The Holy Spirit fills Cornelius and his family.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:44-48
God has been rocking Peter’s world. Sometimes it was hard for Peter to learn the lessons that God was teaching. But usually the lesson was learned and Peter’s faith grew. Peter went to Lydda and Joppa then Caesarea. He was obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit and ended up where God wanted him to be.
Up to this point, their understanding of the gospel was that it was the continuing story of God working with His people. God chose Abraham to be the father of a special group of people who would be the community of God’s people. Moses led these people to the land that God had promised to Abraham. Through God’s leadership and provision, they occupied the land and established the nation of Israel. God provided King David to unify the nation and establish roots in the land. God sent prophets to challenge the people when they strayed. He even allowed other nations to punish Israel when they strayed too far. But through it all, they understood that God would do more in the future. God would sent the Messiah to restore Israel as the Kingdom of God’s people. He would bring the people back to God.
The first Christians believed that Jesus was the Messiah. He was the savior of individuals but also the nation of Israel. The Jews were still the community of God’s people, they just needed to follow Christ as the continuation of God’s plan for His people.
Samaritans coming to faith in Christ was a stretch, but their roots were the Northern Kingdom of Israel. God is certainly merciful in accepting Samaritans. Nobody saw this event with Cornelius coming. This is why God arranged for Peter to be there. Peter was the leader of the apostles. Now God proved that this was legitimate by replicating the events of Pentecost with Cornelius and his family.
The men who came with Peter from the church at Joppa were Jewish Christians. They witnessed the power of the Holy Spirit with Cornelius and were amazed. Peter’s response was to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. These Gentiles had been accepted by God, so they should be baptized.
We tend to put limits on God. We have to be open to His leading and allow Him to establish the limits.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Friday, January 2, 2009
Friday Acts 10:34-43
Peter shares the gospel with Cornelius.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:34-43
God has arranged things to get Peter to Caesarea to meet Cornelius and his family. The storyline of the book of Acts has been moving toward this moment. The book opened with the Acts version of the Great Commission (1:8). Jesus told the disciples that they would be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
They understood this command in terms of geography. However, His command also includes types of people. They began in Jerusalem and the nearby areas of Judea. With the persecution, the gospel spread to the rest of Judea and into Samaria. The Ethiopian eunuch took the gospel to the ends of the earth to the south. Saul, in his time in Arabia, took the gospel to the ends of the earth to the east. North and West is still yet to happen.
The gospel has also been spreading to groups of people. Part of this spread has also included the concept of the unity of Christianity. The first hurdle was to ensure that Hellenistic Jewish Christians and Hebraic Jewish Christians could come together as the church. Then Samaritans were included in the fold. With the Ethiopian eunuch, half-proselytes to Judaism along with those who were unacceptable within Judaism because of physical problems were added to the church.
Now, Peter sees that God intends that all people can follow Christ. God sent an angel to Cornelius. He gave Peter a vivid vision and spoke to him by the Holy Spirit. He sent men from Caesarea to Joppa to take Peter to Cornelius. God has set the stage and Peter obeys in faith. Peter shared the gospel with Cornelius and his family.
Our view of the world is bigger than their view in the first century. To them, the ends of the earth were basically the edges of the Roman empire. Paul had a bigger view of things and wanted to go as far as he could. He talked about taking the gospel to Spain. We now see the world globally and see all of the people who need to hear the gospel.
The storyline of Acts is a missionary movement taking the gospel out to the world. Pray for our missionaries who are working all over the world.
The storyline of Acts is also about people reaching people. We all are part of the continuing story of the expansion of the Kingdom of God. God is still arranging circumstances and touching people to prepare them to hear the gospel. Your encounter with each person is part of God’s plan. Just hearing your story of how God is working in your life may be a link in God’s plan for another person.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:34-43
God has arranged things to get Peter to Caesarea to meet Cornelius and his family. The storyline of the book of Acts has been moving toward this moment. The book opened with the Acts version of the Great Commission (1:8). Jesus told the disciples that they would be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
They understood this command in terms of geography. However, His command also includes types of people. They began in Jerusalem and the nearby areas of Judea. With the persecution, the gospel spread to the rest of Judea and into Samaria. The Ethiopian eunuch took the gospel to the ends of the earth to the south. Saul, in his time in Arabia, took the gospel to the ends of the earth to the east. North and West is still yet to happen.
