Eastertide

May 14, 2019

Scripture Reading: Acts 11:1-18

At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, “Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter; he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.” And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, “John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?’ When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, ‘Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.’ Acts 11:11-18

I witnessed the baptism of a 90-year-old man recently. He preferred a smaller group rather than a whole congregation. I am in a study group with him that has met for several years now and I was unaware he had not been baptized. I knew he was a Christian by the way he loves. The ritual was very important to him though and I was honored to be a part of the service.

I do not know how the Spirit’s presence manifested itself so clearly to Peter and his companions. The man from Caesarea had obviously encountered at least a sense of the Spirit before Peter’s visit or he would not have sent for Peter at all. Ours is not a solitary faith. With a foundation of love, sharing our love of God with others is paramount as is sharing our love for one another. So, Peter entered the house of a Gentile and witness his experience of the Holy Spirit and knew that the time had come for God’s love to be shared with all of God’s children.

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
We are one int he Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
And we pray that all unity will one day be restored.
Chorus: And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love*.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, flow through us so that your love is seen and felt by all we encounter. Amen.

First verse and Chorus of They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love by Peter Scholtes see at https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/7599366

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.