God Redefines Belonging | Cross Culture

Hello, and welcome to this week's episode of

Trinity Sermons. This week we are wrapping up

our sermon series, Cross Culture, where we are

looking at God's plan for an intercultural church.

What does it mean for us to be a diverse group

of people who are all part of God's family together?

And today we are also welcoming a guest preacher,

Dorothy Pang, who is the director of the Tyndale

Intercultural Ministry Center. And Dorothy brings

lots of experience in law and business and executive

leadership, but also her experience working with

churches and her own story as a Chinese Canadian.

Dorothy's going to share with us about Peter's

vision, where there is this whole cast of unclean

animals that Peter is asked to eat. But why?

And what does that have to do with the gospel

and with welcoming people from across cultures?

That's what we'll unpack in today's sermon. Good

morning everyone. Today's reading is from the

book of Acts, chapter 10, verses 9 to 48. Get

Acts 10:9–48

comfortable. About noon the following day, as

they were on their journey and approaching the

city, Peter went up to the roof to pray. He became

hungry and wanted something to eat. And while

the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

He saw heaven opened and something like a large

sheet being let down to earth by its four corners.

It contained all kinds of four -footed animals,

as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told

him, Get up, Peter, kill and eat. Surely not,

Lord, Peter replied. I have never eaten anything

impure or unclean. The voice spoke to him a second

time. Do not call anything impure that God has

made clean. This happened three times and immediately

the sheet was taken back to heaven. While Peter

was wondering about the meaning of the vision,

the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon's

house was and stopped at the gate. They called

out, asking if Simon, who was known as Peter,

was staying there. While Peter was still thinking

about the vision, the Spirit said to him, Simon,

three men are looking for you, so get up and

go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them,

for I have sent them. Peter went down and said

to the men, I'm the one you're looking for. Why

have you come? The men replied, we have come

from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous

and God -fearing man who is respected by all

the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask

you to come to his house so that he could hear

what you have to say. Then Peter invited the

men into the house to be his guests. The next

day Peter started out with them. and some of

the believers from Joppa came along. The following

day, he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting

them and had called together his relatives and

close friends. As Peter entered the house, Cornelius

met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But

Peter made him get up. Stand up, he said. I am

only a man myself. While talking with him, Peter

went inside and found a large gathering of people.

He said to them, You are well aware that it is

against our law for a Jew to associate with or

visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I

should not call anyone impure or unclean. So

when I was sent for, I came without raising any

objection. May I ask why you sent for me? Cornelius

answered, three days ago I was in my house praying

at this hour at three in the afternoon. Suddenly

a man in shining clothes stood before me and

said, Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and

remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Joppa

for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest

in the home of Simon the Tanner who lives by

the sea. So I sent for you immediately. and it

was good of you to come. Now we are all here

in the presence of God to listen to everything

the Lord has commanded you to tell us. Then Peter

began to speak. I now realize how true it is

that God does not show favoritism, but accepts

from every nation the one who fears him and does

what is right. You know the message God sent

to the people of Israel, announcing the good

news of peace through Jesus Christ, the Lord

of all, the Lord who is Lord of all. You know

what has happened through the province of Judea,

beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John

preached. How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth

with the Holy Spirit and power. and how he went

around doing good and healing all who were under

the power of the devil, because God was with

him. We are witnesses of everything he did in

the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They

killed him by hanging him on a cross, but God

raised him from the dead on the third day and

caused him to be seen. He was not seen by all

the people, but by witnesses whom God had already

chosen. by us who ate and drank with him after

he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach

to the people and to testify that he is the one

whom God appointed as judge of the living and

the dead. All the prophets testify about him

that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness

of sins through his name. While Peter was still

speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on

all who heard the message. The circumcised believers

who had come with Peter were astonished that

the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out

even on Gentiles. For they heard them speaking

in tongues and praising God. Then Peter said,

Surely no one can stand in the way of their being

baptized with water. They have received the Holy

Spirit just as we have. So he ordered that they

be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then

they asked Peter to stay with them for a few

days. The word of the Lord. Dorothy got back

to me right away and was so excited and enthusiastic

about the focus that we wanted to have for this

month. And I need to also let you know that just

this past Tuesday, Dorothy came and spent the

whole morning with our staff team and with a

bunch of lay leaders here at Trinity as well,

doing some really challenging but also really

transformative training with us. to experience

even a little hint of that this morning, then

you are going to be blessed indeed. So I am very

grateful and I am very excited to welcome Dorothy

with us once again. Would you put your hands

together and let's give Dorothy a very warm Trinity

welcome. Thank you. Well, good morning, everyone.

