Sovereign in Salvation

We're going to see the beginning of this story of Cornelius and Peter.

And what we're going to think about is the fact that God is sovereign in salvation.

We're going to see God in charge in order that Cornelius will come to faith in the Lord Jesus.

So Acts chapter 10, we're going to read the first 23 verses.

Acts 10 · chapter mention

At Caesarea, there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian regiment.

He and all his family were devout and God-fearing.

He gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.

One day, about three in the afternoon, he had a vision.

He distinctly saw an angel of God who came to him and said, Cornelius.

Cornelius stared at him in fear.

What is it, Lord?

He asked.

The angel answered, your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.

Now, send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon, who is called Peter.

He is staying with Simon the Tanner, whose house is by the sea.

When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants.

He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.

About noon the following day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray.

He became hungry and wanted something to eat.

And while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

He saw heaven open and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners.

It contained all kinds of four-feated animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air.

Then a voice told him, get up, Peter.

Kill and eat.

Surely not, Lord, Peter replied.

I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.

The voice spoke to him a second time.

Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.

This happened three times, and immediately the sheep was taken back to heaven.

While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon's house was and stopped at the gate.

They called out, asking if Simon, who is known as Peter, was staying there.

While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, Simon, three men are looking for you, so get up and go downstairs.

Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.

Peter went down and said to the men, I am the one you are looking for.

Why have you come?

The men replied, we have come from Cornelius the centurion.

He is a righteous and God-fearing man who is respected by all the Jewish people.

A holy angel told him to have you come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.

Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.

Amen.

This is God's word.

Now what I want us to see in this story of Peter and Cornelius is the fact that our stories exist within a larger story.

They exist within God's bigger story.

And God takes people's lives and weaves them together for his own purposes.

Now when I was, I guess, a student, I used to watch a lot of films.

And in the late 90s and then into the early 2000s, there was a lot of filmmakers who were doing this thing where they would have multiple main characters.

And they would have sort of lives that would be very separate.

But then at some point in the drama, those lives would interconnect.

Usually at the climax of the drama, you'd see how all these various individuals became part of the same story.

And in a sense, what we're being presented by Luke here is two very separate stories.

The story of Cornelius and Peter that God brings together so that the gospel will expand into non-Jewish territory.

So you've got this man, Cornelius, who's part of Roman special forces.

And you've got this guy, Peter.

He's an apostle to the Jews.

There are some servants and messengers at the same time.

And most of all, what comes out is God's directing through angels, through visions, through the Holy Spirit so that Cornelius can hear the gospel.

So we've got these two people that would never normally have any contact with each other.

They'd never be hanging out.

It's an opportunity for the gospel that Peter, I'm sure, would never have anticipated.

But God brings these lives together so that he would be glorified.

He's the first Gentile convert to faith in Jesus.

Comes in Cornelius and his household.

And it's the beginning of Gentile mission, just as Jesus had promised.

So let's look, first of all, at Cornelius.

So who was Cornelius?

Now we're told in verse 1 that he was a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment.

An elite set of troops stationed in Caesarea, a key city of Roman culture and a place where Rome exercised control.

Powerful guy, authoritative guy.

But he's also, we're told, a God-fearer.

Verse 2.

He and all his family were devout and God-fearing.

Now that means he is a non-Jewish person who is choosing to worship in the synagogue.

He's choosing to follow Old Testament ethics and practices.

Him and his family have decided they want to follow the God of Israel.

And so this leads him, leads Cornelius to, well, first of all, lead his family in that direction.

Here is an example of a man who is leading his family in faith.

It leads him also to practice generosity.

And we're told also in verse 2, it leads him to regular times of prayer.

So on the one hand, you could say, well, here's Cornelius.

He's an enemy.

He's an outsider.

He's far from the covenant.

He's far from being one of the people of God.

But on the other hand, we can also see clear evidence that he is someone who is seeking after God.

That he wants to know the God of the Bible so that he might worship him.

And at that point, we just need to remind ourselves that whenever we read of that, we need to recognize that that in itself is a gift of God.

Where does that come from?

Where does this sense of dissatisfaction with the gods of the Romans come from?

Where does his sense of my life is not going in the right direction?

I need the God of Israel.

Where does that come from?

It doesn't come from himself.

It's because God's at work.

The spirit is at work.

And that's true for any of us before we come to faith in the Lord Jesus.

So I want us to see next, how does God seek this man, Cornelius?

And we're told in verse 3, one day about 3 in the afternoon, he had a vision.

He saw an angel of God who spoke to him.

And here's a, it seems like a small thing, but it's a remarkable thing that God again is revealing himself to and outside it.

Here is a reminder that God's kingdom is broad and not narrow.

That because Christianity is about grace and not about law, it tends to be inclusive and not exclusive.

And we get another preview of that here.

So we get the vision.

