Bible Question #29, Peter's Vision - It's About People Not Pork

The sermon will be about an hour. Follow along. We'll be moving fast.

Good evening. Welcome to another Wednesday night Bible study. This evening, as we tackle another of our Bible literacy test questions, we're on number 29. Number 29, if you're following along and have your quiz, if you want to open that up, take a look at that. We're on question 29 and the statement is Peter's Vision, Sheet of Unclean Animals.

Where do you find that in your Bible? Of course, what we're going to do here is what I continue to try to do, which is to ask the question and answer it, if possible. Why is this important for us to know? I think we'll see as we walk through this study. This is familiar with us.

For those who've been in the Church of God for a long time, you're familiar with Peter's Vision and the explanation of it. But there are a lot of people who don't really understand this who are newer with us. It's a good opportunity for us as we've been walking through a lot of the fundamental beliefs over the last few months here in Tacoma and Olympia.

It's a good opportunity for us to take a look again at this question here of Peter's Vision and what is really talking about and where do we find that? Where do we find that? Find it in Acts chapter 10. If you want to turn over to Acts chapter 10, you'll see, as I typically do, I normally read the passage for you, but this one's so important.

The context of this one's so important that before I do that, I actually want to give some background to this. When we open up the pages of our Bibles to Acts chapter 10, so I'm getting over here right now to Acts chapter 10. There we go. Okay, so when we get to Acts chapter 10, what does the church look like? It's brand new. Remember the church began in Acts chapter 2 when Peter, well, when all the disciples were gathered in Jerusalem and as Christ had promised before he ascended on the 40th day that if they waited until the 50th day, the Holy Spirit would be delivered to them, would be given to them, and it would be not just externally around them any longer.

It would now be indwelling within them. And of course, we know that that was a very powerful event, visually striking event, where tongues of fire lit upon the tops of the heads of those disciples who received the Holy Spirit. So it was an undeniable event. They spoke in tongues, which is languages for all of those people who were there from foreign nations to hear. They all heard in their own language these guys from Galilee, which were, you know, they looked at these guys as carpenters and fishermen and laymen, and they're like, who are these guys that they're speaking in tongues?

We can each hear them in our own language. It was a miraculous event in Sweden. What happened after that? We know the church began then, as God called some 3,000 people the very first day, as Peter after Peter gives his first sermon, and then at the end of that sermon, 3,000 of the Jews were then baptized.

The church up to this point was entirely Jewish in membership, identity, and direction. As we know, from Pentecost onward, every baptized believer was either a Jew or a proselyte attached to the synagogue system one way or another, even when persecution scattered the Jerusalem congregation. After the martyr of Stephen, when the people were scattered, we notice something here in Acts chapter 11. Let's go over here to Acts chapter 11 and verse 19. It says, Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen, they traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only.

So you see, this is what the work of the church at this time was. It was preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God and making disciples out of the Jews. This was the entire work of the church, essentially, as we see here from Acts 11-19. And that's because that's the mindset of the church. And that's not being narrow-minded. I don't want us to make an assumption here that's not appropriate. They weren't being narrow-minded.

It's just that this is what they understood the work was. And so this was their sincere understanding of the order of God's plan, that the Messiah's work was to begin with Israel, and through Israel eventually to reach the nations. No apostle imagined bypassing Israel and going straight to what, uncircumcised Gentiles? That would never have occurred to them. Acts chapter 8, at first glance, appears to be an exception. Why? Because you might remember in your mind, you might be thinking about Samaria. Are those Jews? And the answer is no. I mean, not strictly speaking.

