Know: Observe how changing the criteria for being part of God’s covenantal family can be a challenging experience.
Feel: Emotionally identify with the struggle to allow into God’s family those whom he or she once thought it was his or her religious responsibility to avoid.
Do: Apply lessons learned from the Jerusalem Council that align with both the inclusivity of the gospel and the maintenance of holiness.
Learning Outline:
I. Know: Gentiles Can Stay Gentiles.
+ How does the Jerusalem Council shape our theology of mission to people groups radically different from our own?
+ What are some situations today that parallel the Gentile/circumcision issue of the early church? What are some invalid comparisons?
II. Feel: No Difference Between Us and Them
+ As Adventists, how can we avoid a superiority complex while still counting ourselves a privileged people?
+ Knowing that change is difficult, how can we let the Spirit keep our emotions in check?
III. Do: Keeping Pace With God
+ Some Christians can hinder the mission of the church in the name of purity. What response can be given to this subtle pitfall?
+ To maintain unity, what would have been the respective responsibilities of the “winners” and the “losers” at the Jerusalem Council?
Summary: God’s church must always strive to keep in step with Him in order to be an extension of His will. Outdated applications and egos must be put aside for the sake of the Spirit’s saving activity.
Learning Cycle
Step 1—Motivate
Spotlight on Scripture: Acts 15:1-21
Key Concept for Spiritual Growth: Even amid crisis, God’s will can triumph through His people as they listen to, and heed, the testimony of the Spirit’s activity and the confirmation of the prophetic scriptures.
Just for Teachers: Something remarkable took place at the Jerusalem Council that you as a teacher should strive to communicate to your class. Ingrained theological, biblical, and sociological principles and practices that had been reinforced for millennia were now about to “officially” shift. God had been progressively altering His people’s view of the Gentile world from the time of Jesus’ ministry up through the experiences of Peter’s and Paul’s witness of the Spirit’s baptism of Gentiles. It could be said that the Jerusalem Council is the climactic miracle of how God changes (and continues to change) the heart of a people.
Opening Discussion: If we could read the whole Bible through in one sitting, we might become more aware of just how differently God and humans have been engaging each other throughout history: direct contact in the Garden of Eden; offering sacrifices on personally built altars; ceasing sacrifices on personally built altars (Lev. 17:3, 4); meeting God in His temple; the cessation of all temple services, from old covenant to new covenant; God’s revelation of Himself in Jesus, thereby superseding all past revelations; and the list goes on. The change God made by dropping circumcision as a covenantal requirement for Gentiles was not out of character in light of salvation history. The events leading up to, and enacted, at the Jerusalem Council demonstrate how God’s larger intentions inform church practice.
Question for Discussion:
What principles from Acts 15 help us understand what is permanent versus what is temporary in Scripture?
Step 2—Explore
Just for Teachers: Acts 15 may present some challenging themes for Sabbath School students. There are explicit commands in the Old Testament to circumcise Gentiles (and of course, those of Hebrew lineage). The fact that these commandments are now overturned in the New Testament era reveals that Scripture is not to be understood simply as a compilation of commandments. Help your class appreciate how the broader perspective of the story of Israel informed the Jerusalem Council’s decision.
Bible Commentary
I. The Debate (Review Acts 15:1-7 with your class.)
One can almost hear the list of Scriptures the believing Pharisees must have marshaled as they debated the Gentile/circumcision issue (Acts 15:5, 7). The texts on circumcision are clear, imperative, and often specifically include the “foreigner” (Gen. 17:12-14, 27; Exod. 12:44, 48; Josh. 5:4-9). There are no texts to the contrary. Textually, their argument would appear airtight. Also, common sense could argue that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah, coming to the Jewish nation as foretold in the prophetic scriptures of the Jewish religion. Is it so farfetched to say that one must become a Jew in order to benefit from a Jewish Savior? The rite of circumcision would accomplish just that.
Consider This: If the Pharisees had been Protestants, they might have appealed to sola Scriptura for their support. How would you respond to this reasoning?
