Acts 14: 23 – Acts 15: 29.

Jerusalem has long been a key location in the life of the Hebrew faith, since David took it to be his capital city and the temple was built (and destroyed and built again). In the life of Jesus and the early church Jerusalem was very much the “power square” in the manoeuvrings of the Jewish establishment. A significant early church work under Peter and James (Jesus’ brother) grew from particularly those of a Jewish background who came to believe in Jesus as Messiah.

By Acts 14 and 15 a conference / council is needed to resolve some matters in the early church.

Today Jerusalem remains a potent political symbol, now at the forefront of the Jewish / Arab, Judeo-Christian / Islamic divide with a number of historic sites important to both faiths. What sites might we see in Jerusalem that those from Jesus’s days would recognise? How do we work at reconciliation amongst the people of Jesus, both in our own fellowship and between denominations? How do we demonstrate Jesus’s loving care to those that do not share our faith?