Philip, though, goes north after the persecution. He goes north into Samaria, and many end up believing him. But Samaria, though ethnically Gentile due to their Assyrian resettlement, you remember in 720 BC when God finally divorced Israel for the...I mean, the permanent divorce happened. He sent Assyria in and conquered all the northern ten tribes and dispersed them throughout the Assyrian lands, and then brought in Assyrian Gentile peoples to displace them, to replace their homes and their villages and their towns with Gentiles. You can read about that in 2 Kings 17. Now, these Gentiles, to some degree, understood and adopted some of the customs of Israel because they brought in the Israelite, quote-unquote, priests when they were being attacked because they thought, well, the God of this land we're not honoring him the way he wants to be honored. So they brought back in some of the Israelite priests, which were not Levites, and those Israelite priests, which largely taught a false religion but still understood that there is a God, Yahweh, in heaven. And so they at least understood that much and had some of the practices but largely were influenced more by Baal worship and some of the other pagan worships of the time.

So their beliefs were definitely corrupted, but they were...let's call us Samaritans biblically adjacent, okay? They're not pagans worshiping idols necessarily, but a rival community claiming Israel's God and covenant symbols. Now, look, there's a whole lot to that story to try to bring you up to speed from what happened even, you know, from that point forward, even with what happened within Jerusalem from the Babylonian captivity and what happened to form the roots of the religion that we have come to know today as Judaism. But for the purposes of this Bible study, we'll stay sort of focused on who are these Samaritans, but the apostles didn't view the Samaritans as the nations which they considered the Gentile peoples to be, in the sense of what the Scripture usually defines the Gentile nations, okay? So they were outsiders definitely. Samaritans were outsiders and they were despised for their history, their syncretism, and so forth. And the Jews avoided them socially and religiously. You remember the famous story of the Samaritan woman who Christ referred to in the sense of a puppy, but understood the Jews considered the Samaritans actual dogs and treated them as such. Not the way they would Gentiles, but definitely not beloved people. So Samaria was still close enough to Israel's spiritual world that when Philip goes north preaching, he produced results. The Jerusalem apostles did not, you know, they didn't avoid going north. You remember when they realized that the people of Samaria were being called, Peter and John went north to finish the baptisms of these people. Philip had simply submerged them, baptized them, but Philip and Peter and John then go forth to lay hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. See, it's interesting to note that they didn't recoil away from that. They went and did that work with the Samaritans. That helps us to understand that there's a difference between how they viewed Samaria and the Gentile nations. See, Samaria wasn't Rome. Peter and John could baptize Samaritans, but they would never have considered baptizing a Roman citizen, let alone a centurion or a Greek merchant or any uncircumcised Gentile who remained outside of Israel's covenant boundaries. Such an action would have been absolutely unthinkable, a complete violation of everything Peter believed about covenant identity, about purity, and the promises God had made to Israel. This is why the narrative that we read about Peter's vision emphasizes the depth of separation. The Jews had learned in Babylon and Persia that assimilation destroys covenant faithfulness. The response in Ezra and Nehemiah was strict boundary keeping, avoiding intermarriage and Gentile influence at all costs. By the first century, this had solidified into a rigid social wall. Jews did not eat with Gentiles, they didn't enter their homes, they did not accept their hospitality. So therefore, when Phillips' work in Samaria resulted in many believing, the apostles understood it as a restoration of a corrupted neighbor, the Samaritans.

Not a Gentile mission, this wasn't even a Gentile accomplishment. To them, the Samaritans were religious deviants, not representatives of the nations God had kept outside of the covenant. A Samaritan baptism was a stretch, but not beyond comprehension.

A Roman baptism would have been remarkable. It would have been unthinkable. This is the backdrop to Peter's vision on a rooftop in Joppa. So when Peter goes up to the rooftop to pray, he does so as a man loyal to this inherited framework. He's faithful, sincere, and obedient, but also completely unprepared for what God is about to do. Nothing in his life, nothing in the early church, nothing in the teachings he had received from Jesus Christ directly had hinted that the uncircumcised nations were about to enter the same covenant as the disciples, the Jewish people, those whom God had called, on equal terms with Israelites.

