Resolving Conflict

11 RESOLVING CONFLICT (Acts 15:1 – 16:5)
Conflict between believers is one of the most difficult things we face. There are those whose total outlook on Christianity has been drastically affected as the result of a church split or Christian friends not speaking to each other.
Thankfully the Bible is not silent on conflict. It has much to offer on how to deal with conflict and differences in ideas in a godly way. Acts 15 is one such passage. The vital question of how Gentile believers would be incorporated into the believing community began to form in the mind of the Jewish Christians. This question, left unattended, could have torn the church apart. There is much of this same kind of discussion today, and the council of Jerusalem provides an excellent model for resolving our differences.
It was one thing to secure the gospel from corruption; it was another to preserve the church from fragmentation. Paul was resolutely unwilling to compromise the “truth of the gospel.” At the same time, he was extremely anxious to maintain Jewish-Gentile solidarity in the one body of Christ. Once the theological principle that salvation is by grace alone and that circumcision was not required but neutral was firmly established, he was prepared to adjust his practical policies.
We may say, then, that the Jerusalem Council secured a double victory – a victory of love in preserving the fellowship by sensitive concessions to conscientious Jewish scruples. As Luther put it, Paul was strong in faith and soft in love. Or as John Newton once said, “Paul was a reed in non-essentials, - an iron pillar in essentials.”
Summary: From our later perspective of church history we can see the crucial importance of this first ecumenical Council held in Jerusalem. Its unanimous decision liberated the gospel from its Jewish swaddling clothes into being God’s message for all humankind, and gave the Jewish-Gentile church a self-conscious identity as the reconciled people of God, the one body of Christ. And although the whole council affirmed it, Paul claimed that it was a new understanding granted especially to him, the “mystery” previously hidden but now revealed, namely that through faith in Christ alone Gentiles stand on equal terms with Jews as “heirs together, members together, sharers together” in his one new community.
Open
How have you seen Christians and/or congregations deal with conflict?
Study
Read Acts 15:1-21. So far it had been assumed that Gentile believers would be absorbed into the believing community by circumcision and that by observing the law they would be acknowledged as bona fide members of the covenant of God. Something quite different was now happening, however: Gentile converts were being welcomed into fellowship by baptism without circumcision. They were becoming Christians without becoming Jews.
1. What was the question that was forming in the minds of the Jewish leaders (vv. 1-5)?
2. Why was this issue so important?
3. What might be some comparable issues in today’s church?
4. Describe carefully the process of resolving this conflict (vv. 6-21).
5. What can we learn about the resolution of a disagreement from the way the Jewish leaders worked toward resolution?
6. Read Acts 15:22-35. What do the leaders do to make sure the decisions from the council are adequately communicated to the churches?
7. Why do you think the Gentile believers were given a list of four behaviors from which to abstain, even though they did not have to be circumcised or obey the law of Moses to be saved (vv. 28-29)?
8. Read Acts 15:36 – 16:5. How did Paul and Barnabas deal with their sharp disagreement about whether or not to take John Mark with them on their next missionary journey?
9. How do you respond to how they resolved this conflict?
10. After all the discussion in the council at Jerusalem about Gentiles not having to be circumcised, why do you think Paul circumcised Timothy before taking him along on the journey with Silas and himself?
11. How would you evaluate the spiritual health of the churches at this point?
Apply
Consider the principles of conflict resolution revealed in this passage. Which of them is easiest for you? Which is most difficult? In what ways do you need to care more for the growth and well-being of other believers?
PrayPraise God that we as Christians have the message of reconciliation. Ask him to soften your heart and help you to live out this message in the world.

