,

who makes these things known from of old.

Therefore,

my judgment is that

we should not trouble those of the Gentiles

who turn to God,

but should write to them

to abstain from the things polluted by idols

and from sexual immorality

and from what has been strangled

and from blood.

For from ancient generations,

Moses has had in every city

those who proclaim Him.

For He has read every Sabbath

in the synagogues.

This is God's holy

and authoritative Word.

There's no shortage of issues

that threaten to divide the church nowadays,

whether it's issues of gender and sexuality,

race and racism,

or various responses to COVID.

It's comforting to know

that we're not alone

in experiencing these pools.

Every local church

deals with forces

that threaten to divide them.

Even the first century church

led by the 12 apostles themselves.

In Acts 15,

we see the early church grappling

with a tectonic shift

in their understanding,

in their theology,

in their understanding of the church,

the life of the church.

Salvation has come to the Gentiles,

evidenced by the falling of the Holy Spirit

upon them in Acts 10.

However, this raised some significant

theological questions.

Should Gentile Christian men

be circumcised like their Jewish Christian brothers?

Were the laws of Moses,

laws of Moses binding on Gentile Christians

as they historically have been binding for the Jews?

In this passage,

we see in order the dissension caused by the Judaizers,

the debate among the elders and the apostles,

and then the decision rendered by the elders and the apostles.

So we see the dissension,

and then the debate,

and then the decision.

And from this passage,

we learn lessons not only about

how to resolve disputes within the church,

but even more significantly,

we learn the liberating truth

that God saves a remnant

from both Jews and Gentiles

by grace through faith

in Jesus Christ alone.

So let's first look at the dissension

caused by the Judaizers

in verses 1 to 5.

After completing their missionary journey,

Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch in Syria,

and they gave the church,

they gave the church

that originally sent them out,

a report of all that God has done through them.

And it says in chapter 14, verse 28,

that they remained no little time with the disciples.

But while they were remaining with the disciples

and continuing to teach them

and to minister to them,

they encountered some people

who were undermining their teaching,

who were opposing their work.

It says in verse 1,

But some men came down from Judea

and were teaching the brothers.

And this is what they were teaching.

Quote,

Unless you are circumcised

according to the custom of Moses,

you cannot be saved.

Later in verse 24,

the apostles and the elders

of the church in Jerusalem

say that these men had gone out from them,

meaning that they were once part

of the Jerusalem church.

So this association with the Jerusalem church,

the first church,

the first local church

in the history of humanity,

of which the 12 apostles themselves were a part,

likely bolstered the credibility

of these men

who had come down from Jerusalem.

They have the proximity to the apostles.

They came down from Jerusalem

where most of the Jewish converts are,

Jewish Christians are.

And they're telling us

that we have to be circumcised

and follow all the customs of Moses

in order to be saved.

So who's right?

Paul and Barnabas

who have been teaching us

or these people

from the church in Jerusalem.

They don't seem to occupy

these men that came down from Jerusalem

any office in the church.

They are not elders.

They're just called some men.

However, they nonetheless took it upon themselves

to teach the brothers

these contrary doctrines.

And though circumcision is the main issue here,

it's not the only issue.

Circumcision was the sign

of the Abrahamic covenant.

In Genesis 17,

when God made a covenant with Abraham,

He gave the sign of circumcision

for generations to come.

It was a sign that signified

that those who are circumcised,

those who are descendants,

physical descendants of Abraham,

are the promised offspring,

that they are the heirs of the promise

that God had given to Abraham.

And the covenant sign of circumcision

signified that if you broke the covenant,

if you violated the covenant,

that you would literally be cut off

from that line,

that promised line.

That's what the covenant signified.

And so it came very naturally

to Jewish converts to Christianity

to think,

well, of course you have to be circumcised.

That is the sign of your inclusion

in the people of God.

But the issue is not merely circumcision

because the circumcision is a sign

that you are a party

to the covenant that God has made

with His people.

And if you are a part of the covenant,

you have to obey

all of the covenant stipulations,

all the laws that go with that,

the laws of Moses.

