Peters vision and the gentile church grows

The Gentiles hear the Good News and the early church continues to grow.

Acts 10: Peter and Cornelius

1     At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort,

2     a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God.

3     About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, "Cornelius."

4     And he stared at him in terror and said, "What is it, Lord?" And he said to him, "Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God.

5     And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter.

6     He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea."

7     When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him,

8     and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.

Peter's Vision

9     The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray.

10   And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance

11   and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth.

12   In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air.

13   And there came a voice to him: "Rise, Peter; kill and eat."

14   But Peter said, "By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean."

15   And the voice came to him again a second time, "What God has made clean, do not call common."

16   This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

17   Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision that he had seen might mean, behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the gate

18   and called out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there.

19   And while Peter was pondering the vision, the Spirit said to him, "Behold, three men are looking for you.

20   Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them."

21   And Peter went down to the men and said, "I am the one you are looking for. What is the reason for your coming?"

22   And they said, "Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, was directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house and to hear what you have to say."

23   So he invited them in to be his guests. The next day he rose and went away with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa accompanied him.

24   And on the following day they entered Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends.

25   When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him.

26   But Peter lifted him up, saying, "Stand up; I too am a man."

27   And as he talked with him, he went in and found many persons gathered.

28   And he said to them, "You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean.

29   So when I was sent for, I came without objection. I ask then why you sent for me."

30   And Cornelius said, "Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house at the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing

31   and said, 'Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God.

32   Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.'

33   So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord."

Gentiles Hear the Good News

34   So Peter opened his mouth and said: "Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,

35   but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

36   As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all),

37   you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed:

38   how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

39   And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree,

40   but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear,

41   not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

42   And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.

43   To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."

The Holy Spirit Falls on the Gentiles

44   While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.

45   And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles.

46   For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared,

47   "Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?"

48   And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days.

 

Acts 11: Peter Reports to the Church

1     Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

2     So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying,

3     "You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them."

4     But Peter began and explained it to them in order:

5     "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, something like a great sheet descending, being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to me.

6     Looking at it closely, I observed animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air.

7     And I heard a voice saying to me, 'Rise, Peter; kill and eat.'

8     But I said, 'By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.'

9     But the voice answered a second time from heaven, 'What God has made clean, do not call common.'

10   This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into heaven.

11   And behold, at that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we were, sent to me from Caesarea.

12   And the Spirit told me to go with them, making no distinction. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man's house.

13   And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, 'Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter;

14   he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.'

15   As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning.

16   And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'

17   If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?"

18   When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, "Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life."

The Church in Antioch

19   Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews.

20   But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus.

21   And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.

22   The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

23   When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose,

24   for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.

25   So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul,

26   and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.

27   Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.

28   And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius).

29   So the disciples determined, everyone according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.

30        And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.

 

Things to think about…

 

1.     When you go to Joppa you can still see a flat roofed house that is claimed to be that of Simon the Tanner. It is a wonderful place with a good view of the Mediterranean sea. Peter, a Jew, is given a vision of unclean animals, reptiles and birds, Acts10:12 and told to rise and eat. This was an abhorrent thought for any Jew. As Christians we can be hyper critical of unbelievers because they are so spiritually and culturally different to us. But we are called to rise and go to them with the gospel.

2.     The Lord will call those who are marked out for his grace. Cornelius was already a devout man and the Lord wants him to come to a full knowledge of the truth. Jesus was right when he said to the Samaritan woman “salvation is from the Jews”, Jn 4:22. Here Peter is sent to this God fearing Gentile. Now, sadly, we must take the gospel back to the Jews as they have rejected and forgotten the true fulfilment of the scriptures is only found in Christ. Pray for our ministry to the Jews through our Digital Harvest ministry.

3.     The Gentiles receive the Holy Spirit and speak in other languages, Acts 10:44-48. This was a marvellous confirmation that this message was for all the nations and not just Israel. We don’t see the gift of tongues poured out in every situation when the Apostle Paul goes into a new country with the gospel. While this gift has not ceased it is not required for every Christian to receive at the point of belief. The Holy Spirit however is necessary. This is what makes a person a believer in Christ.

