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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
As we move on to Acts 15 the scene changes. What is called Paul's first missionary journey is over and we have been reading, yes, and I hope studying, over these weeks of everything that happened. Now Barnabas and Paul have returned to their local church. They have come home to rest and be refreshed - to recuperate and be repaired. They have also shared what God has been doing through them during these past two years.
That is important - to tell those who have prayed for you what God has done in you and with you and through you. Those who had supported them in prayer now sit and listen to their account of how Jesus used them - and how doors were opened - and also of how stones were thrown.
They are worshipping with all the others in Antioch. Everything appears quite peaceful until certain men came down from Jerusalem - and they began to teach something very strange. "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved."
This raised many questions, and could have caused much trouble. This can happen in The Church of Jesus Christ. Someone comes along and says, "Unless you do such and such a thing, you cannot be saved. Unless you do such and such a thing you cannot be a real Christian - a real disciple. Unless you have done what I have done - or live the way I live - then there is something missing." We have never been able to get rid of this type of problem.
What they are saying is - "To be a real true believing disciple, you need something more than faith in Jesus Christ."
The success of the first lengthy mission - the success of the first missionary outreach has brought problems - new problems.
Paul and Barnabas had quite some argument with these men, and they decide to go to Jerusalem, with a group of disciples of Jesus, to meet with the leadership in Jerusalem to deal with this vital issue - to meet with Peter and John and the other leaders.
Beware when someone comes along wanting to influence you in some new way - or with some new book which has become the fresh fashion, or the theological flavour of the month. Beware!! - but know how to deal with such a situation in a firm gracious and biblical way.
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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