Episode 133: James' Argument for the Gentiles

In the name of the glorious Trinity, Father and Son and Holy

Spirit, forever Amen. Glory be to the everlasting

mercies which sent you to us, O Christ, the light of the world

and the life of all. Give us wisdom by.

Your law and enlighten our. Impulses by your knowledge.

Sanctify our souls by your truth, and grant that we may be

obedient to your words and may fulfil your commandments at

every hour. O you who?

Enlightens the rational with the knowledge of Your greatness.

Do enlight, O my Lord, our thoughts, that we may meditate

upon Your holy and divine Scriptures at all times, O Lord

of all Father and Son and Holy Spirit, forever.

Amen. studies on the Book of the Acts

of the Holy Apostles, Chapter 15.

Just to recap that last episode, we read that Simon after hearing

and taking into consideration the appeal by the Pharisees who

had converted to Christianity, let's call it Christianity

because today that's what we call it, who had believed in the

Lord Jesus Christ. So Simon listened and and

considered the appeal by the Pharisees to the Holy

Scriptures. Genesis 1710 to 13 and other

verses. But that was our main verse in

regards to circumcision of the Gentiles who had also believed.

And then he brings forward his argument against the burden to

be placed on Gentiles according to his experience with and the

guidance of the Holy Spirit in a vision.

And his points were number one, that God chose the Gentiles to

hear the word of the gospel that is Jesus from his mouth.

And that was referring to Cornelius, the Italian cohort.

And then he goes on to say that God, who knows what is in the

hearts, testifies to them, and gave the Gentiles the Holy

Spirit as he did to them as well.

So the Jews and the Gentiles both received the Holy Spirit.

And also that God made no distinction between the Jews and

the Gentiles because he purified their hearts by faith.

He received them, and he justified the Gentiles as well

as, as He did, the Jews who believed in Jesus Christ.

Now justification doesn't mean salvation and doesn't mean

righteousness because they're two different words.

Justification means made right. God made both the Jews and the

Gentiles right through their faith and knowing their heart

and purifying their heart. And then he goes on to say that

they should not put a yoke on the Gentiles necks, which not

even their fathers nor they were able to bear because they're all

sinners. And by the grace of the Lord

Jesus Christ, he continues, that is that God did it through Jesus

Christ grace. Is that what God has done

through Jesus Christ? Again, they, the Jews believed

in order to receive life as did the Gentiles.

So God worked in both their lives.

So now we cannot place this burden on them.

We'll pick it up from verse 12. Then the whole congregation was

silent. That's why when we come to

church, the congregation is silent.

We don't run around doing the shuffle.

We don't do that. We don't scream out Hallelujah,

praise God, yes, Amen, Hallelujah.

We don't do that. The congregation was and the

congregation are not the apostles, but the church.

They were silent because the apostles were now conversing.

The apostles were talking. The apostles were going to come

to this agreement, and you walk into a church.

Ambience, silence, respect. I walk through your courts in

honor, reverence and respect. Not loud and rowdy.

No, no, no. So the congregation was silent

and listened to Paul and Barnabas who were declaring the

miracles and signs among the Gentiles and every Gentiles

sorry, and everything which God had wrought by their hands.

They're still giving evidence. It wasn't that.

Hey, let us tell you what we did, what God has done through

US. No, no, no, These were their

arguments in regards to the circumcisions of Gentiles who

had received Jesus Christ and believed in the Lord Jesus

Christ. And their hearts were purified

by by God and they had received the Holy Spirit.

So after Peter, Paul speaks, Barnabas speak, one at a time,

not all at the same time. Paul speaks, Barnabas speaks,

and everyone was silent and no one silences them.

There were other apostles. They didn't say, hang on, you

guys, just wait a second. There are apostles here that

need to speak. No, no, James, who was there,

waits patiently as that does not jump in.

What a beautiful order they show in these proceedings.

All right, order. Bells are ringing, right?

Those who read their gospels, the Holy Scriptures, bells are

ringing, yes, 1 Corinthians 1433 because God is not chaotic but

peaceful as in all the assemblies of the holy ones,

that is the Saints, that is the church gatherings.

God is not chaotic yes. Oh, you know, we go to church

and you just have to sit there. We want to engage, you know, we

want to, you know, you know, there is no engagement.

We see from the scriptures, let's go solar Scripture, as you

know, we refuted that just before but a few episodes ago,

but from the Scriptures, it was silent.

There was order. There was an order in it.

There must be an order in the church.

There must be order when we come to worship the Lord Jesus

Christ. And the order is that each time

we worship like did the prophets and those in the Old Testament,

we offer a sacrifice. So on a Sunday, that is our

worship service, along with our sacrifice, which is the

commemoration of the death, burial and resurrection of our

Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

Eucharist needs to give thanks. We come to worship them, so we

must give thanks. This is the order.