So in order to breach that wall, something dramatic had to happen. There was no way God could just say to Peter, hey listen, I'm going to be calling Gentiles and you're going to need to accept that. That would not have been sufficient to convince Peter. He would have thought that that was something bizarre. He wouldn't have just accepted. So God did need to do something dramatic, and he did in fact do something very dramatic, but it had to be something powerful enough to shatter what would have been centuries of separation. Deep-seated assumptions could not be just wiped away with a suggestion.

So Peter doesn't know yet, but the sheet that's going to descend from heaven is not about food.

It is God's chosen symbol for the biggest doctrinal breakthrough since Pentecost.

Now we can go down here to Acts chapter 10, and let's go down to verse 10. Well, let's pick it up in verse 9. It says, The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray about the sixth hour. So right around noon. Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat. Well, if you're hungry, you want to eat. But while they made ready, so down in the house, it's lunchtime. They're preparing the noon meal, the lunch meal, whatever they would refer to that, we call it lunch. So while they're doing that, he's up on the rooftop, and he goes into a trance.

So he's in Joppa, he's praying at midnight, and God begins the first step in breaking open the church's understanding. So the setting is pretty simple. He's praying, he's hungry, he's waiting for food to be prepared in the house below, and notice that God uses that timing to introduce a concept to him through food, since he was hungry. Verses 11 and 12. It says, And so he fell into a trance, and he saw heaven opened, and an object like a great sheet, bound at the four corners, descending to him, and let down to the earth. In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts creeping things and birds of the air.

So this sheet descends from heaven, its origin unmistakably divine, and the imagery is intentionally very broad. It contains every category of unclean animal listed in the law. Beasts creeping things, birds of prey. That's obviously not an accidental assortment. That's deliberate symbolism.

Now the four corners of the sheet suggest universality. Now let's pause here and notice this symbology in Revelation about the Great Revolt after Satan is loosed at the end of the millennium. Revelation chapter 20.

Revelation chapter 20.

It says here, let's begin here in verse 7, it says, Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison, and will go out to deceive the nations, which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. So here we see this four corners of the earth, and it's describing the universality of the rebellion that happens after the millennium. During the millennium, the plan of God is being completed as his government is established throughout the entire earth.

We have Gog and Magog, which come against Israel at that time at the beginning, but that's a very unique set of people. It's not everyone from around the planet. We get to the end of the millennium when God's truth has been spread, when only God's way is across the entire face of the of the earth, that rebellion will have people from everywhere, every corner of the earth. This is the same context then, when we see the four corners of the sheet indicating then something Peter doesn't understand, but it's this idea of the universality of the application of what is in the vision. We see in Revelation that meant the rebellion of the people. In Acts chapter 10, it's not about the rebellion of people any longer. He's seeing food and doesn't understand what this means. But he sees that they are all of the animals that the law forbids.

Now, notice verse 13. It says, we're back in Acts chapter 10. We're now at verse 13.

It says to him, the voice comes to him. Now, he sees this and all these unclean animals.

And a voice came to him. Verse 13 says, rise Peter, kill and eat.

Now, that would have been shocking, Peter. Peter has lived his entire life in obedience to God's distinctions regarding clean and unclean animals. He's not rebellious. He's not being stubborn.

He's faithful. He's devout. And he is consistent in his obedience. So, his reaction is immediate, and it's really honest. Verse 14. But Peter says, not so, Lord, for I have never eaten anything common or unclean. In all of his life, he has never, not once ever, eaten anything unclean. Now, that statement is crucial for understanding the vision that he's been given, because this occurs years after Christ's death and resurrection, years after the church has been receiving instruction through the Holy Spirit. Yet Peter affirms that he has never eaten anything unclean.

For those who want to say, well, see, this is a vision to help Peter to understand that he's clinging to something that's part of the Old Covenant. Well, Jesus Christ would have taught that then, correct? And if Jesus Christ was teaching that that had been done away, then why didn't they all sit down together and have a big old ham sandwich? They did not. They never did that. Christ never encouraged that, never taught that, and Peter never did that. Now, that's what would put the lie to this, is if if that had happened, Peter would not be able to say this, because Christ would have taught him. It's okay to do that. So clearly, Christ didn't teach that.

