The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 2 — Section 17

I. THE PIMPLE QUESTION ITSELF AT IS~UFl. Gontil€s he.ve mnny great signn and 'l\•onders wrought amongst them, of which they are 'by no means simple bchohlcrs, They therusel,:es are "a great part of them." 'l'hey are believed in multitmlcs of cases to have become true converts to the new faith. 'l'he apostolic verdict and pronouncement ban• gone forth that" God had opened the door of faith" to them. And facts seem to ,peak for them~clves, saying th11t they have received the gifts as well 1\8 the gift of tho Holy Ghost. Must these Gentiles submit to the Jewish initiatory rite of circumcision? Il. TJIE ORIGIN OF TBE GREAT DISSENSION THAT AROSE UPON THIS SIMPLE QUESTION. Certain men, e-idcntly of the Church in J udrea, came down to Antioch, and with volun- teered usiduity (ver, 24) took upon them to teach the brethren at Antioch that circumcision wae a rite necessary for them to submit to, if they would be saved. Of these men, before they a.re condemned as mere officious idlers or "busybodies," it shall be grantoo. that they had a right to their own religious views, their own reading of the Law and prophets, and their own past history; that they also had a right to travel and to go and see the new Gentile converts, whose Church at Antioch must in itself have been such a sign ; and that, arrived there, they were not bound to keep a perpetual silence. But from the very moment that these things are conceded to the members of any Christian society dates the solemn responsibility which rests upon them. One of the great facts of the "liberty" (ver. 10; Gal. v. 1) of Christ's Church is that in<li,idual character shall be called out and strictly tried by the vast increase of individual responsibility. But the liberty cannot be bad and the responsibility left. And up to this point these things may be noted-(1) that from the very first "offences would come," even within the Church; but (2) that it was no less "woe" to them by whom the offence should come; for that on them lay the responsibility (of which they should be aware and be ware), and not upon any laches on the part of the Church as a whole in not legislating, for instance, to suppress the freedom of individual thought and word. For to do this under the rule of Jesus would be to originate worse "offence." The very worst affront to Jesus is to substitute letter for spirit, law for love. The origin of a dissension, then, that excited much disputation, consumed much precious time, is certain to have awakened some bitterness of word and of temper, as well as to have ea.used no slight anxiety and pain to those concerned, was the gratuitous work of men who had not correct 1.--nowledge, did not try to get it (ver. 24), and who went O'Ut of their way to "make a great stir." IIL Tm: A.PosToIJo MANAGEMENT OF TBIB DISSENSION, The somewhat indefinite phraseology of the second verse, compared with the words of the Apostle Paul in Gal. ii. 2, leaves us in very little uncertainty that we are to understand that Paul and Barnabas received special intimation from the Spirit that the question should be moved to Jerusalem; that the Church at Antioch heartily fell in with the rightness of this course, and rejoiced to attenq the steps of the apostles and other delegates to the last, as well as to commend them in prayer to God. 1. If, then, the intimation of the Spirit showed the way for the apostles, it may be gathered (1) what really important issues were at stake, not in the matter only, but in the 'l1Ul,11,11er of treating this dis- sension; and (2) it may be assumed that many a time and anxiously and fervently did the two implore Divine guidance. The Spi,rit is the Ruler in the Church. How imperfectly is this vital fact remembered in modern days! And the Spirit's guidance is sought and obtained when clouds and stormy weather were presaged. As to the practical uses to be gained by this reference of the question to Jerusalem and to the body of the apostles and elders, it goes by saying. 2. When Paul and Barnabas, and certain others of the Antioch Church with them, reach Jerusalem, they a.re, in the first instance, courteously received by the whole Church with "the apostles and elders," The meeting was a service, and a happy, holy semce. All hear what God has done (ver. 4), and the joy is great. And, :finally, the question is opened, apparently as tempel'ately as plainly (ver. 5). 3. The proper council shortly come together. It consists of "the apostles and elders." But the matter appears to have been argued in the presence of the whole assembly still (vers. 7, 12, 13, 22). Four leading speeches and arguments are recorded, and the order and the wisdom alike of the selection of speakers must be apparent. Who better to begin than Peter? His ergument is plain, practical, and cannot be gainsaid. But the way in which he turns the tablel on his brethren of the Jewish sticklers for circumcision (ver. 11) is most significant. There follow Barnabas ~.nd Paul with their en. r.:v. l-11.J TIIE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. HJ