10:17 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.
So Peter goes to Caesarea against everything he has ever been
taught. He goes with an entourage of Jews from Joppa. Cornelius has assembled a
gathering of family and friends and now the two groups meet face to face in the
home of Cornelius. What an unlikely sight. Comparable perhaps in our day to a
group of American Christians going to a Muslim compound in Saudi Arabia? The
scene breaks down borders and walls of religion, culture, nationality, rank
etc...
Cornelius' first move is an awkward one. It underscores the
holes in his faith. He bows to worship Peter. Peter immediately must correct
him. There is only One worthy of worship. Angels will not even permit this. It
was awkward just to come. It is worse now but both men are being lead by God to
this moment. They enter the house and Peter begins to speak. His first words do
nothing to ease the tension. "You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man
to keep company with or go to one of another nation..."
I'm sure you could hear a pin drop but he isn't finished...
"But God has shown me that I should not call any man
common or unclean."
This is a monumental moment. Peter has understood the vision
of the unclean animals with the instruction to kill and eat. It had nothing to
do with food and everything to do with redefining boundaries. Before that
vision some people were clean and some were unclean. Now those boundaries are
gone. All people are clean. None have less value. This is radical! For the
first time we see the followers of Jesus taking a huge step in becoming more
like Him. His mind is becoming implanted into their minds.
This is a critical point to understand. Peter is not now more
of a follower of Jesus, he is just a better representation of Jesus because he
is following Him. This is why judging each other is so wrong and harmful and
often wildly inaccurate. There are people who are sincere followers of Jesus
who may grossly misrepresent Him. The reason is simple. They have lessons He
has yet to teach them.
Every morning I feel Him trying to stretch me. Some days I
understand. Other days I just get a sense that there is something I'm not
seeing yet and I file the thought away knowing He's going to bring it back
again. Following Him is growth and change and sometimes involve seismic shifts
in our whole view of the world. Just remember that people who don't yet see
what you see are not necessarily any less His followers. They need time and
space to grow too.
"All men will know you are my disciples if you love one
another as I have loved you."
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