II. Testimony, Scripture, and the Story of Israel (Review Acts 15:7-21 with the class.)
For first-century Jews, the inauguration of God’s kingdom on earth in the last days coincides with the coming Messiah (Mark 1:14, 15; Heb. 1:1, 2), the restoration of the Davidic monarchy (Isa. 9:6, 7; Matt. 21:9), the renewal of the covenant (Jer. 31:31-34), and the spiritual/national salvation of the nation of Israel (Isa. 66:17-24, Acts 1:6). The end-time activity of the Holy Spirit was integral to that collage of events (Isa. 32:14-18, Luke 4:17-21; compare with Isa. 61:6, Acts 2:17). So, when Peter testified that the Holy Spirit had been given to the Gentiles (Acts 15:8), it reinforced the idea that God’s last-day salvation for Israel was operative and was miraculously sweeping in the nations (that is, the Gentiles) as prophesied. The drawing and influx of Gentiles into Israel (Isa. 49:6, 60:1-3, Jer. 33:9, Mic. 4:2, etc.), and thereby into her saving covenant relationship with Yahweh, is well attested in the prophets (which James is about to reference). So, although Peter is not quoting any specific text, his testimony regarding the giving of the Holy Spirit to Gentiles invokes the entire salvific story of Israel and places the event in context. In effect, the story of Israel had moved way beyond circumcising a Gentile here or there, or compassing “sea and land to make one proselyte” (Matt. 23:15). God’s kingdom was about to become a worldwide phenomenon, bursting the confines of any ethnic or national boundaries (Acts 1:8), and the Pharisee may still have been hung up on the fact that Abraham circumcised all those in his household. God was initiating the “last act” of the great drama of Israel’s prophetic destiny; conversely, some of the believers were still theologically stuck in “Act 1.”
Salvation is expressed historically and prophetically, but also internally. It was always meant to include the heart. Peter brings God into the conference proceedings because only He can testify concerning the heart. God “bore witness to them [the Gentiles], by giving them the Holy Spirit” (Acts 15:8, ESV). But what was He testifying about them? Precisely that their hearts had been “cleansed . . . by faith” (Acts 15:9, ESV). This “cleansing of the heart,” in conjunction with the question of circumcision, reverberates with the ancient call for circumcised hearts (Deut. 10:16, 30:6, Jer. 4:4). Paul would later highlight this connection in referring to the true Jew as possessing a circumcised heart “in the Spirit” (Rom. 2:29, NKJV). But if God had already testified that the Gentiles had been circumcised/cleansed in heart and the evidence of this spiritual circumcision was no less than a Gentile Pentecost, it is no wonder Peter warns against “putting God to the test,” as though God had not disclosed His intentions in the matter.
Peter ends on a theme he began with. God put “no difference between us [circumcised Jews] and them [uncircumcised Gentiles]” in the giving of the Spirit. Likewise, both the circumcised and the uncircumcised will be saved “through the grace of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 15:9, 11).
The evidence had been given. Peter, Paul, and Barnabas had testified that the prophetic drama of God among Gentiles was being fulfilled in their ministries. It was James, however, who would confirm that their testimony was aligned with the prophetic script by citing the prophets. God would take from the Gentiles “a people for his name” (Acts 15:14, ESV).
Consider This: Testimony, Scripture, and the story of Israel were in full display in the debate at Jerusalem. How is a narrative reading of the Old Testament (that is, reading the Old Testament as a story) superior to an “all- or-nothing” approach to understanding Scripture, which advocates that either all Old Testament requirements are still in force or none are?
Step 3—Apply
Just for Teachers: Some Christians rely more heavily on a subjective “spirit” experience to know God’s will. Others take an objective approach and rely more heavily on the Bible. Acts 15 shows us that these two principles need to coordinate. Though the Pharisee party probably had more explicit texts regarding circumcising Gentiles, the apostles had both witnessed the Spirit baptism of Gentiles and had scriptures to contextualize and interpret that experience. Challenge the class to think hard about balancing personal experience with biblical interpretation and vice versa.
Thought Question:
Picture yourself sitting at the Jerusalem Council, listening carefully to the arguments. Pretend you don’t know the “right” position. Be honest: do you possess a view on the relationship between Scripture and experience that fits better with the pro- or anti-circumcision party? What does that view tell you about yourself?
Step 4—Create
Just for Teachers: Because we as Seventh-day Adventists hold to Sabbath and dietary laws that the majority of the Christian world considers obsolete, we will continually be in the position of proposing and defending a hermeneutic that shows we are “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). Understanding God’s will in terms of the developing story of God’s people (a narrative approach) has been suggested here as being helpful to clarify the thorny issue of Old Testament law application. The fact that an “all or nothing” approach to Old Testament law cannot be sustained is made plain by an honest reading of the New Testament use of the Old Testament. Even James in Acts 15, though adjudicating that circumcision is obsolete, affirmed four other Torah requirements as binding on Gentile converts (Acts 15:20). Present to the class that the multiple angles emerging from the Jerusalem Council support Adventist hermeneutics, and find out from the class whether any of the principles discussed here would have helped them in their past witnessing.
Activity: Sabbath, pork, jewelry, tithing, Ellen G. White, the heavenly sanctuary . . . let’s face it, Adventists believe a bunch of things other Christians don’t. Think of a discussion you had defending a uniquely distinctive or, relatively speaking, controversial position we hold. How could you have used lessons learned from the Jerusalem Council to bolster your position?
