The gift of faith is God's giving. He gives it to Jews and pagan alike. Who are we, then, to make distinctions between them when God has shown that He doesn't? Pagans are saved in the same way as are the Jews - 'through the grace of the Lord Jesus'. Going beyond the parameters of earlier understanding, Peter is able to say that with Jesus' death and resurrection there are no barriers in becoming a follower of Jesus Christ. This is a profound declaration of faith. A gift of the early Church to us. It is also a lesson Peter learnt well. It is a lesson that seems to need to be learned again and again down through the centuries.

Jesus assures us of His love for us. It is through the quality of our obedience that we remain in His love. In this is joy, a joy that cannot be taken away from us by any human force because it is His own very joy in His union with the Father that Jesus shares with His disciples.