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Introduction:
Imagine we are going on safari. What would we do first? Go to an
outfitter to equip us with all our needs, to equip us with the
knowledge, skills, tools and directions to complete our trip. No
more imagining. We are on a journey to heaven. We need to be
outfitted, fully equipped, but how? II
Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God
and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for
training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent,
equipped for every good work.” According to Rienecker and
Rogers’ Linguistic Key to the Greek New Testament, the term
translated equipped
“was used of documents which were completely outfitted or of a
wagon which was completely outfitted or of a completely outfitted
rescue boat.” The Scriptures provide the knowledge, the skills,
the tools and the directions for accomplishing our journey. Yet,
it is not a manual in the sense of being a list of directives. It
certainly isn’t in the form of a legal code with detailed
references for every legal or illegal activity. So how does it
equip us for every good work? How do we know if what we are doing
is a good work? A great place to see how God wants us to use the
Holy Spirit inspired Scriptures is Acts 15. In that chapter, we see Christians divided. One group said
we are not equipped to baptize Gentiles into Christ unless they
first become Jews through circumcision. The other said we are
equipped to baptize Gentiles. Amazingly, by Acts
15:22, 25, both sides agreed. They had not received any new
revelation, but had examined the revelation already granted. We
need to understand what a big deal this was. Until Acts
10, Christianity was a Jewish religion. This was no small
matter even for the men who claimed there is equipping for
baptizing Gentiles. Consider how much convincing Peter had needed
in Acts 10. Instead of
dividing, these Christians came together, discussed and debated
what was lawful and what the Holy Spirit had equipped them to do.
Examine how these Christians found equipping for the baptism
of Gentiles and learn how we may find equipping for the good
works. Discussion: I.
First, notice what they did not do to establish equipping. A.
They
did not apply Old Testament law:
The Pharisees had said in Acts
15:5, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them
to keep the law of Moses.” As Peter, Paul, Barnabas and James
explained how they were equipped to baptize Gentiles, they did not
examine the statutes, requirements and authorizations of the Old
Law. Yes, James spoke of an Old Testament prophecy of the kingdom
age as authority for kingdom action. However, they knew they were
not under the Old Law (cf. Hebrews
7:12). They saw a distinction. We must as well. B.
They
did not say, “We don’t need authority.”:
Here would have been a great opportunity for the Spirit to reveal
that establishing authority doesn’t matter. But what did the
Spirit demonstrate instead? These men sought for authority and
equipping to act. C.
They
did not say, “We are under a law of liberty.”:
Many turn to James 1:25,
which describes the law of Christ as a law of liberty, and claim
we are free from law and need for authority. Yet, neither Peter,
Paul, Barnabas nor James (the author of James
1:25) said that. They knew Christ’s law liberates us from
sin, not from responsibility to follow His equipping or authority. D.
They
did not say, “All that matters is love.”: The goal of our
instruction is love (I
Timothy 1:5). God is love (I
John 4:8). Jesus died because He loves (I
John 4:9-10). However, none of the men in Acts
15 thought love nullified the need for Holy Spirit equipping.
Here was a perfect opportunity to talk about how Jesus died
because He loved all men and surely love demands letting Gentiles
become Christians without being circumcised. Here was the perfect
opportunity to say, “Come on you Pharisees, it doesn’t matter
whether or not they were circumcises, all that matters is if they
love Jesus.” But no one said that. E.
They
did not say, “Show me where God says we can’t baptize
Gentiles.”: Many believe we are free to act as long as we cannot find a
direct “Thou shalt not” in the New Testament. Peter or Paul or
James could have said, “Look, you Pharisees, who are you to
restrict what God has not specifically condemned? He hasn’t
given us a law on this matter, you shouldn’t make one up.” But
they didn’t. Instead they sought for authorization. F.
Notice how seriously Peter, Paul, Barnabas and James took
the dissent of the Pharisees. They did not blow them off. They
didn’t just run off and start their own churches. They faced the
issues and showed the authority and equipping from the Holy
Spirit. We need to do the same. II.
Second, notice what they did do to establish authority. We
will work backwards through the three approaches the men took in Acts
15. A.
Acts
15:13-19—Direct
Statement 1.
James recounted a prophecy about the kingdom from Amos 9:11-12. In the days of the rebuilt and restored tabernacle of
David, that is, during the kingdom of Christ, which had then been
established, the Gentiles would also be allowed to seek the Lord.
Gentiles were equipped by the Direct
Statement of scripture to be baptized for the remission of
their sins without first becoming Jews. And the congregations were
equipped to baptize them. 2.
We know we are equipped for a good work through the
Scripture if it directly states we must or may do something. B.
Acts
15:12—Approved
Example 1.
Paul and Barnabas demonstrated that Gentiles must be
allowed to be baptized without first becoming Jews because they
had seen it happen. First, remember what the signs and wonders God
had worked through them really meant. According to Hebrews
2:3-4, the signs and wonders were God’s testimony that what
was being taught was in accordance with His will. When Paul and
Barnabas baptized Gentiles without circumcising them and God
performed signs through them, He was testifying that Paul and
Barnabas were right. Paul and Barnabas were saying they had seen Approved Examples of Gentiles baptized for the remission of their
sins. Thus they were equipped to baptize the Gentiles. 2.
We know we are equipped for a good work through the
Scripture if we see approved examples of that work accomplished by
Christians. C.
Acts
15:7-11—Necessary
Inference 1.
Peter reminded everyone of what happened in Acts
10. While he and other Jews were teaching the Gentiles, the
Gentiles were baptized in the Holy Spirit. Notice Peter’s
conclusion in Acts 10:44-48. “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these
people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” Then
when he recounted what happened to the critical Jews in Jerusalem
in Acts 11:15-18, they
quieted their complaints and said God had equipped the Gentiles
for the repentance that leads to life. Do you see what happened
here? Peter had not heard God specifically say the Gentiles could
be baptized in water for the remission of their sins. Neither had
he seen an example of it. Rather, Peter saw something that Necessarily
Inferred the Gentiles could be baptized. No one could draw any
other conclusion, not even those most opposed to Gentile baptism.
If the Gentiles could be baptized in the Holy Spirit without first
being circumcised and obeying the law of Moses, then they could be
baptized in water for the remission of their sins as well. Please,
carefully note this is not just any old inference. We can often
infer a lot of things depending on our own backgrounds and
prejudices. I am not talking about those inferences. I am talking
about inferences that are necessary. I am talking about inferences
that everyone, no matter their background or prejudices, has to
draw because they are necessary. Who could draw any other
conclusion from what happened to the Gentiles in Acts 10? Even those completely opposed to going anywhere near the
Gentiles could not draw different conclusion. 2.
Therefore, we know if the Scripture Necessarily
Infers some action or work through a statement or example, we
are equipped or authorized for the work. Conclusion: What we have studied today is not new to most of us here. However, it seems this very simple approach to finding scriptural authority is coming under increasing attack. I am repeatedly hearing people say this method is man-made and therefore faulty. Yet, here we see exactly how apostles and prophets found equipping for good works. We can find it in the same way. Granted, this is not everything we need to know about scriptural equipping. We will deal with some more issues about being fully equipped in later lessons. But this provides a great foundation and firm foothold as we begin our journey. Let us carry our guide with us, being fully outfitted, furnished and equipped for every good work.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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