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Key Text: Acts 15:8, 9
The Student Will:
Learning Outline:
I. Know: Gentiles Can Stay Gentiles. + How does the Jerusalem Council shape our theology of mission to people groups radically different from our own? + What are some situations today that parallel the Gentile/circumcision issue of the early church? What are some invalid comparisons?
II. Feel: No Difference Between Us and Them + As Adventists, how can we avoid a superiority complex while still counting ourselves a privileged people? + Knowing that change is difficult, how can we let the Spirit keep our emotions in check?
III. Do: Keeping Pace With God + Some Christians can hinder the mission of the church in the name of purity. What response can be given to this subtle pitfall? + To maintain unity, what would have been the respective responsibilities of the “winners” and the “losers” at the Jerusalem Council?
Summary: God’s church must always strive to keep in step with Him in order to be an extension of His will. Outdated applications and egos must be put aside for the sake of the Spirit’s saving activity.
Learning Cycle
Step 1—Motivate
Spotlight on Scripture: Acts 15:1-21
Key Concept for Spiritual Growth: Even amid crisis, God’s will can triumph through His people as they listen to, and heed, the testimony of the Spirit’s activity and the confirmation of the prophetic scriptures.
Just for Teachers: Something remarkable took place at the Jerusalem Council that you as a teacher should strive to communicate to your class. Ingrained theological, biblical, and sociological principles and practices that had been reinforced for millennia were now about to “officially” shift. God had been progressively altering His people’s view of the Gentile world from the time of Jesus’ ministry up through the experiences of Peter’s and Paul’s witness of the Spirit’s baptism of Gentiles. It could be said that the Jerusalem Council is the climactic miracle of how God changes (and continues to change) the heart of a people.
Opening Discussion: If we could read the whole Bible through in one sitting, we might become more aware of just how differently God and humans have been engaging each other throughout history: direct contact in the Garden of Eden; offering sacrifices on personally built altars; ceasing sacrifices on personally built altars (Lev. 17:3, 4); meeting God in His temple; the cessation of all temple services, from old covenant to new covenant; God’s revelation of Himself in Jesus, thereby superseding all past revelations; and the list goes on. The change God made by dropping circumcision as a covenantal requirement for Gentiles was not out of character in light of salvation history. The events leading up to, and enacted, at the Jerusalem Council demonstrate how God’s larger intentions inform church practice.
Question for Discussion:
What principles from Acts 15 help us understand what is permanent versus what is temporary in Scripture?
Step 2—Explore
Just for Teachers: Acts 15 may present some challenging themes for Sabbath School students. There are explicit commands in the Old Testament to circumcise Gentiles (and of course, those of Hebrew lineage). The fact that these commandments are now overturned in the New Testament era reveals that Scripture is not to be understood simply as a compilation of commandments. Help your class appreciate how the broader perspective of the story of Israel informed the Jerusalem Council’s decision.
Bible Commentary
I. The Debate (Review Acts 15:1-7 with your class.)
One can almost hear the list of Scriptures the believing Pharisees must have marshaled as they debated the Gentile/circumcision issue (Acts 15:5, 7). The texts on circumcision are clear, imperative, and often specifically include the “foreigner” (Gen. 17:12-14, 27; Exod. 12:44, 48; Josh. 5:4-9). There are no texts to the contrary. Textually, their argument would appear airtight. Also, common sense could argue that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah, coming to the Jewish nation as foretold in the prophetic scriptures of the Jewish religion. Is it so farfetched to say that one must become a Jew in order to benefit from a Jewish Savior? The rite of circumcision would accomplish just that.
Consider This: If the Pharisees had been Protestants, they might have appealed to sola Scriptura for their support. How would you respond to this reasoning?
