Ⅲ
We must receive the Lord's mercy to be saved from Satan's schemes to frustrate the spreading and building up of the church, keeping ourselves in the flow of the age for the building up of His Body (cf. Heb. 4:16; Lam. 3:22-25):
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We must be saved from outward and dead ordinances, human opinions, and the self with its old concepts; whoever receives mercy from the Lord will be saved in these matters; the degree to which we are saved is the degree to which the church can be built up (Rom. 5:10; Phil. 1:19-21a; 2:12-16; Acts 15:1-12; Gal. 2:21; 5:1; 2:4).
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We must learn from the lesson of Peter to be saved from the veils of our religious traditions and old background so that we may see and live under the vision of God's eternal economy to hold the truth of the gospel (Acts 10:9-16; Gal. 2:11-14).
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We must learn from the lesson of Barnabas to be saved from human opinions and natural relationships—disputes that arise among the co-workers because of personal relationships are terrible; remember this well (Acts 13:13; 15:35-40; Col. 4:10).
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We must learn from the lesson of Apollos to be saved from a ministry that lacks a complete revelation of God's New Testament economy and from not being fully one with the ministry of the age (Acts 18:24—19:2; 1 Cor. 1:12; 16:10-12).
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We must learn from the lesson of Paul in Acts 16:6-12; these verses indicate the problem of workers coming to a place and tending to become set and settled down, not wanting to move; old relationships, old affections, old inclinations, and old concepts keep us from following the inner leading of the indwelling Spirit:
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The Holy Spirit forbade Paul and his co-workers, and the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; the Holy Spirit's forbidding separates us, sanctifies us, and the Spirit of Jesus either allows us or does not allow us.
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The Holy Spirit says "no" to sanctify us, and the Spirit of Jesus says "go" to send us out in the humanity of Jesus to accomplish the will of God under the cross.
Morning Nourishment
Acts 15:19 Therefore I judge that we do not harass those from the Gentiles who are turning to God.39-41 And there was a sharp contention, so that they separated from each other; and Barnabas, taking Mark along, sailed away to Cyprus. But Paul chose Silas and went out, having been commended to the grace of the Lord by the brothers. And he passed through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.
When the church was spreading, Satan created three problems through various people. These three problems limited the spread of the church.
The first problem encountered in the spread of the church was the limitation and bondage of Judaism (Acts 15:1-34). The believers in Judea were Jews who still kept the traditions of Judaism; they looked at the church from a Jewish viewpoint....The Jews believed that their law, ordinances, and rituals were from God and pertained to piety; therefore, they considered themselves as those best able to keep God's word. Satan used this thought to severely limit the church.
Throughout church history, each time the church has spread, it has been through a group of people whom God empowered to break through religious rituals, ordinances, and dead letters.
On the one hand, we should obey the Bible, walk in its light, and comply with the teachings of the truth....On the other hand, however, we must ask ourselves whether our Bible knowledge and our light of the truth are dead or living. If we have only dead doctrines, this will limit and frustrate the church. (Three Aspects of the Church, Book 2: The Course of the Church, pp. 37-38)
Today's Reading
Acts 15 opens the eyes of the church and allows the church to escape the bondage of Judaism and the rule of Jerusalem. Thus, the church can spread freely. Satan wanted to use Judaism and Jerusalem to control, limit, prohibit, and restrict the spread of the church. But God wanted to spread to the Gentiles, to the uttermost part of the earth. God wanted the whole earth to have the testimony of His Son. Paul had this vision. In his Epistle to the Ephesians he wrote that God wanted to make both Gentiles and Jews into the Body of Christ (3:6).After the problem of the Jewish religion was resolved, Paul and Barnabas immediately went out to the Gentile lands to preach the gospel. The problem of outward religion had been solved, but now they encountered an inward, subjective problem—Barnabas and Paul could not be in one accord (Acts 15:35-41). Barnabas wanted to take Mark to visit the brothers, but Paul felt it was not suitable, and an argument arose between them. Their argument was the work of Satan. The spread of the church was greatly damaged because Barnabas and Paul could not be in one accord....When brothers who are co-workers have a difference of opinion, the spread of the church is limited.
The contention between Paul and Barnabas weakened the spread of the church. These two apostles, who had been working together, were now separated; Barnabas took Mark and went west to Cyprus, and Paul took Silas and went north to Syria and Cilicia (vv. 39-41). We must read this portion of the Bible very carefully in order to discover the thought of the Holy Spirit. Paul wanted to stay in Asia Minor where he had labored previously, but the Holy Spirit forbade him to remain there (16:6). Paul considered going to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them (v. 7). For the sake of the spread of the church, the Holy Spirit gave Paul a vision calling him to Europe. After Paul saw the vision, he crossed the sea from Asia Minor to Macedonia (vv. 9-12). Thus, the church spread from Asia Minor to Europe and turned south to the cities of Athens and Corinth (17:15; 18:1). (Three Aspects of the Church, Book 2: The Course of the Church, pp. 41-43)
Further Reading: Three Aspects of the Church, Book 2: The Course of the Church, ch. 3