Text: Acts 10:15

Title: A stumbling block within me

Date: August 1, 2021 / Da Nang VEC

Introduction

The devil is not the only obstacle to spreading the gospel to the
ends of the earth. I myself can be a hindrance to spreading the
gospel. Can you believe it? I who suppose to preach the Gospel is an
obstacle to the Gospel. What does this mean? My wrong thoughts or
my wrong beliefs within me can hinder to spread the gospel.
Holy Spirit not only fights against the devil who hinders the gospel,
he fights against the false beliefs within us as well. Last week we
learned how God triumphed over the devil's counterattack. As the
believers who were scattered by persecution preached the gospel, the
church expanded further, and Paul, the vanguard of church
persecuter was converted and became a missionary. This is the
Lord's amazing reversal victory.

However, another obstacle remained within the Jerusalem church. It

was, how can Gentile converts be embraced into the gospel. It was a
matter of how the Jewish believers who were familiar with Moses Law
would receive Gentile converts into the church.

This problem was already happening in the church.

Acts 15:1 “Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were
teaching the brothers: "Unless you are circumcised, according to the
custom taught by Moses, you can not be saved.” It is an attempt to
put Gentile converts within the framework of Judaism. The argument
that Gentiles must be circumcised and keep the Moses Law even if
they believe in Jesus. If the Jerusalem church accepts this claim, the
gospel will be confined within the framework of Judaism. And it will
be a great obstacle to spreading the gospel to the ends of the earth.
 The problem is that some of the apostles agree with this idea. This
was the great obstacle that existed in the Jerusalem church.

Main subject

It is God who first worked to solve out this problem. Today's

Cornelius case has become an important key to solving this very
problem.

1. The conversion of the Roman officer Cornelius

The Roman centurion Cornelius lived in the city of Caesarea. He is
a Roman soldier, but he fears God and help many poor people.
While he is praying at 3 pm, he was instructed by an angel. The
command was to invite Peter, who was in the nearby city of Joppa,
to hear his message. Cornelius immediately sends two servants and a
faithful soldier to Peter.

About noon the next day when the men arrived, Peter was also
praying on the roof of Simon's house, where he was staying. A cloth
fell from the sky and unfolded, and there were all kinds of animals,
insects, and birds. And a voice told him, Get up Peter, kill and eat.
Peter said, “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.” (Acts
10:14) The voice spoke to him second times. “Do not call anything
impure that God has made clean.” (v15)
The next day Peter followed the people to the house of Cornelius
in Caesara. Cornelius had gathered his relatives and friends and was
waiting for Peter. As Peter began to preach, the Holy Spirit came
upon them in same way came to Jews. So Peter baptized them. Peter
learned from this incident. ‘God gave the Gentiles the same Holy
Spirit and washed away their sins through faith as same as God did
to Jews. The Holy Spirit want break the false idea of Peter that Jews
are better chosen people. God love gentiles as equal as Jews. This
incident gave more freedom for Jews to bring the gospel to the
Gentiles.
 Application) Are there such obstacles in the church today?
When I join the mission in 1989, the person who opposed me the
most was the elder in charge of finances. He believed that
missionary work is not useful but a waste of money. That elder hurt
me a lot as he opposed to support my mission. (3 times of church
meeting) If such a person is in leadership position, the door of
mission will block.

When William Carey was about to go on a mission to India on 1790,

most of pastors believed that Matthew 28:18-20 (Go, make disciples
of all nations, baptize them, teach them to keep them.) is only
command given to the disciples of Jesus. And extremist Calvinists at
the time claimed, “Even if you don’t go to India, if God wills, he will
use anyone or even a stone to make them to believe in Jesus.”
It sounds like biblical, but half is right and half is wrong. In terms
of mission is lead by God, it is correct, but it is the answer which
avoids the responsibility of church. Although God takes the initiative
in missions, but He carry on mission through people not by angels.
So the Lord commanded his disciples to go out and preach the
gospel. And if someone doesn't go, how can the Gentiles hear the
gospel? (Romans 10) So, Carey had to write an article to persuade
church leaders on those days. The title of the article is incredibly
long. ‘An Inquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for
the Conversion of the Heathens’
When you have wrong thought in our mind, someone like Carry
had to suffer to correct you. In every country and every ages, such
kind of barriers stand in the way of the Gospel.

2. Jerusalem Apostolic Conference

Gentiles must also be circumcised if they believe in Jesus. And they
can be saved by keeping the law of Moses. This is clearly a false
doctrine that is contrary to the gospel. Because salvation is not
obtained by keeping the law, but is a gift from God through faith in
Jesus Christ. (Rome 1:17)
 As these doctrinal issues arose within the church there were
considerable strife. So the Apostles call for council in Jerusalem to
decide on this issue. Barnabas and Paul made a long trip from
Antioch to Jerusalem to attend this conference. Because it was a
very important decision for Gentile missionary work.
In this meeting, Peter played the most important role. The lessons
he experienced at Cornelius' house gave him a clear answer to this
issue. He claimed, God gave same Holy Spirit to Gentiles, and same
forgiveness when they believe in Jesus. (Acts 15:8-9) Why do you try
to putting a yoke on their necks? The yoke neither we nor our
fathers could bear. It was almost rebuke to those who raised this
issues.
Next Speaker were Barnabas and Paul. They reported what
happened when they preaching the gospel to the Gentiles. Especially
signs and wonders God performed in this mission. (Acts 15:12)
And finally Elder James (Jesus' brother) made conclusion. The
Gentiles' receiving God's favor was already prophesied in the book of
Amos. So let's not put a heavy burden on them, just tell them a few
precautions, and let them be free to become accepted.
v19-20, “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it
difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. / Instead we should
write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols,
from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and
from blood.”
Then they sent Judas and Silas to inform the decision to all
churches around the world. In this way, Gentiles who believed in
Jesus could enter the church by faith in Jesus without being
circumcised or obligated to follow the Mosaic Law.
Professor Pierson of Fuller Theological Seminary said, "This decision
is a historic event that allowed Christianity to grow into a universal
church without being bound by Judaism."

Application) How unfortunate if the gospel cannot be preached

powerfully because of our prejudices? I hope it will be a time for us
to correct our false beliefs within us.

Conclusion

Prejudice within us blocks the door of missions. I had a negative

understanding of immigrant missions. This is because I thought that
evangelizing foreigners in Korea was a very passive way than going
to that country to do missionary work. But over the past few years,
visiting churches in North Vietnam, I realized I was wrong.
Many of the church leaders I met in Vietnam were people who
believed in Jesus from abroad and returned to Vietnam to become
Pastors. At the Halong Church I first worked with, the pastor and
four church elders were believers in Jesus in the Hong Kong refugee
camp. The pastor of Namha Church, which was planted by Halong
Church, also went to Malaysia as a welder. Hwang Tan Church's
female pastor is a woman who went to Taiwan as a hairdresser. I
know two people who believed in Jesus in Russia and became pastors
in near Ha Long. All of them received the gospel while living abroad
and became leaders there. Evangelist Thu Ha in our church is the
same case.
It is surprising to see what roles they are playing in the Vietnamese
church now. If the people who preached the gospel to them had
ignored 'immigrant mission' like me, this result would not have been
achieved. The prejudice I had could be an obstacle to the gospel. We
need to get rid of such wrong beliefs in us. May the Holy Spirit
enlighten us on that.
“Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”