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Cornelius,
The Beginning Of The Long-Awaited Salvation Of
The Gentiles; The Vision That Was Necessary To
Prepare Peter To Open The Door Of Salvation To
The Gentiles; The Great Response To His Message
The Holy
Spirit, speaking to us through His great servant
Luke, has been teaching us that the Message about
salvation through Immanuel had been spreading
among the Jewish people throughout Israel, and
beyond the borders of Israel to the Jewish community
in Damascus. The Message of Eternal Life had gone
to the Samaritans, who were a people of mixed
Jewish and Gentile heritage.
The time
had arrived for something long anticipated by
the prophets to occur. Now it was time for the
Lord’s salvation to extend beyond the holy nation
and be given to the other nations of the world.
Israel, the Chosen People, would continue to fulfill
our part in the plans of God, being a light to
the nations, bringing the truth about the God
Who Alone Can Save to the nations of the world
who were in a state of darkness, confusion and
death.
This breakout
of messianic salvation to the Gentiles would come
through two special men who were being prepared
for this historic moment in the history of salvation
- Jewish Peter and Gentile Cornelius. Cornelius
was a Roman officer who was in charge of 100 soldiers.
He was a devout man who feared God with all his
household. He gave charity to the Jewish people
that his nation had conquered, and he prayed to
God continually.
That attitude
toward the God of Israel and Jewish people was
unusual. Most Romans didn’t respect us or our
God. But this Roman officer did not look down
on the conquered Jewish people and our invisible
God, but respected the God of Israel and was kind
to us. And, he encouraged his family and friends
to show the same kind of faith and respect. Cornelius’
courage and spirituality and good deeds caught
the attention of Heaven and he was chosen to be
the first man among the nations of the world to
experience Messianic Salvation!
And, Peter
was chosen to be the special human being who would
bring the Message of Messianic Salvation to Cornelius.
Peter was one of the greatest men who ever lived.
He was one of the leaders among the apostles.
He was given great spiritual authority. He was
empowered to do many and great miracles. He was
a writer of parts of the New Testament. Although
his primary sphere of ministry was to the lost
sheep of the house of Israel, like Paul, he too
was uniquely used by God to reach both Jews and
Gentiles. This man, to whom the “keys of the Kingdom”
were given, used those keys to open the first
doors of salvation to the Jewish, and then to
the Samaritans, and then to the Gentiles. Now
Peter was being prepared for something monumental,
something unprecedented - opening the doors of
salvation to the nations of the world who so desperately
need Messianic salvation!
And, even
though Peter was wise and bold and filled with
the Holy Spirit, and dedicated to proclaiming
the Good News to Jewish people, because what was
about to happen was so radical, Peter would need
a dramatic revelation to prepare him to bring
the Good News about the Jewish Messiah to those
of humanity who had not received it - the Gentiles.
Why? Up
until this point in salvation history, the way
of salvation for Gentiles who were being drawn
to the God of Israel was for them to gain knowledge
and faith in the God of Israel, and accept the
Tenach as the Word of God. Then they were circumcised
and immersed. In this way, they took upon themselves
all of the requirements of Judaism. If their faith
was genuine, these proselytes to Judaism were
saved. They were connected to the holy nation
of Israel. In a generation, they could be fully
integrated into the Jewish community. If a proselyte/convert
married a Jewish person, their children were considered
Jews.
But now
something unprecedented was about to happen. The
Lord of All didn’t want the Gentiles who were
about to receive salvation to leave their cultures
and peoples. He didn’t want them to be circumcised
- indicating that they were under the Sinai Covenant.
He didn’t want them to become Jews. He didn’t
want them to live exactly the same way the Holy
and Chosen People did. The non-Jewish believers
would not be required to keep all 613 commandments
that were directed to Israel. The Lord wanted
Gentile Christians to know Him and be saved and
remain who they were - redeemed people who remained
within their nations and cultures and peoples.
