THURSDAY 10 June 2021 “Peace Bearers” Acts 15:22-35

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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,

It’s summertime in the northern hemisphere of our world and for many people that means school is out for the kids, summer vacation plans are being made, the ice and snow is gone, and that often means travel. Perhaps the same is true for those of you in far southern places like Australia or the southern parts of the African or South American continents? May I ask, are you a different person when traveling or on vacation, than you are when you are home, surrounded by the familiar and the people who know you?

Today let’s look at a special part of the story we’ve been looking at for more than a week. It happened about 2000 years ago in Jerusalem. There was a big meeting which included the apostles of Jesus, the leaders of the Jesus movement in Jerusalem, as well as Paul & Barnabas, and some Jesus followers from the Syrian Antioch church, and it’s recorded in Acts 15. It’s historic because at this ‘Jerusalem Council’ it was agreed that Jews and Gentiles (non Jews) from anywhere in the world, from any ethnicity or language or culture, could be legitimately saved by their full faith in Jesus Christ and welcomed EQUALLY into what Jesus called “My church”, (Matt. 16:18) the global movement of Jesus followers. This meant no second class citizen Christians, no hierarchy of Christians based on education or vocation or nationality or age or skin color or ANYTHING. With Jesus we are ALL equal in value to God! Do you believe that?

Dr. Luke, the author of this book of Acts, which traces the events following the resurrection and return of Jesus to heaven, records for us in Acts 15:22, that with this big meeting completed, Paul & Barnabas were ready to ready to return to Syrian Antioch from which they had come. But the leaders in Jerusalem, with whom they had met, “…decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, two men who were leaders among the brothers.” (Acts 15:22) Why, you might ask? Well, the answer is in the first few lines of the letter they carried… a letter written by the apostles and the elders in Jerusalem. Take note please of how this letter begins: “We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. So we all agreed to choose men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul, men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm, by word of mouth, what we are writing…” (Acts 15:24-27)

May I point out two or three things that strike me and invite you to consider the culture of the society in which you live?

First, these leaders in Jerusalem were taking responsibility for the mess made by some guys who went from Jerusalem to Antioch, and spread rumors and false doctrine among the people there, which is why Paul & Barnabas had come to Jerusalem for this big meeting. I really appreciate that.

While we don’t know exactly who those trouble makers were or what their relationship with the Jerusalem Jesus movement was, the apostles wanted to repair the damage and restore trust. I wonder if you see that too often when damage is done, either it’s blown way out of proportion by the media or others and BLAME is poured out all over the place often destroying reputations, OR the mess is hidden, covered up, disregarded, ignored. Rarely does someone stand up with integrity and say ‘it was wrong, let’s fix it’.

Second, I like how they didn’t rely on simply the letter, but they sent two men to officially represent them and speak on their behalf to the people in Antioch, making sure damage was repaired and trust was restored.

Friends, we live in a world where way too much is put in print! Emails, letters, Facebook posts, Twitter tweets, Texts and on and on… and way too often what was written is misunderstood, people are offended and relationships damaged. Here in addition to a letter, two men made a long trip to be sure there was clarity and HOPE for a bright future!

Third, I appreciate their strong affirmation of Paul & Barnabas, do you see that?

Remember the Jesus followers were called ‘Christians’ first in Antioch, not Jerusalem! The Holy Spirit of God spoke to the Antioch church, identifying Paul & Barnabas to be the first missionaries with the Gospel, and sending them out from the Antioch church, not Jerusalem! Yet I see no animosity, no jealousy, I see a real mutual respect and desire for unity and partnership between the Jerusalem church & the Antioch church. That encourages me! May I ask, what does that look like in your city? How do the churches and church leaders relate to each other in your city?

Do you see Luke writes: “The men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the church [in Antioch].” (Acts 15:30-32) May I remind you that when it says they went DOWN to Antioch and yet you look at the map and Antioch is to the NORTH of Jerusalem, please don’t let that confuse you. Jerusalem was at one of the highest points in all of Israel, so when it uses the phrase UP to Jerusalem or DOWN from Jerusalem, it’s an elevation statement, not a directional statement.

May I ask another question: when was the last time this happened in your life? Someone came from a far distant place and simply encouraged you, strengthened you in the journey of your life? If you are part of a church, has this happened recently? And what about YOU… are you a source of encouragement to those you meet when you travel? Now think about this summer and all your travel plans. What if you made it your personal ambition to bring the JOY of Jesus, the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, to the people you meet, where-ever your travels take you? What if… as you leave each place… every home or hotel in which you stay, every home or restaurant in which you eat, every gathering of people you are part of… what if when you leave those people, they feel they were BLESSED by your visit? What big difference might that make this summer for you and for them?

In closing today, look at how the folks in Antioch wanted to return the blessing. Luke writes: “After spending some time there in Antioch, they were sent off by the brothers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them. But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.” (Acts 15:33,35) I wonder if your translation also has a verse 34 which says ‘but Silas decided to remain there.’? We don’t know exactly how that happened. Were both men sent off with a celebration from the church in Antioch and Silas didn’t get far down the road before he turned back, deciding to stay a little longer in Antioch? We do know that some time later Paul was itching to get back on the road, revisit the places he and Barnabas had gone on their first missionary trip, and then push further west, into new territory where Jesus was unknown. Paul took Silas with him on this second trip. You’ll see that in Acts 15:40, so we assume Silas was still there in Antioch and had developed a friendship with Paul.

For today, in closing please hold on to that little phrase ‘They were sent off with the blessing of peace…” and may I urge us to give serious thought as to how you and I can LIVE that this summer? How can we be people of PEACE, bringing the peace of Jesus everywhere our paths take us this summer? Remember Jesus said to His disciples the evening before He went to the cross: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give you. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)Of course we can only do this if we are LIVING in the peace that only Jesus can give us! Peace with God, Peace with yourself, Peace with your past, Peace as you trust the Holy Spirit of God to guide you into your future. Are you living in that type of peace and can you bless others with it this summer? Here’s a new song I found to help you with that PEACE…and I pray for you that God will greatly bless you as you step out into your summer of 2021.

Today’s Scripture is Acts 15:22-35.

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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.

Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.

Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)

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