0415 RESOLVING CHURCH CONFLICT

BY GRACE. NO EXCEPTIONS.

You knew it was going to happen: The moment of heaven on earth has come to an end. There is division in the church, as groups arise with differing views. It’s going to split the church and hurt the cause of Christ, once this first faction arises. So it must be dealt with. 

Some of the Jewish believers could not fathom the idea that Gentiles got to enter the kingdom without submitting to at least SOME of the Laws that governed the Israelites. I mean, what’s the point of thousands of years of history if it’s all going to be thrown to the wind? It simply CAN’T be that easy, can it?

And so we find some men coming to Antioch–the church that served as a model for diversity and for having Gentile members. The men are from Judea–meaning, they come from the center of the Jewish faith. And they begin teaching the believers that it is not possible for Gentiles to get in so easily. Unless you are circumcised (as required by the Law of Moses), you cannot be saved.

The teaching makes sense, if you are Jewish. The salvation bus has always been Jewish, and you can’t find any Scriptures that say the Law is going to be abolished. Jesus himself said that he had not come to abolish, but to fulfill the law. Barnabas and Paul argue vehemently with these men, but the church has not yet established a central governing authority to define denominational (oops! There’s that word!) positions. So Paul and Barnabas don’t have enough authority to command them not to teach their views any more. At this point, there are no books to make up the New Testament yet, so there is no central written authority to resolve the disagreement. Notice that the disagreement is not explicitly because people didn't love one another. You can love someone and still disagree with them. So it is, here in Antioch.

How can the church make such a momentous decision? Take a vote? No. A congregational vote is a recipe for disaster. Have you discovered why that is so? Because when you have a vote, especially a secret ballot system, you are creating two groups, which forces some to be “losers”  and some to be “winners.” How long will unity prevail there? I know it’s the American way. But not so the early church, or many other churches and orders today. In the early going, they cast lots, of all things, and entrusted the outcome to God’s will, rather than to see who was most popular. A second system that works and still preserves unity, is to seek “consensus.” Or, this one uses a third option, which is to turn it over to a higher authority and submit to their decision. And now, this foundational truth sounds like a job for the apostles, who are still located in Jerusalem. So Antioch sends a delegation to Jerusalem, and the apostles discuss the topic civilly, and then submit to the final decision that James decrees. 

But not without a long discussion, which Luke conveniently records for us. Another group has arisen in the city, made up of Pharisees who have converted to Christ, but who still hold certain beliefs. “The Gentiles converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.”

What evidence is admissible in this debate? Not Scripture. Not precedent. Not law or video. What they DO have is the Holy Spirit, and He will help to guide them into all wisdom. The evidence is in the experience itself. God has clearly been working wonders and doing miracles among Gentiles, the same way he did among Jews. “So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear?” Someone then shared a Scripture from the psalms that predicted this moment in church history. So James makes a declaration, and the matter is settled. 

There is one more disagreement in this chapter, and it is worth talking about for a moment. Paul and Barnabas split up before going on a second journey. The word for “split” is the same word in Greek as a Scripture that says the heavens will be torn asunder. Paul and Barnabas are torn apart, never to reunite. Paul takes Silas with him from now on. God can use even our mistakes and our splits and turn them into something positive for his kingdom, if we let him.

So, the church is no longer heaven on earth. But it is still the Bride of Christ, his body, and spotless and beautiful in the eyes of God. Behold, he makes all things new. Amen.