Devotion - Thursday, September 15

Acts 15 is one of the chapters in the Bible which we should be able to call forth from our memory.  It is the account of the meeting in Jerusalem where the leaders of the newly forming Church discuss whether Gentile converts must also be expected to follow the Law of Moses.

Verse 10 is where I would like to call particular attention.  Peter says, "Now, therefore why do you make a trial of God by putting a yoke upon the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?"  The Laws of Moses are too much to bear.  At Sunday's Confirmation Ministry class, we spoke of why Martin Luther put the 10 commandments first in the Small Catechism, followed by the Apostles' Creed.  Even those 10 commands make us aware of our in ability to do all that the Law would require.  We are driven to look to the mercy of God who creates, redeems and sanctifies.

Verse 11 of Acts 15 is Peter saying the same thing:  "But we believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will."

We don't need to enforce the Law, in order to appreciate that Christ has set us free from the Law's burden.  We don't need to hold ourselves accountable to the Law, in order to move to a different criteria of what it means to be a disciple.

Acts 15.  Very important in the history of our Church.  Very important theology.