Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19971228.htm

ACTS: THE LOCAL CHURCH AS GOD'S AGENCY FOR DISCIPLING MEN
Part XXIII: God's Guidance For Tackling Biblically Debatable Church Issues
(Acts 11:1-18; 10:1-48)
  1. Introduction
    1. There are times when choices must be made on difficult issues in a Church body to which there seem to be more than one Biblical interpretation to take, and through debating them one could even divide the body.
    2. In such times, God has directives for His flock as exemplified in the Acts 10-11 matter of the mingling of Jews with Gentiles in the Early Church.
  2. God's Guidance For Tackling Biblically Debatable Church Issues, Acts 11:1-18; 10:1-48.
    1. When Peter returned to Jerusalem after bringing the Gospel to Gentiles, believers who adhered strongly to the Mosaic law contended with him that he had sinne d in staying and eating with Gentiles, Acts 11:1-2.
    2. This contention had severe potential repercussions as it could have been debated several ways as follows:
      1. On the one hand, those of the circumcision could have argued that Peter's staying and eating with these Gentiles violated Scriptural mandates of separation of Jew from Gentiles Gen. 17:11-13 and Ex. 12:44.
        1. God had commanded Abraham to circumcise even his Gentile slaves, Gen. 17:11-13.
        2. When Israel ate the Passover, Gentiles could eat with them only if they had been circumcised, Ex. 12:44. For Peter then to have eaten and possibly observed the Lord's Table with Cornelius' household, an ordin ance that Christ had ordained out of the Passover, would have led Jews to object that he had seriously violated Scripture in doing so!
      2. On the other hand, Peter could argue that he, as a conservative Jew had seen his mind change on fellowship with Gentiles through a variety of Biblically reputable events in his apostolic ministry, A. 10.
      3. Either way, serious divisions could have occurred over how to interpret God's will!
    3. To handle this problem, Peter testified of God's precedence leadings in his life to date, Acts 11:4-16:
      1. Without attempting to argue the point, Peter merely rehearsed how he had come to unite with Gentiles, and that by starting from the beginning to bring his listeners along his same pilgrimage, Acts 11:4.
      2. In the process, his detailed explanation of God's precedence leadings powerfully indicated solid, Biblical reasons for his having the liberty to fellowship with uncircumcised Gentiles, Acts 11:5-16:
        1. First, Peter showed how the whole matter had begun while he worshipped and had a vision, 11:5. Thus, his eating with Gentiles had been sparked by a supernatural cause, whether God or otherwise!
        2. Second, the vision itself had taught him not to adhere to the Old Testament regulations of diet, but that God had changed that regulation as Peter was now no longer under it, Acts 11:6-7.
        3. Third, Peter himself at first had balked at the vision as it seemed to counter God's Word to the Jew, something the objecting listeners to Peter's Gentile fellowship action would have identified with, 11:8; nevertheless, the vi sion occurred three times, signaling that it was of God by returning back to heaven, 11:9-11. Obviously, Peter's listeners and Peter himself would have felt that this vision was either of God, or of the Devil who was directly opposing what was in Scripture !
        4. Fourth, the circumstantial indicators of Peter's meeting with Cornelius' band just at the end of the vision, plus that of Cornelius' vision of an angel, etc. again indicated that at least the mingling of both men was supernatural in origin: either GOD had led, OR it was of SATAN, Acts 11:11-14.
        5. Fifth, the Spirit fell on these Gentiles as Peter was speaking independent of any initiation on Peter's part, the same Spirit that had come on the Jews at Pentecost and had been predicted by Jesus before His ascension in Acts 1:5, Acts 11:15-16. This mingling of expe rience with Christ's Word indicated that the supernatural cause behind the mingling of Jew and Gentile was not of Satan, but of GOD!
      3. Peter then reported how he concluded that the Spirit's coming on Gentiles was of God, so he could not stand in God's way of fellowship with them as he had, Acts 11:17.
      4. The evidence described by Peter convinced the objectors, and they sided with his fellowship, 11:18.
Lesson: In handling sensitive Church debates regarding interpretations of Scripture, like Peter, we can rely on (a) God's precedents to date (b) that have already applied Scripture to experience as signals from God (c) as to what direction to take in the current time, cf. 2 Timothy 3:14. The reasoning is that if God allowed us to cover PAST similar ground with a clear conscience, it is right for us NOW!