Page:Lives of the apostles of Jesus Christ (1836).djvu/529

 point, it was determined to make a united reference of the whole question to the apostles and elders at Jerusalem, and that Paul and Barnabas should be the messengers of the Antiochian church, in this consultation. They accordingly set out, escorted beyond the city by the church; and passing first directly southward, along the Phoenician coast, they next turned inland through Samaria, everywhere visiting the churches on the route, and making known to them the joyful story of the conversions among the Gentiles of Asia Minor, which was news to the Christians of Palestine, and caused great congratulations among them, at these unexpected triumphs of their common faith. Arriving at Jerusalem, they there, for the first time, gave to the twelve apostles, a detailed account of their long Asian mission; and then brought forward the grand question under debate. As soon as this point was presented, all the obstinate Jewish prejudices of that portion of the church who were of the order of the Pharisees, were instantly aroused,—and with great earnestness they insisted "that it was necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses." This first meeting however, adjourned without coming to any conclusion; and the apostles and elders were called together again to consider upon the matter. As soon as they were assembled they all fell to disputing with great violence, and, of course, with no decisive or profitable result; but at last the great apostolic chief rising up, ended the debate with a very clear statement of the results of his own personal experience of the divine guidance in this matter, and with brief but decisive eloquence hushed their clamors, that they might give Barnabas and Paul a chance to declare in what manner God had sanctioned their similar course. The two apostles of the Gentiles then narrated what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the heathen by them. Such was the decisive effect of their exposition of these matters of fact, that all debate was checked at once; and James himself, the great leader of the Judaical order, rose to express his perfect acquiescence in the decision of the apostolic chief and the Hellenists. His opinion was, that only so much conformity to the Mosaic institutions should be required of the Gentile converts, as they might without inconvenience submit to, out of respect to the old covenant, and such observances as were necessary for the moral purity of a professing Christian of any nation. The whole assembly concurred; and it was resolved to dispatch two select persons out of their own company, to accom