And we can see that clearly in verse 5

because they weren't merely teaching

that they need to be circumcised.

They said that it is necessary

to circumcise them

and to order them

to keep the law of Moses.

So what these circumcision party people

are arguing is that

they not only need to be circumcised,

they essentially need to become Jewish

in order to be saved.

They need to obey the entirety

of the laws of Moses.

In order for you to be fully converted,

a genuine Christian,

you have to be circumcised

and adopt the way of life of Jews.

Note well here that the issue at hand

is not just how Gentile converts

should behave

when they're in the company

of Jewish Christians.

That's not the issue at hand.

The issue is a matter of salvation,

criterion for salvation.

They're saying,

unless you are circumcised

according to the custom of Moses,

you cannot be saved.

So it's a critical issue.

That's at hand.

What does it mean for a Gentile

to convert to Christianity?

Not merely how should a converted Gentile behave.

Paul and Barnabas objected

to this teaching from the men

from Jerusalem church

and verse 2 says that

they had no small dissension

and debate with them.

This is a deliberate understatement.

No small dissension means that

they had a very big dissension.

In fact, the dissension was so significant

that they were unable to resolve

their differences among them

through debate.

So Paul and Barnabas

and some of the others

were appointed by the church in Antioch

to go up to Jerusalem

to the apostles and the elders

about this question.

They're seeking arbitration

from the apostles and the elders

in Jerusalem.

When you're unable to resolve

a dispute with fellow Christians,

it is wise to seek arbitration

from proper authorities.

If it's a disagreement

among fellow church members,

they may seek arbitration

from the elders.

If it's a disagreement

between church members

and the elders themselves,

we don't have the 12 apostles

we can consult,

but we are part

of a larger denomination

called Sovereign Grace Churches.

In the northeast region

of the denomination

that we are part of,

there is a committee

called the Judicial Review Committee

whose responsibility it is

to, quote,

hear and adjudicate

any complaints or grievances

against the local eldership

by a member of a local church.

I pray that that day never comes,

but if any of you believe

that I am erring

from God's will

in my teaching and leadership,

and if I'm refusing

to listen to your earnest appeals,

then that is the recourse

that is available to you

to settle the matter.

And the person to contact

is Rob Flood.

That's the name

of the chair of the committee.

His email address

is rflood,

F-L-O-O-D,

at C-O-V-F-E-L dot org,

cubfell.org.

You guys can take notes on that.

That's fine with me.

I think this accountability

is good for pastors to have.

So Barnabas and Paul

set out for Jerusalem,

and both of them,

on their way to Jerusalem,

on their way wherever they go,

they're proclaiming

all the things

that God had done

in the conversion

of the Gentiles.

So obviously,

you know where Paul

and Barnabas fall

in this theological debate.

Unlike the Judaizers

who are insisting

that Gentiles

become circumcised

and essentially become Jewish,

Paul and Barnabas

believe that these Gentiles

who have put their faith in Jesus

are already saved.

So that's the dissension

caused by the Judaizers

in verses 1-5.

And then now let's look

at the debate

among the elders

and the apostles

in verses 6-18.

It begins in verse 6.

Notice in verse 4

that Paul and Barnabas,

when they arrived in Jerusalem,

they were welcomed

by the church

and the apostles

and the elders.

So they were welcomed

by the gathering

of the entire church.

But then look at

who's involved in verse 6.

It says,

the apostles and elders

were gathered together

to consider this matter.

In other words,

they're not having

this debate

with the whole church

in the context

of a members' meeting.

Rather,

they are having this debate

among the apostles

and elders

in the context

of a leadership meeting.

It is the responsibility

of the apostles

and the elders

to render a decision

on this complex theological matter.

The witness of church leaders

is one of the categories

that this passage teaches us

that is part of processing

disagreements

within the church.

I'll mention two other categories

as we're going,

but first we see here

the witness of church leaders.

Verse 7 tells us

that after there had been

much debate,

Peter stood up

and said to them,

Brothers,

you know that in the early days

God made a choice among you

that by my mouth

the Gentiles should hear

the word of the gospel

and believe.

