The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 2 — Section 7

their nation, flattered their pride, incl'el\sed their self-importance, left the prejudices of theiI childhood undisturbed. But the gospel as preached by Paul the,v could not and would not accept. The cA'ntroversy on the other eide was waged with fairness and firmness combined. St. Paul's large experience, both of the prejudices of his opponents, which be had once felt himself in their full power, and of the grace of tho Lord Jesus Christ, whioh had been manifested to him in 80 remarkable a manner gnve him an unrivalled command of the argument. He had as much reverence for Moses, as full a conviction of the Divine origin of the Law, of the inspiration of the prophets, and of !-h~ inl~llible autbor(ty of Holy Scripture, as his opponents had. Dut ho had a deep ms1ght mto the doctrines of grace, borne witness to by the Law and the prophets, which they had not. He saw the harmony between the Old and New Testaments; bow the Law was a scboolmai;ter to bring men to Christ; how Christ was the end of the Law for fr.:bteousness to every one that believes; and how in the gospel of God's grace in Jesus Christ the Law was not destroyed, but fulfilled. Ile bad, therefore, a full certainty as to the main points of the controversy which others had not. .And yet he was tender and considerate toward his opponents (Gal. iv. 19), and brought, not abuse, but argument to bear against their errors; as in the two wonderful Epistles, to the Galatians and to the Romans. .And in a similar spirit we find him here willing to refer the matters in dispute to the Church at Jerusalem, presided over as it was by James, who had the credit of leaning to the side of his antagonists. But combined with this gentleness we hal'e to mark his unflinching firmness and boldness. It required no small courage and strength of conviction to withstand a person of such weight and authority as Peter, and to reprove him before the Church. It required no little heroism to go into the very stronghold of Judaism, and there, before James, and Peter, and the Pharisees, and the most Judaizing members of the Churches of Judea, to proclaim the gospel of the free grace of God (Ga.l. ii. 2; eh. xv. 12), and the free admission of the Gentiles into the Church of Christ. .And let us mark the result. .All the true-hearted men were ,von by Paul's way. Peter recovered from his weakness and openly sided with Paul; James threw his great weight unequivocally into the same scale; Barnabas shook off his momentary hesitation; the whole assembly gave a unanimous vote in favour of Paul's view; and the Church was saved from disruption. In an age when the peace of the Church is so much disturbed by controversy, and when such violence, both of language and of action, is indulged in by those who wish to enforce their own views, it is important to study carefully the history of this first great and trying controversy, which threatened at one time to split the Church to;its very foundations, but which was brought to such a happy issue, under the blessing of God, by the wisdom, charity, and firmness of the apostle to the Gentiles. God grant, of his tender mercy, a like spirit to the leaders of party in onr own days, and a no less happy settlement of the question!! which separate brother from brother, and impede the progress of Christian truth. I Vers. 86--41..-The paroxysm. The proposal of two friends whose fast friendship was of many years' standing ; of two brethren loving and beloved ; of two apostles of Jesus Christ, who had long laboured together to win souls to Christ and to advance the kingdom of God, and who had achieved together the most signal triumphs over the powers of darkness, who had suffered together, who had undergone the most appall- ing dangers together, who had stuck by one another under every circumstance of trial and difficulty ;-the proposal, I say, of two such men to start together on a new errand of love, might have seemed to be the very last occasion likely to produce contention and strife. .Alas I for the infirmity of our poor fallen nature, that any evil should arise from purpoee.s 80 good and holy. The faithful, truthful record of the sacred history in our text suguests much caution and many useful lessons for ChriPtian practice, 1. There was perf~t a!!Teement between the two apostles as to the end in view-the revisiting the Churches they had planted for the purpose of confirming them in the faith of Jesus Christ. AI; far as we know, they were both of one mind, both equally desirous of advancing the kingdom of God, both equally ready to spend and be spent for the Name of the Lord Jesl.lii and for the spread of his gospe! in the world. '.J'h.us far we ~ay well believe that their communications on the subject of the new m1ss10n were camed on in perfect harmony and love, becaWl8 there was i:n each a single eye and an unmixed motive, viz. the glory of Christ, 2. The difference arose when Barnabas proposed  Olt, IV, 1-41.] 'l'llE .AOTS OF THE APOSTLES. 9