This command shocks Peter because the command contradicts everything he understand God has ever said about the clean and holiness that's associated with clean and unclean food that we eat. So in Peter's mind, eating from that sheet would be disobedience to God. Verses 15 and 16.

And a voice spoke to him again the second time. It says, what God has cleansed, you must not call common. Now, this is saying that the voice, this isn't the second time yet in the vision, or have him repeating the vision. This is the second speaking of the voice during the vision. So the first voice says, rise Peter, kill and eat. Peter says, no way, I've never done that. The voice then says, listen to me. What God has cleansed, you must not call common, unclean.

Now, the repetition happens three times. Verse 16 says, this was done three times. And the object, that is this sheet, and all of the unclean animals was taken up into heaven again.

Okay, so that ends the vision portion of this, the symbolism that's presented to Peter. But notice that God says that he has cleansed something, but there was no change in those animals.

They were unclean when they were presented, and they were still unclean when God took them back up in the vision.

So the cleansing then is symbolic, and Peter knows it. If God were only to clean up the animals, then he would be cleansed. So the cleansing then is symbolic, and Peter knows it.

And Peter knows it. If God were overturning his loss, Peter would not remain confused. He would react with alarm, but not uncertainty. This is why the next verse is so important. Verse 17. Now, verse 17 of Acts chapter 10. Now, while Peter wondered within himself what this vision, which he had seen, meant. Behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius, had made their inquiry for Simon's house and stood before the gate.

Those who want to say that this has got to be talking about God doing away with the laws of clean and unclean foods, fail to understand that if that were true, Peter should have drawn that conclusion. But it says here in verse 17, that Peter wondered within himself what this vision, which he had seen, meant. He had no idea. He certainly did not think that God was saying, you can eat these unclean animals. That was the farthest thing from his mind. So he did not believe that at all. He knew there was a reason for it, though. There was a lesson here. He just didn't see what it was. Now, this principle is consistent throughout Scripture, that when God gives a symbol, he alone provides its interpretation. Notice that Joseph didn't interpret the dreams without God to Pharaoh. Daniel did not define for Nebuchadnezzar on his own terms what Nebuchadnezzar had seen. God revealed both the vision and its interpretation to him. And long before the book of Revelation was inspired, Christ provided explanations for its keys, its symbols, its meanings in the Gospels. So wherever Scripture explains a symbol, that explanation, not our assumptions, not our theories, not our speculations, is what the Scripture reveals. That becomes the authoritative meaning. And Peter's vision is no different. God gives the symbol in the vision. The interpretation is going to come shortly. Instead of acting on his own assumptions, Peter waits then. And God orchestrates the arrival of Gentile messengers at that exact moment.

So Peter's confusion on the rooftop doesn't linger for very long, even as he struggles to understand the symbolic vision. God is already working in another city preparing a Gentile's household to receive the truth. So this movement toward the first Gentile conversion, that's solely God working this out. In order to break centuries of separation, God had to first prepare both sides, the Gentiles and the Jews, for this remarkable change that was going to happen. So now we can go back to the beginning of Acts chapter 10. I'll read here. Acts chapter 10 beginning in verse 1. It says, There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius. He was a centurion of what is called the Italian regiment. That means he was an Italian in the Italian regiment.

And he was a devout man, and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always.

Cornelius is introduced with very remarkable care. He is a Roman centurion. He is the very face of Gentile power. Yet he also is described as devout, reverent, and a God-fearr.

Now that's a phrase widely recognized in the first century for Gentiles who worship the God of Israel, but without becoming proselytites. Cornelius gives generously and prays continually Acts which reflect a genuine, God-oriented sincerity. Verses 3 and 4.

Now about the ninth hour of the day, so this is around three o'clock in the afternoon, about the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel from God coming in and saying to him, Cornelius. So God is going to give Peter a vision. He begins by giving Cornelius a vision.

So this angel in this vision comes to him and it says to him, Cornelius.