Peter is recalling

his experience

with Cornelius

and his family and friends

in chapter 10.

There God showed Peter

a thrice-repeated vision

of a sheath

being lowered

with all kinds

of unclean animals

that were not fit

for Jewish consumption

on it.

And then a voice

in the vision

from God said,

Peter, kill and eat.

And when Peter refused

out of a desire

to stay pure

and to avoid ritual impurity,

said,

No, no way.

I'm not going to eat

any of that.

And God said to him,

What God has made clean

do not call common.

And in saying that,

God was declaring

that Gentiles,

whom Jews considered unclean,

are no longer

to be viewed that way.

And right after

that threefold vision,

God had told Peter,

Behold, three men

are looking for you.

He had threefold vision

and three men show up

from the Gentile Cornelius

and they ask him

to come with them.

And so Peter goes

without hesitation

and he ministers to them.

And while he's

preaching the gospel there

to Cornelius

and his gathering

of intimate friends

and family,

the Holy Spirit

fell upon them.

So now,

that was only five chapters ago,

but a lot has happened

since then.

Peter refers to those

as the early days.

In the early days,

if you track the time

and place indicators

throughout the book of Acts

in those intervening chapters

and then you reference

other epistles

in the New Testament

to get an estimate

of how many years

have elapsed,

it seems about seven years

has already passed

since that,

the outpouring of the Holy Spirit

upon the Gentiles

in chapter 10.

So it has been a while.

That's why Peter calls

those days the early days.

Those were the days

when Peter was still

the head of the church

in Jerusalem.

He left the church

in Jerusalem

to flee to another location

in chapter 12

when King Herod

was out to kill him.

Herod Agrippa.

In those days

when God chose Peter

to preach the word

of the gospel

to the Gentiles,

they believed

and because of this

pioneering role

that Peter had

in bringing the gospel

to the Gentiles,

his is the first perspective

that Luke notes

at the conclusion

of this debate.

Peter continues

in verses 8 to 9,

and God who knows

the heart

bore witness to them

by giving them

the Holy Spirit

just as he did to us.

And he made no distinction

between us and them

having cleansed their hearts

by faith.

Peter is testifying

that God himself

who knows the heart

of every person

bore witness

to the Gentiles.

because God peers

into the human soul,

because he looks

into the human heart,

he can never be fooled.

And yet,

this all-knowing God himself

bore witness

that these Gentiles

in chapter 10

are truly saved,

that they truly belong

to him

because God gave proof

of that

by giving them

the Holy Spirit

just as he did

to the Jewish

converts to Christianity

in Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

And Peter is saying

he made no distinction

between us and them

having cleansed them

by their,

cleansed their hearts

by faith.

So if God

has not made a distinction

between us and them,

who are we

to make such a distinction?

Peter contends

that God has already

cleansed their hearts

by faith.

The cleansing

of sinful hearts

is the work

of the Holy Spirit

and God granted

this to the Gentiles

in accordance

with their faith

in Jesus Christ,

the crucified

and risen Savior.

We might,

we're so used

to this truth

that we might miss

how radical this is,

but this was

a groundbreaking

theological revelation,

a radical statement

that our sinful hearts

are cleansed

by the Spirit,

by the means of faith,

not by works.

The cleansing

does not come

through circumcision.

The cleansing

does not come

through obedience

to the Mosaic Law.

The cleansing

is obtained

by faith

in Jesus Christ.

Baptism is the outward

sign of that inward faith.

It outwardly,

baptism outwardly signifies

the inward cleansing

of the Holy Spirit.

And these Gentile believers

have already

been baptized.

Peter's point

is straightforward.

God has abolished

the ceremonial distinction

between clean Jews

and unclean Gentiles.

He makes no such distinction

and He Himself

has given proof

of this

by giving them

the Holy Spirit

in response

to their faith

in Jesus.

This is the second witness,

the second category

of witness

to consider

when we're processing

disagreements

within the church.

First was the witness

of church leaders

and the second

is the witness

of the Holy Spirit.

Is the Holy Spirit

Himself

experientially

confirming

your convictions?

