The sermon 'The First GA - Defining the Doctrine' by Peter Allison focuses on the Jerusalem Council recorded in Acts 15 and the doctrinal conclusions that emerged from it. The council addressed the conflict regarding the inclusion of Gentiles in the Church without adhering to Jewish ceremonial laws. Peter, Paul, and Barnabas argued that God sent the Gospel to the Gentiles, and they were brought into the Church by the same means as Jewish believers—through faith and the Holy Spirit. The sermon explains that the ceremonial law, which created a separation between Gentile and Jewish Christians, was never intended to be permanent. This was validated by Old Testament prophets who aligned with the inclusion of Gentiles as part of God's plan. The speaker emphasizes that the council did not create a new doctrine but declared what the Scriptures already taught, supported by miracles and signs among the Gentiles. The sermon concludes with reflections on God's ability to restore nations and families and the ongoing relevance of abstaining from idolatry, sexual immorality, and consuming blood or strangled animals as applications of the moral law.

Our scripture reading is Acts 15. And we'll read Luke's account of the Jerusalem Council. Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them, Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. So God who knows the heart acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Now therefore, why do you test God by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be saved in the same manner as they.' Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles. And after they had become silent, James answered, saying, ''Men and brethren, listen to me!'' Simon has declared how God at first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name. And with this the words of the prophets agree just as it is written, after this I will return and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David which has fallen down. I will rebuild its ruins.

And I will set it up so that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord. Even all the Gentiles who are called by my name says the Lord who does all these things. Known to God from eternity are all His works. Therefore, I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath.

Then it pleased the apostles and elders with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely Judas, who was also named Bar-sabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren. They wrote this letter by them, the Apostles, the elders, and the brethren, to the brethren who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. Greetings, since we have heard that some of you who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, saying you must be circumcised and keep the law, to whom we gave no such commandment. It seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have therefore sent Judas and Silas who will also report the same things by the word of mouth, for it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us.

To lay upon you no greater burden than those necessary things, that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourself from these, you will do well, Farewell." So when they were sent off, they came to Antioch. And when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the letter. And when they read it, they rejoiced over its encouragement. Now Judas and Silas themselves being prophets also exhorted and strengthened the brethren with many words.

And after they had stayed there for some time, they were sent back with greetings from the brethren to the apostles. However, it seemed good to Silas to remain there. Paul and Barnabas also remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the Word of the Lord with many others also. May the Lord uphold us according to His Word that we may live and not be ashamed of our hope. Heavenly Father, please grant faith that as we hear Your Word, we might be transformed, our minds might be renewed, and we might be equipped, thoroughly equipped, for every good work.

And please sanctify My sinful lips that they may proclaim the Gospel of Your grace through Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, the last few weeks we have been looking at this first general assembly of the New Testament church that was held in Jerusalem and recorded in Acts 15 by Luke. And we first examined what this issue was and why this was such a big issue for the church at that time. Then we looked at how the church addressed this conflict.

We saw how they came together. They didn't separate from each other, which is what so often happens when there's conflict and disagreement. Then we saw how they considered the matter. And in considering the matter, they showed respect to those on the other side. And we saw also that in considering the matter, this matter, they grounded their discussion in the Scriptures.

And finally, last week we saw how in considering this matter, they found common ground. They looked for common ground and they made a pronouncement that was acceptable to both sides without compromising any element, any doctrine of Scripture. And so this week now we want to look at the doctrine itself. What did they conclude that the Scriptures taught on this matter? And how did they formulate or declare that doctrine?

They didn't create this doctrine, but they came together to declare what the Scriptures already were teaching. And so We begin in verse 7, where there has been a lot of debate. Luke jumps over that, but let's not forget that the bulk of this meeting is in those few words, when there had been much debate. So, who knows? We don't know how long this went on, whether it was one day or more than one day.

But there was a lot of debate. And after everybody had had a chance to speak, and there has been much discussion, much dispute, much back and forth. Then Peter rises up, and Peter and James, supported by Paul and Barnabas, summarize the doctrine, and then James formulates a resolution taking into account everything that has happened. So Peter and James summarize the issue. And I've summarized their arguments into four main headings.

