Overcomers 3/21/21

This week we will look at a few short verses with a huge question for all of us.  Acts 11:1-3 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.” 

 When Peter returned he was confronted with the issue of circumcision and the traditional separation of Jews from Gentiles.  To some this was more important than the actual expansion of the Kingdom even though the message came in a vision.  God was actually being thwarted by opinions and attitudes in culture and societal differences.  Sound familiar?  Our personalities and character traits often refuse the reality and importance of our temptations.  Do we get hung up on our desires and what we want vs what God has in mind for us?  Do we approach recovery by starting with resistance to change?  We need to be ready to change our thought process, emotional responses, physical environments and spiritual commitment to righteousness God intends for us.  We cannot allow ourselves to be held captive by our past experiences but embrace recovery as a total rebuild just as God generated a new view of God and salvation with a simple visit by Peter to the house of Cornelius.  Let’s get about building the new you.