Decision Making in the Church

Whew! I thought I could catch up today, but now I have two funerals and a wedding this week. I'm going to keep up as best I can. I hope you will too.

Acts 14 and 15
These are rich readings because we see that evangelism creates controversy right at the very beginning of the church.

In chapter 14 when the crippled man is healed, the people start calling Barnabas by the name of Zeus and Paul by the name Hermes. Then the priest of the Zeus temple comes with oxen to offer a sacrifice. Accepting this sacrifice would be idolatry.

The crowd loves Paul and Barnabas in verse 18, but some other Jews from other towns show up and 1 verse later (20) they turn "the crowd" against Paul and and stone Paul until they think he is dead! The Storyteller's Companion, vol. 12, pg. 106 describes "the crowd" this way, "Barbarians are not only a superstitious lot; they are also fickle."

In Chapter 15 Paul is called to task by some Pharisees about the gentiles and circumcision question. What is the motive that prompts this disagreement? Paul believes reconciliation on this particular issue will make God's work greater. This one requirement might have been the end of spreading the church among the gentiles. For Paul it was the deal breaker for his evangelism efforts among the gentiles. I think the Pharisees were concerned that if they give in on the requirement for circumsion, where else will they be asked to give in?

James offers a compromise. The New Interpreter's Bible, vol. 12, pg. 211 states "It is often necessary for decision makers to forge careful compromises between two competing positions to preserve Christian unity whenever each person makes a valuable contribution." Good theology allows the church to move forward.

In chapter 15:19 James uses the word "trouble". The force of the word that is translated denotes "pestering someone against their will." This is a referral back to Peter's concern in verse 10. Circumcision is definitely something that would trouble adult gentiles.

James also issues a cautionary note: Guard against cultural compromise that might cause people to consider "Moses" irrelevant. Verse 20 refers to the text from Leviticus 17-18 that is as verse 21 states is "read aloud every sabbath in the synagogues". (I haven't had a chance to check out Lev. 17-18 to see what it says, but if you have time I would suggest going back and taking a look). The lack of sensitivity to the church's Jewish legacy would definitely have an effect on on the congregation's Jewish membership (Romans 14:1, 1 Corinthians 8 -10).

I watched a movie on Turner Classic Network yesterday afternoon about the Nuremberg trials, where the prominent members of the Nazi party in Germany were being tried for their war crimes (I had to take a "Bible break"!). I can see where unawareness of our Jewish heritage lead to acceptance of horrific torture of an entire population. I would rather watch "The Diary of Anne Frank".

I hope you will keep seeing the great value in being more aware of what is in the Bible. It is not just stories. It will transform your life, how you treat your neighbor, and how you treat other Christians. I wish we could all agree on the basics. But then we would have to agree on what the basics are.