“IT’S OKAY NOT TO LIKE SOMEONE”

ACTS 4:1-18

4:1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,

2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.

5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem,

6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family.

7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?”

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders,

9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed,

10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.

11 This Jesus [1] is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. [2]

12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.

15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.”

18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

What do you do when you’re having problems with a relationship?  One thing you could do is take a close look at the conversation that Peter had with the high priest.  I think it’s safe to say that Peter and the high priest weren’t the best of friends.  That shouldn’t come as a big surprise.  After all the high priest is the one who had Peter arrested and Peter is the one who basically told the high priest that he was a stubborn old fool.  Peter did that when he told the high priest that if he didn’t accept Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior he could forget about spending the rest of eternity in heaven. As far as Peter was concerned Jesus is the only way you can get to heaven and there “is no other name under heaven…by which we must be saved.”

Oh my goodness!  What Peter said that day didn’t make him very popular with the high priest.  What Peter said that day also wouldn’t make him very popular with a lot of people today. That’s because you’re not supposed to say things like that in our pluralistic politically correct society.  We live in a society where you’re not supposed to say anything that might offend someone else.  You can see that in a poem that someone sent me just before Christmas.  The poem has a nice ending but it begins with a little humor.  It goes like this:

It’s the night before Christmas and poor Santa’s a wreck.

How to live in a world that’s politically correct?

His workers no longer would answer to Elves.

“Vertically Challenged” the little ones were calling themselves.

And labor conditions at the northern most pole

Were alleged by the union to stifle the soul.

Four reindeer had vanished, without much propriety.

Released to the wilds by the Humane Society.

And to show you the strangeness of life’s ebbs and its flows,

Rudolf was now suing him over the use of his nose.

And appeared on Geraldo in front of the nation,

Demanding millions for him in overdue compensation.

And as for the gifts, why, he never had a notion

That making a list could cause such a commotion.

Gifts of leather were out along with the furs

Which meant nothing for him and nothing for her.

Nothing that might be construed to pollute.

Nothing to aim and nothing to shoot.

Nothing that clamored or made lots of noise.

Nothing for girls only or just for the boys.

Dolls with were now sexist and passé.

While Nintendo they said would make your brain rot away.

So Santa just stood there disheveled…perplexed.

He had not a clue about what to do next.

Something special was needed, a gift that he might

Give without angering the left or the right.

A gift that would satisfy…with no indecision

People of every single race creed and religion.

So here is that gift, it’s price beyond worth…

May you and your loved ones enjoy peace on this earth.

When you look at it that way there’s no doubt about it. Peter wasn’t being politically correct when he told the high priest that Jesus Christ is the only name under heaven by which we must be saved.  Peter wasn’t being politically correct that day but he was being honest.  He was honest about who he really was and what he really believed.

Do you do that when it comes to your relationships?  Are you honest about who you really are and what you really believe? Do you see people around you doing that when it comes to their relationships?  Are they honest about who they really are and what they really believe?  It doesn’t always happen.  That’s because the temptation is always there to pretend a little.  The temptation is always there to be the person you think someone else wants you to be.  Sometimes you do that so life will be a little easier.  Sometimes you do it so you’ll be loved.  Sometimes you’ll do it so you’ll be accepted.

Couples do that from time to time when they’re dating.  You can see it in a love letter that a young man wrote to the woman who was the love of his life.  He ended his letter with a bold expression of his love.  “My darling,” he wrote..

I’d climb the highest mountain for you.

I’d swim across the deepest ocean to be with you.

I’d stare down a hundred lions to make sure you’re safe.

P.S. I’ll be over to see you Friday night if it isn’t raining.

It isn’t just couples who aren’t always honest about who they really are and what they really believe. Sometimes you do it to get ahead in the business world.  Sometimes you do it so you’ll look good to the neighbors. 

Peter will tell you, however, that when you do that love is just a game.  Peter didn’t do that with the high priest.  He was honest about who he really was and what he really believed and because he did that he and the high priest went their separate ways. When you do what Peter did it means that some relationships are going to come to an end and that’s okay.  It’s okay because love doesn’t mean you have to like everyone and that everyone has to like you.  It’s also okay because it means you can move on with your life and make room for relationships that are healthy, helpful, healing and holy. You can see that kind of relationship in the story about the man with two umbrellas.

The story was one of Dr. Gordon Torgeson’s favorites.  Dr. Torgeson was the president of Andover-Newton Theological School when I went there back in the early 1980’s.  Many years earlier while crossing the Atlantic on a ship Dr. Torgeson noticed a dark skinned man who was reading his Bible.  Every day he saw the man sitting in a deck chair reading his Bible. So, one day Dr. Torgeson sat down next to him.  “Forgive my curiosity,” he said, “I’m a Baptist minister.  I notice you are a faithful Bible reader.”  The man smiled.  “I am Filipino,” he said.  “I was born into a good Catholic home.  I went to the United States as a young man to study in one of your fine universities, intending to become a lawyer.  On my first day on campus, a student dropped by to visit.  He welcomed me and offered to help in any way he could.  Then he asked me where I went to church.  I  told him I was Catholic.  He explained that the Catholic church was quite a distance away, but he sat down and drew me a map.  I thanked him and he left.”  The man continued with his story and said, “the following Sunday morning it was raining.  I decided to just skip church.  But then there was a knock on my door. There stood my new friend and he was holding two umbrellas. He said that he worried that I might not be able to read his map. So, he said he would escort me to the Catholic church. I hurriedly dressed, thinking all the while what an unusually thoughtful person he was. I wondered what church he belonged to. As we walked along I asked him about his church. He said that his church was just around the corner. So, I suggested that we go to his church this Sunday, and then to mine the following Sunday. He agreed. But somehow I felt so much at home in his church that I never got around to finding mine…”

God’s grace flourishes when you’re honest about who you really are and what you really believe and when you let others be honest about who they really are and what they really believe. Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

May 3, 2009