Outsider

Acts 10:34-45

 

Have you ever felt like an outsider; different than those around you? As I considered this devotional I remembered a man who came to our church for awhile. I haven’t seen him lately. He usually sat in the same pew as my wife and I. During the sermon he would knit. I have to confess that I judged him. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t been around.

 

It’s easy to judge others; to put them next to an artificial standard that we have created in order to make ourselves look and feel good. You know the one I’m talking about. You

have to dress a certain way; act and talk a certain way; look a certain way. Otherwise, you just don’t fit in.

 

The backstory to today’s passage is that Peter, a Jew, and Cornelius, a Gentile, have been brought together by supernatural means orchestrated by God.

 

Normally, the culture they live in would not permit this meeting to occur. It was a social and religious culture that put the Gentiles on the outside and the Jews on the inside. In case of point, look at the reaction of the good Jewish people when the Gentiles received the Holy Spirit.

 

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles.          Acts 10:44-45 NIV

 

The disdain that the Jews had for the Gentiles was impeding the spread of the Gospel. God’s word, His love, His grace and forgiveness and even His Holy Spirit - were being held captive. Peter had a change of heart that not only changed him, but changed the world around him.

 

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.      Acts 10:34-35NIV

 

Who do you judge and keep in a box? Someone who looks different or acts different from you? Maybe they knit during the sermon. Let the Holy Spirit open your heart so that all might have access to the Gospel of Jesus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

(If God has spoken to you, or touched your heart through this devotional, please feel free to share it with others.)

 

 

Strangers in a Foreign Land

Hebrews 13:1-3

 

Moses escaped Pharaoh and fled to Midian. While in exile he married and started his family. He named his first born Gershom (meaning “foreigner”), for Moses said, “I am a stranger in a foreign land.” Have you ever felt that way?

 

The Bible is filled with stories about people who felt like a stranger. God called Abram to go to a country he had never set foot in. The Israelites were nomads, a nation without land. After being enslaved in Egypt, they were later taken into exile. Even in Jesus’ day, the Jews were subjected to Roman rule.

 

The writer of Hebrews tells us to show hospitality to strangers. No doubt, part of the reason for that is that it is way of living out our faith; of loving others. However, I believe there is a deeper meaning.

 

As previously mentioned, the Israelites were aliens in a foreign land. Like the Israelites, we are aliens too. We are living temporarily on this planet. Paul put it like this in his letter to the Philippians, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ…”

 

Do you cross paths with people who may feel like a stranger? Are there visitors to your church who need a warm greeting? Do you know a single person who would enjoy a home cooked meal? Is there a coworker who could use an encouraging word? Are there opportunities to serve the homeless or those in prison? Hospitality simply means making others feel at home wherever you are.

 

However, Jesus expanded this definition of hospitality. “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in… Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

 

From the very beginning, God’s people have been strangers in a foreign land. We are

not home yet either, and won’t be until we get to Heaven. But until that day, show hospitality to others, not only because the Bible instructs us to, but also because we are visitors on this earth, and it is a way of showing our love for Jesus.