And what we see as the angel speaks to Cornelius, verse 4, is that God is responding to Cornelius wanting to know him, wanting to please him.

So the angel says to him in verse 4, your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.

And so the angel then tells him to go and send for Peter.

Because if Cornelius is to know God truly, then he needs to hear the gospel.

He needs to hear about Jesus, the Son of God, who's come to be the Savior of the world.

And so they are to send messengers to Joppa to find Simon Peter.

And that's exactly what Cornelius does in verses 7 and 8.

He does everything that God said and he sends the messengers off to Joppa.

So that's about 32 miles away from Caesarea.

And we'll think about that in a few moments.

Remember that saying that Jesus had where he said,

Ask and it will be given to you.

Seek and you will find.

Knock and the door will be opened to you.

And Cornelius is proving that to be true.

He is someone who is seeking after God.

God's put that in his heart.

He's seeking after God and God responds.

God is going to move Peter to bring the gospel so that he can be saved.

There's always encouragement to us when we read stories like the stories we find in the book of Acts

to pray for people to be open, to pray for people to be seeking for God.

Because I guess from an outsider's point of view,

Cornelius would be a very surprising kind of a convert.

And it's a reminder to us to trust that God in his grace and mercy and love

is far more generous than sometimes we imagine or anticipate.

And it's true as well.

And maybe you know this in your own experience.

Sometimes we can be less surprised, perhaps, by the people that God chooses to work in their heart.

We would think, I have this friend, and they look like the kind of person that might be interested in faith and religion.

And then you get really surprised because this family member or this friend from out of nowhere,

so it seems, develops a real desire to read the Bible, to know more about Jesus.

God is constantly at work by his Spirit in ways that are surprising.

But it always reminds us that it's God who's in charge.

It's God's big story that we are a part of.

He's in charge and not us.

So we've got this story.

We've got this story of Cornelius and his vision over in Caesarea.

But then we meet our other character.

We've got Peter.

So who is Peter?

Well, we know that he's one of the 12 disciples of Jesus, of course.

And the one thing, as I was reading this week, a couple of commentators pointed out,

remember that saying, you maybe remember the saying that Jesus delivered about Peter saying,

I will give you the keys of the kingdom.

And they were saying, well, in part, in Peter's experience,

that means that he's going to, first of all, lead mission to the Jews.

And we saw that at Pentecost.

Peter preaches and 3,000 diaspora Jews are added to the church.

And Peter will also begin mission to the Gentiles here as he is sent to Cornelius.

So Peter's message, his gospel message, opens up mission to both Jews and non-Jews.

But Peter, and it's important we see it in the passage, he's part of the Jewish religious tradition.

So he had strict rules about what he could and what he couldn't eat, who he could and couldn't eat with.

These laws that created separation.

We forgot to speak about holiness.

He was raised in a system where the Jews were the people of God.

They were the insiders.

Because they had the promises, and Romans, by many, would be regarded as both enemies and outsiders.

And so for the gospel to take root, for this mission to come from Peter to Cornelius,

God's going to need to overcome some cultural and religious prejudice.

I like the fact, given that we've just finished studying in Jonah,

that here is another example of somebody called in Joppa to go and preach good news to enemies.

But unlike Jonah, who ran the other way, Peter will go from Joppa to Caesarea to bring grace to enemies.

Now, that being said about Peter, how does God use Peter to seek after Cornelius?

We see in verse 9 that he does it again through a vision.

So about noon the following day, as they were on their journey,

so we're reminded there's another story going on,

they're approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray.

He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

So here is Peter, he's hungry, and he has this dream about food.

Maybe that's happened to us, naturally, but only this time this vision is sent from God.

There is a teaching purpose in this vision, and we know it's from God,

because in verse 16 we're told it happens three times.

God is clearly trying to relay an important message to Peter.

So what is this vision, and what's it all about?

So he sees in verse 11, heaven opens, sheep comes down,

you've got this great sheep with clean and unclean animals on the sheep,

and then there's this voice,

Get up, Peter, kill and eat.

And Peter, as an Orthodox Jew, refuses,

because you don't eat clean meat that's been mixed with unclean meat.

So he says,

Surely not, Lord, I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.

Verse 15, the voice speaks,

Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.

So this happens three times.

Now notice, we read it in verse 14,

Peter refuses the command of the one that he knows is the Lord God.

So he knows God is speaking,

and still he says,

No, I'm not going to do that.

Perhaps he thinks this is a test of his orthodoxy.

Will he remain a faithful Jew?

Or perhaps this is just teaching him something that's such a new reality

that he really can't quite get his head around it,

and God needs to speak to him three times in order to begin to break down barriers.

Because what we discover is that the vision is a parable.

And Peter understands that the vision is a parable,

and we know this when we,

we'll get there next week,

but in verse 28,

When Peter arrives at Cornelius' house,

and there's a crowd gathered,

he said to them,

You are well aware that it's against our law

for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him.

