good to the apostles and elders and the whole church'.  Secondly, `it seemed

good unto us, being assembled with one accord'.  And thirdly, `it seemed good to

the Holy Spirit, and to us'.  To break this threefold cord, the whole church,

with the apostles and elders, together with Barnabas and Paul, and Silas and

Judas, as well as the Holy Spirit Himself, would have to be regarded as in the

wrong.  Any system of interpretation necessitating such an assumption is self-

If man failed under the law of Sinai, it is not surprising to find that he

fails some times under grace.  The moderate request that the Gentiles should

abstain from the `four necessary things', while the Jewish believers had `Moses

preached in the synagogue every Sabbath day' would lead, in time, wherever the

flesh became prominent, to a line of demarcation between the churches of Judaea

and those of the Gentiles that had not been the intention of those who drew up

these decrees.  This gradually grew to become `a middle wall of partition', a

division that could not be permitted in the Church of the One Body.  The One

Body however was not in view in Acts 15.  Only those things known of the Lord

`since the age', only those things that harmonized with the Old Testament

prophecies, were in operation in Acts 15, and nowhere throughout the Acts is

there a hint that a Jew ceased from being a Jew when he became a Christian.  On

the contrary, he became the better Jew, for he was believing the testimony of

the law and the prophets.  Even justification by faith, as preached by Paul, was

to be found in the law and the prophets and was, therefore, not a part of a

mystery or secret purpose.

We have, therefore, in Acts 15 two vastly different themes.  One is

eternally true, and independent of dispensational changes.  The other is

relatively true, but to be set aside when that which is perfect has come.  The

former is basic truth; the latter the practical manifestation of graciousness

and forbearance.

Returning to Acts 15 we come to the conclusion of the matter.

A

15:30-35.  Antioch

a Apoluo dismissed.

The Answer

b  The epistle delivered.

Paul and Barnabas,

c

Paraklesis consolation.

Judas and Silas.

c

Parakaleo exhorted.

a  Apoluo dismissed.

b  Teaching and preaching.

We learn from these verses that, upon reading the letter from Jerusalem,

the Gentiles `rejoiced for the consolation'.  The word here not only means

`consolation' but also `exhortation', as can be seen in the next verse.  We read

further that Judas and Silas, `being prophets also themselves, exhorted the

brethren ... and confirmed them'.  Verse 34 is probably an interpolation (see

Revised Text), being evidently added by some scribe because of the presence of

Silas at Antioch in verse 40.

Such is the middle wall of partition; such were the `ordinances'; such was

the `enmity' of Ephesians 2:14-19.

We have seen that, during the Acts, this `middle wall' divided the Jewish

believer from the Gentile believer, and while the Jewish believer stood to the