The Holy Spirit

confirmed the reality

that Gentile believers

were saved

and included

in the people of God

apart from circumcision

and the Mosaic law.

Now, therefore,

Peter says

in verses 10 to 11,

why are you

putting God

to the test

by placing

a yoke

on the neck

of the disciples

that neither our fathers

nor we

have been able

to bear?

But we believe

that we will be saved

through the grace

of the Lord Jesus

just as they will.

To put God

to the test

is to push back

against Him

to rebel

against Him

His revealed will.

To see if God

really means

what He says.

If He will really

punish our sins.

When God Himself

has bore witness

to the Gentile converts

by giving them

the Holy Spirit

to add an additional

hurdle that they must

clear in order

to be saved

is tantamount

to challenging God.

Oh, is that what

God said?

Well, this is what

I say.

You have to be

circumcised.

You have to follow

all the laws of Moses.

They were testing God.

And Peter implores

his fellow apostles

and elders,

neither our fathers

nor we

have been able

to bear this yoke

of the Mosaic law.

None of us,

not even the Jews,

will be saved

by observance

of the law.

So why then

do you insist

on putting this burden

on these Gentile disciples?

Yokes back then

were typically made

of wooden beams

and leather straps.

It's what joined

two oxen together

and enabled the farmer

to control the oxen.

The Mosaic law

which God

had given to Israel

when He made

His covenant with them

was like a yoke

that joined them

to God.

But they were not

able to bear it.

Jeremiah chapter 5

Jeremiah 5:5

verse 5

speaks of how

God's people

failed to submit

to God

under His yoke

but instead

they broke open

the yoke.

They burst the bonds

says in Jeremiah 5.5.

They were rebellious people.

Stubborn oxen

useless for farming.

It's not that

the yoke itself

was bad.

The law

was a means

of blessing

to God's people.

If they were

if they could keep it

but it became

a heavy burden

because they could

not keep it.

Romans 7

10-12

Paul writes

about this.

I think I have it

to show you guys

on the screen.

The law is holy

and the commandment

is holy

and righteous

and good

but he argues

the very commandment

that promised life

proved to be death

to me

for sin

seizing an opportunity

through the commandment

deceived me

and through it

killed me.

Paul's here

describing the experience

of a Jew

under the law

before Christ.

The law

which was intended

to be a means

of blessing

a source of life

to God's people

instead brought death

due to their sin

because they failed

to keep the law

because they couldn't

bear the yoke

and burst the bonds

in rebellion.

Even though

the law of Moses

did make provisions

for making atonement

for sin

burnt offerings

sin offerings

guilt offerings

and so on

these sacrifices

could not ultimately

purify and save

God's people.

Hebrews 10

1-4

teaches us

that the Old Testament

law

was merely

a shadow

of the good things

to come

instead of the true

form of these realities.

It can never

by the same sacrifices

that are continually

offered each year

make perfect

those who draw near.

Otherwise

would they not

have ceased

to be offered

since the worshippers

having once been cleansed

would no longer

have any consciousness

of sins.

But in these sacrifices

there is a reminder

of sins every year

for it is impossible

for the blood

of bulls and goats

to take away sins.

The author of Hebrews

is basing his argument

on the presupposition

that if sacrifice

for sin

is truly efficacious

it would have

a decisive

once and for all

effect

of cleansing

our conscience

so that we no longer

have any consciousness

of sin.

However

the Old Testament

sacrifices

never had

such an effect.

Leviticus 16

stipulated that

on the day

of atonement

once a year

the high priest

was to offer

two male goats

for a sin offering

and one ram

for a burnt offering

on behalf

of the Israelites.

The priest

was to make

atonement

for the people

after laying

both hands

on the head

of the other

live goat

and confessing

over it

all the iniquities

of God's people

and all their

transgressions

and their sins

he was supposed

to send away

the goat

into the wilderness

so that the goat

might

bear all their

iniquities

on itself

to a remote area.

However

even this

dramatic

annual sacrifice

on the day

of atonement

did not have

the effect

of cleansing

the consciences

of God's people

once and for all.

In fact

the rituals

were so designed

to heighten

the people's

awareness

of their sins

and their

state

of alienation

separation

from God.