Spreading the Word

10 SPREADING THE WORD (Acts 12:25 – 14:28)
The first missionary journey was at once inspiring and terrifying. A blessing and a trial. When Paul and Barnabas returned from their journey they reported back full of excitement to the church which sent them out. God had done tremendous things: many became Christians, churches were established, elders appointed, their message affirmed by miracles and the word of God spread. They also reported of opposition from the religious leaders and being kicked out of cities and stoned, at times close to the point of death. Through it all, however, they knew they would not be stopped because the Holy Spirit sent them and went with them.
It is unlikely that the Holy Spirit revealed his will only to the small group of five leaders, for that would entail three of them being instructed about the other two. It is more likely that the church members as a whole are in mind, since both they and the leaders are mentioned together in verse 1. Moreover, when Paul and Barnabas returned, “they gathered the church together.” They reported to the church because they had been commissioned by the church.
Summary: Would it not be true to say that the Spirit sent them out, by introducing the church to do so, and that the church sent them out, having been directed by the Spirit to do so? This balance will be a healthy corrective to opposite extremes. The first is the tendency to individualism, by which a Christian claims direct personal guidance by the Spirit without any reference to the church. The second is the tendency to institutionalism, by which all decision-making is done by the church without any reference to the Spirit. Although we have no liberty to deny the validity of personal choice, it is safe and healthy only in relation to the Spirit and the church. Still today it is the responsibility of every local church (especially of its leaders) to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, in order to discover who he may be gifting and calling.
Luke chooses this moment to inform us that Saul was also called Paul. It was common for Jews to take a Greek or Roman second name, and it was appropriate for Luke to mention Saul’s now as he moves into increasingly non-Jewish contexts. He does not call Paul “Saul” again.
Luther wrote in his Preface to the Acts of the Apostles, “It should be noted that by this book St. Luke teaches the whole of Christendom … that the true and chief article of Christian doctrine is this: We must all be justified alone by faith in Jesus Christ, without any contribution from the law or help from our works. This doctrine is the chief of the book and the author’s principal reason for writing” ([Muhlenberg Press, 1960], p. 363). On the other hand, over against the offer of forgiveness, Paul issues a solemn warning to those who reject it.
The most notable feature of this first missionary journey was the missionaries’ sense of divine direction. It was the Holy Spirit of God himself who told the church of Antioch to set Barnabas and Saul apart, who sent them out, who led them from place to place, and who gave power to their preaching, so that converts were made and churches planted. The sending church had committed them to the grace of God for their work (14:26), and on their return they reported “all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles” (14:27). True, he had done the work “with them” (literally), in cooperation or partnership with them, but he had done it, and they gave him the credit. The grace had come from him; the glory must go to him.
Open
What do you think would be most difficult about being a missionary?
Study
Read Acts 12:25 – 13:4. The previous study ended with the thrilling words “but the word of God continued to increase and spread.” Now Luke has reached a decisive turning point in his narrative. In keeping with the risen Lord’s prophecy (1:8), witness has been borne to him “in Jerusalem” and in “all Judea and Samaria.” Now the horizon broadens to “the ends of the earth.” Up to this point all the action in evangelism has been limited to the Palestinian and Syrian mainland. Nobody has yet caught the vision of taking the good news to the nations overseas (although Cyprus has been mentioned in 11:19). Now at last, however, that momentous step is to be taken.
1. Describe the scene in these verses.
2. How does the way Paul and Barnabas are sent compare and contrast with how we send off our missionaries today?
3. How does the church of the twenty-first century need to change in order to follow the example of the early church in missions?
4. Read Acts 13:4-12. Contrast the proconsul with Elymas the sorcerer.
5. Luke tells us that Paul was freshly filled with the Holy Spirit, to show that his boldness, outspokenness and power in condemning Elymas were all from God. Why do you think Paul was so severe in his reprimand of Elymas (vv. 9-11)?
6. Read Acts 13:13-52. How do you see God’s grace emphasized in Paul’s history of Israel (vv. 16-25)?
7. Paul jumps from David to the promised Savior, Jesus. What truth about Jesus does he proclaim?
8. What are the consequences of his sermon (vv. 42-52)?
9. What do you learn from Paul and Barnabas about interacting with those who are hostile to the gospel?
10. Read Acts 14:1-28. How do Paul and Barnabas react to being perceived as gods (vv. 14-18)?
11. This first missionary journey illustrates the extraordinary versatility of the apostle in adapting himself to different situations; he appeared to be equally at ease with individuals and crowds, Jews and Gentiles, the religious and the irreligious, the educated and the uneducated, the friendly and the hostile. Contrast the way the people responded to Paul’s message.
12. In summary, what different approaches do you see Paul take as he relates to different groups and individuals throughout this whole passage?
13. Retrace Paul and Barnabas’s steps through this first missionary journey, and look for the ways they made sure that the churches they left behind had a solid foundation on which to grow (13:43, 49; 14:21-23).
Apply
As you observe that the Holy Spirit permeates everything that Paul and Barnabas are and do, how would you like to see this more true of your life? How would you like to see your church grow in touching the world with the gospel?
PrayWe are called to be missionaries, whether at home or abroad. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you all that hinders you from fully responding to that call and to keep you faithful to it.

