Roman culture, Roman politics and Roman might permeated much of the known world. The sacrifices the Romans had made to their many gods resulted in many conquests, and indeed in world domination.
Despite having every reason to offer his sacrifices to Rome's pagan gods, somehow, somewhere along the way Cornelius came to believe in the one true God -- the Hebrew God. "He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly." Acts 10:2.
Cornelius was apparently well known and respected by the Jews. He was not, however, a convert.
One day around 3:00 in the afternoon an angel appeared before Cornelius. The angel instructed him to send men to Joppa and to bring back a man named Simon, who was called Peter. Acts 10:5-6. He was told that Peter would come to him with a message through which Cornelius and all of his household would be saved. Acts 11:14.
Cornelius could not possibly have known in the moment that in just a couple of days not only would he and his household be saved, but that the future of mankind would change in that same moment forever. At the same time the angel was speaking to Cornelius, the Lord was giving Peter a vision -- a vision that would lead to a revelation that Jesus died not only for the Jews, but for all of mankind.
Despite the fact that Jews were not supposed to associate with Gentiles, Peter found himself in the house of Cornelius -- where Cornelius had gathered his family and close friends. Cornelius told Peter they were gathered to hear everything the Lord had commanded Peter to tell them. And then, Peter began to speak:
“I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
“We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Acts 10:34-43.
Cornelius had apparently heard of Jesus, but he did not realize that Jesus was the one true God he had been worshiping. He did not realize that Jesus had died for his sins, and that Jesus was the path to salvation.
And, when he heard the good news -- when all of the Gentile believers heard the Gospel for the first time -- while Peter was still speaking the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and praising God. It was in this moment that the Jewish believers who had accompanied Peter knew that God's grace extended to all men. See Acts 10:45.
Most of us know this story because it marks they day we were brought into God's family. It was the day that "Christianity" -- or more accurately "The Way" -- breached the walls of its Jewish roots and became the means of salvation for all mankind.
On Wednesday night, though, we looked at the story for a different reason. We were asked, as best we could, to put ourselves in the position of Cornelius -- knowing nothing other than the pure Gospel message. Knowing nothing but that God came to earth in human form and died, was buried and raised again so that we might have eternal life. Knowing nothing but that if we put our faith in Jesus and repent of our sins we could be saved.
In this information age all of us have read so many Christian books, blogs and magazines, experienced so many church services, and heard so many sermons/messages on line, on T.V. and on the radio, that I fear at times we lose sight of what it really means to follow Jesus. So, this week we were invited to wipe the slate clean and to begin all over again. We were invited to hear and experience the Gospel as if for the first time. We were invited to remember our past sins, to repent and to praise God -- to fall face down before Him -- with gratitude and thanksgiving for what He did for each of us on the Cross.
We were reminded of the centrality that the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus plays in our every day spiritual life. Indeed, remembering is the very reason we take communion together. It is the sacrifice of Jesus combined with the reality that we could not save ourselves that gets us to that place of "poorness in spirit" that is necessary even to begin the real journey.
If we are to start over -- if we are to find our first love again -- I am convinced that the only place to look is at the foot of the Cross. We must behold the beaten and battered Jesus. We must behold his nail-pierced hands and the blood flowing from His body. We must remember his last breath and His last utterance. And we must accept in no uncertain terms that only through His grizzly death and triumphant resurrection could we experience victory -- not because of anything we have done but because of His grace and His mercy.
I invite you to join us. I invite you over the next few days to pretend with us that you know nothing but Christ and Him crucified. I invite you to meditate on that, and that alone, as we journey together to rediscover our faith.
2 comments:
What happened to the recordings of the class that we used to be able to listen to here?
Sorry about the recordings. We will try to bring them back at some point.
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