You don't deserve it - Acts 15

Speaker: Matt Hails

Notes

Salvation through Grace - Acts 15:1 - 35

A disagreement arose in the church at Antioch. Some visiting Jewish Christians said that the Gentiles should be required to obey the law of Moses. Paul and Barnabas strongly disagreed, and the question was raised with the leaders of the early church, based in Jerusalem.

This was a new issue, and a massive shift in thinking for the church. It was still based quite heavily in Jewish religion. The first Jewish Christians thought salvation to the Gentiles would come by the Gentiles being incorporated into Israel; they never imagined that the "people of God" would include both Jews and Gentiles but not be Jewish.

Peter argued that:

1. God accepted the Gentile believers while they were not living according to the law of Moses.

2. God made no distinction between Jewish and Gentile believers in terms of salvation.

3. None of the Jews have ever been able to keep the law.

4. Everyone - Gentiles and Jews - are saved through grace.

Grace = the unmerited favour of God

Salvation through grace means:

• You can't earn it. Titus 3:4 - 5.

• You don't deserve it. Salvation is an undeserved gift.

The church leaders make their decision: the Gentiles should not be required to obey the law of Moses.

But - what about the law? Jesus said that he didn't come to abolish the law, but the church leaders said Gentiles weren't required to live by it, and later in the epistles we see that they didn't believe Jews were required to live by it either. Does the law of Moses apply to Christians?

In one sense it does:

• Reading the law enables us to know God more fully.

• The law shows us that we need God's grace - the free gift of salvation. Gal 3:24.

• It provides principles for building laws of a country.

• It helps us to understand Israel's history, which is part of our history.

• When we live under grace, we live by the Spirit, and this enables us to fulfil the intention of the law. Rom 8:4.

In a sense it doesn't:

• We don't live by memorizing and obeying each individual rule in the law; we are not under obligation to do that. Gal 5:18.

• We may use the law to understand God's character. But we live by faith in Jesus, and are not under the law - Gal 3:25.

• Christ justifies us before God, not the law - Gal 2:15 - 16.

Application

[If you are a Christian ...] What was your experience of coming to faith - did you ever feel you had to achieve something before God would accept you, or meet some sort of standard before you could become a Christian? What happened, and how did your thinking and experience change during that time?

Do you ever found yourself attempting to earn God's favour or gain greater acceptance to him through something you are doing?

Do you ever feel that living as a Christian is a burden, in terms of individual requirements to do this and not do that? Which things in particular feel like heavy requirements?

Perhaps find some Scripture verses that speak about how God has accepted us, as believers, and use these as a memory verse for the following week. (Or use Ephesians 1:3 - 10).

Posted: 14 Sep 2008