It was God’s will for saved Gentiles to remain
Gentiles. This was a very radical departure from
what had come before, and Peter would need supernatural
help to understand this.
When
the angel who was speaking to him had left
(instructing Cornelius to send for Peter so that
Cornelius and his family and friends could hear
the Message About Eternal Life), he summoned
two of his servants and a devout soldier (a
soldier who shared Cornelius’ faith in the God
of Israel) of those who were his personal attendants,
and after he had explained everything to them,
he sent them to Yafo. On the next day, as they
were on their way and approaching the city, Peter
went up on the housetop about the sixth hour (noon)
to pray. But he became hungry and was desiring
to eat; but while they were making preparations,
he fell into a trance; and he saw the sky opened
up, and an object like a great sheet coming down,
lowered by four corners to the ground, and there
were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and
crawling creatures of the Earth and birds of the
air. A voice came to him, "Get up, Peter,
kill and eat"! But Peter said, "By no
means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy
and unclean". Again a voice came to him a
second time, "What God has cleansed, no longer
consider unholy". This happened three times,
and immediately the object was taken up into the
sky.
Many,
probably most Christian commentators wrongly interpret
this vision. The common misinterpretation is that
the Lord was nullifying the kosher laws for the
Church - including the Messianic Jewish remnant.
All Christians in the Jewish Messiah, including
the faithful remnant of Israel like Peter, would
no longer be encouraged to keep kosher. But, that
is not the meaning of the vision. The meaning
has nothing to do with a change in the dietary
laws. The Messianic Jews of the first five centuries
did not understand it that way, since we know
that they continued to keep kosher.
The meaning
of the vision is that people from among the uncircumcised
Gentiles were about to be cleansed. They were
about to become holy through the new covenant
and the Jewish Messiah. They were about experience
messianic salvation. For centuries before this,
we had considered the uncircumcised ones unholy
and unclean, and in various ways we tried to maintain
a distance from them. But something was about
to happen so that we should no longer consider
them unholy and unclean, but look at them like
a potentially delicious kosher meal! We should
become interested in those Gentiles who may become
interested in Messianic salvation, and search
for them and associate with them.
Even though
the vision included a three fold repetition, the
interpretation of this vision was not clear to
Peter. He would need some God-directed circumstances
to clarify things. Now while Peter was greatly
perplexed in mind as to what the vision which
he had seen might be (and I can understand
the source of his great perplexity - kill and
eat non-kosher animals! Abandon the laws of God?
That can’t be right! Yet, that message was repeated
three times!) behold, the men who had been
sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for
Simon's house, appeared at the gate; and calling
out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also
called Peter, was staying there.
God is
in control of all things, all people, all events.
There is no such thing as coincidence or luck.
We believe in providence, not coincidence or luck.
God is in control of time and circumstances, and
time can be an important factor that helps us
understand what God is doing - as it did here.
While Peter was reflecting on the vision, the
Spirit said to him, "Behold, three men are
looking for you. But get up, go downstairs and
accompany them without misgivings, for I have
sent them Myself". Peter went down to the
men and said, "Behold, I am the one you are
looking for; what is the reason for which you
have come"? They said, "Cornelius,
a centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man well
spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, was
divinely directed by a holy angel to send for
you to come to his house and hear a message from
you". The meaning of Peter’s vision was
clarified by the sudden appearance of Cornelius’
representatives who came at just the right time,
and who came at the direction of a holy angel.
The instructions of the angel was that a special
God-fearing Gentile was to be given a message.
This was
a very unusual situation. It was obvious that
God was at work and Peter was willing to cooperate.
So he invited them in and gave them lodging
(and by inviting them into a Jewish home, Peter
and Simon the tanner started showing a new and
more welcoming attitude toward Gentiles, since
Jewish people probably did not routinely welcome
Gentiles into their homes). And on the
next day he got up and went away with them, and
some of the brothers from Yafo accompanied him.
