Acts 11

Most of this chapter is a retelling of the events in the previous, but there is still an important lesson to learn here. Notice that the believers first criticized Peter for his actions. He had eaten with a Gentile. He had broken the law or at least a tradition. They were judging him without all the information and without understanding God. After Peter explained what had actually transpired and that he had received a word from God, they eased up and seemed amazed that God would grant salvation to the Gentiles.

I think that there’s a sad shift in many churches and among many believers today that keeps us from eating with the Gentiles, and it causes us to judge harshly those that do. It’s good to spend all of your time at church only congregating with people like you. It’s good to keep your kids from going to school with the unbelieving world. It’s good to give to the church so that the church can take care of itself and can make itself feel good. Have you seen this?

I have, and I think that this passage is a prime example of what the response really should be. God wants us to be out among the Gentiles (the unbelieving of our generation). He wants us to eat with them and live with them, talk with them and share with them. It’s the only way that they’ll ever hear about God. He wants us to give to the church but not for the sake of the church, for the sake of the church giving to the Gentiles. And we shouldn’t be amazed that God would save a Gentile. They’re the only ones that need saving; you were once one, so was I, and so were the Jews in this passage (Abram surely wasn’t a “Jew”; that didn’t come until later).

Praise God that He saves Gentiles, else we would all be condemned!