Acts 2:38-39 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

What an absolutely magnificent statement of the Gospel! Peter himself didn’t understand all the ramifications of the words he spoke, and God later had to give him a vision to make him willing to share the Gospel with Cornelius and his household. (Acts 10) This sort of thing is one of the proofs that prophecy is real, that God puts words in our mouth that we ourselves don’t understand at the time. In that way, it’s a lot like the gift of tongues. However, with prophecy we think we understand what we’re saying, but God may well show us later that there was much deeper meaning to it. I don’t know who Peter thought he was talking about when he said, “all who are far off,” but he certainly didn’t realize he was talking about Gentiles! We do need to pay close attention to what Peter says here. The first thing he says is that people are to repent. His immediate hearers probably had a pretty good understanding of the term, but that’s not always the case. The Japanese term is literally, “regret and start over,” which is pretty clear, but the English word isn’t so easy to get a handle on. We may say, and honestly think, that we have repented, but if our behavior doesn’t change, we haven’t. We do need God’s help to accomplish repentance, but if we honestly want to, He will certainly help us.

I have had times of genuine repentance, and times when I thought I had repented but obviously hadn’t. I know this issue from all sides! As a missionary pastor I certainly desire to lead others into repentance, but dumping a guilt trip on them is seldom the best way to do it, though that’s essentially what Peter did here. I am always to speak the truth in love, even if the truth makes people uncomfortable, but the love must be real or the truth will be rejected. Yesterday one relationship issue was cleared up beautifully, but another came crashing down on me, and I’m seeking the Lord’s resolution to it. I am certainly not perfect, but in this situation, I honestly don’t know that what I did was wrong. It was evident to many people that I was deeply hurt, and I received words of comfort and encouragement, but I still need to deal directly with the other party. I must not be defensive, but let Christ be my defense. We are all very complex beings, and God is the only One who can straighten us out.

Father, thank You for all You allow us to experience, including the abdominal pain that kept me from getting much sleep last night. I pray that Your purposes in allowing it would be fulfilled, and promptly, so that I may be freed from the pain, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!