Faith and . . .


Acts 15:22-35
22Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brothers,
23with the following letter: “The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings.
24Since we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions,
25it has seemed good to us, having come to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
26men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
27We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth.
28For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements:
29that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
30So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.
31And when they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.
32And Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, encouraged and strengthened the brothers with many words.
33And after they had spent some time, they were sent off in peace by the brothers to those who had sent them.
35But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

Over the last 2,000 years the Church has faced a multitude of challenges to the truth. Acts 15 deals with the first serious threat to the faith and it was handled masterfully. Had the problem outlined in this chapter been allowed to persist it may have meant the death of the faith all together. The poor theology perpetrated by the Judaizers was serious and Paul’s actions display a determination to solve this problem.

Having taken the problem to Jerusalem, Paul sees the convening the Apostles who discuss a proper response to the threat. After discussing the matter they send not only a letter to Antioch in response but also Judas and Silas to answer any questions that might arise upon reading the letter. The demand for clarity here is important. If the Judaizers are correct and you can only come to the faith through circumcision, then salvation is not gained by faith alone. It now requires an action by us as well. Suddenly salvation comes by something we do. This is a fatal problem. The Apostles do tell the new believers to practice a few disciplines (verse 29) but these are not requirements for being a part of Christianity. They are practices for the spiritual health of the community. They had no power to save.

As Christians, we should all know this but a reminder is always a good thing. Anytime anyone tells us that there is something additional too trusting in Jesus that we must do to be saved we just turn the other way because they are wrong. I know it’s rather a twisted sentence, but read it again. Anytime anyone tells us that there is something additional too trusting in Jesus that we must do to be saved we just turn the other way because they are wrong. That includes a few things that I’ve heard over the years that people want to add to being saved such as:

  • Being circumcised (as in this passage)
  • Praying in tongues
  • Being re-baptized
  • Giving a certain percentage of your income to the church
  • Denouncing your family

  • ____________ (insert what you’ve heard here!)


This list is hardly exhaustive. But it serves to illustrate the point. No matter what man can come up with to “help” God save us just isn’t necessary. There is no “and” to faith. It stands alone. God’s Grace is sufficient to save us through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross.

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