Guided by the Truth

Introduction

I start with a very specific question this morning. Have you ever been the member of a search party? Anybody raise your hand? Just a few. Have you ever been the object of a search party? Maybe.

Let me tell you about a search party that I was a part of. I guess my first and last search party happened for me when I was in the fifth grade. Let me tell you about one of my classmates who was the object of that search party. One of my classmates at West Point Elementary School in the fifth grade, name was Buddy. And Buddy had a tendency to bolt. He would just take off running and run away. You’ve heard of kids running away from home. Buddy would run away from school. And so the administrators and teachers’ response to that was they had me and Kevin Sullens walk everywhere that Buddy went. We walked with him, one on the left hand side, one on the right hand side.

Wherever Buddy went, we went. And our instructions were this. If Buddy starts to run, you chase him and tackle him. And you hold him down until somebody of authority can get there and deal with the situation. And so that was our job. And on numerous occasions, Buddy would take off and we would chase and we would tackle him and hold him until a teacher or a principal got there. But there was one day we failed. Buddy took off. Kevin and I began chasing after Buddy. He cut through the gym, and it was girls’ PE day. Where I went to school, I don’t know about your school, we had segregated PE classes, boys separated from girls, and this was the girls’ P.E., and Kevin and I got distracted, and Buddy got through the crowd and made it into the woods.

There were woods behind the school there at West Point. And Buddy got into the thick of those woods, and Kevin and I couldn’t find him. So we had to go back and tell the principal that we lost Buddy. Well, the principal got all the boys from the fifth grade class, and we formed a search party. And we went walking through those woods step by step, looking for Buddy. We found Buddy. Buddy was laying on the ground unconscious. And this is Buddy’s story, and I have no reason to doubt it that Buddy was trying to hide in a little pine thicket. And he burled his way back into that pine thicket only to find out that that was the home of a possum, a mother possum and her babies, and that possum hissed at Buddy.

And that scared Buddy as it would, and Buddy hurled around and began to run away from that possum and smacked right into a pine tree and knocked himself unconscious. And so we found Buddy. Now I need to pause here and tell you a couple things. I’ve been questioned about these stories. And I will say that every story I tell you about my childhood is absolutely true. There really was a Buddy. There really was a Kevin. Now, the only thing that I’ve altered, I’ve changed the names to protect the guilty. But those things really happened. We had that search party, and we found Buddy. I want to talk to you this morning about searching for something. There are search parties in the Bible. You recognize that? There were search party for David.

King Saul wanted to go after David. There are search parties in the New Testament. Jesus told parables about search parties of a woman who was searching for a coin that was lost, for a shepherd who was looking for a sheep that was lost, a father who was longingly waiting for a son who was lost to come home. There are other parables about searches.

And once he found it, he would abandon and sell everything to take possession of it.

Acts chapter 15 is the search party that I want us to talk about this morning. And they weren’t searching for a lost student or a lost coin or a lost sheep. They were searching for the truth. Because they wanted to be guided by that truth. You’ll remember the context when you get to Acts chapter 15. That in the midst of Paul and the other apostles’ preaching and teaching, they ran into this concern. The belief by some, particularly those who had been Jews, but now had been converted to Christianity, but were hesitant to let go of all of the trappings of Judaism. And so they wanted to kind of have this blending. They wanted to have their cake and eat it too, we would say. They wanted Christianity and the life and the forgiveness that Christ offered, but they wanted to cling and hold on to some of those aspects of the old law, particularly to circumcision and certain parts of the law of Moses, and the apostles had to deal with that to see whether that was true or not.

And so they went searching for the truth. In Acts chapter 15, we have that story. And so let’s just take the time in our study as we go along to read about that search for truth. In Acts chapter 15, are you there with me in verse 1? It says, And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren. Unless you’re circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved. Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and other certain ones of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question. So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, describing the conversion of the Gentiles, and they caused great joy to all the brethren.

1. The Truth Is Worth Defending

And when they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all things that God had done with them. But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying it is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to keep the law of Moses. Verse 6 concludes this section by saying, Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. In this search for the truth and their desire to be guided by the truth, the first thing I want us to notice this morning is one lesson that we can learn from this search for the truth, which should, by the way, mirror our search for the truth, is that the truth is worth defending.

