Acts 11:1–18: Repentance that Leads to Life
Introduction
On the surface, the narrow concerns of those “of the circumcision party” (vv. 2–3) seem a million miles away from our lives today. Why would anyone who has received the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ begrudge that same gospel from coming to other groups of people? Yet, the church in every age struggles with unnecessary boundary keeping that would seek to keep those who are not “our people” from coming to Christ for salvation. Alternately, some would seek to remove all boundaries whatsoever, avoiding the necessity of “repentance that leads to life” (v. 18) as the only way to come to Christ. Against both of these errors, this passage offers us a critical principle for reaching the farthest-off people with the gospel in order that they might come to Christ by repentance and faith: Christ’s Holy Spirit alone makes you clean of guilt and shame.
Discussion Questions
1. Why did the report of Peter’s ministry among the Gentiles spread so quickly (v. 1)? Who challenged this decision (v. 2)? What do we know about those associated with them from the rest of the Bible? What were their concerns (v. 3)? To what degree were those concerns legitimate? How did Peter himself struggle with those concerns (see Acts 10)? What kinds of boundary-keeping questions prevent you from bringing the message of Christ to those far off today?
2. What do we learn from Peter’s willingness to answer these questions that had challenged his actions? How should leaders especially learn from Peter’s eagerness to explain his own actions in light of the clear Word of God? What did God’s Word say about formerly unclean food (v. 7)? Why was the food permissible (v. 10)? What did God’s Word say about associating with Gentiles (v. 12)? What was the Word of God that the Gentiles needed to hear (v. 14)?
3. What did the Holy Spirit do among the Gentiles (v. 15)? How similar was this action to what the Jews had experienced on the Day of Pentecost (v. 16; cp. Acts 1:4–5; 2)? How had the Holy Spirit settled the question of whether Jewish ceremonial laws still applied in the New Testament church? What was the response of those of the circumcision party (v. 18)? What can we learn from their willingness to be corrected in light of the clear teaching of God’s Word?
4. How do you feel unclean because of your sin and distance from God? What does this passage teach about the necessity of repentance—rather than ceremonial law-keeping—to find the cleansing that your soul seeks? What does this passage teach us about the needs of other people who feel so far distant from the Lord? How might you repent from your unwillingness to reach them with the gospel of Jesus in order that they might find repentance that leads to life?