In this sense

the day

of atonement

functioned

as an annual

reminder

of sins.

Every year

think about this

guys

every year

they had

to offer

the sacrifice

again.

Every year

they were reminded

that they could

not enter

the most holy

place within

the temple

where the sacrifice

is to be made.

Only the high

priest may enter

the most holy

place

and he could

enter only

once a year

and even he

couldn't answer

until he had

first offered

sacrifice

taking blood

which was for

himself

and for the

unintentional sins

of the people.

And there was

a veil

covering the

most holy

place that

separated the

congregation

from God

a reminder

that their

sin

still separated

them from

God.

They could

not enter

it even

after the

sacrifice

was made.

And they

knew that

they had

to return

again next

year to

offer the

same

sacrifice.

Can you

imagine that

sinking feeling?

It's really

sad to think

about.

I don't know

if you've

ever had

the experience

of feeling

so dirty.

Maybe you

were actually

dirty.

Maybe you

had oil

or some

grime

that's really

hard to get

out of your

body on

you.

Or maybe

you just

felt dirty

because of

what someone

else had

done to

you.

And you

tried to

shower,

wash yourself

over and

over and

over again,

but you

never felt

clean.

similarly,

though God

graciously

made

provisions

for atonement

for their

sins in

the laws

of Moses,

they were

reminded

every single

year

that it

was not

enough.

They were

not holy.

clean.

They could

not enter

into God's

presence.

They were

not clean.

For it

is impossible

for the

blood of

bulls and

goats to

take away

sins.

And this

is why

God sent

Jesus,

His only

Son,

as the

ultimate

sacrifice

for us

to

cleanse

us

once

and

for

all.

All of

the Old

Testament

sacrifices

were

foreshadowing

and pointing

to the

ultimate

sacrifice

of Jesus

on the

cross.

For,

as it

says in

Hebrews

10,

10-14,

it is

only through

the offering

of the

body of

Jesus

Christ

once

for

all

that

those

who

are

being

sanctified

are

perfected

for

all

time

because

Christ,

our

Passover

lamb,

has been

sacrificed

because

Jesus

is the

lamb of

God

who

takes

away

for

good

the

sin

of

the

world.

And

this

is

why

it

says

in

Mark

15-38

that

when

Jesus

died,

the

curtain

of

the

temple

was

torn

in

two

from

top

to

bottom.

Praise

God.

That

opaque

curtain

that

we

could

never

see

through,

that

space

beyond

the

curtain

that

most

holy

place

which

seemed

so

within

reach

yet

so

impossibly

far

away

was

torn

open

by

Jesus

Christ

so

that

all

of

God's

people

may

enter

in.

Cleansed

of our

sins,

purified

in our

conscience.

That's

the good

news

that

we

proclaim.

That's

why

it is

called

the gospel

in verse

7

because

that

means

good

news.

We

could

never

bear

the

heavy

yoke

of

the

law,

but

now

we

have

a

different

yoke

to

bear.

So

like

Jesus

says

in

Matthew

11,

we

Taylor

read

from

this

and

we

shared

it

in

the

call

to

worship,

come

to

me

all

who

labor

and

are

heavy

laden

and

I

will

give

you

rest.

Take

my

yoke

upon

you

and

learn

from

me

for

I

am

gentle

and

lowly

in

heart

and

you

will

find

rest

for

your

souls

for

my

yoke

is

easy

and

my

burden

is

light.

Our

Lord

Jesus

is not

a

harsh

task

master.

He's

not

a

slave

driver.

He's

gentle

and

lowly

in

heart.

He

gives

us

easy

yokes.

I

wonder

how

many

of

you

are

still

laboring

under

the

heavy

yoke

of

the

law.

I

wonder

how

many

of

you

are

bruised

and

battered,

breathing

heavily,

bowed

under

the

heavy

burden,

stumbling

along,

ever

failing,

when

Christ

is

offering

you

an

easy

yoke

and

a

light

burden.

How do

you know

that you

are saved?

How do

you know

that you

will go

to heaven

after you

die?