On the following day he entered Caesarea. Now
Cornelius was waiting for them and had called
together his relatives and close friends. When
Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at
his feet and worshiped him. Cornelius feared
God, but he still had things to learn - like worship
is reserved only for God - not for human beings,
even if they are special and great like Peter
(or Mary). But Peter raised him up, saying,
"Stand up; I too am just a man". As
he talked with him, he entered and found many
people assembled. And he said to them, "You
yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who
is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit
him (this was the normal Jewish attitude toward
Gentiles at that time); and yet God has shown
me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean.
And that is the true interpretation of Peter’s
vision which he now fully understood. Messianic
Jews would need to change our attitudes toward
Gentiles, particularly toward those whom the Lord
was drawing to Himself, and be willing to associate
with them. Peter’s vision has nothing to do with
encouraging Messianic Jews to stop keeping kosher.
Peter
continued: That is why I came without even
raising any objection when I was sent for. So
I ask for what reason you have sent for me".
In response to Peter’s request for the reason
he was sent for, Cornelius graciously recounted
for Peter all the background information he needed
to understand the reason why he had asked Peter
to come. Cornelius said, "Four days ago
to this hour, I was praying in my house during
the ninth hour; and behold, a man stood before
me in shining garments, and he said, 'Cornelius,
your prayer has been heard and your alms have
been remembered before God. Therefore send to
Yafo and invite Simon, who is also called Peter,
to come to you; he is staying at the house of
Simon the tanner by the sea'. So I sent for you
immediately, and you have been kind enough to
come. What was the reason Peter had been sent
for? Cornelius gave the reason in his concluding
remark: Now then, we are all here present before
God to hear all that you have been commanded by
the Lord". Cornelius and his friends
and relatives wanted to hear the entire message
that the God of Israel had commanded to be declared
to them.
Cornelius’
explanation of the message of the angel reinforced
Peter’s interpretation of his own vision. So,
after centuries and centuries of anticipation,
with everything now prepared for the beginning
of the salvation of the Gentiles, Peter used those
special keys of the Kingdom and gave the first
message to the Gentile world. Opening his mouth,
Peter said: "I most certainly understand
now that God is not one to show partiality, but
in every nation the man who fears Him and does
what is right is welcome to Him. In other
words, the Creator is not partial to one nation
- the Chosen People. He wants men and women from
every nation to experience Messianic Salvation!
And, here is the message of salvation that Peter
gave those Gentiles that special day: The word
which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching
peace through Messiah Yeshua (He is Lord of All)
-
This is
a message that came to and through the Jewish
people first. It is a Jewish message that is meant
by the Lord of All, the God of Everyone, to go
beyond the Jewish people and be understood and
embraced by everyone.
It is
a message of peace - the greatest kind of peace
that is possible, the peace that ends mankind’s
alienation from our Creator that happened in the
beginning, peace which can be reestablished by
having faith and confidence in the life and death
and resurrection of Israel’s ultimate God-sent,
God approved, God-anointed Prophet, Priest, King
and Savior - the Messiah!
And, the
life and death and resurrection of the Son of
God is what Peter told them in more detail: You
yourselves know the thing which took place throughout
all Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism
which John proclaimed. You know of Yeshua of Nazareth,
how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and
with power, and how He went about doing good and
healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for
God was with Him. The Messiah was very close
to God and was able to do powerful, supernatural
things. He did a lot of good things for
people, especially by healing people physically
and spiritually, overpowering the Adversary, who
is a very real and powerful enemy who dominates
and harasses human beings.
Messiah’s
miracles are not myth or fantasy or something
made up, but real things that were verified by
many reliable eyewitnesses, which makes the miracles
very believable. We are witnesses of all the
things He did both in the land of the Jews and
in Jerusalem.
