When Paul arrived in Jerusalem, he came to a problem. Tens of thousands of Jews had become Christians in Jerusalem and all of them continued to to zealously follow the Mosaic laws and remain kosher. They heard that Paul was teaching the Jews didn't have to be kosher or follow the Mosaic laws. So, James the leader of the church, proposed that Paul participate in a purification ritual to demonstrate his commitment to the Mosaic laws.

We know that Paul does not believe that Jews HAVE to be kosher. Yet, he agrees to participate in the rite. Why does Paul agree to do this when he does not agree with them? Is he lacking backbone to stand up for what he believes in?

There is so much confusion regarding this issue today. How do we know when to stand up for what we believe in and when to compromise? How does the gospel help us distinguish between things we should remain convicted about and things that we should be flexible about?

1. Convicted about the gospel but flexible about culture.
2. Convicted about the movement of the gospel but flexible about ourselves.
3. Convicted about Love but flexible about our rights and freedom.

Where do we get the power to live like this? The gospel gives us the power to make everything in our lives subservient to the gospel, the movement of the gospel, and love.