Law Versus Grace

Rev. Mark C. Alvis, Union Congregational Church — Epiphany II, January 14, 2007

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Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the brothers very glad. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”

The apostles and elders met to consider this question. After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. When they finished, James spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me. Simon has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written: ‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’ that have been known for ages.

“It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath” (Acts 15:1-21 NIV).

The boss of a small business asked a new employee, “Son, do you believe in life after death?” “Yes sir,” the employee replied. “Well then, that makes everything just fine,” the boss exclaimed, “because after you left work early yesterday to go to your grandmother’s funeral, she stopped in to see you.”

Truth is very important. Jesus said that truth is what sets us free. The Bible, properly interpreted, is true. When the Bible is not properly interpreted it can be used to teach error. When people teach what is false and use the Bible to support it, then those who know better must speak up. Paul and Barnabas find themselves in just such a situation in our text for the morning, Acts 15. The particular false teaching they confronted had been brewing for years. Please follow as I read Acts 15:1-6:

Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question [the false teachers claimed to speak for the Jerusalem church on this matter]. The church [at Antioch] sent them on their way [this means they supported them financially and with prayer to go to Jerusalem], and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the brothers very glad. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.” The apostles and elders met to consider this question.

Not many Christians today have agonized over the subject of circumcision. About the only time the matter comes up is at hospitals after the birth of a male child. Why was there such a fuss over this issue in Acts 15? Because if the view of the false teachers had prevailed, then most likely there would be no Christianity today — just another sect of Judaism.

Jewish people continue to practice circumcision because of Genesis 17. The Moslems observe this rite, not because of the Koran but because they, too, consider themselves to be descendants of Abraham through Ishmael and therefore Genesis 17 applies to them. And many Christian and non-Christian families continue to have this surgery performed for hygienic benefits and family tradition, probably based on Genesis 17. Let’s read Genesis 17:9-14 and talk about why the false teachers of Acts 15 placed such importance upon circumcision:

Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come . . . Every male among you shall be circumcised . . . including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner - those who are not your [biological] offspring . . . and it [circumcision] will be the sign of the covenant between me and you . . . My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting [‘olam] covenant. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people [excommunicated]; he has broken my covenant.”

These are strong words. Supposing Abraham told God that he wasn’t about to get circumcised at 99 years of age, nor was he going to circumcise Ishmael, his only son at the time? We would question Abraham’s commitment to the Lord. In the same way, the Judaizers of Acts 15 asked how Gentile Christians could call themselves descendants of Abraham through faith in Christ and not be willing to get circumcised. The Judaizers’ trump card was that circumcision was commanded by God for Abraham and all his household, whether they were physical descendants or not; and it was to be done for the generations to come as an “everlasting covenant.”

Should circumcision be one of the ordinances of Christianity? The early Church categorically said no. Let’s look at some of the reasons why. Please follow as I read Acts 15:7-9:

After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.”

Peter reminds his listeners that God clearly commanded him to share the gospel with Cornelius and his family - who were uncircumcised Gentiles (Acts 10:9-23). Upon hearing the good news, Cornelius and his household believed in the Lord Jesus Christ and were wonderfully saved apart from circumcision. This should have surprised no one because Abraham was declared righteous by God solely on the basis of his faith in God’s promises many years before he was circumcised. Circumcision did not save Abraham; it was an outward sign that he was already saved and in a covenant relationship with God (Genesis 15:6).

According to Peter’s testimony in verse 9, Cornelius and his family became purified or circumcised of heart when they believed. Circumcision of the heart was always more important than circumcision of the flesh. Let me show you this from the Old Testament: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4). “‘The days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh — Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab and all who live in the desert in distant places. For all these nations are really uncircumcised, and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart’” (Jeremiah 9:25).

The Jews, along with all the rest of mankind, need a new heart— a circumcised heart that follows after God. Only the power of the gospel can accomplish this. Notice what Peter goes on to say in verses 10-11" “Now then, why do you [Jewish false teachers] try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.’”

