Acts of the Apostles, chapter 10:34-35

A certain Bostonian was seeking employment in a Chicago bank. The bank asked him to get a letter of recommendation from the Boston investment house. The Boston investment house could not praise the young man enough. His father was a knight of the knights of Malta and his mother was a distinguished lady. His grandparents and great-grandparents were a blend of Boston’s first families. The recommendation was given without hesitation. A few days later, the Chicago bank sent a note saying the information supplied was altogether inadequate. It read: “We are not contemplating using the young man for breeding purposes. Just for work.”

Neither is God a respecter of persons. His son Jesus, broke down the barriers separating people and made his salvation available to all mankind: high and low; rich and poor.

The criterion for belonging to God’s people in the Old Testament was natural birth. In the New Testament, Jesus changed all that. Now, God has no preference for one nation over others. Jesus levels the playing field of salvation. In baptism we choose to become children of God, equally loved by God as were the children of Israel: the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. What happens after that depends on how much we love God and do what is right in His sight.

That message of Jesus spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced (Matthew 3:13-17). This message broke down the barriers between Jews and Gentiles; and between all opposing segments of the human family. As Christians who are privileged to spread this message, we should be glad to understand its ongoing practical implications, and to live it out in our daily lives. It is not enough simply to count ourselves as children of God; we should endeavor to know and live by this message that Jesus addresses to us every day, in every circumstance, and with whomever we encounter.

We are anointed in baptism with the Holy Spirit and with power so that we can go about doing well and healing all who are oppressed. Our anointing is not a reward; it is a commission. We are commissioned to be Christ’s arms, feet, ears and mouth. We become an extension of Christ in the world. That is a daunting task. God is with us as He was with Jesus, so we need not fear the enormity of the challenge before us.

With God all things are possible.

Fr. Hugh Duffy