That's what we call taksa. That's why it's called taksa,

liturgy, order, Taksa order. How do we come to worship?

Here is your order. You do it in order.

Not well. You know what it it, it's nice.

If you get up now and it'll it'll be, you know, it'll be

really cool. There's nothing cool.

Nothing lies, nothing playing on emotions.

No, no, no, no, no. There's got to be an order.

No word from John here. Nothing from the other apostles.

They hold their peace. They were still listening,

beloved. James says, be quick to listen,

slow to speak, verses 13 to 15. And when they had ceased

speaking, James rose up and said, men and brethren, hear me.

No one said listen to me. Simon didn't say listen to me.

Paul, Saint Paul and Barnabas didn't say, oh, brethren, listen

to us. No, no, But James says, listen

to me. We're going to hear why.

We're going to learn why. Listen to me, hear me.

Simon Peter has told you how God from the beginning chose a

people from the Gentiles for his name.

And with this, the words of the prophets agree as it is written.

Let's stop there now Who was James what is Saint Paul write

about James in one Corinthians 15 seven that Jesus appeared to

James. Now the understanding or the

tradition of the church I'm going to talk about that is that

James was either 1/2 brother or the cousin of Jesus.

James was the son of Caliphate who was Joseph's brother.

So Brundt Mamuna first cousin. There was no word of cousins in

the Scriptures until in one of the one of Saint Paul's writings

that's hundreds of years after the word cousins appears Mamuna

actually uncle, but there was no they were all brothers.

So he he was a either a cousin called a brother or a half

brother called a brother and tradition in the church.

Here it is. Now, if you dare to say to me,

show me in the Bible, I'll say to you, well, you haven't been

listening to these episodes, have you?

Not everything is in the Bible. Not everything.

It's not solar scriptura. We don't we don't adhere to

solar scriptura because we just proved and we're still proving

that the disciples themselves, the apostles themselves didn't

act upon solar scriptura, but the experience of the Holy

Spirit within the apostles, Simon himself and Saint Paul and

Barnabas. So the tradition and and this is

what Saint Paul writes in in in Thessalonians stand firm on the

traditions, whether by word or mouth.

Now some of them are written by some of what given oral oral

traditions. The tradition in the church is

that Christ when he met and appeared to James after his

resurrection, his stepbrother or his cousin appointed him as

Bishop of the church or the community in Jerusalem.

He speaks last because he's going to Alham Manik.

Let God rest the soul of my beloved Lecter, Dennis Marzi.

Those who are in Sydney will testify.

We'd, we'd be meeting and then we'd, we'd go around, as you

know, discussing and he would say I'm going to put an end to

it. And he would do that hand too.

I'm going to put an end to it. So James does what the late

Lecter God rest his soul of blessed memory, Dennis, he's

going to put an end to it. He's going to seal it.

Notice his wisdom, though. He acknowledges, he honors and

he values Simon's experience by what God's promised, what God

promised by the prophets. And it was Amos Chapter 9, verse

Amos 9:11

11. We're going to read them and

that is that God would take for himself a people out of the

Gentiles, His name. Now see, they're referring to

the Scriptures, but without the experience of the Holy Spirit,

there would have been a great dilemma because if they only

refer to the Holy Scriptures. And please let me correct

myself. I'm not I'm not refuting the

scriptures, but it's not only the scriptures.

If they only adhered to the scriptures, well then the

Gentiles would have been circumcised.

No, but they they appealed to the Holy Spirit and through the

Holy Spirit, the scriptures also were being fulfilled at the same

time, complementing one another. And it says, let me, let me read

the, the prophecies is the after this, this is Amos Chapter 9.

Amos 9 · chapter mention

After this I will return and I will set up, set up again the

Tabernacle of David, which is 0 We'll talk about that, the

Tabernacle of David which has fallen down, and I will repair

what has fallen from it. And I will set it up so that the

men who remain may seek after the Lord and also all the

Gentiles upon whom my name is called.

So said the Lord, who does all these things.

The works of God are known from the very beginning.

So Saint Paul is saying that listen what Simon is telling us.

It was also foretold by God for His name, meaning for His glory.

His name is not ashamed by taking the Gentiles, indeed all

the glory or there is a great glory in His name when the

Gentiles receive His name. You know how much more zeal, how

much more we see the power and the love and the glory and the

praise of God when a non Christian, be it a Muslim, a

Buddhist, A Hindu, A Vishnu, whatever it is, you know,

converts to Christianity. They have so much zeal and love

for the Lord Jesus Christ. Even if their lives are in

danger, even if there are fatwas put upon them, they don't care

because they say if we die, we die for Jesus Christ.

We go to Christ. Now that's not for their glory,

that's for the glory of God. So God meaning that they will

have my name, that is my glory upon them.