And when he observed him, he was afraid and he said, What is it, Lord? And so he said to him, Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.

So this timing is clearly deliberate. The ninth hour, this is the traditional hour of afternoon prayer. This shows Cornelius is engaged in regular, disciplined prayer. The angel's declaration that his prayers and alms have risen as a memorial, it wasn't saying that, hey, just today, finally, your prayers have ascended as a memorial. This was a pattern of Cornelius's and now the angel comes to him and says, Your prayers, plural, have come up before God as a memorial.

Now that obviously echoes the sacrificial language which we find in Leviticus.

A memorial offering is something that comes before God as a pleasing remembrance. Now here, God acknowledges Cornelius not because he's part of Israel, but because God himself is initiating a relationship with this Gentile. Now notice what the angel does not do.

He doesn't preach the gospel to him.

This wasn't the job he was given. That was reserved for Peter.

Here in this case, we notice that the angel is going to be directing him to a man.

Now it would appear to me, I'll just say this from my perspective, but it appears to me that God wants to establish that the gospel will be preached through men. This is the method of the church today. It is the method that began with Peter preaching the very first sermon on the day of Pentecost. It is through that unique tool, the ministry of Jesus Christ, that God has been preaching the truth to the world. And I'm fairly confident that this is why he wanted to send Peter to preach the gospel itself to Cornelius, which is what Peter ends up doing. It's an interesting sidebar to the story, but it's worth noting. Acts chapter 10 verses 5 and 6 says, Now send men to Joppa. This is the angel continuing to instruct Cornelius. It says, Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon, whose surname is Peter. He's lodging with Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must do.

So the instruction is very precise. Cornelius must send Gentiles to seek out a Jewish apostle.

The distance between Caesarea and Joppa is about 40 miles.

So I don't believe that's coincidental. I think that's on purpose.

God places a Gentile household and a Jewish apostle on a collision course that neither would have been able to have initiated on their own. They're simply too far apart from one another.

So at this stage, Cornelius understands nothing of what's coming. He's just obeying because God had spoken and given him instruction through this angel. His willingness to act immediately, without hesitation, reveals again the depth of his reverence for God. The Greek word he used here for said expresses a decisive, unambiguous command.

And Cornelius, a commander himself, understood authority. He therefore acted immediately, obeying the command that he was given, verses 7 and 8.

And when the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier from among those who waited on him continually. So when he had explained all these things to them, he sent them to Joppa.

So obviously he selects trusted people, including another devout soldier, but also a subordinate.

But the key word there is devout, who also believes in God.

But this obviously indicates that his household already leans towards the God of Israel.

So these messengers begin their journey at once, but they're all unaware that God has already begun preparing Peter through a vision that he himself cannot yet understand.

This is the careful choreography of Acts chapter 10.

God moving in two places simultaneously, shaping events so that the meaning of the vision will be understood through experience. Peter must see with his own eyes what God is cleansing.

It isn't food, it's people.

Now Cornelius has to hear the truth from the mouth of God's anointed apostle, who is a Jew.

Simultaneous events breaking down a very big wall of separation between Jews and Gentiles, but doing it from both sides.

Now meanwhile, Peter is still on the rooftop. He's still wrestling with the vision. He can't understand. The symbol is clear, but its meaning isn't. That meaning is going to come from the arrival of men whom Peter would never have approached on his own. God brings the two storylines together at this very moment when the vision Peter had ends.

Acts chapter 10 again, verses 17 and 18.

Now while Peter wondered within himself what this vision which he had seen meant, behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius made their journey for Simon's house and stood before the gate. Verse 18 says, And they called and asked whether Simon, whose surname was Peter, was lodging there.

Now, the Greek word translated as wondered, that's a compound term meaning to be greatly confused, to be thoroughly perplexed, or to be at a loss.

So this again isn't Peter resisting God. He's just honestly bewildered.

