Lesson Date: September 4, 2011

Focal Scripture Passage: Acts 15:1-35

AIM: To lead adults to determine whether works are necessary for salvation, and to evaluate their lifestyle to see if their behavior gives evidence of their salvation.

 

INTRODUCTION (Create Learning Readiness): Before class: Enlist a class member who is comfortable reading aloud to be prepared to read Matthew 19:16 to the class.  An alternate method would be to write that verse on the marker board or chalkboard so it will be before them throughout the lesson.

When class begins: Ask the previously enlisted volunteer to read Matthew 19:16 aloud.  Tell the class that the question this religious man asked Jesus Christ is one that has been asked many thousands of times down through the years.  It is man’s nature to want to be in control of his destiny, so people want to know what they can do to be saved.

Tell the class that it seems everyone has an opinion about what a person must do to go to heaven.  Ask the class what opinions they have heard people give about that issue.  Some things people think are necessary for salvation are the following:

·       Do more good works than bad works.

·       Be a faithful follower of some religious group.

·       Avoid hurting other people.

·       Pay your bills and properly care for your family.

·       Pray and read the Bible.

·       Believe in Jesus and be baptized.

·       Knock on a specified number of doors.

·       Be sincere in your beliefs.

·       Some think there is no way to know for certain whether you will go to heaven when you die.

Tell the class that the early church faced this important question.  In today’s lesson they will learn the real, biblical answer.

 

HEART OF THE LESSON (Bible Study):

1.     Review.

a.     Be sure everyone has a copy of the Sunday School Member Quarterly for the Fall quarter.

b.     Briefly review the events the class has studied from Acts 1 – 14.

c.     Remind them of Jesus’ instructions in Acts 1:8 and of the gospel’s progress throughout Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.

d.     Remind them of Paul and Barnabas’ missionary journey through Cyprus and central Turkey described in Acts 13 and 14.

2.     The Problem.

a.     Ask a volunteer to read Acts 15:1.

b.     Remind the class that the church at Antioch (locate on the map) was growing, proclaiming the Word of God, and sending out missionaries.  In fact, they were the first to be known as “Christians” (Acts11:26).

c.     Tell the class that certain men from Judea went to the Antioch church with a message.

d.     Ask: “What was that message?” (“You cannot be saved unless you are circumcised according to the Law of Moses”).

e.     Tell the class that the intent of these men from Judea was that a person could not be saved, without first becoming a Jew.  They said Jesus’ blood and God’s grace were not sufficient to save: man’s works had to be added.

f.      Unfortunately, many people today believe this same thing.

3.     The Antioch Church Sent Men to Jerusalem for Clarification.

a.     Read Acts 15:2-5.

b.     Paul and Barnabas disputed with the men from Judea.

c.     The church at Antioch decided to send Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem (locate on the map).

d.     Ask: “Why did they do this?” (to get a definitive answer from the apostles and elders in the Jerusalem church).

e.     Explain that Paul and Barnabas traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria (locate on the map), telling the people that salvation had come to the Gentiles.

f.      Upon arriving in Jerusalem they reported to the church.

g.     Ask: “What did some of the believers in Jerusalem who were former Pharisees say?” (that a person must be circumcised and keep the Jewish Law in order to be saved).

4.     The Jerusalem Council Meeting.

a.     Tell the class that the apostles and elders met privately to consider the matter.  The Apostle Peter was the first to speak.

b.     Ask a volunteer to read Acts 15:6-12.

c.     Ask: “According to verse 9, what difference is there between Jews and Gentiles in respect to salvation?” (none).

d.     Ask: “According to verse 10, who could fully keep the Jewish Law?” (no one: neither those men nor their ancestors).

e.     Ask: “According to verse 11, how are Jews and Gentiles saved?” (“through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ”).

f.      Explain that there are not two different ways of salvation – one for Jews and another for Gentiles.  The only way anyone can ever be saved is by the grace of the Lord Jesus.

g.     Peter’s statement in verse 11 was very important – it meant that Jews who trusted Jesus Christ were free from the Law, just like the Gentile Christians.

h.     Paul and Barnabas then told the apostles and elders all the amazing things God was doing among the Gentiles.

