Sometimes all you need is a little bit of clear direction . . . and a not so clear threat of consequences . . . to get you going. I once had a boss who made it pretty clear that “the train had left the station” and “if you weren’t on the train then you were going to be under it!” Ok, maybe lacked a bit in sensitivity training, but he got the message across pretty well, “Don’t get in the way of what we’re doing!” It came to mind this morning as I was reading another wise man conclude, “Who was I that I could stand in God’s way?”

The thought of standing in God’s way is kind of ridiculous. Using my old bosses picture, it’s like going head to head with a locomotive. It’s like opening up an umbrella to hold back an avalanche. It’s like building a sand wall to restrain the ocean’s tide. Just can’t be done . . . no way to “win” . . . and yet, though with good intentions, I wonder if sometimes we don’t find ourselves standing in God’s way.

Acts 10 is pivotal in the history of the church. Talk about your “thinking outside the box!” So far, the church was essentially comprised of converted Jews . . . those who, through the calling of God and the revelation of the Spirit, believed that Jesus was the risen Christ, the promised Messiah. They were those who had responded to the light of God’s Anointed coming first as a suffering Savior and had received by the faith the promise of sins forgiven through Jesus’ finished work on the cross. They were the direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob . . . possessors of the promises of God. As such, while they might have believed that through Abraham there might be a blessing for all nations (aka the Gentiles) they weren’t prepared to rub shoulders with them.

Enter Cornelius, “a centurion of what known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God” (10:1-2) aka “a Gentile”. Though “alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and a stranger to the covenants and promises” (Eph. 2:12), God, by His grace, had planted a seed of faith in this man . . . had awakened within him a fear of the God of Israel which, in turn, manifested itself in righteous pursuits and active prayer. And through this foreigner, God was about to shake the foundations of the young and growing body of Christ.

Enter Peter . . . you gotta’ love Peter! Praying Peter who falls into a trance . . . and sees heaven opened up . . . and a “wild game banquet” laid out before him . . . and when told by the Lord of heaven to “Rise, kill and eat”, responds only as Peter could, “By no means, Lord!” (10:9-14) Really? Saying “no” and “Lord” in the same sentence? Yeah, really . . . but that’s a whole different lesson and application. Bottom line . . . Peter is taught not to call “unclean” that which God has made clean . . . and is then told by the Spirit to go to Cornelius’ house (Jews don’t do Gentile parties) . . . where Peter preaches the word . . . the Gentiles receive the word . . . the Spirit descends just as He did at Pentecost.

But when word gets back to “the circumcision party”, they criticize Peter because he “went to uncircumcised men and ate with them” (11:1-3). Peter’s response in a nutshell? . . .

“If then God gave the same gift to them as He gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” (Acts 11:17 ESV)

And it’s got me thinking. For all I think I know about God . . . and about how I think the gospel works . . . and doesn’t work . . . and how I think church should be done . . . and how it shouldn’t be done . . . I wonder if, sometimes, I don’t try to hold back an avalanche with an umbrella . . . instead of being open to God working in ways outside my comfort zone. I’m not talking about going extra-biblical . . . but perhaps about being just a bit surprised by a God who is so much bigger than the theological box I’m tempted to try and put Him in. About listening and watching more . . . and concluding less. About being mindful of the possibility of standing in God’s way . . . and instead, wanting to be quicker to fall silent and glorify a God who does it His way (11:18).