Key Church Principle #25: UNITY
Acts Chapter 15:1-29
Earlier (Key Church Principle #22 not published on this blog but in the book) , we saw that there would be division as a result of our ministry. Today we’ll see the necessity of unity within the ministry. Chapter 15 is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible. It has the Apostle Paul, it has Barnabas, there’s Peter speaking out, and for the first time, we hear from James, the half-brother of Jesus Himself.
It is this James who wrote the book of James (not the brother of the fisherman John—he of course was killed as seen in Acts 12:2). If you look at the letter found in Acts 15, it reads a lot like the book of James…and also a lot like the words of Jesus. It is as though James and Jesus grew up in the same household or something (hmmm).
With these all-star apostles being prominently listed, we also see a phrase used in KJV, NKJV, and ESV that I also love so much: “no small” (see 12:18, 19:24, 27:20 for other understatements and yes this phrase is in the original Greek!). “No small” means “really big”.
When we face divisions in the church, the key word of “unity” really applies. We need to remember two truths:
It is this James who wrote the book of James (not the brother of the fisherman John—he of course was killed as seen in Acts 12:2). If you look at the letter found in Acts 15, it reads a lot like the book of James…and also a lot like the words of Jesus. It is as though James and Jesus grew up in the same household or something (hmmm).
With these all-star apostles being prominently listed, we also see a phrase used in KJV, NKJV, and ESV that I also love so much: “no small” (see 12:18, 19:24, 27:20 for other understatements and yes this phrase is in the original Greek!). “No small” means “really big”.
When we face divisions in the church, the key word of “unity” really applies. We need to remember two truths:
Truth #1 There is a God!
Truth #2 I am not Him!
By that I mean that there is an order to everything and God is not a God of disorder. As a result, we must submit to Him and His plan of order in order for things to work harmoniously and in unity. Part of submitting to God means that we must graciously submit to one another in love (Ephesians 5:21).
Now that was a lot of “order” in the last paragraph. Look below and at Acts 15 and put in order the following sequence of events, with 1 being the first event, 7 being the last:
Now that was a lot of “order” in the last paragraph. Look below and at Acts 15 and put in order the following sequence of events, with 1 being the first event, 7 being the last:
___ The whole church was pleased to follow the ruling of the leaders
___ The Word of God is used to decide the issue
___ Pharisees argue in the Jerusalem church to keep the law of Moses
___ Paul and Barnabas go to Jerusalem for a ruling
_1_ Men teach that converts must be circumcised
___ The elders and apostles discuss the matter
___ Paul, Peter, and James (leaders in the early church), speak
What does unity and order have to do with today’s passage, which deals with circumcision? Read in verse 2 that Paul and Barnabas “had no small dissension and dispute” with some other Christians. Verse 7 says there was “much dispute” on the issue of whether Gentile converts to Christianity had to follow the Jewish custom of circumcision.
An interesting point to observe is that both sides of the issue were fervently presented. Yet when the ruling came, there is a great deal of unity within the church. The lack of details leads to speculation, but it appears that those in disagreement felt it more important to be united than to be defiant! The spirit of unity and submission is very obvious.
Even with the “no small” issue of circumcision! It seems that being unified is more paramount that “getting my way.” It also is important that the leadership needs to be united.
The key word for today is unity, but the key word behind unity can be found in verse 11: grace. Grace is normally defined as “unmerited favor” or “an undeserved gift” (I like to remember it as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense). We are saved by God’s grace. Therefore, why should we fight and have disunity within the body? We are saved by grace, but the letter added other stipulations for new believers, especially Gentiles.
The first and last things listed (Idolatry, sexual immorality) would affect the believers’ witness with the pagan world, the second and third would affect the believers’ witness with non-Christian Jews. The four prohibitions do not negate the grace of God that saves us. It means there are things we do and don’t do after salvation that helps us serve as good witnesses.
In other words, unity does not mean “at any cost” and grace does not mean “no rules”. There are rules we must follow in grace (see Key Principle #24). And as we learned in Key Principle #22 “Division”, there are times to “rightly divide” in order to have unity. Unfortunately, at the end of chapter 15 Paul and Barnabas fail to learn the Key Word Lessons of Unity and Division, which we will see later on.
An interesting point to observe is that both sides of the issue were fervently presented. Yet when the ruling came, there is a great deal of unity within the church. The lack of details leads to speculation, but it appears that those in disagreement felt it more important to be united than to be defiant! The spirit of unity and submission is very obvious.
Even with the “no small” issue of circumcision! It seems that being unified is more paramount that “getting my way.” It also is important that the leadership needs to be united.
The key word for today is unity, but the key word behind unity can be found in verse 11: grace. Grace is normally defined as “unmerited favor” or “an undeserved gift” (I like to remember it as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense). We are saved by God’s grace. Therefore, why should we fight and have disunity within the body? We are saved by grace, but the letter added other stipulations for new believers, especially Gentiles.
The first and last things listed (Idolatry, sexual immorality) would affect the believers’ witness with the pagan world, the second and third would affect the believers’ witness with non-Christian Jews. The four prohibitions do not negate the grace of God that saves us. It means there are things we do and don’t do after salvation that helps us serve as good witnesses.
In other words, unity does not mean “at any cost” and grace does not mean “no rules”. There are rules we must follow in grace (see Key Principle #24). And as we learned in Key Principle #22 “Division”, there are times to “rightly divide” in order to have unity. Unfortunately, at the end of chapter 15 Paul and Barnabas fail to learn the Key Word Lessons of Unity and Division, which we will see later on.
