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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
In Acts 15, a lovely and wise decision has been made by the Church in Jerusalem to resolve a highly contentious problem, with its potentially divisive characteristics.
Verse 24. Some of our members have troubled you unnecessarily. We gave them no such authority, to come to you and speak in these upsetting and distressing ways, but we have come to one mind on the matter, and we send this letter with these men, to explain everything to you.
Verse 25. Our dear friends - (Greek means beloved) - Barnabas and Paul. Speak well of fellow Christians - even although you find it hard to agree with them on everything, and if we have nothing good to say about fellow disciples, it might be best to remain quiet.
Verse 27. The fellowship back in Antioch is informed of the decision, by letter and the spoken word. When it is written, a decision cannot be changed, but a letter like this is not very personal and cannot convey the love properly - and often, verbal reports are insufficient.
The documents and the spokesmen go together - the written word keeps the spokesmen to the decision of the meeting - and the spokesman conveys the tone and feeling and love of the Jerusalem gathering. When the decision is read out, the people rejoiced and were encouraged as anxiety and trouble and dispute are replaced by harmony and joy and peace.
What a magnificent way to handle matters which could cause trouble and divide, and to arrive at a harmonious decision, and to convey that decision by letter, and to send men who could convey the decision and whose hearts are full of the love of Jesus. When Christians agree on THE TRUTH, it is a triumph for the TRUTH - and the victory is ours in Christ.
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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