There was something being taught, something being propagated among some of the brethren that just simply wasn’t true, and that is that you had to be circumcised and keep certain parts of the law in order to be saved. And I want you to notice Luke, that’s the author of the book of Acts. Notice some of the language that he uses here. He said back up in verse 2 that Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension. That’s Luke’s way. Luke has kind of a subtle way of underselling things. He talks about if there was a huge crowd, he would say there was no small crowd there. And so when he says there was no small dissension, what he means was there was a big dissension. There’s a big argument, a big discussion, a debate about this issue that was there.

The apostles, verse 6 says, the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. They didn’t just let it go. They didn’t let’s let it go unanswered and un refuted. They came together and then finished. Look at the beginning of verse 7. And when there had been much dispute, Peter rises up and says something. And so there were serious consideration, arguments, disputes, and fights about the truth. The truth is worth defending. Let’s make a few small side points as we consider this major point. First of all, there is truth. Jesus said in John 8 and verse 32, you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Don’t buy into the lie of our society today.

Rock solid, dependable, unchangeable truth. And it can be known. Jesus’ point, you shall know the truth. And also consider this point. Not only is there truth, and then can it be known, but it is worth us discussing it, fighting for it, and defending it. Hold your finger or your bookmark here in Acts chapter 15. And let’s go back for those of you that have been in an auditorium class at least. Let’s go back to familiar territory, back to 1 Timothy. Paul had been instructing Timothy in the ways of being an evangelist of what it was going to be like to preach the gospel. And much of what it was going to be like in preaching the gospel was defending the truth. And notice what Paul will say to Timothy.

In 1 Timothy chapter 6 and in verse 12, he uses very strong language. 1 Timothy 6, verse 12, he says, fight. Fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold on eternal life to which you were also called and confess the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. We pointed out in Bible class when we looked at that passage, 1 Timothy 6, verse 12, that says, fight. That that’s from the Greek word agonize. Agonize over the good fight of faith. Timothy, the truth is not just worthy of your promoting and preaching and teaching it, but it’s worth you agonizing over it, fighting and defending it. Now a balance needs to be struck, Timothy. Paul will say, look over in 2 Timothy chapter 2. Don’t think that fight means that you can just do anything.

Use any kind of underhanded tricks like you might in a fight to bite somebody, to punch somebody. But there’s a balance here. 2 Timothy in chapter 2. Look at verses 24 beginning. And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility, correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth and come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will. So he said in 1 Timothy, Timothy, fight. But in 2 Timothy he says, but do not quarrel. Now, how can I do both? Well, he explained that. In humility correcting, there’s that balance. We must fight for the truth, defend the truth, but we do so in humility and in love and in gentleness.

2. We Cannot Be Justified by the Old Law

Because, as we learn from their search party in Acts chapter 15, in wanting to be guided by the truth, the truth is worth defending. But let’s notice this main point as we go back to our text in Acts chapter 15, is that we cannot be justified by the old law. We talked about that a little in our Bible class this morning as we move from Timothy into the book of Titus. Some of the teaching that Titus was dealing with there in Crete was from the party of the circumcision. These same kind of teachers. They didn’t go away. But Timothy would, or Titus was instructed by Paul that a part of this fight for the truth, the truth worth defending, is to establish this point in their mind, these Judaizing teachers, is that the old covenant has been done away with.

Look over in Hebrews chapter 8. There are numerous passages that speak of this.

31, where he talked about a new covenant. I will make a new covenant. God prophesied through Jeremiah in the time of the captivity in Jeremiah 31 that he would make a new covenant. Now notice the conclusion the Hebrew writer makes about that statement. In that, this is the last verse of Hebrews 8, in that he says, a new covenant, he’s made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete is growing old and ready to vanish away. The Hebrew writer says, pay attention that in Jeremiah’s day, when the old covenant was still in effect, in effect, when he says new covenant, the new implies that the current is now old. You don’t say new unless there’s something to contrast it with the old. And the old, what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

As soon as Jeremiah uttered those words given to him by God, that I will make a new covenant with them. When those words were uttered, the old law was becoming obsolete, he says.