The gospel has also been spreading to groups of people. Part of this spread has also included the concept of the unity of Christianity. The first hurdle was to ensure that Hellenistic Jewish Christians and Hebraic Jewish Christians could come together as the church. Then Samaritans were included in the fold. With the Ethiopian eunuch, half-proselytes to Judaism along with those who were unacceptable within Judaism because of physical problems were added to the church.
Now, Peter sees that God intends that all people can follow Christ. God sent an angel to Cornelius. He gave Peter a vivid vision and spoke to him by the Holy Spirit. He sent men from Caesarea to Joppa to take Peter to Cornelius. God has set the stage and Peter obeys in faith. Peter shared the gospel with Cornelius and his family.
Our view of the world is bigger than their view in the first century. To them, the ends of the earth were basically the edges of the Roman empire. Paul had a bigger view of things and wanted to go as far as he could. He talked about taking the gospel to Spain. We now see the world globally and see all of the people who need to hear the gospel.
The storyline of Acts is a missionary movement taking the gospel out to the world. Pray for our missionaries who are working all over the world.
The storyline of Acts is also about people reaching people. We all are part of the continuing story of the expansion of the Kingdom of God. God is still arranging circumstances and touching people to prepare them to hear the gospel. Your encounter with each person is part of God’s plan. Just hearing your story of how God is working in your life may be a link in God’s plan for another person.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Thursday Acts 10:17-33
Peter visits Cornelius.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:17-33
I love this passage. We think we have God figured out. Even in our deepest “Aha moment” God is way ahead of us waiting for us to catch up. Luckily for us, He leaves a trail of breadcrumbs for us to follow.
Peter has just had an amazing vision from God. He knows it was from God, but he is trying to figure out what it meant. He was hungry and the vision seemed to be about food. It would be easy to conclude that this lesson from God was limited to lifting the Jewish dietary restrictions.
Just as the men from Cornelius came to the house of Simon the tanner, the Holy Spirit spoke to Peter and told him to go with the men “without any doubts.” So, Peter went downstairs and told the men that he was the one that they were looking for. They told Peter why they were there and that he should go with them to Caesarea.
God’s message now makes sense to Peter (or so he thinks). It would be unthinkable for a Jew to go to the home of a Gentile and eat with them. But the lesson from God has shown him that it is OK for him to go to Cornelius’ house. The men spent the night at Simon’s house in Joppa and they set out for Caesarea in the morning.
When they get to Cornelius’ house, Cornelius gets a little overwhelmed and wants to worship Peter. I have to cut him a little slack. Just think about this from Cornelius’ perspective. An angel appeared to him and told him to send for Peter. The message that Peter would give him could not be given by the angel. So, from Cornelius’ mindset, Peter must be pretty important in God’s plan.
Peter told Cornelius to get up and then explains that he had received a new revelation from God that it was OK for him to be in Cornelius’ house. Just like I have to cut Cornelius some slack, I think we have to cut Peter some slack. The concept that Gentiles could become disciples of Christ probably never crossed his mind. When Philip took the gospel to the Samaritans, Peter went and investigated. But Gentiles? No way!
Peter thinks that the vision from God and the prompting of the Holy Spirit were just to get him go and talk to Cornelius. So, he says to Cornelius, “Here I am. What do you want?”
Cornelius explains the encounter with the angel. He tells Peter that he has assembled his family here to hear a message from God through Peter. Oh, to have been there with a video camera. This would be all over You-tube. I’ll bet that Peter’s head almost exploded. He thought that he got it before, but now he really gets it.
The message from God is not just that it is OK for Peter to go to the home of a Gentile, but that God says that it is OK for a Gentile to enter the Kingdom of God. See how God has orchestrated the events. He wants this to happen through Peter. Why Peter? He was the leader of the apostles. This must have God’s stamp of approval on it to be acceptable to the other Christians. God has brought Peter to this place geographically. He came to Lydda then Joppa then Caesarea. He has brought Peter to this frame of mind progressively. The gospel has gone to the Jews and the Samaritans and the half-proselytes. Now the gospel is going to the Gentiles. It is not just the ends of the earth geographically, but to all the people on the earth.
