It is impossible to overstate how important of a question this was for the early Church. Would Gentiles be let into the Church on even footing as the Jews? Would a Gentile, in essence, need to become a Jew through circumcision before he could become a Christian? At this point it seems as if Peter made a startling realization. These Gentiles were receiving the same Holy Spirit the other believers were! The Holy Spirit was the unifying factor. Peter knew that if they were not genuine believers, they wouldn’t have received the Holy Spirit. There’s an important truth for you and I to remember here as well. We may be very different in a lot of ways from other believers but we share a brotherhood with all who share the same Spirit. No matter where they ideologically. No matter where they are in certain, unimportant doctrinal areas. The real question is, do we share the same Holy Spirit. Now that’s not always easy to determine. But that was the telling sign for Peter — and nothing else.
