(Acts 15:1-11)
1Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were
teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to
the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2This
brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them.
So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other
believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders
about this question. 3The church sent them on their
way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told
how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the
brothers very glad. 4When they came to Jerusalem, they
were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom
they reported everything God had done through them.
5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party
of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be
circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”
6The apostles and elders met to consider this question.
7After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed
them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice
among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of
the gospel and believe. 8God, who knows the heart,
showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them,
just as he did to us. 9He made no distinction between
us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10Now
then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the
disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to
bear? 11No! We believe it is through the grace of our
Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”
