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1 Now the apostles and the believers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him, 3 saying, "Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?" 4 Then Peter began to explain it to them, step by step, saying, 5 "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven, being lowered by its four corners; and it came close to me. 6 As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals, beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air. 7 I also heard a voice saying to me, "Get up, Peter; kill and eat.' 8 But I replied, "By no means, Lord; for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.' 9 But a second time the voice answered from heaven, "What God has made clean, you must not call profane.' 10 This happened three times; then everything was pulled up again to heaven. 11 At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. 12 The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man's house. 13 He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, "Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter; 14 he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.' 15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, "John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' 17 If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?" 18 When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life." (Acts 11:1-18 New Revised Standard Version)
Happy and blessed Wednesday to you and yours, Friend. May this day be a day of new beginnings and opportunities to serve the Lord in faithful and fruitful ways. May we endeavor to share our faith in ways that bring others to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ so they may have it for themselves. May we continue to pray for one another. Let us pray for those who have asked prayers from us. Pray for the world and its needs. Last minute notice: The Rev. William Del Valle, a pastor from our conference who had been on medical leave, died today, Tuesday, 05/10/2022. Please pray for his wife, The Rev. Maribel Vásquez, and family.
We join a conference in progress. Thank God it was not a Zoom conference; this was a in-person pre-pandemic conference. There was a conflict though, already in progress. The big question was, can one be a Christian without first becoming a Jew? This was a hop topic because those who said no to this question believed strongly that the men who wanted to be Christians must first present themselves for cicumcision before becoming a Christian. No where in Jesus' teaching did He stress that, but some who were Jews who became Christians believed that was the right track to discipleship. And most of these folks also held that Christianity was only for Jews and that no Gentiles could become Christians. So, as Peter enters this conference, the criticism begins, "Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?" The uncircumcised men were considered unclean and thus not worthy to eat with, for that would make the Jews unclean. Please remember that Peter is fresh home from his experience with Cornelius in which God revealed to him that it was okay to eat with Gentiles and all uncircumcised men. As Peter gives his report the hearts and minds of those opposed; they were convinced by Peter's words that it was the work of the Holy Spirit. I love the 18th verse, "When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, 'Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.''"
The reality is that since that decision the Gentiles has far outnumbered the number of Jews who have become Christians. And the key is that which we heard in the ministry of John the Baptist and later in Jesus' sermons, "Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand." The Bible said the crowds came for that message struck a chord with all who knew they were sinful and needed to repent and receive baptism as that which washed away the sins. And, they also answered that this lead to life, as Jesus promised in John 10:10, "I have come so that they may have life, and have it in abundance." And these are still in effect. Any sin that we try to carry around on our own serves no good purpose; quite the contrary, it is like being diagnosed with cancer and then decide not to have that cancer removed. Sin, like cancer, will lead to death, the the sin death being an eternal death. The truth is that we ask the Lord Jesus to remove our sin and help us live a sin-free life. It's simple. Through prayer we ask the Lord to forgive our sin, we get our sins taken away, and we receive the fullness of life.
PRAYER: Loving God, I repent of my sins. I want to follow You and only You. I ask Your forgiveness for my sinfulness. Help me receive a new perspective and the fullness of life. I love You and thank You for all you have offered me. I want to glorify You and honor by my life from this point forward; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. Show others the way to the fullness of life.
Receive my blessings of life and hope,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
