This is a copy of my talk given at Ayia Kyriaki and Saint Stephen’s in the Anglican Church of Paphos on Sunday 5 May 2024. The Bible Readings were Acts 10:44-48 and John 15:9-17.
Today the Greek Orthodox Church celebrate Christ’s resurrection.
Christos Anesti (Χριστός Ανέστη) “Christ is Risen.”
Alithos Anesti (Aληθώς ανέστη!) “Truly, He is Risen.”
Prayer
Heavenly Father
I thank You for Your word
By the power of the Holy Spirit
May You speak to my heart
And change my life
In the precious name of Jesus I pray
Amen.
Introduction
Our reading this morning from Acts 10 is a very small snippet of one of the most significant passages relating to the beginnings of the early church and I think it’s worth having a recap, so we understand the context of these verses. The Apostles, you may remember, struggled to recognise that Jesus came for both Jews and Gentiles – one of the divisive issues of the early church.
Peter had a great ministry to the Jews, 1000’s came to faith through his preaching, but that wasn’t always true of the Gentiles. Paul, however, was very successful in preaching to the Gentiles. Ayia Kyriaki exists as a result of one of Paul’s missionary journeys to the Gentile nations.
There’s no doubt that Peter, as the lead Apostle, shaped the ‘theological’ thinking of the other believers in Jerusalem. If God was going to get his message through that salvation was for all nations, Peter needed a change of heart and mind, and God uses a man named Cornelius to do this.
Cornelius’ Vision vs 1 – 8
Cornelius was a Centurion in the Italian Regiment living in Caesarea. Many Romans and Greeks, after their experiences of, and in, Israel, became convinced of the one true and living God of the Jews. Cornelius was such a man. We are told that he, and all his family, was devout and God-fearing and gave generously to those in need. He was a religious, sincere, and prayerful man, vs2, but he wasn’t a Christian, though he was a man of prayer, vs3. But interestingly, God answers his prayer (there’s an item for discussion) and tells Cornelius to send men down to Joppa for a man named Peter who is staying in the house of Simon the tanner, vs6.
Peter’s Vision vs 9 – 23
Simon’s work involved treating the skins of dead animals and, according to Mosaic Law, anybody who touched the body of a dead animal was unclean. So, the very fact that Peter is in the house of Simon, a Gentile and a tanner, indicates that walls were already beginning to come down in Peter’s heart.
Vs10 tells us that Peter fell into a trance. I really don’t know much about trances; I can’t say I’ve ever been in one. I may have been near to one when I’ve been tired and I’m listening to someone talking and their voice has sent me into a trance like state of unconsciousness. A bit like listening to me preach, perhaps?
Anyway, whilst in this state, Peter, vs11-12: Saw heaven opened, and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners … (representative of the four corners of the earth) containing all kinds of animals. Then a voice told him, vs13: Get up, Peter, kill and eat.
It’s easy to underestimate the significance of what is happening here. It was revolutionary. If tennis had been around in those days, Peter might have followed in John McEnroe’s footsteps with: You cannot be serious! Peter can’t believe it and argues, vs14: Surely not Lord! I have never eaten anything impure or unclean. Peter was told not to consider anything or anyone unclean that God had declared clean, vs15-16. This was a radical transformation from his previous thinking. Jesus had tried to convey this truth to the disciples in Matthew 15:1-20, it was Peter who asked Jesus to explain it again.
Indeed, in this vision, the Lord repeated the same message three times – reminiscent, perhaps, of the three times Peter denied Jesus. This illustrates one of the realities of our human nature: that we frequently need to hear the same truth several times before we accept it. But, to go one step further, how many times do we need to hear truth before we act on it? Proverbs 29:18: Where there is no vision, the people perish.
Just as Peter was wondering about what the vision might mean, the three men sent by Cornelius were at the gate, vs17-22. This, according to Jewish custom, was as far they could go because they were Gentiles. Peter, however, throws caution to the wind and invites them into the house to be his guests.
