By Bill Lamar
“No” is a monosyllabic word that packs a powerful punch. In many American churches a theology of “no” seems to reign. We are bombarded by messages of what we should not do and what we should not think. We are also told, implicitly and explicitly, to shun certain people deemed unworthy of the love of God.
In today’s text we find a God hell-bent on obliterating the theology of “no.” We encounter Cornelius, a leader of the military complex that oppressed Jewish folk in the interest of Roman imperialism. But the text calls him a good man. He had not become a Jew, but he worshiped God, prayed regularly, and assisted the poor. He was a Gentile and an oppressor. A perfect candidate for a big, fat “no.” But God said “yes” to Cornelius through an angelic visitation.
Peter was a faithful Jew who had kept kosher all of his life. As his stomach growled at noon, Peter succumbed to a trance. A huge blanket descended from the sky teeming with every sort of unclean animal, reptile, and bird. Three times God told Peter to kill and eat what the lips of his ancestors had never touched. Peter’s response was “no.” But God said “yes.” The things that were once considered untouchable must now be embraced. God said yes!
Luke connects Peter’s transformation to Cornelius’s need for full salvation, complete acceptance by God. The Holy Spirit ratified God’s theology of “yes” and poured gifts on Cornelius and his family and friends, and they were baptized. God moved beyond religion’s “no” to certain foods and certain people.
- Where is God obliterating the theology of “no” in your city and in the world? Where is God poking and prodding us to scream “yes”?
- How have you and those whom you love been wounded by the church’s theology of “no”? How is the theology of “no” crippling our ability to embody the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ?
- Are we willing to echo God’s “yes” in the face of the church’s “no”?
- Who are the people in your home, your family, and your community who await God’s “yes” with bated breath?
Prayer: God, thank you for always expanding your reign. Thank you for saying “yes” to the world and her people. Thank you for saying “yes” to us. Amen.
