Timeless Truths. Mission Possible Lesson 4. Breaking Down Barriers
Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers[a] in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God. 2 But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers[b] criticized him. 3 “You entered the home of Gentiles[c] and even ate with them!” they said.
4 Then Peter told them exactly what had happened. 5 “I was in the town of Joppa,” he said, “and while I was praying, I went into a trance and saw a vision. Something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners from the sky. And it came right down to me. 6 When I looked inside the sheet, I saw all sorts of tame and wild animals, reptiles, and birds. 7 And I heard a voice say, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.’
8 “‘No, Lord,’ I replied. ‘I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure or unclean.[d]’
9 “But the voice from heaven spoke again: ‘Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.’ 10 This happened three times before the sheet and all it contained was pulled back up to heaven.
11 “Just then three men who had been sent from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were staying. 12 The Holy Spirit told me to go with them and not to worry that they were Gentiles. These six brothers here accompanied me, and we soon entered the home of the man who had sent for us. 13 He told us how an angel had appeared to him in his home and had told him, ‘Send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. 14 He will tell you how you and everyone in your household can be saved!’
15 “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning. 16 Then I thought of the Lord’s words when he said, ‘John baptized with[e] water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?”
18 When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.”
Acts 11: 1-18 (New Living Translation)
- In the Old Testament, God reveals the Jews as favored people.
- By New Testament times, the Jews had morphed that to be God's ONLY people.
- Exclusion of others by the Jews was a misrepresentation of Scripture.
- Because of that feeling, in Acts 1-9 Christianity was nothing more than a Jewish sect like the Essenes, etc.
This passage makes it clear that God wants every church to be the kind of church described here.
INTRODUCTION
Through Jesus death on the cross, the barriers that man has built through tradition, ritual, and race were broken down. God made it clear to everyone that Jesus Christ came into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all people, and that salvation is available for everyone through faith in Him. That's what Acts 10 is about.
Now we, arrive in Acts 11. This story has a message for God's people today about hat kind of church He expects us to be. In order for us to go beyond being just a nice little "social group," to becoming an "agent of change" in our community and in our world, we need to break through a number of barriers.
Now we, arrive in Acts 11. This story has a message for God's people today about hat kind of church He expects us to be. In order for us to go beyond being just a nice little "social group," to becoming an "agent of change" in our community and in our world, we need to break through a number of barriers.
THREE BARRIERS THAT HOLD US BACK
YOU NEED TO BREAK THROUGH
YOU NEED TO BREAK THROUGH
1. The "not one of us" barrier.
It's natural to want to be around like people. But we need to be led by the unnatural Holy Spirit.
The variety of socio-economic groups is emphasized.
There was absolutely no discrimination of ethnic groups.
There is ONE group. There are NO other groups.
It's natural to want to be around like people. But we need to be led by the unnatural Holy Spirit.
The variety of socio-economic groups is emphasized.
There was absolutely no discrimination of ethnic groups.
There is ONE group. There are NO other groups.
2. The "let someone else do it later" barrier. (Vv 10-11)
As soon as God gave Peter the revelation, He gave Peter a chance to do it!
That happens to us... at least it should!
Peter wasn't afraid to challenge the status quo.
You need to make a choice:
As soon as God gave Peter the revelation, He gave Peter a chance to do it!
That happens to us... at least it should!
Peter wasn't afraid to challenge the status quo.
You need to make a choice:
Am I going to do what's right?
(What God calls you to do.)
Remember! God's plans are not always popular.
3. The "my mind's made up" barrier. (Vv 1-3, 17-18)
When God does something new, there are people who complain and try to divert people from what the plan needs to be.
V18. Leadership broke this barrier and guaranteed the success of the church.
Maybe what happened when leadership broke the barrier was that it guaranteed its own future. God would have opened the church to Gentiles with or without those leaders.
When God does something new, there are people who complain and try to divert people from what the plan needs to be.
V18. Leadership broke this barrier and guaranteed the success of the church.
Maybe what happened when leadership broke the barrier was that it guaranteed its own future. God would have opened the church to Gentiles with or without those leaders.
CONCLUSION
When barriers are broken
- God will be glorified and people will be changed.
- God is the great I AM, not the not-so-great i was.
God is open to people who want to make a difference!
Be part of a church that…
…breaks down those barriers!
Thanks to Rev. Larry Pitcher for the primary teaching in this blog.
The next Timeless Truth: The Things Worth Believing
The next Timeless Truth: The Things Worth Believing
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