5.     James’ Answer to the Question.

a.     Tell the class that James then addressed the group.

b.     Explain that this James was the half brother of Jesus and writer of the New Testament book of James.

c.     Read Acts 15:13-21.

d.     James quoted from the Old Testament book of Amos to explain that God had always intended to include Gentiles as well as Jews in His plan for redeeming sinners.

e.     Tell the class that in verse 19 James said they should not trouble the Gentiles by requiring them to be circumcised in order to be saved.

f.      Because there were Jews in virtually every city of the world (verse 21), James proposed a code of moral behavior for Gentiles to follow after they were saved so they would not offend the Jews.

g.     Ask the class to name those four things (found in verse 20), and explain each one of them to the class.

h.     Stress again the fact that this describes moral behavior after salvation, not “prerequisites” that must be met before salvation.

6.     The Letter to the Church at Antioch.

a.     Read Acts 15:22.

b.     Tell the class that the apostles and elders (as well as the whole Jerusalem church) were pleased with this decision, so they decided to write a letter to the church at Antioch explaining their answer.

c.     The text of that letter is contained in verses 23-29.

d.     Ask a volunteer to read Acts 15:23-29.

e.     Ask: “According to verse 24, what did they say about the men who came from Judea (mentioned in verse 1)?” (the Jerusalem elders and apostles did not send them – they had no authority to teach as they did).

f.      They stated in verse 29 the same moral code that James suggested in verse 20.

7.     The Letter was Taken Back to Antioch.

a.     Tell the class that Paul, Barnabas, Judas, and Silas (see verse 22) took the letter to the church in Antioch.

b.     Ask them to listen for the response to that letter, as you read Acts 15:30-35 (the church at Antioch rejoiced).

c.     The church now had a firm answer to the question: “Are works necessary for salvation?”  That answer is “No.”

d.     Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.

e.     This is still true today.

 

PERSONAL APPLICATION: Explain to the class that the passage they have studied today makes it clear that works are not necessary for salvation.  The actions named in the introductory step will not save anyone.  Read Ephesians 2:8-10.  Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  Good works come after salvation.  Ask: “Does a person have to clean up his life before he can come to Jesus for salvation?  Do we need to be sinless before we can be saved?” (no to both questions).

Ask: “Once a person is saved, does it matter how he or she lives?” (yes).  The early church set down guidelines for proper behavior for believers, and the New Testament contain more.  There are some things a Christian simply must not participate in, because involvement in those things will ruin his or her testimony (for example, see Rom. 12:2; 1 Thess. 4:3; 1 Pet. 2:15).

Tell the class that there are thousands of religions in the world.  The difference between all of them and Christianity is that they emphasize human effort, while the Bible makes it clear that we can only be saved by God’s activity on our behalf.  Ask: “Are you trusting good works to get you to heaven?”  Good works will never get anyone to heaven.  Anyone who is trying to be good enough to go to heaven needs to abandon their self-sufficiency and place their trust for eternity entirely upon Jesus Christ.  Urge any who are not saved to turn to Christ today.

Ask: “If you are a Christian, does your lifestyle give evidence that you belong to Jesus Christ?”  The ancient Gentiles who accepted Christ had to live by a certain moral code to avoid offending the Jews.  Ask: “Is your behavior an offense to others?”  Lead a closing prayer of commitment to live in such a way that we won’t ruin our testimonies.

 

CONCLUSION: Ask everyone to read Acts 15:36 – 16:40 this week and to answer the questions in their Sunday School Member Quarterly.  Encourage everyone to live as though someone were watching their every action this week, because God is (and so are other people).  Urge them to ask people they encounter this week what a person must do to go to heaven.