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Pastor John,<\/span><\/p>\n I think I failed to see during the last reading (in the beginning for sure, but I don\u2019t believe I ever fully got it) how it wasn’t “right vs. wrong” or “good vs. bad” as much as it was “good vs. better” or “good vs. holy”.\u00a0 Or even, “where God was vs. where God is.”<\/span><\/p>\n Which is so different!<\/span><\/p>\n These were God’s old men vs. God’s new men, and I recall portraying my character (God’s old man) as an obviously bad man for the first half of the reading.<\/span><\/p>\n I think many who would have opposed Paul at the Jerusalem Council,* \u00a0would have been sincere, and earnest in their pleadings (of course), without malice. It might have been difficult for onlookers, even those with the spirit baptism, to judge between the two opposing sides, at least for a while.\u00a0 But then, whatever was keeping God’s old men from loving the truth from God that was delivered to Paul would have started to come out later.\u00a0 The shell would have cracked, perhaps, and a wrong spirit would have begun showing itself.\u00a0 Their tone and attitude would have changed, maybe even to the surprise of the men behaving that way.<\/span><\/p>\n The “right vs. right” dilemma in the Jerusalem Council kind of reminds me of watching\/listening to the parents of some young folks who have recently come to the truth.\u00a0 It is old love vs. new love; or the world’s love vs. God’s love.\u00a0 And the first of these is seemingly the best love for a time, for it is the only love available to men.\u00a0 It is the love that kept their children safe, and it never intends to be evil, as far as the one wielding it is concerned.<\/span><\/p>\n No wonder God was so slow and merciful and kind when transferring his people from the Old Testament way of loving God to the new way of loving God.<\/span><\/p>\n And how kind should we be when seeing people misunderstand God’s love, especially for their children.<\/span><\/p>\n