THE APOSTLES’ FIRST LETTER TO THE CHURCH (1)

Exploring the content of the first letter the early apostles wrote to the church

The Letter

“And they wrote letters in this manner:

‘The apostle and elders and brethren send greetings unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia.

Forasmuch as we have heard that certain [men] which went not from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying ‘Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law’ to whom we gave no such commandment.

"It seemed good unto us being assembled with one accord to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell thee the things by mouth. For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things:

“That ye abstain from meat offered to idols, and from blood, from things strangled, from fornication: for which if you keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.” (Acts 15: 23 – 29, KJV).

The Gospel to the Gentiles

During the period which the Gentiles received the Gospel of Christ, being a new phase of experience in the early church, some persons left the church (in their evangelical strides), and began teaching that the Gentiles, who had received salvation, could only be truly saved if they subscribed to the law of circumcision.

The insertion brought by the brethren from Jerusalem caused a great deal of contention in the church at Antioch. The local assembly elders met and decided to send Paul, Barnabas and other brethren to the elders at Jerusalem to get confirmation on this matter.

Response from Jerusalem:

Trouble Them Not

When the elders of the church at Jerusalem receive this news from Antioch, they convened an emergency meeting with the apostles: Peter, James; and Barsabas. Also, Paul and Barnabas in attendance.

In the course of the meeting, James reminded the elders of Peter’s revelation and Paul’s exploits among the Gentiles.

He added (in verses 13 – 21) that the Lord had also accepted the Gentiles as He did accepted them (the apostles), by giving them (the Gentiles) the Holy Ghost. Therefore, he suggested that the church should not bother the Gentiles with the demands of the Law, (which they themselves could not keep. See verse 10).

'Rather, Observe These Necessary Things'

The suggestion of Apostle James was admired and adopted. They wrote the letter above and handed it to Paul and Barnabas. To verify that they themselves gave the letter, the elders attached to Paul and his team – ‘Judas whose surname was Barsabas, and Silas chief among the brethren.’ (v. 22)

In the letter above written by the church in Jerusalem (the headquarters of the early church), they commanded that instead of compelling the Gentiles (new converts) to undergo circumcision, they should rather be warned against getting involved in some acts which could corrupt or terminate their salvation in Christ.

The things to abstain from were as follows: meats offered to idols, blood, things strangled, and fornication. These were the laws the elders considered necessary amidst others.

Strangled Meat, Fornication and Blood of Animals, Idolatry

Till date, these activities remain abominable in the Christian faith. It is necessary to understand what they mean. We shall explain these in the next part of this article next week. God bless you.

Similar article: The Spirit and Self . Have a pleasant weekend.

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