Disturbing Visit
Opening Prayer
Eternal God, remind me today that I live my life under Your eye, and in Your grace I stand.
Read ACTS 10:23b–33
23 Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.
Peter at Cornelius’s House
The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the believers from Joppa went along. 24 The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. 26 But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”
27 While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. 28 He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. 29 So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?”
30 Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me 31 and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. 32 Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
No preacher today could ask for a more attentive audience.
Think Further
Wouldn’t you just love it if a neighbor dropped by unexpectedly, to invite you to meet a roomful of other neighbors, all eager to hear the Gospel? But what if the crowd gathered in their home was very different from your usual circle of friends? Would you be taken aback by a group of people whose physical appearance and dress are very different from yours? One gets the impression that Peter was still rather unsure about all this Gentile stuff and was still feeling his way. He didn’t feel comfortable with them, despite the warmth of the centurion’s welcome and the eager anticipation of the audience.
Peter had certainly needed that divine revelation (Acts 10:9–16). It was such a new idea, that God does not show favoritism. After all, throughout Israel’s existence they had been called to be holy, separate from others. What they often forgot, though, was the reason for this: that through them the world might see God’s light and come to him (Gen. 12:1–3; Isa. 49:6). In Jesus, barriers were torn down and now all were welcome into God’s family on exactly the same terms. For Peter, this was revolutionary!
Was Peter’s question in verse 29 a genuine one, because he really didn’t know why he’d been asked to come? Or was it a conversation-opener? It gave Cornelius the opportunity to explain his side of the story, which must have been reassuring for Peter. The real break-through, however, was yet to come.
There are times when God unmistakably leads us in what appear to be strange ways; our part is to just do what he says and see where it leads. He will never lead us to do anything contrary to his word and character, but sometimes we are prejudiced without perhaps realizing it.
Apply
If someone very different were to come to your church and show interest in the Gospel, how do you feel they would be received?
Closing prayer
Gracious Father, I know what Your Word says about our relationships with others who are different from us. Implant Your values anew in me.
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.