So, I was born and raised on the Canadian prairies

in Saskatchewan, of all places, and you would

think that I would not be fazed by the weather

that we're currently having in Toronto. But I'd

be lying to you, because I don't have that kind

of resilience anymore. My husband, on the other

hand, is currently in Winnipeg. He was born and

raised in Winnipeg, and this weekend happens

to be my mother -in -law's birthday. So Mike

texted me this morning and he said, it is minus

47 in Winnipeg this morning. So when I say I

am really glad to be here with all of you in

balmy Toronto, I sincerely mean it. So in case

my mother -in -law is watching though, hi mom,

happy birthday. Okay, so I want to begin by thanking

Pastor Rob for inviting me. I have been following

your series online over the last three weeks,

and it really is my privilege to be able to bring

the concluding message in this series. Pastor

Rob opened the series with a profound and timely

question. What does it mean for Trinity Streetsville

to be a church in one of the most diverse cities

in Canada? In week one, he took you on a fast

but sweeping flyover of the Bible, from Genesis

to Revelations, from bookend to bookend, showing

us that God's vision has always been for a diverse

humanity. Diversity was not an afterthought.

It was not a concession. It was God's intention.

It was by his design. Diversity was God's plan

A. Then in week two, Pastor Rob invited you into

the tension that was emerging as the gospel moved

beyond a Jewish -only movement to include the

Gentiles. As the people of God became more diverse,

questions of belonging surfaced. Circumcision

became an ethnic boundary marker deciding who

was in and who was out. Certain Jewish leaders

wanted the Gentiles to be circumcised just as

they were. There was a strong pull towards sameness,

a desire to erase cultural differences in order

to manage it, in order to control it, in order

to make it feel safe. A kind of gatekeeping mindset

set in, one that said, you are welcome here,

but you need to show your faithfulness. the same

way that we show our faithfulness. And I think

it's important that we pause and note here. The

ones feeling this pull to erase cultural differences,

it wasn't the newcomers. It wasn't the outsiders.

It was the insiders. The ones who already belonged.

The ones who already knew the rules. The ones

who grew up with the rules. The ones who are

now enforcing the rules. They were the ones on

the inside who felt safe on the inside and who

now felt disrupted because there were all these

newcomers coming in with different ways of being

and different ways of expressing their faith.

In effect, they were saying, you're welcome here,

but this is how we do things around here. So

the question is, How does Trinity Streetsville

respond when more and more newcomers come into

this faith community? How do we respond when

there are all these different ways of being and

understanding the world and expressing our faith?

Back to Jerusalem and the circumcision issue.

This question was eventually brought to the Jerusalem

Council. Should Gentiles be required to conform

to Jewish ways in order to belong? And that's

when Peter the Apostle stood up and said, quite

simply, no. He asked the council, why do you

try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles

a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have

been able to bear? And then he says something

truly extraordinary. He declares, no. We believe

it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that

we are saved, just as they are. With these words,

Peter recenters the entire conversation on Jesus.

While others were trying to manage the difference,

flatten the difference, Peter points towards

a new way of being a community together. While

some saw belonging as something to be granted

by the insiders to the outsiders, Peter named

something deeper. He names shared belonging.

Shared belonging that isn't rooted in sameness,

shared belonging that is rooted in Christ. Isn't

that what we all want for Trinity Streetsville?

