Back to Acts and paradigms

I feel a bit like saying, "and when we last saw our intrepid travelers . . ."
It is has been a while since I wrote, and in that interim I meandered off the path of thought ~ so let me recap and regroup. My last series of related blogs were about Barnabas and the effect of the paradigm held in the days of the infant church at the time of the conversion of Saul/Paul and the dispersion of the church because of persecution.
so...
1) We know that the paradigm of that season was that God was the God of the Jews. Salvation meant not merely establishment and/or restoration of a personal relationship with God, it meant becoming part of the Jewish community which in the minds of the community was the intended Kingdom of the Kingdom of God. The Jews were God's people, and to be saved meant first to be Jewish...and then to have relationship with God.

but

2) We know God wanted to change that paradigm. The first clue for me is the discussion the disciples have with Jesus just before Jesus ascends to heaven.

So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in the Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:6-8  NIV

Jesus will not explain nor address the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel. That was not the point any longer, but the disciples had no concept of a salvation that did not include a national salvation ... Rome's control gone and a righteous king ruling the nation of Israel.

So ~ fade out   .    .    .    fade in ~

Peter has become a very significant powerful leader in the church ~ lots of miracles happen, he does lots and lots of traveling. One day he is staying at the home of someone called Simon the tanner in Joppa, a city on the coast of Israel about 40 miles from Jerusalem, as the crow flies. Peter is up on the roof or the house "having his devotions" while he waits for lunch. He is hungry. I love how God uses EVERYTHING. Peter goes into a trance and sees a vision: a sheet is lowered from heaven to earth and it is full of animals, and birds and reptiles. Then God speaks to Peter and says, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." There is only one problem and it is a very very very big problem: all the animals and all the birds and all the reptiles in the sheet are unclean animals. Now imagine being really hungry, you are ready to eat. You have been smelling the wonderful scents of roasting chicken, and fresh baked bread for about an hour. Someone places a covered dish in front of you and says, "Eat up!" You lift the cover and there is a dish of slimy worms, fish eyes, uncooked cow intestines, lizard heads and ... oh, maybe some chicken brain. Gross enough for you? It would have been bad enough if you were not really hungry, but you expect fresh bread slathered with melting butter ... and you get chicken brain and lizard heads. It was even worse for Peter because these were unclean animals. He had never eaten unclean animals -- he was Jewish. Not only was it gross, it was WRONG. Now Peter had walked with Jesus for 3 years and Jesus had been an 'in your face, let me confront every preconceived idea you ever had' teacher. Peter knew God was up to something...Jesus had a way of making a point with shock-value events. And, remember Peter had blown it big time when Jesus was on trial and on his way to crucifixion. Peter had denied Jesus -- denied he even knew him -- when asked by a little slip of a servant girl if he was one of the followers of Jesus. Was this a test of Peter's resolve? Would he give in to things that were "unclean" just because he was "hungry"? Was this like when the devil tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread just to satisfy his hunger when he was fasting in the wilderness? Peter gives a response that I am sure he thought was right and that would get God's complete approval and applause. "Surely not, Lord...I have never eaten anything impure or unclean!" God responds with a mind blowing statement: "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." This happens 2 more times. Peter did not get it! But he knew that to say something 3 times made it a superlative: like good, better, best. It was like making it bold face, and underlined with exclamation points after it. Right then very unexpected visitors come to the house to see Peter. God tells him, 'three men are here looking for you -- do not hesitate to go with them.' WHAT??? Then he finds out why God has done this weird unclean animals thing ~ these men are from the home of a Roman Centurion who wants Peter to come to his house and talk to him about Jesus. God has been REALLY busy. Way up in Caesarea -- a city that was a ROMAN port, about 40 miles away, God has sent an angel to talk to a Roman Centurion who was one of Italian Regiment. He is not just any Roman, he is a famous warrior, a man of renowned and authority in the Roman Army. The angel tell Cornelius to send for Peter, tells him where he will be -- and Cornelius believes the angel. Now, Jews DID NOT go into the home of Romans. If food was unclean -- Romans were pagan, idol worshiping filth. But God had made a HUGE point, so Peter went. And...sure enough, the Romans get saved. And again, God makes a HUGE point: while Peter is preaching -- before he can give any type invitation -- God fills all the people in Cornelius's house with the Holy Spirit and they begin to speak in tongues. I am sure God did this cuz Peter would have gotten it wrong. He would have insisted that FIRST all the Romans become Jews ~ circumcision! God cut straight to the chase. Peter and the crew are baffled but they kind-of get it. They say 'well I guess we can let them get baptised in water since God has already baptised them in the Holy Spirit.' Again you know God's point is to enact a paradigm shift because when Peter and his crew get back to Jerusalem, the church there does NOT greet them with, "Yeah!!! A whole bunch of Romans got saved!!!" They are in their face for going into a Roman's house -- unclean, unclean unclean. When Peter recounts the whole story the church rejoices, but they still miss God's bigger point.

Again . . . fade out    .    .    .    fade in.

The church continues to grow. All the Christians who 'leave Dodge' when the persecution gets too hot in Jerusalem, of course spread the gospel where ever they go -- spread it to all the Jewish communities where ever they go. But then the unthinkable happens ...


 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews.  Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.  News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.
Acts 11:19-23   NIV

WHAT??! Greeks? Scripture doesn't say, but it sure sounds like the leaders in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to find out what was up because surely Greeks weren't really saved. Maybe they sent him up to stop what ever foolishness was going on. Again, remember Barnabas is a man of such integrity that at his word the disciples and leaders in Jerusalem had accepted that Paul's salvation was real and agreed that they would trust Paul and meet with him. So Barnabas goes up to check things out in Antioch -- and the beginning of a REAL paradigm shift is about to happen.

Comments

  1. He would have insisted that FIRST all the Romans become Jews ~ circumcision! God cut straight to the chase. "God cut straight . . ." Circumcision? You intended this, right? Funny, you are.

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