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If you have been attending or a member of a local church very long then you know there are varying opinions about doctrine, theology, and practice. Many times we in the church do not have an organized plan for dealing with disagreements that arise. Here is a newsflash. Even the early church soon after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus had very similar problems. One such instance was how to deal with the non-Jewish people who were now coming in to the church. The Jewish people had long standing traditions carried over into Christianity from their practice of Judaism. Many of these non-Jewish converts to Christianity were not familiar with these practices. As you can imagine, a controversy arose regarding the practice of circumcision which the Jewish people practiced.
You had at least two opinions that existed among the Jewish Christians. One group argued that circumcision was necessary for non-Jewish people, particularly men, to be saved. Another group argued that it was not necessary. You can see where this was going and if the issue was not resolved, it could result in a fracture in the early church. In Acts chapter fifteen, the Bible gives us a master class on how to resolve doctrinal and practical issues in the church. In the rest of this article, I want to lay out the roadmap the text provides.
First, the church recognized the seriousness of the problem. They then called upon their most trusted and capable leaders, the apostles and the elders, and they gathered in Jerusalem to discuss the issue. The very first verse of Acts chapter fifteen defined the issue to be discussed. This is so important. Defining the issue to be discussed and settled kept the meeting from devolving into unrelated issues. As we in the church disagree over matters, we must be sure we carefully articulate what we are disagreeing about. Have you ever had a discussion where it seemed you and the other person were talking past one another or, all these other unrelated issues were brought up?
Next, the gathering of trusted leaders had open and orderly discussion and debate. Acts 15:7 states that there was much debate. Different voices and different views were heard. This should teach us that in the church we should not only allow but encourage respectful, reasoned dialogue and avoid the suppression of honest questions and concerns. What the gathering recognized though, was that the debate needed to center around two things; Scripture and what they had experienced in God’s redemptive acts. Peter pointed to God’s work among the Gentiles (Acts 15:7–9) and James cited the prophets (Acts 15:15–18). Therefore, the conclusion would be grounded in God’s revelation and God’s activity. Notice that opinions were set aside for a greater authority.
Finally, the representatives of the church came to a conclusion and a consensus. Their decision was a balance of revealed truth and pastoral wisdom. They upheld the clear teaching of Scripture that salvation was by faith apart from works of the Law and at the same time gave some practical instruction regarding the maintaining of fellowship in what was now a mixed church.
The council then gave a unified, public and binding declaration via a letter to the churches. They sent messengers to take this declaration to the churches to inform them of the council’s decision. And here is what happened. The decision was received with joy and it strengthened the churches. Now that should be our goal when we have to debate and decide issues that arise in the life of our churches. We should stop right here and thank God for giving us His Word that helps us in so many ways.