Now he confirmed Simon's agreement by returning to the

prophet of old. Why?

Why didn't James also present an experience that he had?

Because he had no experience. He had no acts of experience of

his own own to the to declare, unlike Saints Peter and Saint

Paul, Saints Peter and Paul, he began with brothers.

He says listen to me. He had no experience, but yet

he's still going to speak. Brothers.

Yes, it's the love of the community.

Listen to me, He says you need to now listen because now I'm

going to speak. How great is he's he's self

controlled. He waited until the time was

right. And how more amazing and

complete is this speech that he gives?

You know, it puts and he puts an end to this discussion.

Now notice they don't vote. They all come to an agreement.

Why? Why does he do this?

Because as we said, he was in charge as overseer, as Bishop of

the church, the community in Jerusalem.

There is order. When a Bishop is going to leave

his diocese to visit another diocese, this is the order.

And this is where the these orders have been set.

He will first courteously notify the patriarch, beseeching or

seeking his permission, and the patriarch will say, God bless

you. Go.

Then he will notify the diocese and Bishop that he is going to

visit that I am entering your territory not because it's a,

it's a territory factor. You know, this is my territory.

You can't. No, no, no.

It's out of courtesy and out of order, order.

And the Bishop that goes into another diocese has no authority

to practice his authority in that diocese.

No, no, no. That's why when people come to

talk to him about whatever, complaining, whatever, he will

say, you have priests, you have bishops.

You don't. Speak to them.

I'm only here on vacation. I'm only here, for example, to

visit family. And yes, while I'm here, I will

serve the liturgy. I may be asked to preach, and I

will visit some people. And yes, there will be respect.

See, Order. The church must have order,

beloved. That's why when we attend the

Assyrian Church of the East, some say, you know, you just sit

there and you stand up. Well, you don't know why, but

there is a reason why we stand and sit, and then we'll talk

about that. You're not permitted to shout

out Amen, Amen, Hallelujah, Amen.

No, you don't do that because everyone was silent.

All right? You sit there, you partake, You

engaged in the liturgy by singing.

Holy God, holy mighty unto you, Lord Oval, we confess, you

engage, but you don't engage in singing along with the priest

because the liturgy, the order instructs the priest will play

pray. Yes, I know many of you

complain. Oh, there's this woman sits

behind me. She's singing everything right?

Well, don't get annoyed. Thank God that you have ears to

hear, because some people don't. But no, you're absolutely right

to show that I know the liturgy. No, you don't need to do that.

The if you knew the liturgy, you would stop when the priest is is

crying out the cannon. You won't sing along with the

deacons, but you will sing where the liturgy, the order, the

order says and the faithful sing.

Yes, I'm into that, having been entrusted with leading the

Jerusalem, with the leading role of the church in Jerusalem.

You see, there was no enemy from others.

We don't. We won't hear that.

They're going to complain. Oh, hang on.

Well, why should we listen to you?

Why is it that you're putting an end to this?

No, no, no. Hang on.

What about my experience? No.

They were so free of the love of glory.

They had no glory for themselves, because they learned

from their master. Who would run away, who would

not run away, but who would depart?

Avoid all vain glory. After this I will return, and I

will set up again the tabernacles.

And the tabernacles of David means the race of the Jews, the

race of the law. Remember it was the King Cyrus,

King of Persia when he this is circa 530 to 570 BC.

When he freed them from the captivity of the Babylonians.

He returned them to Judea and allowed them to build.

He build them the temple of God so they they they could worship

one more time. The son of the son of the Shah

of of Iran, the late Shah Reza Reza.

Recently, within these weeks, he he appeared in a video and he

was pleading with the Israelites, with Israelis, with

the Jews that we should work together in order to free Iran

from the situation it is in. And he quotes that it was the

king of Persia, Cyrus, who freed you from the captivity because

after the Cyrus brought down the empire of the Babylonians, he

freed them from captivity and allowed them to go back to Judea

and to build their temple. So now it's like it's time you

scratch my back, Mr. Netanyahu, my kings, this is what resides

saying the son of the lecture, my King Cyrus in history

scratched your back. It's time for you now to scratch

my back isn't amazing when it comes to politics.

And if it befits me, I'll use scripture.

You know, at Christmas time, Netanyahu comes out, Bibi comes

out and says, I invite all Christians to come and see the

birth of Jesus. Well, number one, you refer to

him. Bibi, Mr. Netanyahu, there's

probably alarms going off here and there.

Oh, the word Jew. And Mr. Netanyahu, Bibi, thank

you for invitation. First and foremost, you refer to

him as Jesus Christ, not just Jesus Christ because He is the

Messiah. And thank you for inviting me to

come and see the birth place of Jesus Christ.

But please come out during Easter time and invite me to

come and see the empty tomb of the Lord Jesus Christ, the risen

Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to his name.

