PODCAST
Acceptance
March 24th, 2016
Acts 15:1-12
Some people strive for acceptance. Feelings of rejection, isolation, and low self-esteem happen when it is withheld. When Cindy was 11, she moved from Indiana to Michigan. Girls in the neighborhood and school took some time to accept her. They teased her about her accent, verbal expressions, and Christian faith. She remembers feeling rejected and alone.
The Christians of Jewish background in Acts 15 were hesitant to accept believers from the wider Greek culture. The apostles, church, and elders met at Jerusalem to discuss this vital issue. The future of Christ’s church was at stake.
The council was divided when Peter, an observer of the Greek-speaking believer’s conversion to Christ and a respected leader of the church, spoke. He reminded them that it was God’s choice that the Gentiles hear the gospel. Most importantly, God had made no distinction, accepting them and giving them the Holy Spirit.
He receives all who come to Him by faith, and so should we.
Author: Cindy Goss Kingsbury
