For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
No obligations to keep the feast days, the holy days, the Torah.
Context:
Act 15:1 And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
Act 15:20 But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
Act 15:21 For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.
I have explained this to you numerous times - Why 15:21? Because early Christians were attending the synagogues to hear the Word, and they would be taught Moses as a matter of course. And they were.
You keep contradicting yourself. You say *Save by grace* but then demand [...]
I have demanded nothing. That is WAY above my pay grade. And I have not contradicted myself.
[...] something the leaders of the early church and the Holy Spirit never required, and that is keeping the Torah.
I disagree with that entirely - Even a quick perusal of James will show his intention. 'James the Righteous' - That means Torah-keeper in Hebrew-speak. Peter says to keep Torah, John says to keep Torah. Yeshua said to keep Torah... Paul said to keep Torah...
Not to mention that the feast days can't be properly kept without the Temple and a consecrated priesthood to make the proper sacrifices.
We have already been down this road too. There is PLENTY of evidence of people keeping the feasts outside of the Temple precincts. Not everyone could make it to the Temple, even for the three feasts that are required to be kept at the Temple. Many could not afford to travel from their homes... They kept the feasts where they were, even as they do today.
But don't demand that everyone do what you do just because you think it's right when Scripture does not demand it of us.
I have demanded nothing.
All the admonitions of Scripture are for living according to the law of love, not the Law of the of covenant.
They are the same thing.
We are under the new covenant and are not bound by the old one any more.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev_14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev_15:3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb,, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.
Just sayin'...
Your "because" is without actual proof though, and is even contradicted by the text. You claim that Christians were "attending the synagogues" and, therefore, hearing that they are commanded to be circumcised and to follow the law of Moses. Yet, the Apostles explicitly declare that no such commandment had ever been given, even though, if you are to be believed, it was the central part of the Gospel and not some new thing:
Act 15:24 Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:
Now if "no such commandment" was given, how is that possible if the commandment was given by Christ? Who came first? Christ? Or the Apostles? And what do they preach all the time in the synagogues they are supposedly present at?
I will also point out the characterization of it. They called it the "subverting" of their souls to be commanded to be circumcised and to keep the Law. Peter described it as the "yoke" that neither he nor his fathers could bare, and he also says that the Gentiles, who were not following the Law of Moses, are "purified" by their faith, and lastly, that they are saved by grace, "the same as we" (Acts 15:7-11).
You also quote the fact that the Pharisees considered it essential to salvation to follow the commandments, by which you probably mean "Well, you should still do it, although it makes no difference for your salvation." Yet you have repeatedly implied that it is a "sin" to not be circumcised and follow the law of Moses, and have explicitly stated that it is part of becoming more Christ like to refrain from eating Bacon (because what is the worst sin of all? Not denying the trinity, but eating a piggy). By this we can then presume that you would believe that Peter was in obedience to the "law of Moses," although he clearly called it a unbearable "yoke."
As absurd as that already is from the context, I will put another nail in the coffin and point out that Peter was, in fact, living as the Gentiles do all along:
"But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?"(Gal 2:14)
Thus you want us to believe that, though Peter did not believe it was a matter of salvation (and what's the point of abstaining from Bacon, when it is not a matter of salvation?), that he still lived like a Jew nonetheless, and followed every jot and tittle of the law of Moses!
Those verse you gave in no way support your contention.
Acts 15:21 For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues.”
But Christianity is not about proclaiming Moses. And only the Jews were in the synagogues.
The Jews were demanding that the Gentiles keep the Law, just as you are today. The Holy Spirit says that this is not necessary.
Acts 15:28-29 For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
The body of believers is not required to do anything beyond this.
Anyone who goes beyond that is a Judaizer.
We have already been down this road too. There is PLENTY of evidence of people keeping the feasts outside of the Temple precincts. Not everyone could make it to the Temple, even for the three feasts that are required to be kept at the Temple. Many could not afford to travel from their homes... They kept the feasts where they were, even as they do today.
Required to keep the Law but you don't have to for the parts that are too difficult. How convenient.