Today's Favorite Verse: Acts 15:1, 5

Today's Favorite Verse: Acts 15:1, 5

"And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses."

This chapter covers what is called the Jerusalem conference. The question being if the gentiles needed to be circumcised and if they still practiced the law of Moses. Ultimately, the church leaders were unanimous in this was not a requirement. What I wondered about is why it was a question in the first place when Jesus said he fulfilled the law of Moses. This is what I found.

"Jehovah instituted the practice of circumcision among Abraham and his descendants as a token of their covenant with Jehovah. The token reminded them of their obligations and of the sacred and eternal blessings given to all who served the Lord in righteousness (see Abraham 2:8–11; Genesis 17). The law of Moses directed that every male child was to be circumcised when he was eight days old (see Leviticus 12:3) “that thou mayest know forever that children are not accountable before me [the Lord] until they are eight years old” (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 17:11 [in the Bible appendix]). In New Testament times it was common to refer to Jews as being of the circumcision and to Gentiles as being of the uncircumcision.

In the new covenant instituted by Jesus Christ, the token of circumcision was replaced by the ordinance of baptism. In a revelation given to Mormon and recorded in the Book of Mormon, Jesus Christ said: “The law of circumcision is done away in me” (Moroni 8:8). The debate over circumcision concerned not only the interpretation and application of doctrine, but also the accepting of new revelation through Church leaders."

(New Testament Student Manual, Chapter 32: Acts 13-15, "Circumcised after the Manner of Moses")

It seems it didn't put the whole matter to rest. The gentile converts didn't need to be circumcised but culturally and traditionally it was still being practiced. I have to say we still have some issues today with what is doctrine and what is cultural.

"Despite Church leaders’ unanimous resolution to not require Gentiles to be circumcised prior to baptism, many Church members did not readily understand or accept the decision. Robert J. Matthews taught: “The action of the Jerusalem council involved a significant policy decision. … Peter’s unmistakable experience with Cornelius makes it clear that the Brethren understood that the law of Moses was fulfilled in Christ, but evidently many members of the church did not understand. It was a matter of doctrine, tradition, culture, and emotion. Even though the Brethren had settled the matter doctrinally a decade before, considerable time passed before the matter was settled culturally and emotionally in the minds of some Jewish Christians. Furthermore, at least ten years after the council, many Jewish Christians in Jerusalem were still following the law of Moses. (Acts 21:17–25.)

“The decision of the Jerusalem council was not definitive and did not forthrightly say that the law of Moses should be discontinued. Although it declared that Gentiles did not need circumcision for salvation, it did not say that Jewish members of the church need not circumcise their sons” (“Unto All Nations,” in Studies in Scripture, Volume Six: Acts to Revelation, ed. Robert L. Millet [1987], 39).

In the years following the Jerusalem conference, Paul still found it necessary to combat contrary teachings and attitudes wherever he went"

(New Testament Student Manual, Chapter 32: Acts 13-15, "Decisions of the Jerusalem Conference")

Day 3192