Central Truth

It is not just about receiving the free gift of salvation. We must find the balance through faith as we live it.

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Reflections

Each of us goes through spiritual passages. Often, I feel I must dutifully follow the letter of the law to serve the Lord. If I follow the Ten Commandments, if I go to Church, if I help a friend, if I serve someone else, I am doing what the Lord wants me to do. Follow, go, help, serve, do. But can I ever do this enough? No, I cannot. I will always come up short, and often I will go in the opposite direction. There must be more.

In today’s reading, Peter gives a speech in Solomon’s Porch just after the healing of the crippled beggar. The people at that place are in awe of what has just occurred. They are trying to come to grips with what has just happened. Did the apostles perform the miracle? Is it because the apostles were dutiful to God? Peter says no. The beggar was raised from the dead by faith.

Peter admonishes his Jewish people that they had taken Jesus’ life. He does not want them to forget that they had failed to recognize Him.  But he offers hope:  God raised Jesus from the dead. Even this was part of the Plan. Jesus is the giver of life and the restorer of faith. In the end, Jesus will return and restore all things. Peter implores his listeners to repent, renounce and reorient so they may enjoy the presence of the Lord. Why? Their slate will be cleaned, their lives spiritually energized, and their future guaranteed. Peter implores them to repent and turn toward God or risk separation. This applies to all of us; we must repent and turn toward Him.

In Jesus’ economy, it is all about humble dependence through prayer and faith. We have received a free gift of physical life, but with any free gift comes responsibility. We must live righteously with the free gift we have been given. We must restore our spiritual life through faith. We balance love and duty in the process. We are dead on this earth until we are raised from the dead by faith.

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Discussion Questions

1. What does “Repent” mean to you? The word “turn” comes to mind.  Turn around, turn back, turn away. Our charge is to figure out to what and to who to turn.

2. Do you ever do something out of duty instead of love? It may be difficult, but we must strive for doing something because we want to do it. At some point we move beyond the "have to" to the "want to".

3. Is the enormity of the free gift of salvation sometimes hard to comprehend? Getting our arms around this empowers us to love more completely.

4. Is there more responsibility you feel with a free gift? In worldly terms, there really is no free gift. However, in a spiritual context, we must be ever grateful for what has been given to us.

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