First, their argument is that God sent His Gospel to the Gentiles. Second, God brought the Gentiles into the church in the same way that He brought them as Jews into the church. Third, their argument is that that which separated the Gentile Christians from the Jewish Christians was never intended to be permanent. That which separated The Gentile Christians from the Jewish Christians was never intended to be permanent. The ceremonial law was never intended to be permanent.

And fourthly, the final point is that with this doctrine, the Old Testament prophets agree. In other words, they go back to the Scriptures and say we're not teaching something that's not consistent with the Scriptures. There was new revelation, but it was consistent with what the prophets of the Old Testament said. The apostles, this council, did not invent or create a new doctrine. Rather, we need to be clear that they defined and declared what the Scriptures taught, which God was teaching.

So the first point of their argument then is that God sent His Gospel to the Gentiles in verses 7 and 12. The idea to go to the Gentiles and preach the Gospel to them did not originate with people. It was not some marketing scheme of some first century church growth consultant. It was not somebody's idea of how to expand their ministry and increase their domain, their sphere of influence. No.

This whole idea was not of human origin. Peter says God chose Peter and sent him to preach to the Gentiles. God called Paul and commissioned him to go to the Gentiles throughout the Roman Empire and preach the Gospel. And remember, in fact, Peter initially was reluctant. God said, rise, kill, and eat.

And Peter said, no, Lord, not so. And he did it three times. So This was not a human origin. This was something they had to be shown and persuaded to do. It was something that was contrary to the way they had lived and to their very way of thinking, that they were unique and that The Gospel was for them.

And the Messiah was their Messiah. And it was God who said, no, this Gospel is to go to all the world, to all the Gentiles. After Peter was sent to Cornelius, then God sent Paul and Barnabas to the Gentiles. And to confirm this point that Peter had made, that it was God who was doing this. It was This plan to bring the Gentiles into the church was God's plan.

To confirm that, in verse 12, Barnabas and Paul stand up. And they briefly recount all the miracles and the signs and the words and wonders that the Lord did through them among the Gentiles. The thrust of their argument is that the signs and wonders God did through them are the obvious blessing of God, confirming that the Gospel was going to the Gentiles. And that it was according to His plan and consistent with His purposes. Remember, miracles were given to authenticate the message and the messenger.

So Paul and Barnabas here recount all the miracles and the wonders that God is doing to support this idea that yes, this is of God. God ordained it. God has called them. And He is working through these miracles and wonders to confirm this message to the Gentiles. So the first point of their argument is God sent His Gospel to the Gentiles.

The second point of their argument is that God brought the Gentiles into the church in the same way that He brings Jews into the church. Verses 8 and 9 and 11. The same manner that God had been bringing Jewish believers into the church, which was baptizing them with the Holy Spirit and imputing Christ's righteousness to their account by faith. The same way that the Jews were saved, that was the way God was saving the Gentiles. Remember in Genesis 15, 6, Abraham believed Jehovah, and Jehovah accounted to him for righteousness.

That word account is to impute. It's translated impute in other places. Jehovah imputed to him the righteousness of Christ by faith. This was the Gospel. Nobody had ever been saved in any other way.

That was the point of the New Covenant. God's saying, I am going to put My Spirit in them. I'm going to give to them saving faith. Because nobody has ever been saved in any other way. This is the Gospel.

And so Peter's point is, God is saving the Gentiles in the exact same way. When Peter was preaching to Cornelius, as he was preaching, remember, the Holy Spirit fell upon them. They were baptized with the Holy Spirit. Because that's what regeneration is, is to be for the Holy Spirit to fall on us and to make us new creatures in Christ. The third point of their argument is that That which separated the Jewish Christians from the Gentile Christians is never intended to be permanent.

The ceremonial law pointed forward to some things, but it wasn't intended to be permanent. Peter notes that saying, why do we test God by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? It was impossible to keep. It was a yoke that they were not able to bear. Now, you might think, well, isn't that true of the moral law as well, that it's a yoke, It's something we're not able to bear.