Little side note. Verse 19 Because of this I say

do not trouble. So because of all of what I've

said, Simon's experience and the Scriptures, because of this, I

say do not trouble those who turn to God from among the

Gentiles. The Gentiles who have turned to

God, not necessary to keep the law or the covenant of the

flesh. Let's not do that, but rather

they need to keep the law and the covenant of the Spirit,

which is what the apostles were made worthy to minister

according to Two Corinthians 36. God made us worthy to to be

ministers of the new covenant, not the Scripture, the Kitawa in

the Shatta version, but the the Spirit.

For the scripture kills, but the Spirit gives life.

And that's what we need to also expect and command them to do.

Verse 20 and 21. But let us send word to them

that they abstain from definement by sacrifices to

idols and fornication, and from animals strangled and from

blood. For Moses from the very early

centuries had preachers in the synagogue's in every city to

read his books on every Sabbath day.

Fornication, Sexual immorality. Let me quote what Marishu did.

The Patriarch of the Church of the East writes and comments not

only about the thing itself. Does he speak here like he's not

specifically saying fornication, only fornication, but of what

they did. These are the pagans.

Remember, some of the gentiles were pagans.

They were worshipping idols. They had the idol, idol temples.

And some of the gentiles weren't pagans.

They were more adhering to the Judaism faith and they were

almost accepting to be, you know, received in the in

Judaism. So he's not talking about

itself, about fornication specifically by itself, but of

what they did according to the gust custom for the appeasing of

demons, because their idols were demons, meaning that it was not

allowable for women to belong to men unless they had first, this

was their, this was their, their laws.

A woman was not allowed to belong to a man unless they

first had been prostituted to the priest in the idol temple,

the temple of the idols. So what James is saying, we got

to tell they got to stop this. No more, no more.

No fornication. They don't prostitute their

women. No, that's that's done, that's

finished from strangled and blood.

Well read Leviticus 1710 to 12. Both the Jews and the foreigners

were deprived, were commanded not to eat an animal with its

blood because life is the now let me let me give you another

side note. When we partake in the bread

that is the body of Christ, real presence, the elements don't

change, the accidents don't change, but mystically,

spiritually, it is united with the body that is in heaven.

Saint Paul writes in One Corinthians, the bread we break,

it's not just normal bread. No, no, no, it's not just normal

bread. The bread we break, is it not

united or has association or has has a sharing or or united to

the body that is in heaven, Jesus body.

So the bread we break and eat on a Sunday during our Eucharistic

service, we are partaking in the body of Christ because we're

still flesh and the blood which denotes life winning soul.

So we partake beloved, in the body and soul of our Lord Jesus

Christ. If this doesn't bring you to

church every Sunday, you go and examine your faith because your

faith is built on something that I don't know, plucked out of the

air or what I think, how I believe.

No, no, I quoted you scripture. So Leviticus 1710 to 12.

They would, you know, there was so much blood offering with the

with the pagans. That's got to stop.

You don't drink blood anymore. You don't just strangle animals

and eat. No, no, you got to cut them, you

got to slaughter them and you got to allow the blood to drain

and then you will eat the meat cooked, not raw.

Wow. Although today you see some men

is becoming more and more like an animal as Saint Peter writes

and Moses had preachers, the law was preached everyday in the

synagogues and we too will strive to preach the Lord Jesus

Christ and the law of grace. And this is what Jesus did from

his dawn, from when he appeared, He began to fulfill the law of

the flesh, but then introduced the law of grace, the law of the

Spirit. And this will grant them

equality together as Christians. No more Jews, no more Gentiles,

no more slaves. As Saint Paul writes, we are now

all children of God, renewed by the Spirit.

So our understanding thus far has been Scripture within the

experience, framework, and life of the Apostolic Church.

Apostles authority and order. The Apostles authority and order

within the Church and the guidance of the apostles by the

Holy Spirit, which at times allowed them to not adhere to

the laws of the Scripture and Scripture we're talking about is

the Old Testament. There was no Bible back then and

we saw that. So praise and glory be to Christ

our Lord, beloved, that today we have the Holy Scriptures.

We appeal to the Holy Scriptures when we don't understand.

Please don't sit around. You know, Saint Paul says the

interpretation, St. Peter says the interpretation of

the Scriptures is not for anyone.

So this gathering in Bible studies and each giving our

thoughts and understandings and interpretations, that's

dangerous. Don't do that, don't do that,

that's dangerous. Scriptures have to be

understood. Scriptures have to be

interpreted and preached and lived according to the

experience, the guidance of the Holy Spirit within the framework

and the life of the Church. Which Church?

The one holy and Apostolic Catholic, universal Catholic,

meaning universal Church. Praise and glory be to the Lord

of the Church, now and at all times and forever.

Amen. We hope you enjoyed this week's

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Until next time, God bless you all.