Acts 21:17-26
Paul faces the dilemma many Christian leaders have and do face – zealots on either side pushing their understanding of the gospel of good news is the correct one and back-sliding having to be rooted out. Paul underwent this ritual of purification to show his critics that, yes, he is still a Jew but as a follower of Christ, he had told converts who had been Gentiles they need not undergo the former Jewish rituals. It looks like it was a compromise brokered by James and the Council to allow all sides to move on.
Paul faces the dilemma many Christian leaders have and do face – zealots on either side pushing their understanding of the gospel of good news is the correct one and back-sliding having to be rooted out. Paul underwent this ritual of purification to show his critics that, yes, he is still a Jew but as a follower of Christ, he had told converts who had been Gentiles they need not undergo the former Jewish rituals. It looks like it was a compromise brokered by James and the Council to allow all sides to move on.