Well, yes, in one sense we can say we do not have the ability to keep the moral law. But there's a big difference between the moral law and the ceremonial law in this regard. Well, First of all, the moral law is never described as a yoke that we cannot bear. It's described as His burden is easy and His yoke is light. His yoke is light and His burden is easy.

And so there is a difference. See, by the grace of God, we are enabled to obey the moral law. John could say that this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments and they're not burdensome. Peter is saying of the ceremonial law, this is a burden that nobody can bear. The moral law is never described that way.

By the grace of God, we are able to do it. As we are progressively sanctified, we die more and more to sin, and live more and more to righteousness. You see, those who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit are enabled. By the resurrection power and ascension power of Jesus Christ, we are enabled to obey and keep the moral law. But the ceremonial law on the other hand could never be kept.

People were made unclean by a number of things that are common to normal life. Marital relations between a husband and a wife made them unclean. Leviticus 15, 18, When a woman lies with a man and there is an emission of semen, they shall bathe in water and be unclean until evening. A woman's monthly cycle made her unclean. Burying your dead family members made one unclean.

See, these are unavoidable things. They're a part of our normal life, normal fallen life. We have to bury people. We have to touch dead bodies. We're even commanded.

Husbands and wives are commanded not to depart the marriage bed. And yet that very thing that they're commanded to do made them unclean. This is why Peter describes it as a yoke that was impossible for them to bear. It was impossible for people to avoid being made unclean. Even those who were regenerate.

Even those who were sanctified. The point of the ceremonial law was to teach us that we are unable to keep the law. We are spiritually polluted by our sin. But The point of the ceremonial law was to teach us that we are unable to keep the law. We are spiritually polluted by our sin.

But the point of the ceremonial law was to point forward to what Christ would do. The point of all the temple sacrifices was to point to Christ who would come and be the atonement for our sins. The ceremonial law was also to teach the Israelites that they were to be separate from the other peoples of the world. That they were a holy people. And they were separate.

Leviticus 20, 24 says, I am the Lord your God who has separated you from the peoples. You shall therefore distinguish between clean animals and unclean. What's the point of them not eating unclean animals? It's because God had separated them from the other nations of the world. And to point to that and to remind them of that, God is giving them these laws that they are distinguished between clean and unclean foods.

Between unclean birds and clean. And you shall not make yourself abominable by beast or by bird or by any kind of living thing that creeps in the ground which I have separated from you as unclean. And you shall be holy to me, for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, the other people of the world, the Gentiles, that you should be mine." So the purpose of the ceremonial law was to show that God's people were to be separate from the world, from the Gentiles. So two purposes then, Paul talks about ceremonial law being a tutor that points us to Christ, but Two key purposes for this passage are one, that the Old Testament ceremonial sacrifices pointed to Christ. Christ is the Lamb of God who offered of Himself a sacrifice to make atonement for our sin.

And secondly, they pointed to the distinction between the Gentiles and the Jews. The Jews were to be a holy people separated from the rest of the nations to serve the Lord. They belonged to the Lord. And so once Christ came, all these sacrifices are obsolete. They pass away.

In fact, to continue to repeat them would be to deny Christ's sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice. And as well as with the removal of the wall of separation between Jew and Gentiles, the ceremonial laws that pertained to that separation, then they also pass away. Because remember Paul told the Ephesians in Ephesians 2, remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh, who were called uncircumcision by those of the circumcision..." And he clarifies it's the circumcision made by hands, not the circumcision without hands, which is regeneration, which is what baptism also signified. But they were called uncircumcision by those Jews who were Jews outwardly. And at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenant of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once afar off, you have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one and broken down the middle wall of separation." God has broken down that wall of separation between the Jew and the Gentile, between peoples in the flesh. And so all the ceremonial laws that pointed to that separation, the clean and the unclean, you can't wear mixed garments and so on, All those ceremonial laws pass away because the point has been fulfilled. So the ceremonial law is now Optional. It's optional.

Even for Jews. Remember Peter ate like a Gentile in Antioch. Now Paul didn't condemn him for that. What he condemned them for is them being too faced about it, and when the people from James came, then he said, no, I can't do that. He separated from the Gentiles and ate like a Jew in order to save face with those people.

