I am Paul - The Little One.
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you in times past were Gentiles by birth, called Uncircumcision by them which are called the Circumcision. Itself is a mere mark in the flesh made by human hands. Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, excluded from all part of Him. You were utterly estranged and outlawed from the rights of Israel as a nation. You were strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were far off are made near by the shed blood of Christ on the cross. He is our peace, who has made both Jews and Gentiles one, and has broken down the hostile dividing wall of partition between us. To make in Himself of the two, one new man, so making peace. That He might reconcile to Himself both Jews and Gentiles into one body by the cross."
I wanted to make it easy for them to understand that through Him, Jesus Christ we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father, "Now therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, of the household of God. Built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone. In Whom the whole building is fitly framed together growing into a holy temple in the Lord. In Whom you also are being built together for the habitation of God through the Holy Spirit."
My instructions on this matter were very clear to the church as I had written about this in my first letter to the various churches that I established in the Province of Galatia. I was determined to mark those who caused division among us. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any importance or benefit, but a new creature. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things have passed away, all things have become new. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus, and Christ is all, and in all. We are all one new man in Christ Jesus, the Messiah. A new creature. Yet there were those who continued to make division and draw dividing lines, even disciples, the brothers from the church in Jerusalem. Barnabas and I had to go there.
I am Paul, called to be an apostle. Grace and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah. We are always giving thanks to God for you, continually mentioning you in our prayers. Jesus Christ is our mercy-seat when we put our faith in His Blood.
Amen - so be it.
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Law or Grace. #6
There was no rest at Antioch of Syria for Barnabas and I, as a serious dispute arose. I was constantly putting out doctrinal fires and continuously had to teach and educate the saints about the dangers of keeping the Law of Moses. This battle of being righteous by keeping the Law of Moses opposed to being righteous by faith in the Messiah continued to burn throughout my years in ministry. The flames of keeping the Law of Moses to obtain ones righteousness erupted like the lava of a violent erupting volcano, flowing down a barren mountain. If you keep one part of the law to be deemed righteous, then you have to keep the entire Law, all six hundred and thirteen commands, that God gave to Moses upon Mount Sinai in the wilderness.
Some men came down from Judea to Antioch of Syria and were instructing the brethren, teaching them that except they be circumcised in accordance with the Law of Moses, they cannot be saved. I was furious. This brought them into no small measure of discord and dispute with Barnabas and I. The congregation assigned a team including Barnabas and me, to go up to Jerusalem to confer with the apostles and church elders about this matter. I had to extinguish these flames by discussing this with the apostles in Jerusalem.
The Jews were unaware of God's new way of making people righteous. Instead they continued to walk on their own path to righteousness by the circumcision of the flesh. They had not yet submitted themselves to God's new way of making people righteous. They did not understand that Christ, the Messiah is the end of the law, the place where it ceases to exist. For the Law leads up to Him. He is the fulfilment of it's types and shadows. The Law was a mere shadow of better things to come. The earthly tabernacle with its furnishings and gifts that were offered in accordance with the Law were merely an example, a pattern, a shadow of the heavenly things themselves. Christ is the reality and the true existence in heaven itself of the heavenly tabernacle. The Law served us Jews as a schoolmaster, a trainer, a guide, to lead us to Christ. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster, a trainer, a guide to the Law. We are now saved by grace through faith. It is not of ourselves that any man should boast, but it is the free gift of God.
On our way to Jerusalem we went through the regions of Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring and telling the saints of the conversion of the Gentiles. We caused great joy and jubilation to come upon all the brothers in Christ who heard this. When we arrived in Jerusalem, the church received us warmly. We were heartily welcomed by the apostles and the church elders in Jerusalem. We told them all the things that God had accomplished through us on our travels. I began to see the earthly Jerusalem, the holy city in a different light altogether. The earthly Jerusalem was merely a type and a shadow, a copy of the greater heavenly city. The Jerusalem which is above is the heavenly Jerusalem. She is now the mother of us all and no longer the earthly Jerusalem. For we have now come to the spiritual mount Zion, unto the city of the living God. We have now come to the heavenly Jerusalem.
Some of the believers in Jerusalem, who acknowledged Jesus as their Saviour and devoted themselves to Him belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They rose up and said, "It is necessary to circumcise the Gentile converts. They must obey and keep the Law of Moses."
The apostles and church elders came together to look into and resolve this issue. Barnabas and I had been a part of this dispute and long debate. Peter got up and said to them, "Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles, so that they could hear the message of the Good News and believe. God, who knows peoples hearts, confirmed that He accepts the Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for He purified and cleansed their hearts through faith also. So why are you now challenging God, putting Him to the test by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke upon their necks, that neither we nor our forefathers had the strength to endure and be able to keep the Law? We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserving favour and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its the same with them as it is with us."
Then the whole assembly remained silent and kept still as they listened intently to Barnabas and I. We declared what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by our hands. When we had finished talking, James stood up and said, "Brothers, listen to me. Peter has told you about the time when God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for Himself to honour Christ's name. And this conversion of the Gentiles is exactly what the prophets predicted. As it is written, 'After this I will return, and I will restore and rebuild again the fallen tabernacle of David. I will rebuild its ruins. I will restore it. So that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord, including the Gentiles - all those I have called to be mine. The Lord has spoken. He has made these things known so long ago.' Therefore, my judgement is that we should not put obstacles in the way of the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by being offered to idols, from all sexual impurity, and from eating the meat of animals that have been strangled and from tasting blood."
Then the apostles and church elders, together with the whole church, decided to select men from among themselves to send them to Antioch of Syria with Barnabas and I. They sent Judas surnamed Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers. Silas was a Roman citizen. They sent the following letter with us th
at I was to read to the churches.
From: The apostles and elders in Jerusalem, your brothers.
To: The brothers from among the Gentiles throughout Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:
Greetings!
We have heard that some people went out from among us here in Jerusalem without our authorization, and that they have upset and troubled you with their talk, unsettling your minds. So we have decided unanimously to select men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Saul, who have dedicated their lives to upholding the name of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.
So we have sent Judas and Silas, and they will confirm in person what we are writing. For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us, not to lay any heavier burden upon you than the following requirements. To abstain from meats that have been sacrificed to idols, and from tasting blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will be doing the right thing.
Shalom!
We were sent off and went directly back to Antioch of Syria, where we gathered the