Different bells and whistles it had, and oh, he would talk about that car. But then it wouldn’t be too long that you’d hear him badmouthed in that car. And we knew, he probably didn’t know. He hadn’t picked up on it yet, but we knew what that meant. He’s getting ready to trade. And he’s trying to justify that trade by downplaying and talking bad about that car. And soon as he started talking bad about that car, that car, we’d say the writing’s on the wall. He’s getting rid of it. And that’s what the Hebrew writer is saying. When God said new covenant, as soon as those words were uttered by Jeremiah, the old law was starting to become obsolete. It was going out the door. And so the old law was done away with.

Paul to the Colossians would say, use strong language that it was nailed to the cross. So we can’t be justified by that old law. And so those teachers, when they were defending the truth and searching and being guided by the truth, Paul and these others were saying to them, this is not right. Circumcision, keeping the law of Moses were not necessary to be saved. Now, it’s worth pausing here and making this point.

Paul would say to the Romans in Romans chapter 15, whatever things were written beforehand were written for our learning. So we don’t rip the Old Testament out and throw it away. It’s there, it’s valuable. We can learn from it. Paul would tell the Galatians in telling them that they couldn’t be justified by the old law. He would say that the old law was, depending on your translation, the old law was our schoolmaster or our tutor that would bring us to Christ. That’s from the Greek word pedagogue. And it really didn’t mean necessarily so much a teacher as it is it was one of the slaves that was there kind of in control of the instruction. And so it’s the idea of almost of a caretaker or a holder, a placeholder.

3. The Truth Can Be Found in God’s Word

And so that law had a benefit. It was that placeholder, it was that guide that would bring them and protect them until Christ came. So there’s value in it, but we’re not to be justified by it. Our justification, Paul and the rest of these New Testament writers would have us to know, is found in and through Christ Jesus. And so that brings us to our last point in Acts chapter 15. If we’re to be guided by the truth, we’ll know that the truth is worth defending. That truth that Jesus said that you can know and will set you free is the truth of Jesus Christ. And that truth can be found in God’s word. Let’s think about Acts chapter 15. Are you back there? Did you save your place?

Certain men had come down from Judea and were teaching something. They were saying, unless you’re circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.

Truth was worth defending.

But it’s absolutely essential that we notice from the text of why they assembled in Jerusalem and what they did once they assembled there. This is very important. This conference in Jerusalem over the issue of the old law, was it still binding in order to be saved or not? They did not come together to decide the truth. They came together to determine the truth. Now there’s a difference there. Coming together to decide the truth is let’s all get together and we’ll put our heads together and we’ll come up with a plan. We’re smart, some of us at least, and we we can come up with something, and we’ll come up with a consensus, or maybe we’ll vote on it. We live in, we love the democracy, so we’ll vote on it, and the majority will win as to what we’re going to do.

That’s the idea of deciding the truth. And understand this.

We’ve been raised in the old law, we know the old testament well, we’ve been preaching the new testament, and so let’s get our heads together and figure out what the truth. Let’s decide it. No, they said let’s get together and find it. That was the search party. Let’s see what God says on this matter. Now that’s a very basic point, but that’s an absolutely integral point when it comes to religion and to Christianity. We come together to say, what does God say? Not what you and I say, but what does he say? And so they came together to find the truth, not to decide the truth. And let’s notice just quickly how they found the truth. Three different speakers will get up at this conference, not giving their opinions, not promoting their ideas, their agenda, their prejudices, but to determine the word of truth.

And so we have here a mini-lesson on biblical authority. How were they going to find the truth? Now I’m going to go a little bit out of order from what the text does, but bear with me. In Acts chapter 15, beginning in verse 13, James is one of the speakers. James says, men and brethren, listen to me. Acts 15, verse 13, moving into verse 14. Simon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take them out of them a people for his name. And with this, the words of the prophets agree, just as is written, and he quotes Amos chapter 9. 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. So James gets up in this search for the truth, and he quotes Scripture. And so one of the ways that we can determine the will of God is sometimes God just tells us. There’s the idea of some command or precept was given. God just says, this is the way it is. And that’s what James used on this day when they were searching for the truth. But let’s look at the next thing that was done, back up a little bit in our text in chapter 15, verse 7. 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 this by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did us. Paul’s there. He’s talking about Acts chapter 10. Cornelius, the first Gentile converts. And so what does Peter do to establish, to search for the truth? He says, I have an example. Let me show you something. James is going to tell you something, in quoting scripture, I’m going to show you something. Let me show you the example of Cornelius. God sent the Holy Spirit to fall on them. That example shows us that God wants the Gentiles. So there’s tell and then there’s show. But now look what Paul and Barnabas, verse 12. 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.

