Contentious church meetings are nothing new. In Galatians 2:1–10, Paul describes one such gathering he had in Jerusalem that enabled the church to be what God wanted it to be. Imagine the hard conversations around the issue. Essentially, it's a matter of who's in and who's out.
After their conversations, Paul convinces the leaders in Jerusalem that God has entrusted different callings to different people. Peter was sent to the circumcised to profess Jesus as Lord. Paul was sent to the Gentiles for the same reason.
Notice how this meeting ends. After all the theological wrestling, James and Cephas and John gave Paul and Barnabas "the right hand of fellowship." They didn't begrudgingly allow Paul's mission to continue. They joined in fellowship with them.
Different missions, but the same gospel.
That is, of course, an important part of understanding the church's call to spread the gospel of Jesus. But there's another just as important aspect that's wrapped up in Paul's account of this meeting. The Jerusalem leaders made a request: “Remember the poor.”
Think about that. If the church doesn't recognize God's desire for the Gentiles to know Jesus, you and I aren't a part of God's family today. But just as important as that is, care for the poor is right there because this care is evidence of grace.
The church doesn’t all do the same work, but the church must share the same heart. When grace is real, it creates a community that looks outward, not inward. Freedom in Christ is never about securing our place, but being released for the sake of others. And remembering the poor is not about charity as an obligation.
It tells the truth about the God we follow. A God who does not hoard grace but pours it out. When the church remembers the poor, it remembers who it is and whose it belongs to.
Stay blessed...john | 
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