This vision he was given challenged something deeply embedded in his understanding of God's law and his covenant. And at that precise moment of confusion, the Gentile messengers arrive. The timing is too exact to be coincidence. And of course we know it is not coincidence. This is absolutely orchestrated. But notice, the messengers do not enter the house uninvited. They stand at the gate. Now this reflects the social norms in Judea, where Gentiles avoided presuming upon Jewish hospitality. Peter likewise has no habit of welcoming Gentiles into his lodging. So that boundary is still intact.

Verses 19 and 20.

It says, while Peter thought about the vision, you can imagine he's not going to be able to let that go very quickly at all. This is going to be grinding on him.

So while he thought about that vision, the Spirit said to him, Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down, and go with them, doubting nothing, for I have sent them.

So here God interprets the first layer of the vision. Peter must respond to the arrival of these men without hesitation. Rise, Peter, kill and eat. You see the connection?

The connection is clear here. It says the Spirit gives him an imperative. Go down, go with them, and do not doubt. So the phrase, doubting nothing, literally means make no distinction between Jew and Gentile. Make no distinction between Jew and Gentile. So the Spirit is beginning to dismantle this internal barrier that exists in Peter, and Peter obeys verses 21 through 23. Then Peter went down to the men who had been sent to him from Cornelius, and said, Yes, I am he whom you seek. For what reason have you come? He doesn't know yet. He doesn't know. He's had the vision, but he has no idea. Now these Gentiles, and God says, Now don't make any distinction between these men. Go down and meet them, and go with them, doubting nothing. So he's like, what's going on here? Verse 22, it says, and they said, Cornelius the Centurion, a just man, one who fears God, and has a good reputation among all the nation of the Jews, was divinely instructed by a holy angel to summon you to his house, and to hear words from you.

Then he, that's Peter, then he invited them in, and lodged them.

He obeyed. No Jew under any other circumstance would have invited these Gentiles into their home, to stay, to lodge with them, which also implies to eat with them. He literally made no distinction between these Gentiles and the Jews. On the next day, Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him. Who would have been the brethren from Joppa? They were not Gentiles. These would have been fellow Jews. Commentators note that this act alone of inviting these Gentiles in would have been viewed as bold, even radical, for a Jewish teacher. F.F. Bruce, in the book of the Acts, explicitly comments on Peter lodging Gentiles in Acts 10, verse 23, and he says, quote, It was an unprecedented step for him to entertain Gentile visitors. It implied the crossing of a barrier which he had hitherto maintained. He was a Jew. He would never have done this. He would not have gone so boldly against Jewish tradition in rejecting the Gentiles being entertained in your home. Howard Marshall, Acts, his book called Acts, highlights the radical nature of Peter's hospitality, quoting this. Here's a quote, Peter's invitation for them to be his guests is in itself a remarkable sign that he had already begun to act against the normal Jewish restrictions on association with Gentiles.

Yet, so far, Peter has not interpreted the vision as applying to Gentiles. He's simply responding to his instructions. Now, the next day, Peter accompanies the messengers to Caesarea, and he obviously takes some Jewish believers with him. Now, the presence of these witnesses is going to become essential. But let's keep reading here in Acts chapter 10, now verses 24 through 26.

It says, In the following day they entered Caesarea, now Cornelius was waiting for them, and he had called together his relatives and close friends. As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshipped him. This is a sign we've seen before. John even does this at the feet of angels. It's when you're in the presence of something miraculous, something you can't comprehend but you know is from God. We just see this repeated in Scripture, where people just find themselves falling down on their knees in a form of worship. But that's out of ignorance. He doesn't do that because he understands and knows fully, and therefore is doing something that he believes is absolutely correct. This is a natural, gut-level response from him.

But Peter, verse 26 says, but Peter lifted him up, saying, now this is what God's anointing always do. They're obviously going to be off-put by that. No way stop doing that. So Peter lifted him up and said, stand up. I myself am also a man. I'm not worthy of your worship. I'm not here for that.

