The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 2 — Section 24

were no longer bincling, but that the Christian liberty ought to be set under safe, prudent, and mutually accepted rules and restraints. 'l'he laying on Gentile Christia.us of the old Judaic burdens wns unreasonable. But the laying on them of burdern coming from the relations of Christian principles to the sins and evils of society, all must recognize to be reasonablo. 'l'hey were free, but they must not use their liberty unwisely, or so as to injure the conscience and sensitive feeling of even the weakest brother among them. vVe may gather from this advice given to the Antiochene Church sorue clear distinctions between the reasonable and nnreasonable in burdens laid on us as Christians. I. TnE BURDEN OF CUSTOM IS UNREASONABLE. The plea, "Everybody does it, there- fore you must," is one which the Christian is quite justified in rejecting. Fashion in religious conduct, or in religious worship, or in religious doctrine, if it is imposed as a burden, the Christian may call unreasonable. He is in no sense obliged to follow such lead unless he can clearly discern that the fashion or custom expresses the claim of the right. Oftentimes customs grow up which become a terrible slavery, and it becomes necessary for some Christians to break the bonds as resolutely as St. Paul did the bonds of these J udaizing teachers. Illustrate from the three spheres : (1) religious doctrine; (2) religious worship; (3) religious society. II. THE BURDEN OF ABROGATED LAW JS UNREASONABLE. Recognizing the progression of Divine revelation, we see that a step upwards involves freedom from the step below. Judaism was one step in Divine revelation, and it prepared for the spiritual revelation in Christ, which was a step higher. It was unreasonable to press the demands of formal Judaism, and much more unreasonable to press the claims of rabbinical Judaism, on those who had been lifted up to the spiritual and Christian platform. This point is well argued by Phillips Brooks, in a most suggestive sermon on the 'Symbol and the Reality.' He says, "There is no better test of men's progress than this advancing power to do without the things which used to be essential to their li"l"es. As we climb a high mountain, we must keep our footing strong upon one ledge until we have fastened ourselves strongly on the next; then we may let the lower foothold go. 'fhe lives of men who have been always growing are strewed along their whole course with the things which they have learned to do without." What an over- burdened life ours would be if we were compelled to carry all the old things we once valued and used with us in our advance to the new I Yet there is a sense in which, even in our Christian times, men press on us the burden of that which is past, abrogated, and done with. It may be effectively illustrated in relation to Christian doctrine. It is said that Judaic forms of sacrifice explain the Christian redemption; and we may urge that this is an unreasonable burden, and a.11 that we need to accept is, that Judaic sacrifice was the figure and symbol, by the help of which men were prepared to apprehend and receive the moral and spiritual redemption wrought in and by the Lord Jesus. We, as well as the early disciples, may properly refuse the burden of Mosaic symbols and forms, which have had their day, done their work, and ceased to be. III. THE BURDEN OF AGREED RULES IS REASONABLE. All associations of rersons together involve mutual acceptance of conditions of fellowship; and those conditions must put limitations on personal liberty. Illustrate by the necessary rules of a nation, 8: club, 8 family, a congregation. These are reasonable, and are no infringements of liberty, but a proper expression of it. No one feels such to be a burden. Further than this, society, as constituted in each country and age, has an unwritten code of manners and morals, and this need not be unreasonable, nor is it felt to be a burden so long as it manifestly concerns the preservation of social virtue and goodness. As with the early Church, the conditions of society may make specific demands on Christians, such as a.re indicated in ver. 29; but these may reasonably be accepted as the restraints of the few for the good of the whole. IV. THE BURDEN OF CHARITY IS REASONABLE. Here we come upon ground which St_. ~aul's teaching to the Corinthians has made very familiar. Christian lo\'e even reJoices to put itself into bonds if thus it can gain influence on others. In conclusion, c?~ tha_t ~ife properly refuses bonds, and demands free expression ; but the life in hrist w11lmgly puts itself under rules for his snke and for others' sake.-R. T.