God is still orchestrating events. He brings people into our lives that He wants us to interact with. And He has already been working in their lives preparing them for an encounter. We have to be sensitive to other people and the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:17-33
I love this passage. We think we have God figured out. Even in our deepest “Aha moment” God is way ahead of us waiting for us to catch up. Luckily for us, He leaves a trail of breadcrumbs for us to follow.
Peter has just had an amazing vision from God. He knows it was from God, but he is trying to figure out what it meant. He was hungry and the vision seemed to be about food. It would be easy to conclude that this lesson from God was limited to lifting the Jewish dietary restrictions.
Just as the men from Cornelius came to the house of Simon the tanner, the Holy Spirit spoke to Peter and told him to go with the men “without any doubts.” So, Peter went downstairs and told the men that he was the one that they were looking for. They told Peter why they were there and that he should go with them to Caesarea.
God’s message now makes sense to Peter (or so he thinks). It would be unthinkable for a Jew to go to the home of a Gentile and eat with them. But the lesson from God has shown him that it is OK for him to go to Cornelius’ house. The men spent the night at Simon’s house in Joppa and they set out for Caesarea in the morning.
When they get to Cornelius’ house, Cornelius gets a little overwhelmed and wants to worship Peter. I have to cut him a little slack. Just think about this from Cornelius’ perspective. An angel appeared to him and told him to send for Peter. The message that Peter would give him could not be given by the angel. So, from Cornelius’ mindset, Peter must be pretty important in God’s plan.
Peter told Cornelius to get up and then explains that he had received a new revelation from God that it was OK for him to be in Cornelius’ house. Just like I have to cut Cornelius some slack, I think we have to cut Peter some slack. The concept that Gentiles could become disciples of Christ probably never crossed his mind. When Philip took the gospel to the Samaritans, Peter went and investigated. But Gentiles? No way!
Peter thinks that the vision from God and the prompting of the Holy Spirit were just to get him go and talk to Cornelius. So, he says to Cornelius, “Here I am. What do you want?”
Cornelius explains the encounter with the angel. He tells Peter that he has assembled his family here to hear a message from God through Peter. Oh, to have been there with a video camera. This would be all over You-tube. I’ll bet that Peter’s head almost exploded. He thought that he got it before, but now he really gets it.
The message from God is not just that it is OK for Peter to go to the home of a Gentile, but that God says that it is OK for a Gentile to enter the Kingdom of God. See how God has orchestrated the events. He wants this to happen through Peter. Why Peter? He was the leader of the apostles. This must have God’s stamp of approval on it to be acceptable to the other Christians. God has brought Peter to this place geographically. He came to Lydda then Joppa then Caesarea. He has brought Peter to this frame of mind progressively. The gospel has gone to the Jews and the Samaritans and the half-proselytes. Now the gospel is going to the Gentiles. It is not just the ends of the earth geographically, but to all the people on the earth.
God is still orchestrating events. He brings people into our lives that He wants us to interact with. And He has already been working in their lives preparing them for an encounter. We have to be sensitive to other people and the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Wednesday Acts 10:9-16
Peter has a vision.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:9-16
As the three men sent by Cornelius approached Joppa, Peter went up on the roof to pray. It was about noon and the afternoon meal was being prepared. Peter was hungry. He went into a trace and had a vision.
A sheet came down from heaven with all kinds of animals on it. Most of them would have been unclean and prohibited for a Jewish person to eat them. A voice from heaven told Peter to get up and kill one of the animals and eat it.
Peter refused. He say that he had never eaten an unclean animal. He recognized that God was there, but what do you do in this situation? This must be a test. God is seeing if I will remain faithful and not succumb to my hunger. But then, the voice said that God had declared these animals clean. So, you had better not call them unclean. The event repeated itself two more times.
Jesus had declared all food clean back in Mark 7:19. Peter doesn’t know it yet, but the issue here is not food. The issue is people. God is softening Peter to the idea that Gentiles matter to God.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:9-16
As the three men sent by Cornelius approached Joppa, Peter went up on the roof to pray. It was about noon and the afternoon meal was being prepared. Peter was hungry. He went into a trace and had a vision.