So we have James telling them something from the scriptures, Peter showing them something, an example of Gentiles being converted, obviously with God’s approval. And now Paul and Barnabas get up and give them an implication. We’ve been going throughout all the world on these missionary journeys. And we’ve been preaching to Gentiles. And God’s been working miracles through us. What do you think that means? Would God work miracles through me if I’m preaching to the Gentiles and God didn’t want me to preach to the Gentiles? If I was preaching to the Gentiles, they didn’t need to be circumcised and keep certain parts of the law in order to be saved. Would God let me work miracles? No. So he says, draw a conclusion from that. And the conclusion that you can draw from that is God wants the Gentiles.

And he wants them to be saved by the gospel. And so there’s a little mini primer on how we establish authority. Tell, show, and infer. Now, some might scoff at that idea, but what we need to understand is what God is using, what they use this day in their search for the truth, is just normal human communication. Let me illustrate it. Let’s go back to school. Let’s go back to the fifth grade, one of my escort trips with Buddha. Sometimes those escort trips, walking Buddy to and from different places, made me be late to class. Let’s just imagine I was late to class this day and there was a test. Since I was doing a school escort function, I would be excused for being late for the test, but I arrive at the test, and the teacher tells me some things about the test.

She’d already told the other students that, but she tells me, you need to sit down, take a number two pencil and fill out this test. And so I’m there. I take those instructions. So she’s told me a few things. And I ask her a question. Well, wait a minute, I didn’t hear all the instructions. What do I do here? And she says, look on Charlotte’s paper and do what she’s doing. Now she didn’t mean look and copy the answers. I wish she’d have said that because Charlotte was really smart, but she just said, You do what Charlotte. So I look over on Charlotte’s paper and I see Charlotte’s written her name on there, and she’s just following the test and marking those. That’s what, okay, all right.

So I’m just following that example. Obviously, an example of proved by the teacher because the teacher said, Do it the way she’s doing. Do it the way Charlotte’s doing. Charlotte’s the teacher’s pet. She’s always going to do it right. And so I follow that example. And now she says, in the midst of that test taking, she says, now I’m going to grade these tonight and give you your test results tomorrow. Well, I didn’t hear all the instructions. But I heard what she told me. I saw the example of Charlotte, and so I followed that. But then I also figured some things out that if she’s going to grade them tonight and turn them back in, that means that I have to complete the test today. Because I’m not going to see her after class is over.

And she’s going to grade them tonight. And so there’s that inferring that implication was you’ve got to finish this test today. You see, that’s our normal way of communication. It’s not some mystical applied to scripture communication. It’s the way we communicate with one another, it’s the way we understand one another, and the way God wants us to understand Him.

Conclusion

And so about 2,000 years ago, there was a question about Scripture. And they sent out a search party. The search party was going to be guided by truth, and they found out that the truth is worth defending. The Old Testament was not the way to be justified, but that the truth can be found if we’re willing to seek for it in the Word of God. Would you seek that truth? Would you find that pearl of great price that’s worth selling everything in order to find and to possess it? If you’re in that search for truth this morning, can we help you? If you’re listening via the internet or you’re here and you want to know more about that truth, we would love nothing more than to sit down with you and not to decide the truth, but to open up our Bibles and find the truth.

Would you go on that search with us? Please. If you found that truth and need to render obedience to that truth and to that gospel this morning, would you do what those that Peter used as an example, those of Cornelius’ family, would you respond to that truth positively this morning? Would you obey that truth that you have found? Can we help you in that search, not just for truth, but for salvation? Can we help you in that this morning? Then please come. As together we stand, and as we stand.