Guidelines for the born-again non-Jewish Gentiles

Acts 15:19-21

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“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.” Acts 15:19-21

James, the Apostle and brother of Jesus Christ, and the writer of the book of James is the one speaking the words of those verses [through the Holy Spirit].

The Jewish culture believed that the only way to turn to God was by following the law of Moses [laws of Judaism]. For James to say, “I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God” spoke volumes against the Jewish heritage and customs. The Gentiles were turning to God by faith in Jesus Christ, not through the long list of the written laws of Judaism. As followers of Jesus Christ, we serve God in Spirit and truth, as Jesus says, “...true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:23-24

James gave four guidelines for the non-Jewish Gentiles to follow in their walk with Jesus Christ. These guidelines were made to guide the new converts away from practices that were common among Gentiles. The guidelines would conform the born-again Gentiles to the body of Christ and away from the values of the unbelieving culture around them. These guidelines were found in the Jewish laws, but most importantly, the guidelines enabled the Gentiles to continue to walk by faith in Jesus Christ. There was no need for the born-again Gentiles to be circumcised and no need to be burdened by submitting to the laws of Judaism.

The four guidelines apply to us today as far as coming apart from today’s atheistic culture and to be sanctified while living in this world. The Holy Spirit says, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven…” Revelations 13:4-5 Our Lord Jesus prayed, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” John 17:15-17

The four guidelines are listed below;

• Abstain from things polluted by idols. The worship of idols was a regular, routine, and common practice within the Roman Empire. In Acts 14:8-20, the Gentiles saw Paul and Barnabas as being the gods of Zeus and Hermes. This type of reverence for false gods is a distraction from reverence for the Living God. Today, we are not to serve the false god of the beast that gives people what to think, feel, say, and do. This atheistic entity distracts from God by oppressing the presence of the Holy Spirit and the Gospel of Jesus Christ is being exterminated by this idol worship.
• Abstain from sexual immorality. Sexual immorality was rampant within the Roman Empire and among the Gentiles. Much of this came from serving false gods that required sexual intercourse as part of worship ceremonies. The focus on the pleasures of the flesh was a distraction from the Living God, Jesus Christ, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. Today, the false god with power over physiology; feelings and thoughts, uses physical sexuality and sensuality to enliven the passions of the flesh. By focusing thoughts and feelings on carnal pursuits people are distracted from living in the presence of the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ. By focusing on the flesh, people become willing to live by the atheistic entity that gives them what to speak, feel, think, and do. This entity gives life to the image of the beast to speak and live through people as they are groomed to the mark of the beast by what they are given to say and do.
• Abstain from things strangled. A law and custom of the Jewish people was to bleed an animal completely before eating or sacrificing it. An artery would be sliced and the blood allowed to flow out of the animal. By strangling an animal, the blood would not drain properly. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are not to strangle belief in the Living God, not to strangle forgiveness through Jesus Christ, and not to strangle the presence of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus gave His life on the Cross, His blood was poured out as His heart was pierced from the side. The flow of His blood is applied to our heart to atone for sin, reconcile to God, and live in the presence of the Holy Spirit. We are not to strangle the message of the Cross.
• Abstain from blood. The Gentiles had a practice, as common within the Roman Empire, to use blood mixed with flour and vegetables, etc. in their food preparation. This is like the “black puddings” of more modern times. As followers of Jesus Christ, mixing blood with food is like mixing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the teachings of today’s atheistic culture. This amounts to practicing humanism, which is the fig leaf worn by those who serve the beast that gives them what to speak, think, feel, and do. They are preaching a different Jesus than the Gospel we are taught by the word of God, and people are putting up with it by accepting it. “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!” 2 Corinthians 11:3-4

Our Lord Jesus says, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14 Paul said, through the Holy Spirit, “…strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” Acts 14:22

For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath.” Acts 15:21

Every week, the laws of Moses were read in the synagogues, and any Gentile was allowed to sit in on the worship and teaching services. James wanted to ensure that the born-again Gentiles understood the continued importance of the laws of Moses. The four guidelines that James gave to the Gentiles, who said “Yes” to Jesus Christ, were to emphasize the importance of the Old Testament scriptures. This is like the Christians of today who embrace the Old Testament scriptures as the “scarlet cord” pointing to Jesus Christ as the Christ, Son of God, and Savior of the world. For us Christians, the Old and New Testaments are part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Paul, through the Holy Spirit, says that although the Jewish people were cut off from the family tree of God, we Christians should not boast against them. That’s because Jesus is Jewish, from the Tribe of Judah, and through the Jewish lineage came our Salvation. “And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.” Romans 11:17-18

Jesus Christ made it possible for us to enter the inner chambers of the temple. By the atonement of sin that He made on the Cross, we are able to enter into the most Holy Place, into the presence of God through the Holy Spirit. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need…having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus…” Hebrews 4:16 and Hebrews 10:19

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11