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"Some men came
down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, ‘Unless
you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses,
you cannot be saved.’ And when Paul and Barnabas had
great dissension and debate with them, the brethren
determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of
them should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and
elders concerning this issue." Acts 15:1-2
Paul’s epistle to the Galatians gives great insight
into the reason and purpose of the first Church Council
held in Jerusalem. There were Judaizing Christians who
had come from Jerusalem claiming that they had been sent
by James to correct the Gospel Paul had been teaching
them.
Paul had been personally taught the message he presented
to the Gentiles by the resurrected Christ. Unlike these
false apostles, Paul understood clearly that there was a
major difference between the Covenant ratified at Sinai
and the Covenant of Promise given to Abraham. Abraham’s
Covenant is the "New Covenant" Christians have entered
into.
Though this Covenant is based on faith rather than on
Law it is not a lawless Covenant, -"All
the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because
Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My Commandments,
My Statutes and My Laws." (Gen.26) Galatians
3:8 explains that this was the Gospel message that was
preached to Abraham beforehand.
By contrast, the Sinai Covenant had hundreds of more
Laws which were added because of transgressions and it
was these Laws that the Judaizing Pharisees were
insisting the Gentiles observe. Galatians 3:10
identifies them as the 613 Laws called the "Book of the
Law."
By the time the council in Jerusalem was held, Paul,
Barnabas and Timothy had already taught the Gentile
converts the Gospel and the Laws in the Covenant of
Promise. Some erroneously believe that because James,
who presided over the Council, ruled that the Gentiles
keep themselves from fornication, meat sacrificed to
idols and blood, that they were not obligated to keep
the Ten Commandments. But this is certainly not true.
To know and understand what God required of the new
Gentile converts, all one must do is read the epistles
written to them. Paul plainly told the Corinthians, -"Circumcision
means nothing, or uncircumcision means nothing, but what
matters is the keeping of the Commandments of God." (1
Cor.7) He
told the Romans that only the doers of the Law would be
justified by God. (Rom.2)
James’ ruling did not take away what Paul and Barnabas
had been teaching the new converts, but instead actually
added three "essential" Laws from the Book of the
Covenant. The Judaizers had demanded that the Gentiles
keep all 613 Laws of the Book of the Covenant but James
added only these three to what Paul had already taught
them.
Some believe that the requirements for Christian Jews
is different from that of Gentile Christians -claiming
that Jews must keep the whole Law of Moses while the
Gentiles do not. But this is contrary to the
instructions of Christ and the testimony of Peter given
during the council. In fact, Peter testified that God
made no difference between Jews and Gentiles.
The resurrected Jesus sent His followers out with the
great commission of taking the Gospel to the world, -"Go,
therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
commanded you." (Matt.28) Notice
that the teachings of Christ are the same for "all
nations."
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