Abilene, TX
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| Mercy Street Church of Christ Abilene, TX |
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SURPRISED BY GRACE by Leroy Garrett I now really understand that God has no favorites, but that anybody of any nationality who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. — Acts 10:34, New Jerusalem Bible This is the language of the apostle Peter when facing a roomful of Gentiles in the home of Cornelius, a Roman centurion. It must have been the first time ever that Peter was in social contact with Gentiles. This is indicated by what he first said to them: “You know it is forbidden for Jews to speak with people of another race and visit them” (Acts 10: 28). Peter was every whit as prejudiced against Gentiles as any southern sheriff was against blacks during the Civil Rights movement. The apostle, often overly verbal, is here succinct and deliberate. He is saying that he is surprised by what is going on, surprised by grace! The Jews are not God’s favorites after all. The Gentles are not necessarily unclean after all, no more so than the Jews. I am now assured, surprisingly, he is saying, that I am not to call “Unclean” what God has cleansed. What matters is the person, not his or her nationality. Anybody! Get it, anybody — not a selected or elected few — but anybody in any nation who honors and reverences God is accepted by him. Wow, that does spell grace! It is sacrificial language, describing what kind of sacrifice — in this case a human being — that God will accept. In the case of an animal, the sacrifice had to be without blemish. In the case of a human being, the sacrifice is to have a heart for God — purity of heart, which means simple, trusting faith to do God’s will. It is not about dogma or ritual, but the heart. Wherever there is one with a heart for God, be he called Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist, there is a sacrifice that God accepts. That is surprising to those of us like Peter, with all our hangups and prejudices. It took at least three miracles to move Peter from an exclusive view of the kingdom of God (for Jews only) to a universal view (for all nations and all people). The first miracle was his vision of a great sheet let down from heaven from its four corners, and filled with all kinds of animals, reptiles, and birds, clean and unclean. Hungry as he was, a voice told him “Now, Peter, kill and eat,” which was an invitation for fellowship with non-Jews (unclean people). But Peter protested, “Certainly not, Lord, for I have never eaten anything common or unclean” (Acts 10:13-14), which was Peter’s way of refusing the invitation. Thank you, but no thank you, he would not associate with Gentiles. I have never! That “I have never” mentality often hinders us from having those experiences that expand the mind and enrich the heart. I have never visited in the home of a black family. I have never been in a social setting with a Muslim. I have never had a Jew as a friend. I have never heard a woman preach. I have never, knowingly, had anything to do with a homosexual. Peter’s “I have never” was so embedded that it took more than one miracle to get him going. The second miracle was Cornelius’ heavenly vision, about the same time as Peter’s. An angel appeared to him and called him by name, which scared the wits out of him. The angel told him that God had heard his prayers and had accepted his charitable gifts, and that he was to send for Peter, who has a message for him, giving him his address. Cornelius promptly obeys, sending three men to fetch Peter (Acts 10:3-5). While Peter is still befuddled over his vision, the Spirit tells him that he has visitors at his door, and that he is not to hesitate to return with them, and adds, “It was I who told them to come” (Verse 20). Peter goes, even if still with some reluctance (He took six Jewish brethren with him!). The third miracle at last “converts” the apostle. Yes, this story could be called the conversion of Peter as well as the conversion of Cornelius. The third miracle is recorded in Acts 11:15: “As I began to speak (to the assembled Gentiles), the Holy Spirit fell upon them as upon us at the beginning (Pentecost).” He goes on to reveal that he is a changed man, surprised by grace: “”If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” That is a great line, Who was I that I could withstand God? That is what he had been doing, withstanding God. But at last when the promised Holy Spirit fell upon the Gentiles as well as the Jews, his conversion was complete. Surprised by grace! This episode — the ingathering of the Gentiles some ten years after Pentecost, the birthday of the church— was a crucial turning point in Christian history. Up to this time the community of believers was made up of Jews only, and had it stayed that way Christianity would have become and remained a Jewish sect, one among many. The first Gentile baptisms were on this occasion. This great surprise, which Paul calls “the mystery that has been revealed” in Ephesians 3:3-6, opened the door to the Christian faith becoming catholic rather than nationalistic and parochial, universal rather than exclusive and sectarian. We must all keep ourselves open to God’s surprises, realizing that he is extravagant with his grace. The surprise may come when life has turned on you and you are coping with despair. Paul the apostle put it this way: “Glory be to him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). That is what happened to dear Peter. He could not even have imagined what at last happened to him! And that is what can and does happen to us, far beyond our fondest dreams. As Alexander Campbell often said, drawing upon his own surprises, “ Expect great things, attempt great things, and great things will happen.” Brace yourself.  |
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