![]() ![]() 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. 8 God knows people’s hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. 7 At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as follows: “Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles so that they could hear the Good News and believe. 5 But then some of the believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and insisted, “The Gentile converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.”Ħ So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue. They reported everything God had done through them. They told them-much to everyone’s joy-that the Gentiles, too, were being converted.Ĥ When they arrived in Jerusalem, Barnabas and Paul were welcomed by the whole church, including the apostles and elders. 3 The church sent the delegates to Jerusalem, and they stopped along the way in Phoenicia and Samaria to visit the believers. Finally, the church decided to send Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem, accompanied by some local believers, to talk to the apostles and elders about this question. Let me give you an example from the Bible on how the early church faced this dilemma.ġ5 While Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch of Syria, some men from Judea arrived and began to teach the believers: “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 Paul and Barnabas disagreed with them, arguing vehemently. We both have religious boxes that we place God in. They are not looking for signs and wonders, but instead, they are sifting through the scriptures to see if what is happening can be proven by the Bible. What Does The Bible Say About Forgiveness? Read more 13 But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the Lord. 12 So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain. He went there with his flocks and servants and parted company with his uncle Abram. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 Lot chose for himself the whole Jordan Valley to the east of them. The whole area was well watered everywhere, like the garden of the Lord or the beautiful land of Egypt. If you prefer the land on the right, then I’ll go to the left.”ġ0 Lot took a long look at the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley in the direction of Zoar. If you want the land to the left, then I’ll take the land on the right. Take your choice of any section of the land you want, and we will separate. After all, we are close relatives! 9 The whole countryside is open to you. (At that time Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land.)Ĩ Finally Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not allow this conflict to come between us or our herdsmen. 7 So disputes broke out between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. ![]() 6 But the land could not support both Abram and Lot with all their flocks and herds living so close together. Letting God out of your cultural boxĥ Lot, who was traveling with Abram, had also become very wealthy with flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and many tents. Let me show you what I mean from a couple of passages in the Bible. It is like the difference in listening to music from the speaker of an AM radio vs a live concert. Neither of these things is necessarily bad, but at times they limit what we really hear from the Lord. I have found that there are 2 major ways that we put filters on our ability to hear the voice of the Lord They are cultural filters that we grow up with and assume are normal and the way things are supposed to be, and there are religious filters that come from our upbringing and heritage we have gained over the years as believers. So when I am talking about letting God out of your box, I am talking about expanding the way you hear and perceive the presence of God. How Does Forgiveness Affect Our Relationship with God? Read more
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