I believe that when the Lord shows us some new truth, he often gives us an opportunity to act on what we have learned and provides perfectly timed opportunities. It maybe something we learn as a result of a Bible study, or through a sermon, a Lent or Alpha Course or something we are praying for. When God challenges our hearts, He often provides situations or circumstances that enable us to put those principles into practice. We should look for them with expectancy, knowing he has prepared the way for us.
The Same God vs 23 – 35.
If God is guiding you to speak to someone then you can be sure that he has already worked on the other person and is also speaking to him or her. God always works on both sides.
I remember when I first felt that God was calling me into the CofE. I thought I’d lost the plot, because my background at that time was house church / FIEC. I remember asking, are there any Christians in the CofE? However, God was saying the same thing to Paula and when we finally spoke to each other about it we knew that God directing us.
God always works on both sides and the same God that was speaking to Cornelius was also speaking to Peter. God was at work in both their lives. Peter needed a vision from God to reshape his thinking and to encourage him to respond to Cornelius as Jesus would have responded. Cornelius also needed a message from God in order to ask Peter to come to him.
Peter knew that it was the same God who at work and so the next day he sets off to Cornelius’ house, where Cornelius had called together his relatives and close friends, vs25. Peter reminds them, vs28: … it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or to visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean. Peter asks Cornelius why he sent for him, vs29, and Cornelius explains the vision, what the angel said to him, even the house where Peter was staying!
And it is here that Peter recognizes, once and for all, that the Gospel of Jesus is for all, regardless of nationality and ethnic background. He knows it is Good News of salvation for everyone, vs36, there is no question about that: Jew; Greek; Gentile; Free; Slave; Black, White; Male; Female; Adult; Child; Those on the margins of society; the Outcasts; Everyone. God the Father is Father of all – without exception.
The Same Gospel, vs 36 – 43
Not only do Peter and Cornelius share the same God, but they also share the same Gospel. And Peter preaches the central truths of the Christian gospel that he preached at Pentecost: the life, death, resurrection and return of Jesus, vs38-40. How this was witnessed and proclaimed by his followers, vs41-42 how Jesus fulfils the message of the prophets about the Messiah, and how vs43: … everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.
The Same Anointing vs 44 – 48
Vs44: And while Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message … vs46: they were speaking in tongues and praising God. The same anointing that had fallen on the disciples at Pentecost had fallen on this group of Gentiles. The final evidence of God’s plan for an international church had come to fruition. They had been given the same spiritual gifts to equip them for the same spiritual task. And Peter was so convinced of the authenticity of their experience that he immediately arranges for them to be baptised, vs47-48.
Conclusion
The story of Peter and Cornelius is a tremendous example of how, to use the words of the hymn writer, William Cowper: “God works in mysterious way his wonders to perform …” And as we read further into this story in Acts 11, it should come as no surprise that Peter faces criticism rather than encouragement in his ministry because he was doing something different to what the disciples and those first Christians had expected.
Cuban theologian Justo Luis González writes:
We have to be careful not to fall back into the trap of acting as if the church were only for people “like us”. When in any of our churches people are rejected because “they are not decent” or because they do not share our political ideology, it is time for us to … ask ourselves what it means to declare that “God shows no partiality.
Tom Wright remarks: “… those who believe the gospel are to be marked not by a super-spirituality which will take them out of the real world, but by a Jesus spirituality …” By remaining in Jesus’ love and showing his love to the world, as we read in John 15:9-17. I’ve no doubt that Peter remembered these words as he ministered to Cornelius and his family. Perhaps he also remembered Jesus’ words about how it is He who chooses those who follow him as he wrestled with the events at Caesarea.
Perhaps the most telling point in this story is how often we must be willing put to one side our own agendas and priorities and be willing to listen to God’s voice and see the vision that God has for us personally and as a parish. And, as we do so, we can rest in the knowledge and security that we have the same God, the same gospel, the same anointing and the same love on our side.
What more do we need?
Jesus has the power of God. And his power has given us everything we need to live a life devoted to God. 2 Peter 1:3
COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER: The text contained in this sermon is solely owned by its author, Revd Paul A. Carr. The reproduction, or distribution of this message, or any portion of it, should include the author’s name.
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