After Paul and Barnabas separated due to their sharp disagreement over John Mark, who deserted them during their first missionary journey, Paul chose Silas as his partner to resume his ministry of strengthening existing churches and advancing the spread of the gospel into new territories. Meanwhile, Barnabas took Mark with him into ministry, first at […]
After receiving the good news from the church in Jerusalem that Gentile believers were accepted as full and equal brothers in Christ, the church in Antioch became established as a strong church, known for its commitment to the word of God. But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and preaching, with many others also, […]
In Acts 15, the Jerusalem council of the early church ruled that a Gentile did not have to first become a Jew – by being circumcised – in order to become a Christian. To communicate their decision, they sent Paul and Barnabas back to Antioch, the church where the controversy originated, with a letter explaining […]
After Paul and Barnabas’ first fruitful mission to the Gentiles, they returned to their home base in Antioch where there were numerous Gentile believers. But some men, presumably Jewish believers, came from Judea and said (Acts 15:1) – “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” In short, their […]