What is the yoke which neither Peter nor the Jewish people were able to bear? It was a man-made yoke that the religious leaders of Israel placed upon the Jewish people. This unbearable yoke was created when God’s Law was perverted by the religious leaders and then falsely used as a means of salvation. Friends, no one has ever been saved by his ability to keep God’s Law. It was never intended to be used that way. God’s Law shows us God’s standards and can help people live together in an orderly way; but no one can keep it well enough to merit salvation. One of the primary purposes of God’s Law is to show us our need for a Savior.

After Peter made these statements, Acts 15:12 informs us that Paul and Barnabas shared additional testimony of how God had supernaturally worked among the Gentiles apart from any demands placed upon them to be circumcised.

The final speaker is James, the half-brother of the Lord Jesus and an important leader in the Jerusalem Church. Let’s hear what he has to say in verses 13-18:

When they had finished, James spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me. Simon [Peter] has described to us how God at first showed his concern [for all people, not just the Jews] by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. The words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written [Amos 9:11-12]: ‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent [Amos had warned that Israel and Judah were going to be judged by God and exiled to other nations because of their rebellious hearts. However, God graciously allowed the Jewish people to return to their land toward the end of Daniel’s life]. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, that the remnant of men may seek the Lord [only a remnant of Jewish people returned to the land, but under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah, they experienced a great revival. Who else did God want to seek him?], and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’ that have been known for ages.”

God’s plans have always included bringing salvation to the Gentiles— see Genesis 12:1-3. However, if the Judaizers had their way there would be no such thing as Gentile believers, because every Gentile would be made into a Jew by being circumcised and taught to observe all the Jewish feasts and rituals.

Friends, there was a temporary part of God’s law that was binding only until Christ came. It is called the ceremonial law. Under the ceremonial laws the Jews had to make pilgrimages to Jerusalem in order to make animal sacrifices for sin and observe feast days. God’s provision of animal sacrifices was good, but it was never meant to be lasting. The ceremonial law also forbid the Jews to eat certain foods or wear mixed clothing (no cotton-polyester blends). These laws were good in that they were designed to keep Israel separate and distinct from the nations until Christ was born of the Jews. The purpose of the ceremonial law was fulfilled by Christ. The Jews should have been thrilled that the burden of all those outward rituals was taken away in Christ. This is the point James is making in verse 19, “It is my judgment therefore, that we [Jewish Christians] should not make it difficult [burdensome] for the Gentiles who are turning to God.”

Why should the Jewish Christians try to force Gentile Christians to observe obsolete practices? However — and this is vital to understand — the Christian Jews living in Jerusalem did not insist on enjoying their freedoms in Christ. Why? Because by doing so they would have needlessly offended unsaved Jews. The church at Jerusalem voluntarily observed certain ceremonial laws in order to gain opportunities to share Christ with their Jewish kinsmen. Although they did not offer animal sacrifices for sin, apparently they did circumcise their sons and eat kosher food. Keeping this in mind will help us understand the rest of what James says in verses 20-21:

“Instead [of forcing Gentiles to practice obsolete rituals], we should write them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols [in other words, Gentiles Christians should no longer go to pagan feasts held in honor of false gods. Idol worship is forbidden in the Ten Commandments, which are a summary of God’s moral Law. The ceremonial law was temporary but not God’s moral law. The Gentile Christians were also to abstain], from sexual immorality [this too is forbidden in God’s moral Law and is implied in the rite of circumcision. A part of circumcision’s meaning is to remind men that their sex lives are under God’s rule. Sex was designed for marriage between a man and a woman. James finishes by saying that Gentile Christians should also be encouraged to abstain], from the meat of strangled animals and from blood [part of a kosher diet was to only eat meat that had been drained of its blood. The laws God gave to Israel caused them to greatly respect blood, because Christ was to shed His blood in order to save us from our sins. James is recommending that Gentile Christians voluntarily observe this ceremonial law so as not to needlessly put off the Jewish people in their communities. By not eating the blood of animals, it could give Gentile Christians an opportunity to share Christ with Jewish people in their communities who may ask them why they too drained the blood? I believe this is the point of verse 21]. For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

