Head: Know God's Word | Heart: Love God | Hands: Follow God's Way

Read Acts 15-16

Head

These chapters of Acts show us the importance of unity among believers. So many times, we hold tight to rituals of how something is done instead of trusting God’s way. “He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.” Acts 15:9
The us and them are the Jewish believers and the Gentiles.

“Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” Acts 15:10-11

How convicting is that? We can’t begin to know what God knows, and we should always be willing to seek wise counsel from other believers and God. He has uniquely given each of us gifts, and we should embrace those differences because God has a purpose and a plan for each of us.

Heart

It always amazes me how opinionated I can be. I hear myself saying, “That’s not how I would do it.” God is so amazing and gave each of us our own unique fingerprints and DNA, so why can’t I trust that there may be more than my way?

It reminds me of the story about a woman who was teaching her daughter to bake a roast. She told her she always cuts off the end of the roast before putting it in the pan. Her daughter asked why, and the mother said, “I’m not sure; that is the way my mother did it.” So, the mother asks her mom what is the reason for the end of a roast being cut off, and her mom said, “I need to ask my mom.” That is the way she always did it. It turns out that the great-grandmother said she cut off the end of the roast because it wouldn’t fit in the pan. Be careful about following traditions without knowing the true reasons for them, and when it comes to whether it is of God or a person, check by reading your Bible and seeking wise biblical counsel.

Hand

So let us remember that when we come against a conflict of ideas in our church or with our family of believers, we must remember that God has made each of us with unique abilities. Embrace wise and mature counsel, trusting that the Lord gifts us differently. The one thing that is the same no matter what your church name is or where you come from is that salvation is given to those who believe in Jesus, our King. We are all the same regarding the grace we have been given for salvation. So, try to encourage and embrace each other’s unique ways!

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for making us all different. Help us to remember this when we are making friends and sharing our faith with others who see things differently. Help us to remember the important truth that Jesus is the Son of God, and He came to be our rescuer. Help us to be united with our church family in sharing this biblical truth. In Jesus’ name. Amen.