That's what Paul was critical of. Not of the fact that he ate with the Gentiles and didn't keep the Jewish ceremonial laws. They were optional. They could be kept. In fact, in Acts 21, we have an account of Paul keeping the ceremonial law.

He was going through the purification process after which it says an offering would have been made, a sacrifice would have been made. Here's Paul offering a sacrifice in order to be reconciled to people that had a wrong view of him. Now, it didn't happen because he got arrested before then but the point is The ceremonial law was optional, but it still could be kept and that's I think the significance in verse 21 Where it says for Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city being read in the synagogues every Sabbath. Now, we could have a whole message on the synagogue system here and what's going on, but James's point in mentioning this is there is a cessation of the ceremonial law in all its respects was a gradual thing. In this period of transition between Christ's ascension and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, There were temple sacrifices.

And for the Jews, it was acceptable to participate in some of those ceremonial laws. Because this is what they had been taught. Moses had been preached. The ceremonial laws, as well as all the rest of Moses, had been preached throughout many generations. We can go all the way back to Elisha and the woman there who wanted to go see him.

And her husband said, well, why do you want to go? It's not Sunday. Implication meaning that every Sunday she was used to going to hear Elijah preach. Or Elisha preach. Or in Psalm 74, where Asaph wrote the psalm, says all the meeting places in Israel had been burned down.

So this synagogue worship has been happening for centuries. And so it's not James is recognizing that there needs to be an honorable burial of the ceremonial law and a gradual transition. And so that period between Christ's ascension and His coming in judgment in 70 AD is that transition period. But once the temple is destroyed, then there are no more sacrifices. There are no more blood sacrifices.

There's no more temple. And it will never be rebuilt on this earth. It's done. And the ceremonial law that pointed to Christ goes away with it. So, the last point of their argument is that the Old Testament prophets agree with this doctrine.

James begins his address by going back to Peter's point that it was God's plan that the Gentiles should hear the Gospel and be brought near. And he adds this important point. That this is an agreement, it's consistent with the Old Testament prophets. And then he quotes from some Old Testament prophets. Mostly from Amos in verse 16.

After this, James says, and with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, after this I will return, and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David which has fallen down. I will rebuild its ruins. I will set it up so the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, even the Gentiles who are called by My name, says the Lord who does all these things." So We'll look at this scripture that he quotes because he puts a couple different elements together from some other places, and he summarizes what Amos says in this passage, Amos 9, 11-15. So the first point in this is that there's a return. After this, I will return.

The call for God's backslidden people to return to the Lord runs throughout the prophets. It's extensive. Many, many times they're called to return to the Lord. It's a reference to repentance. Repentance is a turning around and a going the other direction.

The Lord also promises to return to Israel if Israel returns to Him. Zechariah 1.3, Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord of hosts, Return to Me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. Or Malachi 3.7, Yet from the days of your fathers you have gone away from My ordinances and have not kept them. Return to Me and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you have said, in what way shall we return?" But more than that, the Lord has graciously promised to return Himself.

Zechariah 8.3, Thus says the Lord, I will return to Zion and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And Jerusalem shall be called the city of truth, the mountain of the Lord of Hosts, the Holy Mountain. And other places in Jeremiah 12, where God says in verse 7, I have forsaken My house. I have left My heritage. I have given the dearly beloved of My soul into the hand of her enemies.

That's God's judgment. He describes it as leaving them. Turning them over to their enemies. But in verse 12, He promises to return. Then it shall be after I have plucked them out, that I will return and have compassion on them and bring them back, everyone to his heritage and everyone to his land." And so this isn't spoken in Amos directly, but remember he's saying the prophets agree, and so he took this theme of returning, the Lord's promise to return to His people.

He says after this, I will return and will rebuild the tabernacle of David. Now that's where Amos picks up. Amos 9. Here James summarizes Amos 9, verses 11-15. The context of Amos 9 is that God would judge apostate Israel.

That's the final chapter in that message, and It's a message of judgment. God will judge you. But the ending of the book and the ending of that chapter contains this wonderful promise. On that day, I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, and repair its damages. I will raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old, that they may possess the remnant of Eden and All the Gentiles who are called by My name says the Lord who does this thing." And then Amos goes on to describe the blessings of this return.

