“God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.” You can feel the sense of amazement on the part of the Jewish people that the Gentiles, non-Jews, were going to be included in the saving plan of God. The Jewish identity was as the “chosen people,” a people peculiarly God’s own. And, while that didn’t change, the boundaries of what it meant to be chosen were expanded. That is the real intent of the Acts of the Apostles — to describe the ever-widening circle of those considered as “the people of God.” The challenge is still with us. We are being asked to re-consider those who belong with us. Any barriers of nation, race, language, party, orientation, and yes, even religion, must be looked at anew in light of the inclusive nature of the Good News of Jesus.
MAY12023
By Church Staff
