ACTS 15:1

The Bible says in Acts 15:1-2, “And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except you be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you cannot be saved. When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.” One of the most important questions for all of mankind is this: what must I do to be saved? How does a person get saved? How does a person get to heaven? Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man, should he gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?” That is why it is so important that you really understand the gospel of Christ. That is why it is so important that you keep the gospel of Christ true to the Word.

It would be a terrible thing if someone corrupted the gospel because they added something to it that was not really a part of the gospel. That is exactly what false teachers do. The Bible warns in Galatians 1:7, “But there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” Already here in Acts chapter fifteen false teachers were trying to pervert the gospel. In what way were they trying to pervert the gospel? They took the gospel, and without taking anything from it, they attempted to add something to it. Adding that which is false is just as bad as taking away that which is true. Revelation 22:18 gives the principle very clearly. It says, “If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book.”

There are many verses in the Bible that state very clearly what it takes to be saved. Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” Titus 3:5 says, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy He saved us…” Acts 16:31 says, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” Over and over and over again in the Bible, this is the means of salvation: believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s it. That’s all. There is nothing else. Jesus paid it all, and Jesus did it all to make your salvation available; and you become saved by believing. Anyone who adds anything has perverted the gospel. Just after the first missionary journey of Paul false believers tried to add circumcision. In our day other false teachers have tried to add other things such as water baptism or a list of good works or church membership. Learn to be attached to Jesus and His gospel and you will more able to identify such false teachers.

The Bible says in Acts 15:3-6, “And being brought on their way by the church, they passed through Phenice and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles: and they caused great joy unto all the brethren. And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them. But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses. And the apostles and elders came together for to consider this matter.” One thing to notice in these verses is the great joy that was seen in the believers once they hear about the Gentiles being converted to Jesus Christ. You can tell someone’s spiritual condition by observing what makes them happy or causes them joy. If you are spiritually minded, then you know that nothing better can happen in the world than for a person to become saved. The soul of one human being is more valuable than all the money in the world. When you are happy about the salvation of souls, then you are experiencing a little taste of heaven. Jesus said in Luke 15:7, “I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance.”

In the dispute that had arisen among the early Christians concerning Gentiles and the plan of salvation, Peter was the first to speak. Peter had already been taught by God the answer to this issue. Peter learned this in Acts chapter 10 when he saw that the Roman centurion named Cornelius had been saved and filled with the Spirit without becoming circumcised. Peter saw that God saved Gentiles as well as Jews simply because of their faith in Jesus the Messiah. The Bible says in Acts 15:7-11, “And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, you know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. And God, which knoweth the hearts, bear them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; and put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.”

When Peter said, “And God, which knoweth the hearts,” Peter was emphasizing the fact that salvation is determined by what is in your heart. It’s what is inside of you that counts, and it’s what is inside of you that God knows all about. Romans 10:9 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” It cannot be circumcision or water baptism or any other human action that results in salvation because such things take place on the outside of a person. Also, actions and behaviors are all a part of the law, and no one can be justified by the keeping of the law. Do not ever come up with some theory that just is not consistent with reality. The reality is that the people of the Old Testament could not keep the law. The reality is that you have not been able to keep the law throughout the course of your life either. How can any human being reasonably or truthfully say that to be saved one must perform any action or behavior? We cannot and we must not. To do so would be to put a yoke and a burden on people that no one can bear. That is the human way. God’s way is better. Peter put it very well. He said in Acts 15:11, “Through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved.” Salvation is by grace and by grace alone. Salvation is accomplished by the things that Jesus did. He gives it to you freely once you believe on Him. You do not do anything to earn it or to keep it or to gain it. He gives it to you freely by His grace once you trust in Him and believe in Him.

The Bible says in Acts 15:12-18, “Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them. And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me; Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up; That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things. Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.” First we had Peter talking and saying why he knew that salvation was by grace through faith and nothing else. In these verses we have Paul and Barnabas and James also strongly defending the gospel: the gospel without works, the gospel where God does everything to save those that believe in Jesus, and those that are saved do nothing to get saved except to believe in Jesus.

The point that Paul and Barnabas were making is that on their first missionary journey the Gentiles were getting saved, and they did not keep any part of the law. The Gentiles did not get circumcised, and they did not try to keep the law. They believed on Jesus. Notice the emphasis that Paul and Barnabas made in verse 12. It says that they were “declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought.” If you understand that salvation is God’s work in the hearts of people: it is what God does, then you know that the works of man have nothing to do with salvation. Man cannot find salvation by his works or efforts. God provided salvation by sending Jesus to die on the cross, and then God by the Spirit presents Jesus to the heart. Then man calls on the name of Jesus and thus believes for salvation.

That is the same emphasis that James is making: man has failed, and it is only because of God and what God has done that there is salvation. In verse 14 James said, “God at the first did visit the Gentiles.” God went to the Gentiles. God initiated the contact with the Gentiles. That is because salvation is of God and not of man. If you are saved, it is because God initiated the contact with you. He visited you. He did it. If He had not done so, you could never be saved no matter what you did. When James quotes from the prophet Amos, again the emphasis is on the fact that man failed, and what man could not do, God accomplished. God said, “I will return.” God said, “I will build again the tabernacle.” And then God said, “I will build again the ruins,” and “I will set it up.” Your life will easily be ruined by sin. There is nothing you can do to fix it because it is already ruined. But God can fix it. He can save it: He can save your soul. If you believe in Jesus, you will be saved. And never forget that if you want to keep the gospel pure, and if you want to keep it right, you must always emphasize that salvation is entirely the work of God. Man does no actions and no behaviors to obtain it: man believes in the Lord Jesus Christ, and then he is given salvation. Yes, to believe is more than mental assent to the existence of Jesus. To believe is to trust and to depend upon, and that true belief only happens when there is repentance and turning from sin to God in one’s heart. But it is this true belief and only belief from the heart of man that results in salvation. The only work that is done is the work that God has done to provide salvation and to bring it in the person of Jesus Christ. That is why James said in verse 18, “Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.”

Of course, even though salvation is by grace through faith in Christ, that in no way means that there is a license to do wrong. James said in Acts 15:19-21, “Wherefore, my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: but that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day.” Notice first of all that James said that his purpose was to make sure that they did not “trouble” those who had come to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Unfortunately there are those who are not so careful about the effect that they have on new converts. One of the things that new converts must watch out for is those who would attempt to harm their faith while it is still young and not yet developed. The devil certainly wants to do that, and he will find someone to try and use if he can. One of the best ways to keep that from happening is to get in the Word of God and stay there. The things that the apostles wrote to the early believers we now have as the New Testament. God inspired the writings of the New Testament so that believers in Jesus would have everything they need to continue following Jesus in this world. That is why Paul wrote to Timothy and said in Second Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

The first thing that James said to write to the new believers of his day was that they “abstain from the pollutions of idols.” Of course, this is a direct reference to the necessity of making sure that we serve God and only God. Anything around us that the unbelievers are involved in can easily become idolatry. One of the challenges of life will always be to keep the Lord first in our lives. The first of the ten commandments is: “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” When the apostle John wrote to believers, the very last thing that he said to them in First John 5:21 was, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” If the Lord has first place in our lives, everything else will be in its proper place. If the Lord Jesus does not have first place in our lives, then no matter how well we are doing other things, they will be out of synch somehow.

And you are really out of synch in the worst possible way if you do not know Jesus as Savior. If you turn from your sins and turn to Christ by praying to Him, today you can be saved by Jesus.

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