Growing Pains

9 Growing Pains (Acts 11:19-12:24)
God works in strange ways. At a time when it would seem good for the church to be together, to grow and mature, to enjoy fellowship, they are scattered all over by persecution. What were the results? The spread of the gospel. The greater the opposition the greater the expansion of the church.
There is a tendency in many of our churches today for us to want to “stay together.” Mature. Become more of who we are and ignore the rest of the world. We also see that the principle that “the greater the persecution the greater the expansion” seems to apply today also.
Luke now shows how the outward movement of the gospel expanded in two ways, geographical and cultural. Geographically, the mission spread north beyond “Judea and Samaria.” Culturally, the mission spread beyond Jews to Gentiles. Some speculate that Luke himself was one of these converts.
Summary: It is not an accident that the Jerusalem recipients of Antiochene relief are called “brothers” (11:29). More important still, this brotherhood or family included both Jewish and Gentile believers, and the fellowship between them was illustrated in the relations between their two churches. The church of Jerusalem had sent Barnabas to Antioch; now the church of Antioch sent Barnabas, with Saul, back to Jerusalem. This famine relief anticipated the collection which Paul was later to organize, in which the affluent Greek churches of Macedonia and Achaia contributed to the needs of the impoverished churches of Judea. Its importance to Paul was that it was a symbol of Gentile-Jewish solidarity in Christ.
Indeed, one cannot fail to admire the artistry with which Luke depicts the complete reversal of the church’s situation. At the beginning of the chapter Herod is on the rampage – arresting and persecuting church leaders; at the end he is himself struck down and dies. The chapter opens with James dead, Peter in prison and Herod triumphing; it closes with Herod dead, Peter free and the Word of God triumphing. Such is the power of God to overthrow hostile human plans and to establish his own in their place. Tyrants may be permitted for a time to boast and bluster, oppressing the church and hindering the spread of the gospel, but they will not last. In the end, their empire will be broken and their pride abased.
Open
When have you seen painful circumstances in your life produce good results?
Study
Read Acts 11:19-30. Luke ended his previous section with the words “God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life” (v. 18). It was an epoch-making declaration by the conservative Jewish leaders of the Jerusalem church. The inclusion of the Gentiles is to be Luke’s main theme in the rest of Acts.
1. What good resulted from believers’ were being scattered by the persecution that was connected with Stephen?
2. What different efforts were made to nurture the new believers at Antioch?
3. What does it take to remain “true to the Lord” with all your heart (11:23)?
4. What do these efforts say about the importance of discipline young Christians?
5. Why do you think Luke makes a point of mentioning the predicted famine (11:27-30)?
6. Read Acts 12:1-24. What do we learn about Herod in the first four verses?
7. Try to put yourself in Peter’s sandals. What do you think it was like to be led out of jail by an angel?
8. How did the Christians who had gathered to pray for Peter (and who knew about James’s death) respond when he appeared at the door (12:12-17)?
9. What was the cause of Herod’s death (12:21-23)?
10. What are the similarities between the cause of his death and those of the death of Ananias and Sapphira (5:1-10)?
11. What does Herod’s death tell you about God?
Apply
What efforts are you – or could you be – making to nurture young believers? What have you learned from this passage about how God uses suffering? Who or what encourages you to remain true to the Lord with all your heart?
PrayAsk the Holy Spirit to use the church of Jesus Christ to grow. Reflect on what it might cost you for that prayer to be answered.