Acts 15 is the account of the Jerusalem council, the early church’s first serious meeting to settle whether Gentile believers had to take on the Jewish law, including circumcision, to be saved. These questions are written for a small group, a Sunday class, or personal study. Each section gives a leader a way into the text, with notes you can use or adapt.
Acts 15 at a Glance
The chapter opens with a dispute in Antioch over circumcision, which sends Paul, Barnabas and others to Jerusalem. There Peter, Barnabas and Paul report what God has done among the Gentiles, and James draws on the prophets to conclude that Gentile believers should not be burdened with the whole law, only asked to keep a few basic requests. A letter carries that decision back to Antioch with Judas and Silas.
The final section turns to a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas over taking John Mark on a second journey, which leads them to separate. Paul travels on with Silas, strengthening the churches. Keep this flow in view and the questions below will read as a single story.
Observation Questions
Use these at the start of the session to make sure everyone has the facts of the passage before anyone interprets them. Let people answer from the text, and point back to the verses when answers drift into opinion.
Acts 15:11
But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they are.”
(WEB)
Read this verse slowly, since it is the theological heart of Peter’s speech. It states plainly that salvation rests on grace, which gives the group a clear anchor for the discussion that follows.
Acts 15:19-20
19 “Therefore my judgment is that we don’t trouble those from among the Gentiles who turn to God, 20 but that we write to them that they abstain from the pollution of idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood.
(WEB)
James’s judgment is the practical center of the chapter. Reading it aloud lets the group hear both the freedom he grants and the requests he keeps, so they can talk about the balance together.
Acts 15:28-29
28 For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay no greater burden on you than these necessary things: 29 that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if you keep yourselves, it will be well with you. Farewell.”
(WEB)
These verses show the council’s own claim to the Spirit’s guidance. Reading them together helps the group weigh how decisions in the church are meant to be made and how they are to be received.
Acts 15:31
When they had read it, they rejoiced over the encouragement.
(WEB)
This short verse captures the emotional response of the believers in Antioch. Pausing on it invites the group to reflect on whether God’s word brings them joy or only obligation.
Acts 15:39-40
39 Then the contention grew so sharp that they separated from each other. Barnabas took Mark with him, and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas, and went out, being commended by the brothers to the grace of God.
(WEB)
Reading the sharp parting of Paul and Barnabas reminds the group that Scripture does not hide the messiness of ministry. It also prepares them to see how God continues his work even through disagreement.
Memory Verse for Acts 15
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we thank you that you welcomed the Gentiles by faith and gave them your Spirit without asking them to carry burdens you did not lay on them. Teach us to hold grace and conscience together, so that we neither add yokes to others nor treat your gift lightly. Where we have disagreed, as Paul and Barnabas did, give us honest words, humble hearts, and a desire for your work to continue. Guide the decisions we make together, and let the encouragement of your Word bring real joy to our hearts this week. Strengthen us as you strengthened the churches, and keep our eyes on Jesus, through whom we are saved. Amen.
