God is no respecter of persons; we can all be accepted by Him.
In Acts 10:34-35 it reads:
34 ¶ Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:
35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
When I was younger and first read this scripture I think like many I misunderstood it. To think that God is no respecter of persons sounded like a bad thing. I was taught of course to respect others, so it sounded strange that God was not a respecter. In Lesson 30 of the New Testament Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual, we learn that really this means God will provide every person with the opportunity to receive the blessings available through the plan of salvation. By saying that God is “no respecter of persons” it is really saying that God loves us all and therefore accepts us all equally as we do our part.
This is made clear also with Acts 15:9, which reads:
9 And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
If we keep the commandments and stand by the covenants we made, God will not save some of us but not others. He loves us all. Maybe I should work on not being a “respecter of persons”; although I think that would probably end up having a negative affect.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
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2 comments:
Catherine, I think this is really insightful. Sometimes I think it's easy to get trapped in the idea that we are God's chosen, and thus favorite, children. We are His children who are exposed to the gospel, which gives us greater responsibility to share it to His other children, who he loves just as much.
This scripture has always given me hope that I don’t have to be an Alma, a Paul, or a Captain Moroni. God loves us for the effort that we put in. Who knows maybe I have better church attendance then Captain Moroni. Just be the best self you can be.
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