If your

answer is,

well,

I've

gone to

church

all my

life,

or,

well,

I'm

a

pretty

good

person,

relatively

speaking,

or,

of course,

I've

sinned,

but I

haven't

done

anything

like

those

people,

then you

just

don't

get it.

Your

obedience

and good

works

are not

the

basis

for your

salvation.

They

can

never

be

inadequate

grounds

for

our

salvation.

Only

Jesus

is

sufficient

for us.

Only

the

crucified

and

risen

Christ

can

save

us.

So

verse

9 says

that our

hearts

are

cleansed

by

faith.

Now

faith

is

a

condition

for

salvation.

But

it is

an

instrument,

it's

an

instrumental

condition,

not the

causal

condition.

Imagine

that you

are

dehydrated.

Without

a sip

of water,

you're

about to

kick the

bucket,

you're about

to bite

the dust.

And

then someone

graciously

comes over

and pours

some water

on you.

You

still have

to open

your mouth

and drink

the water,

but it's

not your

act of

drinking

that

saves

you.

That's

just your

way of

receiving

the water,

which is

what saves

you.

Water

is the

causal

condition.

You're

receiving

it,

opening

your mouth

is the

instrumental

condition.

Faith

is not

what

saves

you.

Faith

is the

means

by which

you

appropriate

the grace

of God

that

saves

you.

It's

Jesus

alone

who by

his

death

and

resurrection

secures

the

cleansing

water

of the

Holy

Spirit

on our

behalf.

He

alone

can

save

us.

That's

why

verse

11

says

that we

are

saved

by

the

grace

of

the

Lord

Jesus.

Grace

means

unmerited

favor,

unearned

favor.

It's a

favor that

God bestows

on us

even though

he is not

obliged

in any

way to

do so.

Salvation

is a

gift,

faith

alone,

grace

alone,

Christ

alone.

It's

all of

these.

You

find all

of these

truths,

wonderful

truths,

in these

few short

verses.

Neither

Jew nor

Greek

will be

saved

by

obedience

to

the

law.

Both

Jew and

Greek

will be

saved

by

grace

through

faith

in

Jesus

Christ.

So

then

shall

we

put

the

yoke

that

we

ourselves

could

not

bear

around

the

neck

of

others?

Shall

we

lay

the

burden

we

could

not

carry

on

the

back

of

others?

God

forbid

may

be

far

from

us.

after

Peter's

testimony

of how

the

spirit

of

God

himself

bore

witness

to

this

truth

it

says

in

verse

12

that

all

of

the

assembly

fell

silent.

They

know

that

God

has

spoken

through

Peter.

And

then

Barnabas

and

Paul

further

corroborate

Peter's

testimony

by

relating

what

signs

and

wonders

God

had

done

through

them

among

the

Gentiles.

So

they

are

bearing

testimony

that

God

has

been

authenticating

the true

conversion

of the

Gentiles

by

giving

them

granting

them

signs

and

wonders

as

they

minister

to

these

Gentiles.

And

then

after

Peter,

Barnabas

and

Paul,

Apostle

James

starts

speaking

in

verse

13.

This

is not

James,

the son

of Zebedee

and

Salome,

brother

of Apostle

John.

That

James

was beheaded

by King

Herod Agrippa

in Acts

12.

This

is likely

the same

Apostle

James

that Paul

calls

the Lord's

brother

in Galatians

1.19.

Not

Jesus'

actual

immediate

brother

but a

near

kin.

He's

the author

of the

book of

James

in the

New Testament

and he

appears

to have

been

the

lead

elder

or

lead

pastor

of the

Jerusalem

church.

This

is why

he's

named

first

among

the

elders

of the

Jerusalem

church

and this

is

why

he's

referred

to

as

representative

of the

entire

church

of

Jerusalem

in

Acts

12.17

and

21.18.

And it's

James who

will give

the final

verdict

of the

apostles

and the

elders.

He says

in verses

13-14

brothers

listen to

me

Simeon

has

related

how

God

first

visited

the

Gentiles

to take

from

them

a

people

for

his

name.

Simeon

is a

reference

to

Simon