So Cornelius's reverence shows his anticipation and respect, but Peter immediately redirects the honor to God. So this interaction demonstrates two important truths. Cornelius is devout, but he lacks a full understanding of roles and responsibilities, clearly. Number two, Peter refuses to be elevated in status. He comes as a servant, not as a superior. Verses 27 through 29. And as he talked with him, he went in and found many who had come together.

Then he said to them, you know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go into one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. Therefore I came without objection as soon as I was sent. I asked them, for what reason have you sent for me? This is clearly the turning point. Peter now understands the vision.

But he understood it by what God had revealed to him through the events he had just experienced. It was very easy for him to make the connection now between what he knew was unclean, that God had said previously was unclean in food, and that God did not change the nature of those animals on that blanket. So he knew it was symbolic. He could not understand what the symbolism was about until this very moment when he's standing in the house of a Gentile. And that house is filled with Gentiles who believe in God. And he realizes in that moment it was Gentiles on that sheet. And he would have called them unclean, common, and would never have allowed them to be baptized. Now he sees the connection.

But even as he realizes this, there remains an unspoken question. What exactly is God doing with the Gentiles? Clearly he says that as he asks the question. I asked him, for what reason have you sent for me? So I get it now. God was showing me something about Gentiles, but might not fully understand exactly what about the Gentiles he was being shown. So he reads, let's continue here, excuse me, let's continue here verses 30 through 33, that says, so Cornelius answers him and he says, four days ago I was fasting until this very hour, and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and behold a man stood before me in bright clothing, and said, Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your alms are remembered in the sight of God. Send therefore to Joppa and call Simon here, whose surname is Peter. He's lodging in the house of Simon a tanner by the sea. When he comes, he will speak to you. So I sent to you immediately, and you have done well to come. Now therefore we are all present before God to hear all the things commanded you by God. What amazing faith! I did my part. I sent for you. I know God has given you instructions to come and to give to us. So come here and teach. We're ready. What an amazing thing happens here between these two individuals. What an amazing thing God does between Cornelius and Peter. It's remarkable, really, if you stop and just meditate on this. Think through everything that would have been going on between both men's and both of their minds. Both of their, you know, both of their paths colliding at this very moment, and both of them realizing in that same exact moment that God has done this on purpose.

Now Peter acknowledged this in verses 34 and 35, God's divine preparation.

Then Peter opened his mouth and said, In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation, whoever fears him and works righteousness is accepted by him.

Peter now gets it all. I get it. God is calling Gentiles. From his perspective, it must be absolutely shocking and so hard to believe, except for everything that he's now experienced. And it's so clear to him now in this very moment, God is calling Gentiles.

We would never have allowed Gentiles to be called if it were left to us. God is calling Gentiles.

The phrase, In truth I perceive, that means, quote, I now grasp fully and truly.

So his understanding completely shifted. He does not say that God ignores righteousness, or that nationality is irrelevant. Instead, he states that fear of God and the pursuit of righteousness are not limited to Israel. God may grant repentance to those in other nations as he chooses. This is a recognition that the covenant blessings now extend beyond Israel.

So Peter then goes on to preach Christ.

So it's not a philosophical summary. This is a historical reality of Jesus Christ's ministry, his death, and his resurrection. He appeals to eyewitness testimony and to Jesus's command to preach to the people. His, let's call it a sermon, is short because God's not going to allow him to finish, because God's not done with the lesson. Verses 44 through 46.

While Peter was still speaking these words, giving his mini-sermon, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. Here's this household filled with these Gentiles, Peter preaching the gospel to them as he had been instructed to do. And while he's speaking the words to them, the Holy Spirit descends upon these Gentiles.

Obviously, God does not wait for Peter to complete the sermon, offer an appeal, lay hands on them first, baptize them in the traditional batting order that we know. God doesn't wait for any of that.

He wants to prove, and that's clear by what happens, to prove to Peter these people have been called. You know how Peter knows? God gave him them the Spirit first, while he was still speaking.

My fifth verse says about this, the Spirit falls here without mediation, in order that no one may doubt that it is God's act, not Peter's.

