In preparation for our church’s prayer retreat this weekend I am reading through Acts. When I come to Acts 10, I pray through this scenario and ask challenging questions. I will never forget several years ago working my way through this passage and asking, “Lord, what segment of our society today would be like the Gentiles?”

In Peter’s day, the church is Jewish and it’s an impossibility to them that God would reach out to a Gentile (well, without that person becoming a Jew first). So, for Peter to go to Cornelius and see what God would do in that household is a jaw-dropping experience. For Peter to witness an entire household of Gentiles coming to salvation caused quite a stir. Peter even had to answer for this actions in Acts 11.

Thinking of that absolute shock, I asked the Lord, “What segment of our society would do that for the Church today? If that segment began to call out on the name of the Lord and the power of the Spirit was evident in them it would cause the American church’s jaw to drop to floor.”

What would absolutely shock is to the point of finally saying, “Oh, yeah! Salvation is possible for everyone!”