What are they arguing in Acts 15? The heart of the argument is, “is faith the only requirement for salvation?” Acts 15:9 says yes. Satan has been trying to modify this requirement in many ways: faith + good works; faith + baptism; faith + speak in tongue; but God’s requirement is “faith + nothing.” Not only that, if we try to make the requirement as “faith + something”, we will not get the salvation because this faith is not a true faith anymore. Paul explains it in details in Galatians.
What are about the four restrictions in Acts 15:20? Are we Christians also need to obey today? Can we eat medium rare steak? You can apply the principles we taught in Lesson 6. There are two categories of restrictions in v20. One is related to food and the other one is related to morality. There is a clear agreement that believers should abstain from immorality (e.g. 1 Thess 4:3). But there is clear bible teachings in NT about food restrictions are in contradiction with Acts 15:20. In Romans 14, Paul shows us we are free from food and special days. 1 Cor 8 tells us eating of food offered to idols is not wrong. So, I interpret Acts 15:20 not as NT commands but as regulations because of Christian liberty. There are things that are not wrong in its nature but Christians may not do them in certain circumstance because we don’t want to cause others stumble.
Mike
What are about the four restrictions in Acts 15:20? Are we Christians also need to obey today? Can we eat medium rare steak? You can apply the principles we taught in Lesson 6. There are two categories of restrictions in v20. One is related to food and the other one is related to morality. There is a clear agreement that believers should abstain from immorality (e.g. 1 Thess 4:3). But there is clear bible teachings in NT about food restrictions are in contradiction with Acts 15:20. In Romans 14, Paul shows us we are free from food and special days. 1 Cor 8 tells us eating of food offered to idols is not wrong. So, I interpret Acts 15:20 not as NT commands but as regulations because of Christian liberty. There are things that are not wrong in its nature but Christians may not do them in certain circumstance because we don’t want to cause others stumble.
Mike
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