Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Acts 11:1-10 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him and said, "You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them."  Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened: "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was.  I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air.  Then I heard a voice telling me, 'Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.'  I replied, 'Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.'  The voice spoke from heaven a second time, 'Do not call anything impure that God has made clean...' Many things contributed to the rapid growth of the early church, and one of the most important factors was that they were willing to let God change their attitudes.  Even though they have their own opinions and didn't agree on everything, but thank God because when God's hand started to turn them around, they were able to be turned.  During the time of Acts, God's plan was continuously moving forward; His plan of salvation didn't stop with the Jews, but was calling for all nations and all peoples to become disciples of Lord Jesus.  Today, if the church was to be blessed, it must also move forward with God in His plan.  From this passage, we can see that the early church was in an important juncture.  After the Holy Spirit, as recorded in Acts chapter ten, guided Peter to lead the first gentile Cornelius to accept the Lord, great controversies were aroused upon Peter's return back to Jerusalem.  The primary reason for the controversies was that the early church of Jerusalem valued their own kind more than others.  They have heard the commandments of Jesus, which was to go make disciples in all nations, but they thought that only Jews were meant to become the Lord's disciples.  They did receive power, but in their mind only the Jews - those who were physically circumcised - were real chosen people of God.  Those who were not circumcised and belong to other races have nothing to do with God's salvation.  They even thought that it was unclean to sit with gentiles; therefore, when they heard that Peter had eaten with the family of Cornelius and baptized them to become Christians, it was difficult for them to accept it.  Hence they wanted to ask Peter what really happened, and the response from Peter explained how he was guided by God's hand step by step to change his mind about the gentiles.  Eventually he led the early church to step out to overseas evangelism.  In our daily life, are we also willing to have our minds turned around by God?   Pray with Pastor Tong Liu      Lord, I thank you because I saw how Peter was turned around in your hands, and thus the early church got on the path overseas evangelism.  Lord, we are also willing to be turned around by your Spirit so that we may accomplish your will.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!