Peter began to speak to them, "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him." [from Acts 10:34-48]
These are stunning words. Spoken by a first century Jew, they reveal a profound paradigm shift. Peter was not prepared to see God's salvation manifest in Gentiles. It boogled his mind and caused him to rethink his beliefs. We, in the Church, tend to assume Gentiles are welcome. It was not so for the first followers of Jesus. It was, rather, a contentious and difficult process.
A recurring theme of my prayer and reflection is God's strange ways. It seems it would have been very easy for Jesus to explain all about this Gentile mission this early and often in His ministry. Based on Peter's need of a revelatory vision, it appears God chose another, longer, more convuluted way. Most times, I assume God will act quickly, clearly, and decisively. This is probably a function of my assumptions about God. We Christians tend to use Greek philosophy (even, especially Christians who claim to know nothing about Greek philosophy) as a starting place. We create a theology of what God must be like (e.g.perfect) and then fill in the details of what that means (i.e. inerrant) and then apply it to a situation (God will reveal everything clearly and completely to the believer). We 'cannot' hear the Word because we have already 'decided' what it must mean.
Peter says something that many Christians fail to hear: God accepts those who fear Him and do right. There is no mention of a conscious faith in Jesus. It is something much less worked out. It has to do with a desire for God and a desire to please God. In other words, Peter says, God responds to the effort of the Centurian (and those in every nation who fear Him and do right). This would seem to have some impact on how we might understand the place of unbelievers (those who have never heard of Christ) around the world. It should at least be part of the discussion.
But there is more to the story. Peter tells the tale, a narrative of God's saving plan. The message is to Israel ( a feature of the plan we moderns Christians always block out). The message is God sent Jesus to preach peace and to do good and heal those oppressed by Satan. Peter is a witness of the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus is LORD of all and the Judge of all.
So Jesus is not optional (Peter also says "everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name). Jesus is the key figure. Too many contemporary folks get that one wrong. The message of hope is rooted in Jesus. There are not many ways (i.e. ways outside of Jesus) to God. However, I think, the way through Jesus may be wider than some people are currently ready to accept. That may tell us more about ourselves than it does God.
The Jewish believers were shocked to see the Holy Spirit poured out on Gentiles. What does God do to shock us today? How do we close doors and shutter windows to the Kingdom now? I wonder where I am blind to the mighty works of God, don't you wonder the same?
I cling to this, though. God is setting out to do what is best for all. I think Peter was stunned by that. I thnk we are no better than Peter, so I think we are also in need of greater openness (always within the Lordship of JESUS!!!). We need to open our ears to hear and our heart to receive God's Word. We need, like Peter, to be willing to see God work in ways which are unexpected.
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