"This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them." Acts 15:2a.
Some men from the Jerusalem church came to Antioch when they heard that the good news of Jesus had been received by many Gentiles, who were not circumcised according to the Law of Moses. These men believed that to be a true follower of Jesus, the Jewish rabbi, each male who was not circumcised should submit to this outward sign of obedience. Paul and Barnabas were convinced that it was not necessary for those who had never been circumcised to do so. Because of this disagreement, the debate became very heated and caused a sharp dispute to arise.
While I am not one who enjoys debate or conflict with others, it is comforting for me to see this conflict in the Bible. There is no sugar-coating this problem. There was a “sharp dispute,” which evidently was more than just a little disagreement. It sounds as though there was a heated argument, most likely with raised voices, with some shouting their point of view at their adversary. I am glad that this interaction was included in the Bible. It relates to our world and our problems. And it shows these early followers working through their problems with one another without leaving community.
Questions to consider: How do you respond to a “sharp dispute and debate”? Do you know of anyone who has left your community because of a dispute? What does that do to community? How do you resolve disputes?
Prayer: Father, help me to hear the point of view of others when sharp disputes happen. Help me to be a peacemaker, not for the sake of peace, but for the sake of Your Kingdom. Amen.
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2 comments:
I agree with you Bill. It is good to see that life was not always perfect. It is good to see examples of disputes and how things were resolved. It gives us examples of how we should handle things. Our priest reminded us that we should love one another. That is how people are to know us is by the love we have for one another. I think I might be adapting some other phrase, but my desire in the near future is to work on feeding love in me for others and starving anger.
Greg
We've been working on a garden analogy, which fits nicely with your comments on loving one another. Feed the garden with kingdom food and God grows the fruit from the garden (our life), one of which is love, as in loving the unlovable and the unloving. Thanks, Greg, for your comments.
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