And it's described in terms of the covenant blessings of Deuteronomy 27 and 28. Remember the plowmen will overtake the reaper. The mountains will drip with sweet wine. The hills will flow. I'll bring back the captives of my people Israel.

They will build the waste cities and inhabit them. They shall plant vineyards and drink wine. They shall make gardens and eat the fruit from them." Remember, the judgment of the covenant was that they would plant vineyards and not eat the fruit. That they would be carted off to other lands. That they would be overrun by people that speak another tongue.

And so Amos is saying when God returns, He will rebuild the tabernacle of David and do all these things again. Now, James doesn't explicitly mention everything that Amos talks about. He just focuses on the point, his point, which is that God would gather the Gentiles in. The rest God would gather them, even the Gentiles who are called by My name. They would be a part of this rebuilding of the tabernacle of David.

But he includes all this because then he says, says the Lord who does all these things.'" And that's how Amos ends. "'Says the Lord, I will give them their land, and they shall no longer be pulled up from the land. I have given them, ' says the Lord, your God." So I believe he has in view that whole passage, but he's only quoting the part that is relevant to this discussion, which is that God is going to gather the Gentiles. But some of the other blessings of rebuilding the tabernacle of David is that Amos lists that James omits in his summary is that they would possess the remnant of Edom. This is us referring to God creating supernatural peace between two nations, two brothers, that are called brothers, because Edom is the descendant of Esau, and Israel is through Jacob, and they were mortal enemies of each other.

The Edomites had cheered on the Babylonians when the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem. And so, Amos is promising here to make supernatural peace between two families that have been at war for generations. It's of course the conversion of the Gentiles. It's the removal of the curse and the outpouring of temporal blessings. They're going to rebuild the ruined cities.

They'll eat the fruit of the land. They'll plant vineyards and so on. And this would be a permanent blessing. They would never be pulled up from the land. Now we know that God's promise to Abraham to give him the land of Canaan in the New Testament is expanded to include all the earth.

And even in the fifth commandment, where as it was given in the Pentateuch, it was the land of Canaan I'm giving you. But when Paul re-quotes that commandment in the New Testament, it's not the land of Canaan, but it's all the earth. They would live long in the earth, those who obey their parents. And This is a gracious promise because it's what God will do. No human people, no group of people are able to bring this about.

God says, I will raise up the starmonocle. I will raise the ruins. I will bring back the captives. I will plant them in the land." God does this. That's James' point.

Says the Lord who does all these things. Now this is typical of Christ. This rebuilding of the tabernacle of David. Remember, David was promised that he would never cease to have a son sit upon his throne. But what happened, there was hundreds of years where there was no son of David reigning on any throne over Israel.

In fact, his sons became so wicked that God said, never again. That line was cut off and never again would anyone rule from that line that came through Solomon. David's family, remember, was in shambles. He had one brother killing another brother. It's bad enough if somebody is a murderer in your own son.

But to have one son kill another son is a horrific tragedy. David's family was marred by all kinds of fighting. He had sons that were trying to overthrow him. Two sons that tried to usurp His throne. And because of His sin, God had said that the sword would never depart from His family.

David's family was in ruins. But God's promise was, I will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down. I will rebuild the house of David. And John 1 says, and this is what Christ did, John 1, 14, The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, tabernacled among us, and we beheld His glory. In John 2, Jesus said, destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

And the Jews said, wait, it's taken 46 years to build this temple here, and how are you going to build it in three days? But then John says, but He was speaking of the temple of His body. Now who are the temple of His body? Well, it is His people. We are the body of Christ.

We are His temple. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit. And Christ is the Son of David who is sitting on the throne of David. Reigning. And there will be no end to His reign.

And of the increase, not just no end to it, but of the increase of His government, there will be no end. And that's where we are today. The Lord is doing this. He's rebuilding it. And He's brought the Gentiles in.

