Gtcotr/ss120416
Acts 10 NKJV
1 ¶ There was a certain man
in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian
Regiment,
·
Cornelius
was an important officer in the Roman army in charge of a regimen of 100 Roman soldiers
who were assigned to the Roman port city of Caesarea on the Mediterranean.
2 a devout man and one
who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people,
and prayed to God always.
(Production
Note: Leave verse 2 on screen until I finish the next points.)
·
Cornelius was a man who was known by God and
by others to be:
o
devoted to his duty – he simply did the
things he should do
o
respectful and reverent – humble in the fear
of God
o
a generous giver – conscious and committed to
helping others
o
prayerful – the scriptures show him to be
consistent in prayer
3 About the ninth hour of the
day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him,
"Cornelius!"
4 And when he observed him,
he was afraid, and said, "What is it, lord?" So he said to him,
"Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.
·
Your
consistent prayers and generosity have gotten God’s attention
·
These
things did not save Cornelius but did reveal his open heart
5 "Now send men to
Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter.
6 "He is lodging with
Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must
do."
·
Not
an angel but rather a man will tell you what you must do …
7 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.
8 So when he had explained all these
things to them, he sent them to Joppa.
9
¶ 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.
10 Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat;
but while they made ready, he fell into a trance
11 and saw heaven opened and an object like a
great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the
earth.
12 In it were all kinds of four-footed animals
of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air.
13 And a voice came to him, "Rise, Peter;
kill and eat."
14 But Peter said, "Not so, Lord! For I
have never eaten anything common or unclean."
15 And a voice spoke to him again the
second time, "What God has cleansed you must not call common."
16 This was done three times. And the object was
taken up into heaven again.
17 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 inquiry for Simon’s house, and stood before the gate.
18 And they called and asked whether Simon,
whose surname was Peter, was lodging there.
19
¶ While Peter thought about the vision,
the Spirit said to him, "Behold, three men are seeking you.
20 "Arise therefore, go down and go with
them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them."
21 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?"
22 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."
23 Then he invited them in and lodged them.
On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa
accompanied him.
24 And the following day they
entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together
his relatives and close friends.
25 As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and
fell down at his feet and worshiped him.
26 But Peter lifted him up, saying, "Stand
up; I myself am also a man."
27 And as he talked with him,
he went in and found many who had come together.
28 Then he said to them, "You know how
unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another
nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.
29 "Therefore I came without objection as
soon as I was sent for. I ask, then, for what reason have you sent for
me?"
30 So Cornelius said, "Four days ago I was
fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and
behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing,
31 "and said, ’Cornelius, your prayer has
been heard, and your alms are remembered in the sight of God.
32 ’Send therefore to Joppa and call Simon here,
whose surname is Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the
sea. When he comes, he will speak to you.’
33 "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."
34 ¶ Then Peter opened his
mouth and said: "In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality.
35 "But in every nation
whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.
·
Note
that Cornelius was not saved by these works but did find himself pleasing and
acceptable to God … that’s why God sent Peter to bring a clear word of
salvation for Cornelius to hear and receive.
·
Oh
that good men might accept God and His willingness to save …
We have a God who is willing …
1.
We have a God who is willing to save
2.
We have a God who is willing to strengthen
3.
We have a God who is willing to govern
4.
We have a God who is willing to guide
We have a God who is able …
1.
Able to save
2.
Able to strengthen
3.
Able to govern
4.
Able to guide
·
We have a God who is Loving; Forgiving; Just;
and Eternal.
36 "The word which God sent to the
children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ — He is Lord
of all —
37 "that word you know, which was
proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which
John preached:
38 "how God anointed
Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who 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 things
which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by
hanging on a tree.
40 "Him God raised up on the third day, and
showed Him openly,
41 "not to all the people, but to witnesses
chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He
arose from the dead.
42 "And He commanded us to preach to the
people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge
of the living and the dead.
43 "To Him all the
prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive
remission of sins."
44 ¶ While Peter was still
speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.
45 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.
46 For they heard them speak
with tongues and magnify God. Then Peter answered,
47 "Can anyone forbid
water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just
as we have?"
48 And he commanded them to
be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days.
·
Of
a truth God is no respecter of persons.
·
Salvation
is by grace
o It cannot be earned
and no one deserves it – that’s not grace
o We get saved so we
can be right with God. We don’t get saved by being right … we need a Savior
because we are in sin.
·
God
offers salvation to everyone
o It does seem like
some people are more willing and receptive when they aren’t so stubborn, so
negative or so angry with everything and everyone in life.
o The devil is the one
trying to make everyone angry and negative and stubborn and unreasonable.
·
It
is easier to receive salvation and every other blessing from God when we:
o
Dutiful
o
Humble
o
Generous
o
Dependent on Prayer
Not
only did Cornelius receive salvation that day but the scriptures account that
all those who heard the Word of God that day were saved, water baptized and
filled with the Holy Spirit.
·
Cornelius
affected his family and those with whom he worked.
·
Since
our lives affect so many others why not
o Be a person upon
whom others can depend – do your job …
o Show respect and
reverence for the things of God and others …
o Be generous and give
to help others less fortunate … and …
o Live a life of
prayer as an example to your family, friends and co-workers …
It
will make an eternal difference!
