Standing Fast For Our Freedom In Christ

Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses”.
Acts 15:5

Prejudice is a dirty word. But prejudice is not limited to race. The first church council was called because of the prejudice of one group of Christians. The newly converted Pharisees wanted the Gentiles to participate in ceremonies that foreshadowed the sacrifice of Christ.

But Paul would have none of it. Once Jesus shed his blood, God required no more blood to be shed. And if God no longer required it, how could the Pharisees? Paul’s thought is echoed by Charles Hodge.

WALK WITH CHARLES HODGE
“It is a great error in morals, and a great practical evil, to make that sinful which is in fact innocent. Christian love never requires this or any other sacrifice of truth. Paul would not consent, even for the sake of avoiding offense, that eating food offered to idols should be made a sin; he strenuously maintained the reverse. He represents those who thought differently as weak in faith, as being under an error from which more knowledge and piety would free them.

“We should stand fast in the freedom for which Christ has set us free, and not allow our consciences to be burdened by a yoke of slavery to human opinions. There is a strong tendency to treat as matters of conscience things which God has never enjoined.

“It is often necessary to assert our Christian liberty at the expense of incurring censure in order to preserve right principles. Our Savior consented to be regarded as a Sabbath-breaker, a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and ‘sinners’; but wisdom was proved right by her actions.”

WALK CLOSER TO GOD
In a way, we are in a better position to settle such issues than those in Paul’s time. We may not have an infallible council, but we have God’s infallible counsel—the completed Bible. Praise God that in his Word we have a trustworthy standard to distinguish duty from freedom.

Judgment by the standard of the Bible is required (see 2 Timothy 3:16). But judgment by an arbitrary standard is forbidden (see Matthew 7:1). Have you held some personal traditions and opinions so dear that you have judged others by them?