A Barrier Breaking God

There’s a riddle that asks: “If God is all-powerful, than can God create a rock boulder that is so large and heavy that even He could not lift it?”  The knee-jerk response is to say: “Yes, of course!  God can do anything.  Surely God can create a rock that is so large and heavy that even He could not lift it?”  But if God can do anything, then how could God not lift the large boulder of his own making?  It’s an interesting conundrum.  It’s fun to contemplate.  It raises a good question: Does God have limits?

What we absolutely do know about God is that you cannot put God in a box.  Just when you think you have God all figured out, God does something to surprise you.  Take the early Christian Church, for example.  The Jewish Christians believed they were the center of God’s working in the world.  The Israelites believed they were God’s only chosen people.  They could not imagine God working in anybody other than in their own kind.  Yet, God proved them wrong over and over again.

Sunday’s passage is about one of those times when God stepped “out of the box” which early believers had created for him.  Through the encounter of God with Cornelius and Peter in Acts 10, and in their ensuing encounter with one another, we discover that God is not limited by racial, ethnic, social, or even theological barriers.  God, by His Spirit, is wild and free to waft and work wherever He wills and in whomever He calls.  It’s a message of hope and encouragement for all peoples!

Please join us at the service of your choice.  Traditional worship begins at 9:00 AM.  Contemporary worship begins at 10:45 AM.  Both services feature the same biblical message, heart-felt worship, warm friends, and the healing presence of the Holy Spirit moving in our midst.  A nursery and Busy Bags are available for children.  Refreshments will be served between services.  All are welcome.  Newcomers are expected.  Mothers will be celebrated.  And you will leave refreshed and uplifted!