Bible Reading: Acts 15
Acts 15:8-11 And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare 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.
During the meeting of the Jerusalem council, Peter testified to what he had seen at Cornelius’s house. God gave the Gentiles the Holy Ghost just as he had done to the believing Jews on the day of Pentecost. There was no difference between Jew and Gentile in the eyes of God. He purified them the same way – by faith. Peter and the others had gathered to discuss the question of Gentiles keeping the Law of Moses. Did they have to be circumcised and keep the law in order to be saved?
There were some Pharisees who believed in Jesus that insisted that the Gentiles keep the Law of Moses in order to be saved. The council determined that this was not so. This is called legalism and is still around today in various forms. It is interesting that Peter called the Law of Moses a yoke which the fathers and they could not bear. Why, Peter questioned would anyone want to tempt God by instructing these new believers to try to keep something that no one could keep?
Peter tells us how we are all saved – through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ by faith in his name. As the Lord Jesus said earlier:
Matthew 11:28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
The yoke of the Law is a heavy yoke but Jesus invites us all to come to him. Those who are laboring with trying to keep the Law are invited into his rest. His yoke is a place of rest and his burden is light. Why is this so? Because Jesus is the One who keeps the law and we are “in Him”. He is the One who does the work and we receive the life from him. We are not producers of righteousness by keeping the Law. We are recipients of righteousness through faith in Jesus.
Which burden are you under? Are you trying to keep the Law or are you learning from Jesus as you yoke up with him? The Law burden is unbearable but Jesus’ burden is light.
In Christ,
Rody
