Tag: Acts 14

Jesus Plus

Creating benchmarks and requirements that make faith more complicated than it needs to be seems to be part of the human condition. For some reason, we struggle to believe the completed work of Jesus is enough. This has been happening since the early days of the Christian faith, as we see in the book of Acts when the young church begins adding people from all different backgrounds to its ranks.

Returning from their first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas go back to the original church they planted in Antioch to share incredible news: “And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.” (Acts 14:27, ESV)

While believers rejoice hearing that the gospel has spread throughout Galatia (and beyond), the merging of Jews and Gentiles into one faith also includes challenges. The apostles must take decisive action to prevent division among the followers of Jesus from eclectic backgrounds. They gather to consider conflicting teaching from different factions to determine once and for all whether new believers must become Jews and observe the laws of Moses as part of their newfound faith in Christ.

In Acts 15, the Jerusalem Council meets so the apostles and other key church leaders can debate, discuss, and decide if Gentiles must follow Jewish practices for their faith to be complete. During their meeting, Peter addresses the group: “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believed that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.” (Acts 15: 7-11, ESV)

Peter is likely recalling his first interaction with Cornelius from ten years earlier when the Roman centurion received the Holy Spirit along with all in his household (Acts 10). He reminds the Council that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Gentiles through the grace of Jesus and says that nothing else needs to be added to make them acceptable in God’s eyes. 

Later, in Galatians, Paul affirms this when he writes to the churches he planted previously, emphasizing the power Jesus has to erase dividing lines between different people groups: “So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Gal 3:26-29, NIV)

One commentary explains, “Conflict between ‘grace’ and the ‘Law’ can arise when someone 1) misunderstands the purpose of the Law; 2) redefines grace as something other than ‘God’s benevolence on the undeserving’ (see Romans 11:6); 3) tries to earn his own salvation or ‘supplement’ Christ’s sacrifice; 4) follows the error of the Pharisees in tacking manmade rituals and traditions onto his doctrine; or 5) fails to focus on the ‘whole counsel of God’ (Acts 20:27).”1

Our modern eyes may read this and wonder what the fuss is all about. However, many different branches of our faith can have a subtle “Jesus Plus” mentality. Without realizing it, we layer on additional steps that we consider essential for being a “true” Christian. Following a certain set of social norms in a group of believers can dictate whether someone is in the fold or out in the cold—whether it’s voting practices, expectations around dancing or alcohol consumption, views on women in leadership, stances on divisive topics in our nation today, or any other doctrinal issue with varying perspectives. When people begin to set rules for how everyone should act or think, the focus shifts from God’s grace to self-righteousness, seeking approval of others, or judging those who don’t follow the agreed upon set of norms established by a specific group of believers.

I’ve experienced both sides of this human tendency to seek uniformity—I’ve been the one judging those who don’t live out their faith the way I do, and I’ve been judged by others for not falling in line with their practices. Neither mindset honors God; both turn our eyes from the unity found in Christ to seeking uniformity in how we conduct our lives.

Where are you prone to having a “Jesus Plus” mentality? Do you need to cross deeds off a checklist to feel acceptable to God? Do you feel pressure to follow certain social rules to be in the fold with other believers? Are you so focused on one issue that you’re ignoring other things you need to learn in Scripture? Are you threatened by others’ expressions of faith in Christ that differ from yours?

My church denomination has a motto “In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity” (originally coined by Rupertus Meldenius, a German Lutheran theologian of the early seventeenth century). “It calls for unity on the essential things, the core of truth in our union with Christ. In non-essentials (not the unimportant, but those things that if lacking do not prevent our union with Christ), it calls for liberty so that all might follow their consciences under the Word and Spirit. In all things, however, there must be love (‘charity’ from the Latin caritas, or ‘love’), ‘which binds everything together in perfect harmony’ (Col. 3:14).”2 Paul’s words in Galatians sum it up well: “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” (Gal 5:1 & 6b, NIV)

After the Jerusalem Council determines it is unnecessary for the Gentile converts to adopt Jewish practices, the members provide further instructions: “For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that 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.” (Acts 15:28-29, ESV)

While new believers aren’t required to become Jewish, they are admonished to forsake their former pagan practices related to idolatry. (This echoes commands given in Leviticus 17-18.) Avoiding these four things wasn’t necessary for salvation but promoted peace between Jewish and Gentile followers of Jesus.3 It also empowered the new believers to turn away from practices that would dishonor the Lord and hinder them from continued spiritual growth. 

Lots of us carry baggage from our pasts that impacts how we interact with God and others. To understand more about how to recognize and eliminate the “Jesus Plus” mentality, consider reading one of these books:

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