He's broken down the middle wall of separation. And so all those ceremonial laws are gone. Now, they said, but. But we should write to them to do four things. Therefore, I judge that we should not trouble those among the Gentiles who are turning to God with this ceremonial law that's been done away with.

The purpose for it's passed away. But, but, we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. Now, for Moses has had through many generations those who preach Him in every city. Where did these come from? Why did they alight upon these four things that the Gentiles were to keep.

The Gentiles that were coming to Christ were required to keep these. Well, I think these are four applications of the moral law that were relevant to the Gentiles coming out of the Roman culture. What these things are has been troublesome to many. But I don't think that we can call it... Some have said these are ceremonial laws.

But I don't think that they are ceremonial laws because every single one of them is binding today and deals with... It doesn't deal with things that were fulfilled by Christ and His sacrifice or pointed to the separation of Jew and Gentile. You know, to abstain from blood, That's a prohibition that was given to Noah. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as green herbs, but you shall not eat the flesh with its life, that is, its blood.

Surely, for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning from the hand of every beast. I will require it. Leviticus 3, this is a perpetual statute throughout your generations. In all your dwellings you shall eat neither fat nor blood. Moreover, you shall not eat any blood in any of your dwellings, whether of bird or beast.

Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people." In Leviticus 17-12, "'No one among you shall eat blood, nor shall any stranger who dwells among you eat blood." He goes on to describe in Leviticus that if you caught something, an animal, before you ate it, the blood had to be drained from it. Because the life is in the blood. And out of respect for life, we are not to eat the blood. And that's a perpetual statute. It's a part of the Sixth Commandment, respect for life.

Remember originally when God created Adam and Eve, He did not give them animals to eat. They could only eat green herbs. It was a vegetarian diet. But after the flood, God gave animals to us to eat, but there was the prohibition that we could not eat the blood. And so that's today.

I remember once I was in France and my host took me out to dinner and he was going to offer something, a specialty, and I was afraid it was going to be blood sausage, which it was. And so I was in a difficult situation. Do I offend this host or do I eat blood? Well, this is what God requires out of respect for life. We're not to eat blood.

Or stuff made from blood. That's the point about things strangled. Things that are strangled would not have had the blood drained from them. Deuteronomy 12, the people are reminded, only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life. You may not eat the life with the meat.

You may not eat the life with the meat. You may not eat the life with the meat, the blood with the meat. And that's why they are to abstain from things strangled. The other thing that they are to refrain from is idolatry. Why?

Why are they to abstain from things polluted by idols? Well, this is a part of the First Commandment. Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 10 verse 18, Observe Israel after the flesh. Are not those who eat of the sacrifices, partakers of the altar." By eating of the sacrifice, you are participating in that offering. When we eat the body and blood of Christ, when we eat this bread and this cup, we are participating in that sacrifice as beneficiaries of that sacrifice.

So Paul says, what am I saying then? That an idol is anything? Or what is offered to idols is anything? Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God, And I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons.

You cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons." So to eat meat that had been offered to idols was to participate in that idolatrous worship. And those things, those were sacrificed to demons. Molech and Baal, these are demons. And the people, in sacrificing to them, they're sacrificing to demons. And in eating of meat sacrificed to idols, you are participating in that.

And God said, I don't want you to participate in that. Now that's the moral law. That's a requirement. It's part of the first commandment. And then the other thing was sexual immorality.

They were to refrain from sexual immorality. Now, Phil Kaiser has pointed out that James gives this list, it's exactly the list that's given in Leviticus 17 and 18. And when he gives it verbally here, it's not in the order it's given in Leviticus, but when he gives it later in the writing, after they've had time to put this to writing, then the order is the exact order that these things are given in Leviticus. Now why these four things? What about the rest of the moral law?

Well, I believe that this one, this application of the moral law are things that are spelled out in the Pentateuch that the Gentiles have always been required to keep. Even in the Pentateuch, it was very clear that the Gentiles were to obey these things in their midst. And secondly, these applications would have represented a significant change from their former way of life, from the former Gentile way of life. And so they are applications of the moral law that the Gentile, typical Gentile, would need to be taught. If you think about these things, these would be considered today victimless crimes or victimless actions, and would be perfectly acceptable to most people in America today.

