Are You Common or Unclean

For the past couple of weeks my spirit has been filled with the need to discuss people seeing themselves or being treated as common, irrelevant, not as important as others, or we can say common or unclean. Well God wants you to know that you are not common and you are relevant; please know that you are most relevant to Almighty God, creator of the heavens and the earth, the inspirator of all things in the earth. You are so loved!

As I was reading the word of God today, I read these words and they connected with my spirit and I knew what it was that I needed to share about this issue. Here is the scripture:

Acts 10:25-28 (NKJV): As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter lifted him up, saying "Stand up; I myself am also a man. And as he talked with him, he went in and found many who had come together. Then he said to them, You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. Therefore I cam without objection as soon as I was sent for. I ask, then for what reason have you sent for me?"

First God does not want you worshiping any human being, only God, who is the maker of every human spirit and giver of life. Second, God does not call you unclean or common! Why would God speak such things over anyone, when He sacrificed so much so that we could become His. That priceless gift was His only Son, who allowed Himself to be murdered on the cross so that we could accept His (Jesus) gift of righteousness, without any works of our own. There is nothing that we can give, no one who can get us eternal life through a back door, the only way to righteousness and eternal life is by accepting God's Son, Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Even before you understand salvation, and accept what Christ has done for you, God still sees you as precious and not common or unclean. You have to understand that God took the time to form every part of you, before you were ever in your mother's womb, God knew you! No my friend, you are NOT common. So stop letting people treat you like you are common, you are precious and invaluable! It does not matter if you are rich, middle class or poor...you were always meant to be a rare jewel! When someone tries to treat you as common or irrelevant, just know that it's because they don't understand their own value, and therefore can easily belittle your value. Don't hate anyone, but know in your heart, and speak out of your mouth how valuable you are. You don't have to shove it in anyone's face, but in your heart and mind, stand confident in the knowledge that you are God's most valuable possession and treat yourself as such! Now let's continue reading more of the afore mentioned scripture in Acts:

ACTS 10:30-35 (NKJV): So Cornelius said, "Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing, "and said, 'Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your alms are remembered in the sight of God. 'Send therefore to Joppa and call Simon here, whose surname is Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea. When he comes, he will speak to you.' "So I sent to you immediately, and you have done well to come. Now therefore, we are all present before God, to hear all the things commanded you by God." Then Peter opened his mouth and said: "In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. "But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him."

Cornelius was not Jewish, so what if Peter had treated him with prejudice and disregarded him because Cornelius was not of Peter's class? Peter did not know Cornelius, just like we do not know people we cross paths with, or someone that we may see everyday, and still do not know them. Do we treat that person with disregard, as irrelevant, someone that we can talk down to or treat disrespectfully? I can't emphasize enough, that we should concern ourselves with how we treat others (believers and non-believers) who are not emotionally tied to us, who are deemed as irrelevant, below your stature, common or unclean because God is not pleased!

You see my friend, God shows no partiality, it is men who create clicks, groups, favoritism, and the such, it is not of God. Of course it is natural to want the best for your friends, family and associates; but the problem is manifested when we begin to ignore the value of others because it may conflict with someone who is close to you, or simply because you are in a position to disregard them. Or maybe someone is not connected with the 'in crowd," so they are treated callously and with cruelty. This should not be, we should not sit by while others are mistreated, God is not pleased. Just because God allows it to go on, does not mean that it is acceptable. God is calling us all higher in how we treat others, especially those considered of non-importance, believers of Christ and non-believers. Let's look at the beginning of the same chapter in Acts:

Acts 10:1-4 (NKJV): There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, "Cornelius!" And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, "What is it, lord?" So he said to him, "Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God."

In this scripture 10:1-2, God is showing us that He (God) is listening to, and observing what we do. For those of you, who like Cornelius, pray and fast, your love and devotion to God is not going unnoticed by Him, your worship of Jesus, your gratitude to Jesus for dying on the cross for you is most precious in the eyes of God. Not only did Cornelius believe in God, but his entire household, and that is saying something. Cornelius did not become a devout man who feared God over night, but it was what he continued to do, day by day, that brought him to this place in his relationship with God. Regardless of where you are at in your walk with God, a new believer, or a grounded mature disciple of Christ, do not stop seeking God's face. Your love of God, your devotion to Jesus and your belief in the kingdom of God is not pointless, but it is the most valuable thing that you possess on this earth. As the bible says in, Galatians 9:6, "let us not grow weary in well doing..." I know you see other believers living however they please, and it seems that you are wasting your time, but you are not! We will all be rewarded in this lifetime and eternity based on what we gave our attention to. No one may see the intimate relationship that you have developed with God, but like Cornelius, what you do in secret will be rewarded by Almighty God. Do not look to men for affirmation, keep your eyes and devotion on our Lord Jesus! The final scripture in Acts chapter 10 that we will read, is shared by Peter, and is as follows:

Acts 10:36:43 (NKJV): The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ--He is Lord of all--"that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: "how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. "And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly, "not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. "And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. "To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins."

These words are the proof of your value to God, never again see yourself as invaluable or worthless in your own eyes, or in the eyes of others. My friend, you never know who is watching how you are being treated with cruelty, and quietly praying for you, or even standing up for you. If you are a believer in Christ or a non-believer, know this, that you are loved, valuable, and you matter! Be blessed and receive God's love! Like and share if you were encouraged by this, and thank you!

By Alva Williams

02/15/2021