Although he uses different words for the idea, Luke describes a group of Gentiles in his day as “God-fearers.” Cornelius is an example (Acts 10:2). This was a very broad group. Some simply had Jewish friends. Others attended the synagogue. Others liked the morality of Judaism, as compared to the debauchery they found in pagan culture and temples. Some were semi-converts, believing in the God of Israel, but unwilling to be circumcised. No doubt, some believed in the coming Christ and were what we call “Old Testament believers.”
Why didn’t they convert? In some cases, the answer is obvious. If a person simply liked the morality of Judaism but did not believe in the God of Israel, they would simply pick and choose what they wanted from Judaism. They might have seen that Jewish families were more content, that their children were more respectful, etc. They wanted that for their own children and so followed the examples of their Jewish neighbors.
But what about those Gentiles who believed that the God of the Hebrews was the only God, and that one day He would send the Christ to rule over an eternal kingdom? Why didn’t they convert?
Many theologians today would argue that such Gentiles did not exist. They would say that if a Gentile really believed those things, they would have converted to Judaism. They use the same argument about “professed” believers today. If a person “claims” to be a Christian, but is not willing to publicly proclaim it, then he does not believe what he says he believes.
But is that true? We can look at the God-fearers in the first century as a test case.
Suetonius was a Roman historian who wrote at the end of the first century. Like Luke, he was well aware of some Gentiles who were attracted to Judaism. He said that during the time of Emperor Domitian, there were Gentiles who lived like Jews. But in many instances, they did not publicize it. (If any reader is interested, he can find Suetonius’ discussion in Suetonius, Domitian 12.2.)
Domitian placed a heavy tax on Jews. Being a Jew was costly financially. Judaism was outlawed, and its adherents were seen as disloyal to Domitian and Rome. Domitian also persecuted Jews. If a Gentile of any social status adopted Jewish practices, the government under Domitian might exile or even execute him. As a result, Suetonius pointed out that there were Gentiles who were secretly Jews. They did not convert by being circumcised because their “rebellion” against Rome would have become public. The cost would have been extremely high.
Were there believing Gentiles who kept their faith secret under Domitian’s rule? Of course. Those of us who have never faced persecution like those Gentiles did have our heads in the sand if we do not understand the fear under which they lived. We should be very careful about saying we would have boldly and publicly stood up against the power of Rome.
The same is true of Christians in the world today. There are secret believers. They have believed in Jesus for eternal life. They know they will live with Him forever. But they are afraid to be very public about that belief. They think the cost would be too high. That fear can be a result of many different reasons.
The wise thing for such a believer to do is to become a bold disciple. Great rewards are available for such a decision. The rewards are greater than anything the world can do.
But the fact remains. There were secret God-fearers in the first century. There are secret believers today.