The astonishment of the circumcised believers with Peter knows how unexpected this moment was. Nothing in their upbringing or their understanding prepared them for what they saw.

Notice that they speak in... let's continue here. Let's continue reading through here through verse 48 and see what all had happened. And so it says here again in verse 44, While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word, and those of the circumcision who believed were astonished. As many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.

For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.

Then Peter answered. So notice how important that is, because what had happened in Acts 2, the disciples who received the Holy Spirit spoke in tongues. They're watching the Gentiles repeat the exact same thing. There is no denying that God had given them the Spirit. This isn't blabbering. This is speaking in a foreign language, in the language of those who were present to understand. Then Peter answered, Verse 47, Can anyone forbid water that these should not be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?

And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

That phrase, forbid water, echoes the language used earlier in Acts when obstacles were removed from God's Word. So Peter is recognizing that the decision has been taken out of human hands.

God has already accepted these Gentiles. The Church now has to respond to that. And what's the response? Baptism. An acknowledgement of the process. An acknowledgement of their acceptance in the Church. A formality at this point, but a necessary one. They're going to be baptized.

It is this baptism, which is the formal recognition that these Gentiles are now part of God's covenant people.

This is the moment when the wall truly collapses. Not when Peter saw the vision, not when he entered the house, but when God placed his spirit upon these Gentiles.

Now how does the Church respond? We're now in Acts 11.

Verses 1-3. Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the Word of God. And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him, saying, You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them.

You're not allowed to do that. So Peter's being called on the carpet here.

And obviously, news travels fast.

Before he even returns to Jerusalem, word has spread. Gentiles have received the Word of God. Uncircumcised Gentiles. Gentiles!

And the initial response from the believing community is not celebration.

It's concern, obviously. They do not question Cornelius' sincerity. This isn't about Cornelius. This is about Peter going into a Gentile's house and preaching the gospel. What were you thinking?

Obviously, that just shows us how deeply ingrained these boundaries are.

Peter going there wasn't sufficient for the church, either. Just knowing that he had gone there wasn't sufficient for the church to accept the Gentiles. So Peter, well, his answer is simple.

He just recounts what happened. He shares with them the vision, the Spirit's command, the preparation of Cornelius, the angel's message to both of them, the descent of the Holy Spirit, and he concludes with a question that ends all debate. Verse 17 of Acts chapter 11. If therefore God gave them the same gift as he gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?

Okay, fellas, God puts you in this situation. Are you telling him no?

Are you telling me that I should have said no to God?

Well, now they don't have anything to say. What are you going to say? Yes, Peter, you should have said no. No, I would have said no to God. No, we know that's not true. This is a classic case of know when to shut up. There's nothing to say here. These people understood, finally, that God was opening the church to Gentiles as well as Israelites.

So now this becomes the doctrine of the church. It is now accepted as the doctrine of the church that God is going to call Gentiles. There's no denying it. It is now going to become the belief, the understanding, and the acceptance of the church of God that he will, in fact, be calling Gentiles with Israelites.

And yet nothing in all of this changed the food laws. It was never about food. And Peter never ate unclean food his whole life. There's not a shred of evidence that that ever changed.

So he never put the math together, as some would like to believe today, that Peter knew, must have known, Peter just had to have gotten that God was trying to show him Christ had done away with that food law on his sacrifice, staked to the cross with Christ's death.

But Peter never got that lesson. Steady, he was given a different lesson than he did understand, and it was wholly different than food. It was about people.

So the lesson for us is clear. When God calls, we don't resist. When God what God cleanses, we don't label that unclean. And when God expands our understanding, we follow his lead with humility.

Acts 10 stands as one of the most pivotal events in Scripture because it reveals both the sovereignty of God and the faithfulness he expects from his people. Peter obeyed before he understood and that obedience opened the way for the gospel to reach the world. May we show the same readiness to follow wherever God directs, trusting that his purpose is always greater in our understanding.