Sexual immorality, if it's between two consenting adults, people say it's our business. As the psalmist says, our lips are our own. Who's Lord over us? Our bodies are our own. Who's Lord over us?

So what we do as consenting adults, wherever we want to do it, that's fine. And most people today think that way. The blood. Eating blood. What's wrong with eating blood?

Countries do it. It's considered delicacies in many places. And yet, it's very significant disrespect toward God and toward life that He has created. Eating things strangled, or sacrifice to idols. People today would have thought, what's wrong if somebody wants to go worship a false god?

Why does that bother anybody? They can do that. To each his own. This would have been the way of thinking. It's the way of thinking in our day.

It's the way the Romans would have thought. And so these are areas that Gentiles would need to be instructed on because it represents a significant departure from their former way of life and the former things that they would have considered acceptable. I just read a study that something like the median age where people begin fornicating in America is 18. That means half of people, half of the population were fornicating before that. Now, in most cases it is.

It might be a few weddings going on in age 17 and 18. But for the most part, we're saying half of the country is engaging in fornication before they're 18. So that's why they need to be taught you need to abstain from sexual immorality, from pornea. These are not ceremonial laws that are passing away. These are perpetual laws that are binding on all people.

Now what do we learn in all this? I think one, if God can restore apostate Israel, He can restore our nation as well. This is not hopeless. It's not forever lost. God is the mighty God.

As He poured out His Spirit at times, He can do that again. And all of these Gentiles, many of these Gentiles that are coming to Christ are coming out of these very pagan ways. That's why Paul has to say you have to be a husband of one wife to be an elder. Because polygamy was common. It's not common in our country.

It hasn't been. It is becoming more so because we have been by and large a nation where the Gospel has been accepted, received, and the church has been strong. And That's changing. But if God can rebuild this apostate Israel, He can restore our nation as well. We should be praying for that.

We should be believing that God will rebuild the ruined tabernacle of David. That He will call the Gentiles into the church. And we shouldn't have the idea that this church we're hunkered down and we're weak and we're just hanging on for dear life. No, it's the opposite. God is the King.

He's reigning. And His purpose is to bring the Gentiles into His Kingdom. And I think, I look at the mass immigration that we have. We are being overrun by an army, a foreign army. And now even armed people.

But here's what I notice. We haven't been faithful as a church to go out and evangelize, so God is bringing them to us. All we have to do is learn their language. And They're coming to us. God is sending them to us to teach His ways.

Secondly, God can rebuild broken families. And He uses broken families. We saw the line of David, how the line of David was destroyed. How it had fallen apart. How the sins of his own sins and the sins of his descendants eventually resulted in God declaring that his sons would no longer reign on the throne.

And yet, God is rebuilding the tabernacle of David, David's house. And God is using broken people and sinners. He took Paul, Saul, a murderer of Christians, a persecutor of the faith, and turned him around and made him his apostle to the Gentiles. God uses broken and sinful people for His purposes. And God restores the years the locusts have consumed.

And when we turn to Him and repent of our ways, of our sins, And the third thing we see is that God does for us what we can't do for ourselves. James said, it is the Lord who does all these things. We might think it's hopeless to have any impact on our nation. We might think our family is hopeless. Maybe there are things that have happened that can't be reversed, but the Lord is able to do for us what we can't do for ourselves.

We can't save ourselves. We can't keep His law. But He is able to draw us to Himself. He's able to convert the nations. He's able to make us willing and able to follow Him and to delight in His ways.

May it be so. Heavenly Father, we thank You for the power of Your Word And for the power of your Holy Spirit that goes forth as a fire, a purifying fire. For your sword that pierces the hearts of your enemies and makes them willing in that day, even as you've made us willing, even as you've changed our hearts from those who were at enmity against you to those who loved you. Father, may you revive our hearts according to Your Word. May You cause us to abound in hope by the power of Your Holy Spirit that we might be filled with joy and peace in believing.

And Lord, grant us the faith to believe that all of your promises and all of your word is true, and that you are faithful to all that you have said. Lord, help our unbelief. Through Jesus Christ, we ask, Amen.