church elders about this matter. I had to extinguish these flames by discussing this with the apostles in Jerusalem.
The Jews were unaware of God's new way of making people righteous. Instead they continued to walk on their own path to righteousness by the circumcision of the flesh. They had not yet submitted themselves to God's new way of making people righteous. They did not understand that Christ, the Messiah is the end of the law, the place where it ceases to exist. For the Law leads up to Him. He is the fulfilment of it's types and shadows. The Law was a mere shadow of better things to come. The earthly tabernacle with its furnishings and gifts that were offered in accordance with the Law were merely an example, a pattern, a shadow of the heavenly things themselves. Christ is the reality and the true existence in heaven itself of the heavenly tabernacle. The Law served us Jews as a schoolmaster, a trainer, a guide, to lead us to Christ. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster, a trainer, a guide to the Law. We are now saved by grace through faith. It is not of ourselves that any man should boast, but it is the free gift of God.
On our way to Jerusalem we went through the regions of Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring and telling the saints of the conversion of the Gentiles. We caused great joy and jubilation to come upon all the brothers in Christ who heard this. When we arrived in Jerusalem, the church received us warmly. We were heartily welcomed by the apostles and the church elders in Jerusalem. We told them all the things that God had accomplished through us on our travels. I began to see the earthly Jerusalem, the holy city in a different light altogether. The earthly Jerusalem was merely a type and a shadow, a copy of the greater heavenly city. The Jerusalem which is above is the heavenly Jerusalem. She is now the mother of us all and no longer the earthly Jerusalem. For we have now come to the spiritual mount Zion, unto the city of the living God. We have now come to the heavenly Jerusalem.
Some of the believers in Jerusalem, who acknowledged Jesus as their Saviour and devoted themselves to Him belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They rose up and said, "It is necessary to circumcise the Gentile converts. They must obey and keep the Law of Moses."
The apostles and church elders came together to look into and resolve this issue. Barnabas and I had been a part of this dispute and long debate. Peter got up and said to them, "Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles, so that they could hear the message of the Good News and believe. God, who knows peoples hearts, confirmed that He accepts the Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for He purified and cleansed their hearts through faith also. So why are you now challenging God, putting Him to the test by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke upon their necks, that neither we nor our forefathers had the strength to endure and be able to keep the Law? We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserving favour and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its the same with them as it is with us."
Then the whole assembly remained silent and kept still as they listened intently to Barnabas and I. We declared what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by our hands. When we had finished talking, James stood up and said, "Brothers, listen to me. Peter has told you about the time when God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for Himself to honour Christ's name. And this conversion of the Gentiles is exactly what the prophets predicted. As it is written, 'After this I will return, and I will restore and rebuild again the fallen tabernacle of David. I will rebuild its ruins. I will restore it. So that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord, including the Gentiles - all those I have called to be mine. The Lord has spoken. He has made these things known so long ago.' Therefore, my judgement is that we should not put obstacles in the way of the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by being offered to idols, from all sexual impurity, and from eating the meat of animals that have been strangled and from tasting blood."
Then the apostles and church elders, together with the whole church, decided to select men from among themselves to send them to Antioch of Syria with Barnabas and I. They sent Judas surnamed Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers. Silas was a Roman citizen. They sent the following letter with us that I was to read to the churches.
From: The apostles and elders in Jerusalem, your brothers.
To: The brothers from among the Gentiles throughout Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:
Greetings!
We have heard that some people went out from among us here in Jerusalem without our authorization, and that they have upset and troubled you with their talk, unsettling your minds. So we have decided unanimously to select men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Saul, who have dedicated their lives to upholding the name of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.
So we have sent Judas and Silas, and they will confirm in person what we are writing. For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us, not to lay any heavier burden upon you than the following requirements. To abstain from meats that have been sacrificed to idols, and from tasting blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will be doing the right thing.
Shalom!
We were sent off and went directly back to Antioch of Syria, where we gathered the congregation together and there I delivered the letter. I was reminded how several years ago I carried letters of authentication in my pocket from the chief priests in Jerusalem to put the saints of Jesus Christ to death. Now I was carrying a letter in my pocket again from Jerusalem, this time from the apostles, to exhort, encourage and inspire the saints. Bringing them comfort and Shalom - peace. It was ironic how I had been converted from a murderer to a messenger. After I read the letter, the people were delighted by its encouragement.
Judas and Silas, who were also prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers. After they had spent some time in Antioch of Syria with us, they were sent off back to those in Jerusalem with the greeting of "Shalom!" We invoked the blessing of the Lord upon their souls, that they will be kept safe by God Himself. That nothing will be missing and nothing will become broken within their souls. Messengers of the Gospel were always sent and never went on their own accord. However, Silas decided to stay on with us and did not return to Jerusalem with the others.
I rebuked the Apostle Peter when he came to visit us in Antioch of Syria, I protested and opposed him to his face concerning his conduct. He was clearly in the wrong and to be blamed. He had been eating his meals with the Gentile believers, foods forbidden to be eaten by the Jews, prior to the arrival of disciples from Jerusalem headed by James. When they arrived in Antioch of Syria, Peter withdrew and separated himself from the Gentiles. He was afraid of the faction who favoured circumcising Gentile believers. The other Jewish believers became hypocrites along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. When I saw that they were not walking a straight path and keeping in line with the truth about the Gospel of grace, I said to Peter in front of everyone, "If you, born a Jew, can live as you have been living like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how dare you urge and force the Gentiles to comply with the rituals of Judaism."
I explained to Peter how that a man is not justified or reckoned righteous by the keeping of the law, but only by faith and trust in Jesus Christ. How that we both believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified and made righteous by the faith of the Messiah. Never by the works of the law. For by the works of the law and keeping legal rituals shall no human being ever be declared righteous and be justified. I explained that we are no longer under the Law of Moses but under grace. For the grace of God has appeared for the deliverance from sin, bringing salvation to all mankind. It has trained us to reject and renounce all ungodliness and worldly passions. So that we can live uprightly, righteously, and godly, in this present world. What is so hard to understand that we are no longer under the law but under gra
ce.
Barnabas and I stayed in Antioch of Syria, where we and many others taught and proclaimed the Good News of the message of the Lord. How Jesus Christ, the Messiah had attained salvation for us when He died upon the cross. I wrote an entire letter to the saints in the Province of Galatia warning them of the dangers of legalism, "O foolish Galatians, who has smitten your eyes with witchcraft, that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ has been evidently portrayed as crucified among you? Did you received the Spirit by the keeping of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? That having begun in the Spirit you now resort to be made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain? Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?"
If only I could get them to believe and put their faith in what God had provided for them when His only Son died upon the cross. The gospel which I preached and declared unto them, wherein they now stand, was how that they might be saved. If only