That as a congregation grows, in diversity, as

it becomes a gathering of folks with more and

more different types of stories and backgrounds

and ways of expressing faith, that community

differences aren't erased here at Trinity Streetsville,

that this will be a community where belonging

doesn't have to be earned by the newcomers, a

community where, with Christ at the center, belonging

is shared. So if that is your heart, and if that

resonates with you, then the question becomes,

how? How do we live into that? How does Trinity

Streetsville become a community of shared belonging

with Christ at the center? Well, to explore that,

I want to take us back to Peter himself and his

own transformation, because Peter didn't arrive

at this insight overnight. His mindset was shaped,

challenged, and reformed by God. Peter's transformation

unfolds in Acts chapter 10. And this morning,

Acts 10 · chapter mention

I want to share with you a few reflections on

that story. Now, just so you know a little bit

about me, I am a storyteller. I am a practitioner.

I work with leaders who are navigating intercultural

spaces, helping them to develop mindsets and

skills to navigate those diversity differences.

But all of that work, everything that we do at

the Tim Center, it has to be grounded in a theological

conviction that through Jesus, we are reconciled

to God, and through Jesus, we are reconciled

to each other. With Jesus at the center, the

walls of separation are torn down. The differences,

the social categories, the cultural assumptions,

the barriers of race, class, and power, all of

that is torn down through Jesus. So, if you have

your Bibles, you can turn with me to Acts chapter

Acts 10 · chapter mention

10. Acts 10 takes place after some big moments.

Jesus has died, he's risen, he's ascended. The

Holy Spirit has come at Pentecost. The church

is growing, but it is still mainly a Jewish movement.

Peter is one of Jesus' closest followers. He

walked with Jesus, ate with him, failed in front

of him, and was restored by him. By Acts 10,

Peter is a respected leader in the early church,

moving along the coasts of Judea. And then God

disrupts him. God moves him into discomfort.

Peter's transformation begins in prayer. At that

start of the story, we find Peter in a very ordinary

moment. He's hungry. He's staying as a guest

in the home of a Jewish tanner. And it's noon,

and it's hot, and he's waiting for lunch to be

served. Peter's probably uncomfortable. And in

that discomfort, he chooses to pray. He goes

up to the rooftop where, if we're honest, it's

actually even more uncomfortable because now

he's even more hot and he's exposed. And yet

it is precisely in this ordinary, inconvenient,

uncomfortable moment that God opens the heavens.

Before we even get to the vision that Peter sees,

I want us to pause here. Peter is praying and

God speaks. Peter is praying, and God gives him

a vision. Peter's transformation begins not with

a plan, but with a prayer. It doesn't start with

a church strategy meeting about church growth.

It doesn't start with looking at the demographics,

at the changing demographics of our neighborhood.

It does not start with clever leadership or careful

planning. Peter's transformation begins when

he is driven by discomfort He drives them to

the rooftop to pray. So I want to ask you, what

discomfort is driving you to prayer right now?

What pain, division, fragmentation in our world,

or even in this church, what is stirring something

in you that sends you to the rooftop to pray?

What is making you uncomfortable? And perhaps

more importantly, what is that discomfort inviting

you to bring before God in prayer? So what is

this vision that Peter receives? Scripture tells

us that Peter falls into a trance. He sees, he

saw heaven opened and something like a large

sheet. being let down to earth by its four corners.

It contained all kinds of four -footed animals,

as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told

him, Get up, Peter, kill and eat. Surely not,

Lord, Peter replied. I have never eaten anything

impure or unclean. The voice spoke to him a second

time, Do not call anything impure that God has

made clean. This happened three times because

with Peter, of course, everything has to be done

three times. And then the sheet was taken back

up into heaven. Peter doesn't celebrate this

moment. One translation says that Peter is deeply

perplexed, troubled, confused, unsettled. And

that makes sense. The vision doesn't simply challenge

a preference. It disrupts Peter's categories

that he has lived with his entire life. His world

has been clearly divided. Jews, Gentiles, clean,

unclean, insider, outsider, us and them. Gentiles

weren't just different. They were considered

unclean, dangerous, spiritually suspect. Embedded

in Peter's understanding of the world was a deep

ethnocentric pride. This confidence that we are

clean and they are not. I want to take a brief

personal detour here about how I experienced

this passage. I am a Chinese -Canadian, born

and raised in Saskatchewan. When I read this

story, I'm taken back to my childhood. Growing

up in the 1970s in Saskatchewan, it was predominantly

Euro -Canadian. I remember classmates wrinkling

their noses at my lunch and saying, ew, what

is that? Or saying, that's weird. Or worse, ugh,

that's gross. This passage also brings to mind

the rise of anti -Asian hate during COVID and

the ways cultural practices around food from

different parts of the world How it's prepared,

how it's sold, how it's shared. These were judged

as dirty and dangerous. They were declared unclean.

