Acts 11:1-30
Peter, by the leading and direction of the Holy Spirit, has broken new ground by his preaching and sharing the Gospel with people who weren't Jews (that would be Cornelius and company back in Acts 10). Now you know how people are. Somehow the word about Peter's actions gets out and back to the church in Jerusalem. So when Peter returns, he is confronted and criticized by certain members. But you know Peter, he takes it right in stride and turns a tense situation into an opportunity to show these Jewish church members that God's plan is for salvation to be available to everyone.
So what does Acts 11:1-30 show us about reaching out to others for Christ? How about what to expect when we try something different or a new approach as we work for the Lord? Tami W.
I would definitely say that this excerpt in Acts clearly shows that we are incapeable of "saving" anyone (or even "saving" ourselves) without reliance on Christ. Verse 19 points out that because of the persecution taking place --in an attempt to snuff out the Gospel -- the Gospel ended up being spread everywhere. It's most surprising to me that in verse 21, the Christians in Antioch only preached to Jews at first, but God opened them up to reaching out to the Gentiles as well. Those Christians thought they were doing well on their own, but enter in the "power of the Lord" (verse 21) and a "large number of these Gentiles turned to the Lord." (verse 21). It's comforting to me because even if I think I'm following God's will on a particular track, He can still use me in that place for His glory...though I may have least expected it.