Acts Chapter 15 Study Guide

Family Study Guide for December 14 - December 20, 2006
(Read Acts 15 Online)

Reflections on Acts 15 byMark Chesner, Coach

You know, there are some days when looking in the Yellow Pages under "churches" can make you dizzy. There are Catholic churches, Protestant churches, there are Evangelical churches, Baptist churches, Methodist churches, Wesleyan churches, Lutheran churches, Eastern Orthodox churches, Russian Orthodox churches, and the list goes on and on and on. It is easy to wonder, "How can so many Christians disagree on so many things, if there is one God and one Christ?" After all, we see the church agreeing on everything in Acts, right?

In Acts 15, we see that Christians do not always agree, and sometimes the disagreements are passionate. Now that the church has finally gotten used to the idea of Gentiles joining the church, the debate changes gears to a new question. "If Gentiles are welcome in the Church, how 'Jewish' do they have to act in order to stay in the Church?" And the Pharisee Christians believe the answer is obvious: Christian means acting like Jesus did in all things, and Jesus followed the Law of Moses and was circumcized. Therefore, Gentile Christians must do the same things!

(Please note that calling these people "of the party of the Pharisees" was not an insult. They were people who honestly had been Pharisees beforehand, and had become Christians upon hearing the words of Christ or of the apostles. These days we tend to think of 'Pharisee' as an insult, meaning 'hypocrite', but at the time it referred to a political party and way of thinking. More like saying in our day "of the part of the Democrats" or "of the party of the Republicans.")

But rather than get into an all-out shouting match, as some Christians in our time might do, the Christians of that time did the right thing. They got together and talked it out. They listened carefully to the recognized spiritual leaders: Peter, Paul, Barnabus, and James. And they came to a consensus and a compromise.

And then they did one more important thing. They not only came to a decision amongst themselves, but they sent back the full decision to Antioch - where the debate had first begun. They let no one doubt the decision, and made sure that it was clear that it was the decision not just of Peter, not just of Paul, but of the whole assembly.

When you see debates and divisions within the church, keep in mind this model from Acts 15. Don't grumble or just walk away from a disagreement. Start a discussion, look for spiritual elders, and try to bring about a consensus.

Questions to Consider
- When have you seen a division in the church that seemed insoluable?
- When have you walked away from a spiritual debate, rather than try to come to common ground with another Christian?
- Do you think there would ever be a time that the consensus would be wrong? Why?

Bible.Org Outline for Acts 15
C. The Council at Jerusalem Concerning the Gentile Mission (15:1-35)
1. The Occasion: Judaizers in Antioch (15:1-5)
2. The Meeting of the Apostles and Elders at Jerusalem (15:6-21)
a. The Setting (15:6-7a)
b. Peter’s Message (15:7b-11)
c. Barnabas’ and Paul’s Testimony (15:12)
d. James’ Concluding Thoughts (15:13-21)
3. The Council’s Letter to Gentile Believers (15:22-35)
a. The Selection of Barnabas and Paul as Letter-Bearers (15:22)
b. The Contents of the Letter (15:23-29)
c. The Response in Antioch (15:30-35)
D. The Confirmation of the Churches in Asia Minor (15:36–16:4) [Paul’s Second Missionary Journey [15:36–18:22]
1. The Dispute between Paul and Barnabas over John Mark (15:36-41)
a. The Desire to Return (15:36)
b. The Discussion over John Mark (15:37-39a)
c. Barnabas and Mark Depart for Cyprus (15:39b)
d. Paul and Silas Depart for Tarsus (15:40-41)