I share this because none of us come to scripture

empty -handed. We all read the Bible through

our cultural lenses, through our lived experiences.

And that is precisely why we need to read scripture

together with people whose stories are different

from our own. We need other perspectives if we

are to more fully understand this multifaceted

God that we worship. Because now that you've

heard my story, when you hear God say, do not

call anything impure that I have made clean,

There's another layer to it, isn't there? I hope

there's another layer of understanding. God's

vision doesn't just challenge Peter's diet. It

disrupts how he understands purity, difference,

and belonging. The story continues with a knock

at the door. It is Cornelius' men, and that detail

matters because Cornelius is a Roman centurion.

an officer of the occupying power. To the Jews,

he represents the enemy, the oppressor. I can

imagine the tension in that household as the

door is opened. Fear, uncertainty, questions

in their minds. What could these Roman representatives

possibly want? Would someone be arrested? Would

there be consequences? Peter, too, must have

felt uncertain. accepting an invitation to a

Roman officer's house was no small thing. And

yet scripture tells us, the spirit said to him,

Simon, three men are looking for you, so get

up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with

them, for I have sent them. Out of obedience,

Peter goes. The next day, he sets out for Caesarea

to visit Cornelius' house. It's not a short journey.

It takes about a day. But it's also a profound

crossing of boundaries. Peter, a Jew, is about

to enter the house of a Gentile. There are deep

cultural, religious, and social implications

wrapped up in this moment. When Peter arrives,

he doesn't pretend everything is fine. He names

the tension out loud. You know, it's against

our law for a Jew to associate with or visit

a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should

not call anyone impure or unclean. Peter doesn't

sidestep the elephant in the room. He acknowledges

the discomfort. He admits the tension. And he

confesses that God has been correcting his thinking.

revealing biases he has probably never acknowledged

to himself, let alone acknowledge out loud. It

is God who exposes these blind spots. It is God

who reshapes Peter's thinking. And Peter comes

to an extraordinary insight. One, he is the first

among the apostles to articulate. In God's new

family, there is no racial divide. In God's new

family, there is diversity. In God's new family,

there is diversity, but that diversity does not

lead to division. Before we continue with the

story, I want you to notice something important.

Who moved? This matters for us at Trinity Streetsville.

In our modern churches, we often talk about welcoming

newcomers into our space. And that is good. It

is hospitable. And please keep doing that. Please

keep inviting your friends and neighbors to experience

this faith community. But we also need to recognize

something. When people come into our space, it

is still our space. We're the ones who are the

insiders. We're the ones who are comfortable

here. So what would it mean not just to welcome

people into our space, but to move into theirs?

To step outside the safety of these walls, to

cross boundaries, to encounter people who are

different from us on their terms and in their

space. Notice who bears the cost in this passage.

Cornelius doesn't cross the cultural boundary.

Peter does. Peter moves. Peter enters discomfort.

Peter takes the risk. The story continues. While

Peter is still speaking, the Holy Spirit falls

on the Gentiles. Does that sound familiar to

you? It echoes Acts chapter 2. It echoes Pentecost,

Acts 2 · chapter mention

when the Holy Spirit fell on the Jewish believers

gathered in Jerusalem, and they began to speak

in tongues. And I imagine that as the Spirit

moves in Cornelius' home, Peter is transported

back to that moment. Some have even called Acts

Acts 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10 the Gentile Pentecost. In this moment,

Peter's theology finally catches up with God's

activity. And he declares, I now realize how

true it is that God does not show favoritism,

but accepts from every nation the one who fears

him and does what is right. God doesn't merely

tolerate diversity. He welcomes it, he delights

in it, and he sends his Holy Spirit to confirm

it. Peter then does something profoundly relational.

