Acts Bible Study: Day 17
Today’s passage: Acts 10
Focus verse: “God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean.” (Acts 10:28)
Cornelius, who is both a Roman centurion (which makes him a Gentile) and a God-fearing man, helps people in need and prays each day. One afternoon he has a vision.
In his vision, one of God’s angels affirms his generosity and his prayers. “Send for Simon Peter in Joppa. He’s staying with Simon the tanner.” Cornelius selects three trusted men and sends them to fetch Peter.
The next day, as Peter waits for his meal, he prays. He has a vision too. In his vision, a large sheet, held by its four corners, drops from heaven. Cradled inside are all kinds of animals—animals the law of Moses prohibits Jews from eating.
A voice says, “Peter, get up, kill, and feed your hunger.”
“No way!” Peter says. “I never have and never will eat anything the Scriptures says not to, anything that’s unclean.”
The vision repeats two more times.
As Peter ponders what this means, the men sent by Cornelius show up. The Holy Spirit alerts Peter, “Three men are looking for you. I sent them and want you to go with them.”
The next day, Peter and the three men head out. In expectation of Peter’s arrival, Cornelius has gathered his relatives and friends.
As a good Jew, it’s unlikely Peter’s ever been inside the home of a Gentile. But he goes inside Cornelius’s house anyway, even though it’s contrary to the religious law.
He does this with confidence because his vision made it clear to not call anyone unclean.
Until now, Jesus’s followers had only shared his good news with other Jews (and some Samaritans) but not Gentiles. To do so would stand as an anathema to their religious heritage.
Peter speaks to the crowd, all Gentiles. He shares with them the readjustment God has just made to his theology. “I now realize God doesn’t play favorites. He accepts anyone and everyone who will follow him.”
Peter tells them about Jesus, about his execution, death, and victory over death. “Everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven.”
As Peter speaks, the Holy Spirit comes upon everyone in the room. They talk in tongues and praise God. Peter’s entourage is shocked that Gentiles can have Holy Spirit power too.
Since they’ve already received Holy Spirit baptism, they then undergo the ceremony of water baptism.
God is doing a new thing. When Jesus said to go into all the world and tell everyone, that’s exactly what he meant. Jesus isn’t just for the Jews but for the Gentiles too. Everyone. The entire world.
This is good news for me because I’m a Gentile. Maybe you are too.
Questions:
- Who is God telling us to reach out to?
- Is it someone we would have otherwise ignored?
[Discover more about sharing the news of Jesus in Matthew 28:19–20, Mark 16:15–16, Luke 14:23, and Acts 1:7–8.]
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Read more about the book of Acts in Acts Bible Study: Discover How the Early Church Can Inform What We Do Today, available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.
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Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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