📖 Biblical Definition
The Council of Jerusalem was the first major theological assembly of the early church, called to resolve a crisis: "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved" (Acts 15:1). After deliberation, Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and James affirmed that salvation is by grace through faith alone — not through works of the law. James concluded: "We should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God" (Acts 15:19). The council issued minimal requirements for Gentile believers regarding moral conduct, preserving the unity of the church while affirming justification by faith.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
Council: An assembly of men summoned or convened for consultation, deliberation, and advice.
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COUN'CIL, n. An assembly of men summoned or convened for consultation, deliberation, and advice. In church affairs, an assembly of prelates and doctors, convened for regulating matters of doctrine and discipline. Note: Webster understood church councils as deliberative assemblies under Scripture's authority — not infallible bodies that create new doctrine.
📖 Key Scripture
• Acts 15:1-2 — The dispute over circumcision for Gentile believers.
• Acts 15:10-11 — Peter: "We believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus."
• Acts 15:19-20 — James: "We should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God."
• Galatians 2:15-16 — "A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
The Council of Jerusalem is misused to justify either unlimited church authority or the abolition of all moral law.
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Rome uses the Jerusalem Council as precedent for binding church authority independent of Scripture — claiming that church councils can create doctrine. But the apostles at Jerusalem did not innovate; they applied what Scripture and the Holy Spirit had already revealed. On the other side, antinomians cite Acts 15 to argue that Gentile Christians have no obligation to God's moral law — ignoring that the council's prohibitions (sexual immorality, idolatry) reaffirm the moral law while setting aside ceremonial requirements. The council affirmed faith alone for justification while maintaining moral conduct as the fruit of genuine conversion.
Usage
• "The Council of Jerusalem established the principle that salvation is by grace through faith — not by adding human works to the finished work of Christ."
• "Acts 15 freed Gentile believers from ceremonial law while binding them to moral holiness — grace that leads to godliness, not license."