He accepts Cornelius' invitation to stay. He

baptizes them, he eats with them, and he receives

hospitality from a Gentile. Later, Peter will

be criticized by his fellow Jews, not for preaching

to the Gentiles, but for eating with them. And

as I reflect on how this story ends, it strikes

me that while Peter may have gone to Cornelius'

house out of obedience, he stayed. because something

deeper had taken root. I'd like to think that

Peter lingered because he had grown to love them.

That is what reconciliation looks like. To be

reconciled to Christ is to be reconciled to one

another. With Christ at the center, walls of

separation are torn down. As a reconciled people

under Jesus, we move into discomfort. We hold

the tension of difference. we examine our biases,

and over time, we grow in love toward one another.

So as we come to a close, I want to leave you

with a few suggestions as you move towards shared

belonging here at Trinity Streetsville. First,

for you personally, and then for you as a church.

For you personally, think about your circle of

friends, the people you have meaningful interaction

with. The people you invite over for lunch or

for dinner. Who is missing from your circle of

friends? Who might the Holy Spirit be prompting

you to see that is missing from your table? Secondly,

think about the times you have entered into someone

else's space. Has it been a while? What would

it mean for you to leave your space of comfort

and move into someone else's space in order to

truly encounter the other? And lastly, where

might Jesus be gently confronting your biases?

I know it is really uncomfortable and even socially

unacceptable to admit we have biases. But the

truth is, we all have biases. They have been

socialized into us. They are deeply embedded

into our subconscious. And we need to take responsibility

for those biases. We need to become aware of

them and steward them responsibly. We cannot

change something if we are not willing to name

it. Search me, O God, and know my heart. See

if there is any offensive way in me and lead

me in the way everlasting. And then for you as

a church, I'm so encouraged to hear about your

upcoming Taste of the World potluck. If you haven't

signed up yet, I encourage you to do so. As you

prepare for that evening, can I invite you to

hold onto a posture? It's easy and it's fun to

go from table to table, booth to booth, sampling

food, enjoying the music, admiring the cultural

dress, and all of that is good. But what if you

went... not as consumers of culture, but with

a posture of curiosity. Behind every dish, every

song, every piece of clothing, there are stories,

meaningful stories, that hold the potential to

deepen how you belong to one another in this

community. Here are a handful of questions you

can bring with you to that potluck. What is the

story behind that dish? Does this song connect

to a special memory for you? What does this outfit

mean to you? And lastly, how did you or your

family come to settle on Turtle Island, on what

we call Canada today? That last question, that

one matters. Because unless you are of indigenous

heritage, we are all settlers on this land. how

we came, how our families came, why we came,

and how we were received, those stories shape

us. When we share those stories with one another,

we create shared belonging. And with Christ at

the center, we become the kind of community that

reflects God's beautiful vision right here at

Trinity Streetsville. I want to end today by

lifting our eyes toward a vision the scripture

gives us, a vision of where all of this is headed.

In Revelations 21, John is given a glimpse of

the future that God is bringing about. He sees

the new Jerusalem, the city of God, coming down

from heaven. And what stands out first is not

the architecture or the streets or the gates.

What fills the city is the glory of God. God's

presence illuminates everything. And at the center

of it all, the Lamb, Jesus himself, is our light.

And then we're told something beautiful. The

nations walk by that light. They come into the

city. They bring with them the glory and the

honor of the nations. In other words, people

do not enter the city stripped of who they are.

They do not leave their histories, their stories,

their cultures, their languages at the gate.

They come as fully cultural people, bringing

their cultural practices as gifts, and these

gifts are received as something that glorifies

God. The future God promises us is not colorless,

it is not cultureless, it is not uniform. Instead,

it is vibrant, it is rich, and it is deeply diverse,

and it is perfectly united. With Christ at the

center. This is the picture of shared belonging.

And this vision isn't just about where we're

going someday. It's meant to shape how we live

today. Revelations 21 reminds us that God is

not asking us to create something new here at

Trinity Streetsville. God is inviting us to live

into something that he has already promised.

a people reconciled, a community of shared belonging

with Christ at the center. Thanks very much,

Trinity Streetsville, and God bless you. Thanks

for tuning in to this week's episode of Trinity

Sermons. This sermon was recorded at Trinity

Church Streetsville in Mississauga, Ontario on

January 25th, 2026.