The Holy Spirit in Acts
Day 22 — Church Culture Wars and the Holy Spirit
Acts 15:1-34
The Antioch church experienced doctrinal disputes that involved whether circumcision was necessary for Gentiles who now had the Holy Spirit as evidence of their being hearts being cleansed by faith (15:8). So they sent Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem to counsel with the elders and apostles there. There was discussion among them regarding how difficult the law was for the Jews who couldn’t bear the yoke. Also discussion about God’s plan for rebuilding the fallen tabernacle of David, “so that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord and all the Gentiles who are called by My name” may join in. During this discussion, they respectfully and with silence listened to reach other and arrived at the decision that the Gentiles should abstain from things contaminated with idols, from fornication and what is strangled and from blood—not circumcision.
They then wrote a letter to the Antioch church as well as other churches stating the above and credited it to “it seemed good to us, having become of one mind” and “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit” to lay no further burden on them. The result of this decision was encouragement and rejoicing and strengthening—all a fruit of the work of the Holy Spirit in the process.
The group that wanted them circumcised were sincere, coming from a law based background and wanting God to be honored, but they were not seeing the shift in how God was working in these latter days.
To Do: ` Write in verse #
– Identify the conflict; name it without prejudice. _______
– Include wise counselors _______
– Hear each other out respectfully _______
– Find out what Scriptures come to bear _______
– Seek becoming one mind rather than winning _______
– Prayerfully let the Spirit lead _______
– Seek grace in the situation _______
– Communicate the decision clearly allowing wise messengers to relay information _______
– Not mentioned, because assumed: Pray, seeking God’s perspective. _______
Results:
– Encouragement _______
– Rejoicing _______
– Strengthening _______
– Clarity _______
Questions:
1. What are some areas of potential conflict in the modern church that could require this type of
process to come to one accord?
2. Can you think of at least 3 things to avoid?
3. Are there things that you feel should be done differently in your church? If so, what do you think would
be the best, godly steps to take to resolve this?
3. What do you find most remarkable about this resolution regarding circumcision?
4. How much is culture a factor in church conflict?
How can you differentiate Kingdom culture vs. Tradition culture vs. Worldliness?
The Holy Spirit in Acts
Day 23 The Spirit Leads Sometimes With Disagreement or Blocking Acts 15:36-16:10
Reflection, Notes and Prayer