4.     The ‘Circumcision party’ had cornered Peter at Jerusalem accusing him of hanging out with Gentiles, Acts 11:1-3. Once Peter explains his story it says ‘they fell silent’, vs 18. What a blessing when people hear the truth and don’t fight against it. Pray that we are all sensitive to what the Lord has revealed in His word. We know from this point in the scriptures a group called the Judaisers rise up. While they believe in Christ they say that the law must also be followed. They grew into a noxious cult that the Apostle Paul had to deal with later in his ministry.

5.     Some Gentile Christians who heard the gospel in Jerusalem got saved and as they were on their way back to Cyprus and Cyrene they had to pass through Antioch. They share the gospel with other Gentiles, Acts 11:19-21. Barnabas is called from Jerusalem to check the situation out, he asks that Saul be brought. They stayed a whole year at Antioch. The Antioch church grows to the point where it can now minister to those who are suffering from a great famine that especially affected Judea. Some churches outgrow others, those churches must take the responsibility of being resource centres for other smaller churches. This was the case for Kenmore Baptist years ago when they sent preachers and musicians over to Chuwar when we were a much smaller church. They were a great blessing and encouragement for us. Can see CBC in like manner helping out smaller churches in the years to come.

 

Vision Point for cell groups

CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.

Sermon and reading topic for this week – Sermon “Stephen – full of wisdom and the Spirit”

Reading – Acts 6

1.     Stephen was chosen as one of the 7. But he was called “only to serve tables”. Why was he chosen and what was the situation?

2.     Sermon in Acts 7 was basically a history lesson to these religious rules. He begins with Abrahem being called from UR of the Chaldeans, then speaks of Jacob, Israel in Egypt, then Moses, the tabernacle and temple. What was Stephen’s main message in speaking about these situations in Israel’s history. What did they have to do with his defense?

3.     Stephen mentions that they always resist the Holy Spirit and what God is doing and said they did they same thing to the “Righteous One”, Acts 7:32. Explain what Stephen means here.

4.     These men were resisting the Holy Spirit. We can do they same in our lives and in the church. How is this so, what can we do to make sure we are always listening to the Spirit?.

5.     Discuss some prayer points of the group. Church prayer points.

 

Prayer Points

1.   Moving chairs and the laying of carpet next week.

2.   Our church meeting outside and lunch Potjie outside afterwards.

3.   Recharge youth and Kids@Church ministries. Pray for Maddison and Melinda as they Coordinate Kids and Youth ministries.

4.   Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.

5.   Church finances to meet our new staff and to put a roof over our café.

6.   Sunday’s message from Acts 6, 7 -  “One was Peter, One was Paul” – Graham Willey.

 

Praise Points.

1.     More visitors to church on Sunday.

2.     Two cell groups starting up this term.

3.     Praise and worship – pray for continued growth and blessing.

4.     Unity, peace and grace at CBC.

 

Announcements

1.     Moving chairs, sound desk and equipment after the morning service next week.

2.     Recharge on this week all high schoolers – 6:30pm-8:30pm Friday at church. $2 coin donation. Melinda Fourie heading up this ministry.

3.     Combined Church worship and prayer meeting at Beacon Baptist, 30th May 5pm.

4.     Working bee – Saturday 5th June, 8:00am start, finish at 12pm at the church.

5.     Outdoor service in the morning 6th June followed by lunch, Potjie on “the common”

6.     Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1

7.     Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel https://www.youtube.com/.../UChm3coa3s9EHGHBtsns6MaQ/videos .

 

Catechism question for May...

Q. 7. What is the purpose of baptism?
A.      To show believers that God has cleansed them from their sins through Jesus Christ.

Bible References – Acts22:16; Col. 2:11-14.

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” Jer 33:3

Pastor Jay

Jay Beatty