Friday, December 4, 2020
The men replied, “We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.” Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.
Acts 10:22-23
In the scripture we’re told that Peter is approached on behalf of a Roman, gentile centurion. Peter welcomes the guests. We’re further told that this man is righteous and respected.
Fortunately, these characteristics are not required to be welcomed by Jesus’ followers.
Each of us may not have been guided by a holy angel to seek out Jesus, but we are fortunate to have been invited with welcoming, open arms to learn and meet Jesus at Trinity. We are fortunate to have found inside these doors a loving, Jesus-led people who are eager to share all that they can about Jesus with us, through scripture, through worship, and through daily living.
Yes, we gentiles at Trinity are most fortunate that God’s gift of Jesus is not limited to God’s chosen people. We are fortunate that this gift is given specifically to each one of us regardless of gender, of color, of ethnic origin, or of nationality. And we are fortunate that there is no limited time during which we can accept God’s gift of Christ; nor is there a limit to the numbers who can accept His gift. All are children of God and all are welcome!
So each year, during Advent, we at Trinity are given the opportunity to prepare anew to accept God’s gift and to open our doors to invite others in that we may share the gift, whether or not they have been visited by a holy angel directing them to seek out God’s gift of Jesus.
Dorothy Woodford