Acts 15:41 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

NIV: He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

NASB: And he was traveling through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

CSB: He traveled through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

NLT: Then he traveled throughout Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches there.

KJV: And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.

NKJV: And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

Paul is on the road again. The church in Jerusalem has given him a letter explaining Gentiles do not need to follow the Mosaic law but should make some concessions to strengthen their unity with Jews in their churches (Acts 15:22–35). Barnabas and Mark will take the letter to Cyprus (Acts 13:4–12; 15:39). Paul and Silas will take the letter to churches that Paul and Barnabas planted in Modern-day Asia Minor: Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra (Acts 13:13—14:23; 16:1–5).

Paul and Silas start by sharing the letter with the churches in the province of Syria outside of Antioch. This includes the district of Cilicia on the far east of the southern shore of modern-day Asia Minor; likely, they also visit Tarsus, Paul's hometown. From there, instead of sailing to Pamphylia, they trek over the steep pass to the province of Galatia.

While in Lystra, Paul will meet the son of his heart: Timothy. Although the apostles and elders in Jerusalem have made it clear that Gentile Christians do not need to be circumcised, Timothy's mother is Jewish. To ensure the young man avoids any trouble with Jews who would show him disrespect (1 Timothy 4:12), Paul circumcises him, then brings him along (Acts 16:1–3). From there, they will go on through Galatia (Acts 16:6), across to Macedonia, down into Greece, and back to Asia, the province on the western shore of Asia Minor (Acts 16:6—18:21).

Acts 15:36–41 marks a significant shift in Paul's ministry. Ever since Barnabas sought him out to help build the church in Syrian Antioch (Acts 11:19–26), the two have seemed inseparable. They established a church that will influence Christian theology for centuries. Their ministry extends beyond Syria and up into central modern-day Asia Minor. And they protected their church from legalists with harmful expectations of the Gentile Jesus-followers (Acts 15:1–35). Now, they go their separate ways. Paul will take Silas on his next missionary journey while Barnabas will take John Mark. Barnabas is not mentioned again in the book of Acts.

Paul and Barnabas are in Syrian Antioch, home from their first missionary journey. Legalistic Christians from Jerusalem arrive and insist Gentiles must convert to Judaism. When negotiations fail, a delegation travels to Jerusalem to request clarification from Jesus' closest students. The leadership in Jerusalem agree with Paul and Barnabas. They write a letter that Gentiles should only make concessions, mostly dietary, which will ensure unity with the Jews in their congregation. After delivering the letter to Antioch, Paul takes Silas and Barnabas takes John Mark to share the letter to other churches they have planted.

Acts chapter 15 resembles Acts 11:1–18, where Peter testified before the leadership of the church in Jerusalem. His subject was how the Holy Spirit had fallen on uncircumcised and unbaptized Gentiles. Here Paul and Barnabas also testify that Gentiles are coming to faith in Jesus without being circumcised. The issue the leadership must decide is the extent Gentiles must be responsible to follow the Mosaic law. Their decision is that the Law is in no way required to be saved, but Gentiles should graciously make concessions so their Jewish brothers and sisters feel free to live in community. This forms a partial background to the rest of Paul's missionary journeys as explained in Acts.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.