Even though
Yeshua is the Messiah and is close to God, and
did so much good, something very unjust happened
to Him. They also put Him to death by hanging
Him on a cross. Yeshua really died a horrible
and painful death by crucifixion.
But, that
is not the end of the story! God raised Him
up on the third day. God the Father literally
and truly brought His Son back to life - thereby
overcoming the great and deadly forces arrayed
against us - Satan, sin and death. And, His bodily
resurrection really and truly happened! And
granted that He become visible, not to all the
people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand
by God, that is, to us who ate and drank with
Him after He arose from the dead.
Messiah’s
resurrection and post resurrection appearances
to His special representatives, appearances where
the Resurrected Rabbi ate food and drank with
them, showing that He has a unique and real resurrection
body, is not some myth or fantasy, but a reality
that was verified by many reliable eyewitnesses.
That makes Yeshua’s resurrection very sure and
believable.
Those
special eyewitnesses of these great and important
realities, which alone can save ruined humanity,
were commanded by God not to keep this vital information
to themselves, but to share this Good News. And
He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly
to testify that this is the One who has been appointed
by God as Judge of the living and the dead. Yeshua
is the Messiah. He is alive. He is the Savior
of those who come to know Him and give Him their
allegiance. And, one day He will be the final
judge of humanity, all of humanity. All will appear
before Him, those who are alive when He comes
and those who have died. He will judge all and
rule over all. He will reward with eternal life
those who are allied to Him and His Father, and
punish all those who continue in rebellion against
the Three-in-One God. Your goal of the life of
every human being should be to appear before Him
and successfully pass through His judgment.
The message
of the apostles was not new. Their message was
consistent with God’s revelation that came before.
They were not the only ones declaring these great
truths. Of Him all the prophets bear witness
that through His name everyone who believes in
Him receives forgiveness of sins". In
other words, all of the holy prophets had been
saying the same thing! The Messiah would come
and Yeshua of Nazareth is indeed the Messiah!
And, what the holy prophets of Israel and we are
telling you is that by placing your faith in Yeshua,
and who He is and what He has done, is the only
way for all of your sins to be forgiven, and for
you be reconciled to the Creator from whom the
whole world is estranged. And, the greatest need
of every human being is to have his sins forgiven
and be reconciled to the Creator.
Before
Peter had fully finished giving his message on
the person of Yeshua, and the implications and
the meaning of His death, burial and resurrection,
something tremendous happened. While Peter
was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit
fell upon all those who were listening to the
message - showing that these Gentiles believed
the message, and God was blessing these Gentiles
with Messianic Salvation, and that He was now
receiving Gentiles as Gentiles (notice they weren’t
circumcised before the Holy Spirit came to them),
and that He was welcoming them into His presence
and Kingdom and granting them eternal life! Fantastic!
Praise the Lord!
Well,
God’s approval of these Gentiles as Gentiles,
without becoming converts to Judaism, or Sinai
Covenant observance, was radically new and stunning
to the Jewish believers! All the circumcised
believers who came with Peter were amazed, because
the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out
on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them
speaking with other languages and exalting God
- definitive evidence that God was at work in
them, and was saving them, just as He had been
at work among the Jewish people on that special
Shavuot after Yeshua rose from the dead.
Peter
understood that when God makes it clear that he
approves of something and gives His acceptance,
we must too. Then Peter answered, "Surely
no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized
who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did,
can he?" And he ordered them to be baptized
in the name of Messiah Yeshua. Baptism is
important. Baptism is the first thing we do to
show that God has saved us through the Messiah
and are becoming part of His community.
Then
they asked him to stay on for a few days - no
doubt for further teaching and instruction in
the Faith.
Let me
summarize:
The Son
of God has come making salvation possible. Amazing!
Fantastic!
God has
a passion for world evangelism, starting with
the Jewish people first. Do you?
God wants
to establish strong, growing, witnessing communities
throughout the world. That is one of His highest
priorities. Is that one of your highest priorities?
If not, why not?
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