The Encyclopedia Americana states that in New Testament times one out of ten people in the Roman Empire were Jewish; and in the area where Paul and Barnabas conducted their first missionary journey, one out of five people were Jewish. James was saying, “Let’s not needlessly offend the Jews.”

The Old Testament teaches that circumcision of the heart was always more important than circumcision of the flesh. The New Testament teaches that all believers in Christ are circumcised of heart. Colossians 2:11: “In him [Christ] you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ.” And again in Galatians 6:15: “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation.” The only way to become a new creation is through faith in Christ (II Corinthians 5:17).

We must ask ourselves one last question. What do we do with God’s command to Abraham? “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come . . . My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting [forever] covenant.”

Some Christians argue that circumcision has been replaced by baptism, just as Passover [which was also said to be a forever ordinance] finds its fulfillment and continuation in the Lord’s table. This explanation is called replacement theology by those who don’t agree with it. Friends, there are obvious parallels between circumcision and baptism and between Passover and the Lord’s Table, which was established by Christ during the Passover meal.

Those who disagree say that Jewish people are still bound by God to keep the ordinances of circumcision and Passover until the end of time. According to this thinking, God has two covenant people today — Jews and Christians. Some obvious questions are: Is observing those rites going to get Jewish people into heaven? How is God being honored today by unbelieving Jews observing circumcision and Passover while rejecting the One to whom those ordinances point?

Let me offer a third point of view. Genesis and Exodus state that circumcision and Passover were to be everlasting ordinances. The question we must ask is, What does the Bible mean by “everlasting?” I am quoting from the Theological Word Book of the Old Testament, a Hebrew dictionary: “Neither the Hebrew or Greek word [translated everlasting or forever] in itself contains the idea of endlessness . . . . Both words came to be used to refer to a long age or period.”

In other words ‘olam (“forever”) has a range of meaning and often has the idea of “to the end of the age.” The ordinances of circumcision and Passover were established during the Old Covenant Age. The Lord Jesus Christ is the One who ushered in the New Covenant Age and brought an end to the Old Covenant Age. Because of the work of Christ, circumcision, Passover, the stone temple at Jerusalem, the Levitical Priesthood, ceremonial washings, kosher diet, mixed clothing regulations and animal sacrifices are no longer necessary.

The writers of the New Testament lived at the end of the Old Covenant Age. Please remember there was a forty-year overlap period between the beginning of the New Covenant Age recorded in Acts 2 and the official sweeping away of the Old Covenant Age, which occurred when the temple at Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70. This is why Peter could say around AD 65, “The end of all things is near” (I Peter 4:7). He certainly did not mean the end of planet earth was near. If he did he was wrong and we have an inspiration problem! He was speaking about the end of the Old Covenant Age and all of the ordinances he had grown up with.

One of these days a whole generation of Christians will live to see the end of the New Covenant Age. When that happens, there will no longer be a need for the Lord’s Table, or baptism, or marriage, or funerals. The end of the Old Covenant Age cleared the way for the far superior New Covenant Age. And the end of the New Covenant Age will usher in the far superior Eternal State, when time will be no more. Let’s pray.

Father, thank you that the early church did not give in to the Judaizers who wanted to make salvation dependant circumcision and observing Old Testament rituals. Protect us from modern day Judaizers who want to add to faith in Christ, things such as water baptism or speaking in tongues. Help us to remember that we are not saved by good works, but we are saved for good works. May the joy of our salvation make us grateful, holy people.

Sermon text ©2007 Mark C. Alvis
Bible text © as applicable