A sheet came down from heaven with all kinds of animals on it. Most of them would have been unclean and prohibited for a Jewish person to eat them. A voice from heaven told Peter to get up and kill one of the animals and eat it.
Peter refused. He say that he had never eaten an unclean animal. He recognized that God was there, but what do you do in this situation? This must be a test. God is seeing if I will remain faithful and not succumb to my hunger. But then, the voice said that God had declared these animals clean. So, you had better not call them unclean. The event repeated itself two more times.
Jesus had declared all food clean back in Mark 7:19. Peter doesn’t know it yet, but the issue here is not food. The issue is people. God is softening Peter to the idea that Gentiles matter to God.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Tuesday Acts 10:1-8
Cornelius is visited by an angel.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:1-8
Thirty miles north of Joppa on the coast, was the city of Caesarea. It was the Roman capital of Israel. It had been renovated by Herod the Great between 25 and 13 BC. He renamed the city Caesarea in honor of Augustus Caesar. The city had the first artificial harbor and had a 13 mile long aqueduct to provide fresh water.
There were 3000 Roman soldiers stationed in Caesarea. They were divided into five cohorts of 600 each. A Tribune commanded each cohort. Cornelius was part of the Italian Cohort. Six centurions each commanded one hundred soldiers. Cornelius was a centurion.
Cornelius believed in God. He was not a Jew, but believed in the God of the Jews. He was a “God fearer.” He believed, but did not practice the Jewish customs or practices. He was a Gentile.
An angel appeared to him while he was praying. The angel told him to send for Peter. Notice that the angel did not give Cornelius a reason to fetch Peter. He just said to go get Peter. Cornelius obeyed without question. Without knowing the rationale, he explained everything to his attendants and sent them to Joppa.
A couple of things to note: God revealed more to Cornelius while he was in prayer. It was not the first time he prayed. He was disciplined in prayer. We all should be disciplined in prayer. Also note that Cornelius obeyed without question.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 10:1-8
Thirty miles north of Joppa on the coast, was the city of Caesarea. It was the Roman capital of Israel. It had been renovated by Herod the Great between 25 and 13 BC. He renamed the city Caesarea in honor of Augustus Caesar. The city had the first artificial harbor and had a 13 mile long aqueduct to provide fresh water.
There were 3000 Roman soldiers stationed in Caesarea. They were divided into five cohorts of 600 each. A Tribune commanded each cohort. Cornelius was part of the Italian Cohort. Six centurions each commanded one hundred soldiers. Cornelius was a centurion.
Cornelius believed in God. He was not a Jew, but believed in the God of the Jews. He was a “God fearer.” He believed, but did not practice the Jewish customs or practices. He was a Gentile.
An angel appeared to him while he was praying. The angel told him to send for Peter. Notice that the angel did not give Cornelius a reason to fetch Peter. He just said to go get Peter. Cornelius obeyed without question. Without knowing the rationale, he explained everything to his attendants and sent them to Joppa.
A couple of things to note: God revealed more to Cornelius while he was in prayer. It was not the first time he prayed. He was disciplined in prayer. We all should be disciplined in prayer. Also note that Cornelius obeyed without question.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday Acts 9:36-43
Peter raises Tabitha from the dead.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 9:36-43
God is moving Peter into position to launch the rest of the book of Acts. Saul has been chosen to be the apostle to the Gentiles, but he is still in Tarsus. The gospel has yet to reach the Gentiles. Luke’s narrative is setting the stage.
Peter healed Aeneas in Lydda. Meanwhile, a lady named Tabitha died three hours away in Joppa. Rather than prepare the body for burial like normal, they washed the body and sent for Peter. Raising people from the dead was unusual, but it had happened before. Jesus had raised three people from the dead and Peter was there each time.
Luke tells us that her name was Tabitha in Aramaic and Dorcas in Greek. Both words translate as gazelle. She might have been a widow since the other widows of Joppa seemed to be prominent at the scene.