II. Testimony, Scripture, and the Story of Israel (Review Acts 15:7-21 with the class.)
For first-century Jews, the inauguration of God’s kingdom on earth in the last days coincides with the coming Messiah (Mark 1:14, 15; Heb. 1:1, 2), the restoration of the Davidic monarchy (Isa. 9:6, 7; Matt. 21:9), the renewal of the covenant (Jer. 31:31-34), and the spiritual/national salvation of the nation of Israel (Isa. 66:17-24, Acts 1:6). The end-time activity of the Holy Spirit was integral to that collage of events (Isa. 32:14-18, Luke 4:17-21; compare with Isa. 61:6, Acts 2:17). So, when Peter testified that the Holy Spirit had been given to the Gentiles (Acts 15:8), it reinforced the idea that God’s last-day salvation for Israel was operative and was miraculously sweeping in the nations (that is, the Gentiles) as prophesied. The drawing and influx of Gentiles into Israel (Isa. 49:6, 60:1-3, Jer. 33:9, Mic. 4:2, etc.), and thereby into her saving covenant relationship with Yahweh, is well attested in the prophets (which James is about to reference). So, although Peter is not quoting any specific text, his testimony regarding the giving of the Holy Spirit to Gentiles invokes the entire salvific story of Israel and places the event in context. In effect, the story of Israel had moved way beyond circumcising a Gentile here or there, or compassing “sea and land to make one proselyte” (Matt. 23:15). God’s kingdom was about to become a worldwide phenomenon, bursting the confines of any ethnic or national boundaries (Acts 1:8), and the Pharisee may still have been hung up on the fact that Abraham circumcised all those in his household. God was initiating the “last act” of the great drama of Israel’s prophetic destiny; conversely, some of the believers were still theologically stuck in “Act 1.”
Salvation is expressed historically and prophetically, but also internally. It was always meant to include the heart. Peter brings God into the conference proceedings because only He can testify concerning the heart. God “bore witness to them [the Gentiles], by giving them the Holy Spirit” (Acts 15:8, ESV). But what was He testifying about them? Precisely that their hearts had been “cleansed . . . by faith” (Acts 15:9, ESV). This “cleansing of the heart,” in conjunction with the question of circumcision, reverberates with the ancient call for circumcised hearts (Deut. 10:16, 30:6, Jer. 4:4). Paul would later highlight this connection in referring to the true Jew as possessing a circumcised heart “in the Spirit” (Rom. 2:29, NKJV). But if God had already testified that the Gentiles had been circumcised/cleansed in heart and the evidence of this spiritual circumcision was no less than a Gentile Pentecost, it is no wonder Peter warns against “putting God to the test,” as though God had not disclosed His intentions in the matter.
Peter ends on a theme he began with. God put “no difference between us [circumcised Jews] and them [uncircumcised Gentiles]” in the giving of the Spirit. Likewise, both the circumcised and the uncircumcised will be saved “through the grace of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 15:9, 11).
The evidence had been given. Peter, Paul, and Barnabas had testified that the prophetic drama of God among Gentiles was being fulfilled in their ministries. It was James, however, who would confirm that their testimony was aligned with the prophetic script by citing the prophets. God would take from the Gentiles “a people for his name” (Acts 15:14, ESV).
Consider This: Testimony, Scripture, and the story of Israel were in full display in the debate at Jerusalem. How is a narrative reading of the Old Testament (that is, reading the Old Testament as a story) superior to an “all- or-nothing” approach to understanding Scripture, which advocates that either all Old Testament requirements are still in force or none are?
Step 3—Apply
Just for Teachers: Some Christians rely more heavily on a subjective “spirit” experience to know God’s will. Others take an objective approach and rely more heavily on the Bible. Acts 15 shows us that these two principles need to coordinate. Though the Pharisee party probably had more explicit texts regarding circumcising Gentiles, the apostles had both witnessed the Spirit baptism of Gentiles and had scriptures to contextualize and interpret that experience. Challenge the class to think hard about balancing personal experience with biblical interpretation and vice versa.
Thought Question:
Picture yourself sitting at the Jerusalem Council, listening carefully to the arguments. Pretend you don’t know the “right” position. Be honest: do you possess a view on the relationship between Scripture and experience that fits better with the pro- or anti-circumcision party? What does that view tell you about yourself?
Step 4—Create
Just for Teachers: Because we as Seventh-day Adventists hold to Sabbath and dietary laws that the majority of the Christian world considers obsolete, we will continually be in the position of proposing and defending a hermeneutic that shows we are “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). Understanding God’s will in terms of the developing story of God’s people (a narrative approach) has been suggested here as being helpful to clarify the thorny issue of Old Testament law application. The fact that an “all or nothing” approach to Old Testament law cannot be sustained is made plain by an honest reading of the New Testament use of the Old Testament. Even James in Acts 15, though adjudicating that circumcision is obsolete, affirmed four other Torah requirements as binding on Gentile converts (Acts 15:20). Present to the class that the multiple angles emerging from the Jerusalem Council support Adventist hermeneutics, and find out from the class whether any of the principles discussed here would have helped them in their past witnessing.
Activity: Sabbath, pork, jewelry, tithing, Ellen G. White, the heavenly sanctuary . . . let’s face it, Adventists believe a bunch of things other Christians don’t. Think of a discussion you had defending a uniquely distinctive or, relatively speaking, controversial position we hold. How could you have used lessons learned from the Jerusalem Council to bolster your position?