But God has shown me that I should not call any man,

any body, impure or unclean.

So they had clean and unclean food,

and in this vision it's a parable for the idea

that God's people had divided the world

into clean people and unclean people.

And God's saying in this new age,

this new age of grace,

you're not to think that way anymore.

That now that Jesus has come,

fulfilling the promise of Genesis 12 to Abraham,

blessing to the nations,

those distinctions no longer are relevant.

Again, a reminder that God's kingdom is much wider,

his grace flows much deeper

than often we recognize.

And then in verse 17,

we're introduced to a particular aspect

of this reality that God's in control of all things

and he's in control of salvation.

We see his perfect timing.

So remember,

the servants have left Caesarea,

this 32-mile journey,

that's going to take them a while.

But just as Peter has received the vision

and he's wondering about it,

these guys arrive right on cue,

knocking at the door.

Where is Peter?

And then he hears this spirit speaking to him,

telling him in verse 20,

get up and go downstairs.

Do not hesitate to go with them.

I have sent them.

And he discovers from them

that he is to go,

verse 22,

to meet Cornelius.

And a holy angel had told him

to have you come to his house

so that he could hear

what you have to say.

And Peter very clearly recognizes

God's hand in this whole thing.

That God has been preparing the way

through a vision over here

in Caesarea,

vision over here

in Joppa.

He's been tearing down

some cultural prejudices

in Peter's heart

all the while

so that Cornelius and his family

will get to hear

of God's grace

in Christ Jesus.

Now there's another couple of hints

in the text

that God has been at work

and continues to be at work

in Peter's heart,

breaking down

some of his old barriers.

First one,

it almost seems like

an unimportant piece

of information,

but did you notice

where Peter is staying?

Verse 6,

it says to us

he is staying

with Simon the Tanner.

Simon who is

some kind of leather worker.

And to work with dead animals

would be the kind of job

that would render a person

unclean.

Therefore,

you should not stay

in their house,

but Peter stays with him.

Here is traces

of that same attitude

of Jesus

that moved towards

those who were considered

by others

to be unclean.

And then again,

and it's significant,

who does Peter invite

into his house

in verse 23?

We're told Peter invited

the men,

these servants,

these soldiers,

soldiers,

these Romans,

into the house

to be his guests.

Again,

they'd be considered

unclean,

they'd be considered

enemies,

but Peter shows them

hospitality.

God is at work

in Peter's heart

and he's beginning

to understand

that grace

breaks down

barriers.

Now,

just as a

kind of semi-aside,

a couple of times

this week,

either in conversation

or in readings,

the topic of

what's sometimes

known as

evangelistic hospitality

has come up,

which I think

is really

what's going on

in Peter's

experience here.

Basically,

the idea being

that nowadays

we can use

our homes

and use meals

as a way

to share

the gospel

as we share

our lives

with people.

Nothing particularly

radical,

but I guess

we all recognize

that when we have

someone in our house,

when we sit down

and share a meal

with someone,

that's when conversation

tends to go beyond

just surface level

and moves to

deeper level

where we can talk

about one another's

values and what

we think about

the world

and issues of faith

or belief in God

may come up.

And it's also

as we invite people

into our homes

that they can see

if we're Christians

how Christians tick.

How do we operate?

How do we treat

one another?

How do we deal

with family dynamics?

Those kind of things.

And so it can be

a really powerful thing

and there's a number

of new books

all on this topic

suggesting that one

of the most important

things that we can

discover,

recover,

or continue with

as a Christian church

is the idea

of hospitality

with a purpose.

Inviting people in

so they might have

a chance

to discover more

about God

and that's what

Peter does here.

But what we see

in this whole story

is that God

is building his church,

God is in control,

and he's weaving

these stories together

for his own glory.

The story of Cornelius

and Peter

is really crucial

to the book of Acts.

It's why it gets

so much attention.

It gets like basically

two chapters.

And it's after this

that Peter begins

largely to fade

into the background

and Paul,

as missionary

to the Gentiles,

begins to take

center stage.

It's a really

important story.

What does it say

to us?

Well, it certainly

reminds us

that God's kingdom

is broad.

It transcends

cultures

and hostilities

and we are encouraged

to think like that

and to pray like that.

It certainly

should lead us

to worship God

and to give him

glory for the way

that he acts

and moves in people's

lives to save them

as if we're Christians,

he has acted

to save us,

bringing people

into our lives,

perhaps parents

or perhaps friends

or somebody

that we spend time

with at university.

None of that

is accidental.

God weaves

our stories

into his

bigger story

and connected

with that,

we can be encouraged

that God is still

active,

God is still

building his church,

God is still

using our lives,

the lives of his people

as a way for others

to know more about him

and to know more

of his love

so that they too

can meet Jesus.

I do not trust

about this

among

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