You might want to go back and read chapter 5 of Mark’s gospel. When Jesus raised the daughter of Jarius from the dead He said to her, “talitha kumi,” which means, “little girl, get up.” When Peter raises Tabitha from the dead, he said in Aramaic, “Tabitha kumi” – only one letter different.
As with other miracles, many people saw the miracle and believed in Jesus.
But Peter is now in Joppa, a town on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. He is in position for the next phase of God’s plan.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 9:36-43
God is moving Peter into position to launch the rest of the book of Acts. Saul has been chosen to be the apostle to the Gentiles, but he is still in Tarsus. The gospel has yet to reach the Gentiles. Luke’s narrative is setting the stage.
Peter healed Aeneas in Lydda. Meanwhile, a lady named Tabitha died three hours away in Joppa. Rather than prepare the body for burial like normal, they washed the body and sent for Peter. Raising people from the dead was unusual, but it had happened before. Jesus had raised three people from the dead and Peter was there each time.
Luke tells us that her name was Tabitha in Aramaic and Dorcas in Greek. Both words translate as gazelle. She might have been a widow since the other widows of Joppa seemed to be prominent at the scene.
You might want to go back and read chapter 5 of Mark’s gospel. When Jesus raised the daughter of Jarius from the dead He said to her, “talitha kumi,” which means, “little girl, get up.” When Peter raises Tabitha from the dead, he said in Aramaic, “Tabitha kumi” – only one letter different.
As with other miracles, many people saw the miracle and believed in Jesus.
But Peter is now in Joppa, a town on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. He is in position for the next phase of God’s plan.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Sunday Acts 9:32-35
Peter heals Aeneas.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 9:32-35
We have probably about a three-year gap in the narrative. In verse 31, Luke told us that the persecution seemed to settle down and the church steadily grew in Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. About three years after Saul went to Tarsus, Peter was traveling around Judea visiting the churches. He came to the town of Lydda in the plain of Sharon.
Lydda was about 25 miles northwest of Jerusalem. The church probably began with the believers who fled because of the persecution six years earlier.
In Lydda was a man named Aeneas. He had been paralyzed for eight years. Peter brought healing to the man by proclaiming the healing in the name of Jesus Christ. There is no indication that Aeneas asked to be healed. We can assume that Peter acted at the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
As a result of this miracle, many people became believers.
Notice that Luke said that all of the people in Lydda and Sharon saw Aeneas and turned to the Lord. Don’t get freaked out over his use of the word “all.” Luke used language much like we use language. Here he is using a literary form called hyperbole. It is a deliberate exaggeration to make a point. We do the same thing. If I said, “Everybody in town is excited about the new restaurant that opened,” then I am using hyperbole. I did not survey everybody in town. What I mean is that a lot of people are excited. It is the same thing here with Luke. He is saying that a lot of people saw the healing and came to Christ.
Why is this incident here? Even when things are going smoothly in church, the Kingdom is still marching on. We never get to settle down and coast.
Click here for an online Bible. Acts 9:32-35
We have probably about a three-year gap in the narrative. In verse 31, Luke told us that the persecution seemed to settle down and the church steadily grew in Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. About three years after Saul went to Tarsus, Peter was traveling around Judea visiting the churches. He came to the town of Lydda in the plain of Sharon.
Lydda was about 25 miles northwest of Jerusalem. The church probably began with the believers who fled because of the persecution six years earlier.
In Lydda was a man named Aeneas. He had been paralyzed for eight years. Peter brought healing to the man by proclaiming the healing in the name of Jesus Christ. There is no indication that Aeneas asked to be healed. We can assume that Peter acted at the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
As a result of this miracle, many people became believers.
Notice that Luke said that all of the people in Lydda and Sharon saw Aeneas and turned to the Lord. Don’t get freaked out over his use of the word “all.” Luke used language much like we use language. Here he is using a literary form called hyperbole. It is a deliberate exaggeration to make a point. We do the same thing. If I said, “Everybody in town is excited about the new restaurant that opened,” then I am using hyperbole. I did not survey everybody in town. What I mean is that a lot of people are excited. It is the same thing here with Luke. He is saying that a lot of people saw the healing and came to Christ.
Why is this incident here? Even when things are going smoothly in church, the Kingdom is still marching on. We never get to settle down and coast.
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