Daily Thoughts from Acts: Maintaining One’s Jewishness (Acts 21:17-26)

When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers received us gladly. On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified God. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed. They are all zealous for the law, and they have been told about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or walk according to our customs. What then is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. Do therefore what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you yourself also live in observance of the law. But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with our judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality.” Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself along with them and went into the temple, giving notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for each one of them.  (Acts 21:17-26 ESV)

No mention is made of the gift Paul was delivering because that does not further Luke’s purpose to explain the movement of the gospel through Peter and Paul to the furthest reaches of the empire.  Rather, Luke is careful to show that the Jerusalem church as represented by her elders and James, Jesus’ half-brother, joyfully received Paul and his team and glorified God for the work they had accomplished in reaching Jews and Gentiles.  Their only concern was correcting the misrepresentation of Paul that he instructed Jewish followers of Jesus to forsake the Law.  So they asked Paul to make a show of the fact that he didn’t.

Paul paid the costs for some men to complete their Nazarite vow, where they abstained from wine and from touching something unclean and from cutting their hair.  There was apparently a sacrifice to make for purification and Paul participated in that also, and covered the expenses for accomplishing all this.  Paul had no problem with Jews observing the Law, but objected to the idea that this was necessary for salvation or that Gentiles should observe it.  He agreed that Gentiles could avoid certain practices just as a way of avoiding unnecessary offense to Jews.  The gospel was not compromised.

Paul is submissive to the instructions of the Jerusalem church because they are all one church, worldwide, but as we will see, doing so will lead to his imprisonment.  Paul never expresses any bitterness about this.  He did what he thought was right, happy to declare the glory of keeping customs of the Jews and that he did not teach Jewish believers not to circumcise their children (he had Timothy circumcised because his mother was Jewish and to avoid any reason to Jews to reject the gospel on false grounds).

Are Jewish Christians supposed to keep the customs of the Law?  There are many who would say yes and who, as Messianic Jews who have embraced Jesus as Messiah, are doing so and maintaining their Jewishness despite the fact that many other Jews do not consider them Jews because of their faith in Jesus.