I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Acts 14-16.

    In today’s passage we have reference to hostility being stirred up against Paul and Barnabas. I did not touch on it yesterday, but the part that makes clear what was going on here is at the end of the passage from yesterday. There Luke tells us that some of the Jews in Antioch of Pisidia were jealous of the crowds attracted by Paul’s preaching. So, they started to slander Paul and argue against everything he said. In today’s passage Luke tells us that the same thing happened in Iconium. Then later in Lystra, some of the Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and stirred up more trouble. The mobs which attacked Paul and Barnabas were not angered by what Paul and Barnabas preached or did. They were angered and stirred up by what was falsely said about what they preached and did. We need to be aware that this pattern has been repeated many times throughout history. When we hear bad things reported about what others have said or done we need to confirm for ourselves the truth of these allegations before condemning, especially when those being condemned are preaching the Word of God. Additionally, we must be prepared for people to similarly slander us when we speak God’s word.

    After Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch in Syria some men arrived from Judea who taught that the Gentiles needed to become Jewish converts in order to be saved by following Jesus. Paul and Barnabas disagreed strongly and the arguments got heated. It never struck me before, but today I was struck by the fact that Barnabas argued vehemently. As we read through Acts we often read about Paul getting into heated arguments with people, to the point where it becomes clear that Paul could be difficult. But Barnabas comes across completely different. After all, Barnabas is a nickname meaning “Son of Encouragement”. So, clearly this was something where Barnabas agreed with Paul strongly (actually, I suspect this started as Barnabas’ argument and Paul agreed with him rather than vice versa). The arguments became so heated that the local Church sent Paul and Barnabas, and a few local believers, to Jerusalem to consult with the Apostles and Church leaders there. It is worth noting that they did not find it necessary to send any of those with whom Paul and Barnabas were arguing (which, in and of itself, tells us something about their arguments). Actually, I want to go a little further into that. The fact that the believers in Antioch sent Paul and Barnabas, but not their opponents, suggests to me that they felt that Paul and Barnabas were arguing in good faith and that their opponents were not. They trusted Paul and Barnabas to accurately report what was being said, but were not sure that their opponents would do so. They sent other believers along so as to provide support for whatever Paul and Barnabas reported from Jerusalem.
    When Paul and Barnabas got to Jerusalem it is clear that there were members of the Church leadership who agreed with those who argued for Gentiles becoming converts to Judaism in order to be saved. However, there is a clear difference between these and those who had made the argument in Antioch. The leaders in Jerusalem accepted the idea that they might be mistaken and were open to actual debate. There was a lot of discussion and debate on the issue until Peter stood up and reminded them of what had happened surrounding his visit with Cornelius. Then Paul and Barnabas described their missionary journey. The Council compared the actions of the Holy Spirit as described by Paul and Barnabas with that from Peter’s visit. They used this comparison to make a decision. I believe that James’ compromise was based on recognizing that those calling for Gentiles to convert to Judaism had a legitimate concern about the lack of moral teaching received by many Gentiles. James’ statement contained clear calls for the Gentiles who followed Jesus to adopt the moral foundation of Judaism without needing to adopt the rituals.