Peter at Cornelius’ House   Sept. 2, 2012.

 

Background:  We are now at a place in or story of Peter and Cornelius where Peter is on his way to Caesarea to go to Cornelius’ house.  If you have missed some of this story I will do a quick review to bring you up to speed. 

Cornelius, a Roman Centurion, a devout and God-fearing man has a vision in which he sees an Angel who speaks to him.  The Angel tells him to send men to Joppa to fetch Simon Peter who has a message for Cornelius.  Three men are sent from Cornelius’ house.  As these men approach Joppa Peter goes up on the roof to pray and falls into a trance.  He sees a sheet containing all manner of animals lowered to earth and a voice says to him, “Get up Peter.  Kill and eat.”  Peter refuses saying, “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”  Then the voice tells him, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”This happened three times and then the sheet was taken up to heaven.  As Peter was trying to figure out the meaning of the vision Cornelius’ three men arrive and the Spirit tells Peter they are downstairs and that he is to go with them.  Peter goes downstairs, identifies himself to them and asks, “Why have you come.” They explain the nature of their errand and Peter invites them into the house to be his guests. 

This is where the last part of our story takes place. 

Scripture:  Acts 10:23B-48

The Situation: Peter, his delegation and the men Cornelius has sent are travelling to Cornelius’ house in Caesarea.  When they arrive they find a large gathering of people, consisting of Cornelius’ friends and family.  Peter addresses the crowd reminding them about the fact that Jewish Law does not permit him to associate with Gentiles.  He goes on to share with the crowd that God has revealed to him that he should not call any man impure or unclean.  As a result of this revelation Peter answered Cornelius’ call to come to Caesarea.  Peter then asks, “Why did you send for me.”  Cornelius tells Peter and everyone gathered about his vision. 

Cornelius’ testimony helps Peter to understand that God’s salvation is not just for the Jews, but for everyone.  Then Peter shares the Good News about Jesus with the entire gathering.  The Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message which astonished the Jewish believers because they had never seen such a thing. Peter then ordered all the new believers to be baptized with water since they had received the Holy Spirit.  Peter decided to accept Cornelius’ invitation to stay on for a few days. 

There is a lot of information here but as we always do in the method of teaching we use here let’s look closely at what people said and did, what the results or consequences were and what we can learn from the people in the story. 

We Walk By Faith:

Look closely at Acts 10:23B, 21 and 29 What is Peter doing here and does he have a clear understanding of what God is doing and directing him to do?  Right Peter is enquiring as to what these people want, because he doesn’t really have a clear picture of what’s happening, only specific instructions to go with these men and a vision he doesn’t quite understand.   Now look at 10:24,33B what do the actions of Cornelius tell us about this man?  We know he has had a vision and had been given some specific instructions from the Angel which he obeyed.  Does he know what God is about to do, does he have the complete picture? No, he does not have the complete picture but he is exercising his faith in God by believing Peter will come; so he has invited friends and family to come and hear what Peter has to say.

Ready to Listen:

 Then in verse 33B we learn what the proper attitude is for those who are seeking God.  Cornelius says, “we are all here… to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us. As we seek the truth about God we must be willing to listen, to realize we don’t know everything and to be sensitive to those times when God wants to reveal His truth to us.    Notice that both Peter and Cornelius have faith and that this faith is accompanied by action. 

Let’s fast forward to today; do you see this kind of behaviour in the Church today where people who are seeking God, get part of the picture and then by faith begin to move toward God?  Has anything like this happened to you lately? 

Speak What We Know:    

Embedded in this story is the truth of the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Let’s review what Peter told the crowd about Jesus and then examine the results of the preaching of that truth. 

The Gospel

·     God accepts men from every nation who fear (respect) Him and do what is right.

·     We can have peace with God through Jesus

·     Everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name

Peter told those gathered at the meeting the truth that he knew about Jesus, explaining to them that Jesus had commanded them to preach to the people.  This is an allusion to the great commission that Jesus gave to His disciples.  It is part of our responsibility to share with others the truth we know about Jesus.  Have you had opportunity to share your God story with anyone lately? 

Results of Preaching the Truth:

What happened in the meeting as Peter shared his God story? The Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.   And how does this relate to Rom. 10:17 “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ.” As these Gentiles heard the truth of the Gospel, God opened their eyes and they believed and received the Holy Spirit. 

 What do you think would happen if you began to ask God for opportunities to share your God story with others; how would it affect your friends and family?  How would it affect our Church and the community of Chestermere? 

Conclusion:

·     God wants to do great things through us and as we honestly seek Him He will reveal Himself to us.  Our story is a reflection of this truth.  Cornelius was seeking God and God wanted to bring the Gentiles into the Church. Through Peter and Cornelius two people who listened to God something great happened.  This story is about the big things God wants to do through the lives of ordinary people like you and me.  So what can we take home from our story?

·     We walk by faith- our faith journey starts, continues and ends in faith

·     Real faith includes action

·     We must be willing to listen if we are seeking God

·     Tell what you know/share your God story

·     Truth changes lives-our lives and the lives of others

·     God’s spoken truth releases God’s power in our lives and the lives of others