Oct 12, 2014
Acts 10:9-23


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Outline:


I want to begin this morning by making a statement that might be hard for some people to hear. Because people naturally gravitate towards those they have the most in common, segregation is simply a natural human condition. 


For better or worse, since most people are creatures of comfort, many would simply prefer the company of people in whom they most relate as opposed to seeking the interactions of those they don’t naturally share the same basic commonalities. 


Aside from racial familiarities, it’s true that people divide over all kinds of things. 


If you voted for Romney in the last election, how many genuine friends do you have that sported “I support President Obama” stickers in their car windows? 


If you’re into “The O’Reilly Factor” or listen to “Rush,” how many friends do you have who watch “Real Time with Bill Maher” or believe in “Global Warming?” 


If you’re an urban hipster, how many friends do you have who are soccer moms? 


If you’re a vegan, how many friends do you have that are avid hunters? 


If you’re into Florida Georgia Line, do you even know anyone who likes Lil Wayne?


If you’re over 50, how many genuine friendships do you have with people in their 20s? 


If you’re ivy educated, how many relationships do you have with blue collar workers? 


If you prefer Coca Cola, do you ever hang out with Pepsi fans? 


If you’re a sports fanatic, do you have any friends who prefer a book club? 


If you’re a member of a Country Club, what does the word “Junior” mean to you? Do you think of a “junior partner” or the number 88?


If you subscribe to the “Bob Jones University Newsletter,” do you ever socialize with friends who drink, dance, or for that matter do anything fun?


In an op-ed for “The Guardian” titled, “Our 21st-Century Segregation: We’re Still Divided by Race” Reniqua Allen wrote, “It’s time for us to face the reality that for many Americans, even if we live and work around "diversity", our best friends and spiritual leaders, the people we invite into our lives and homes, often look like we do, reinforcing a de facto segregation. This social and cultural segregation isn't restricted to "uneducated" people living in the country. It is equally prominent in environments where smart, educated people are supposed to "know better". People who have studied race, spent months abroad… and who may even have black "friends" or lovers, still too often manage to have a community that doesn't reflect diversity in their broader city or nation.”


While New York City is known as being the cultural melting pot of the world, are you aware many of the bars of this great city are making huge profits by specifically fostering segregation on Saturdays? ESPN is even complicit!



I have a dream where one day college football fans will put aside our many differences of color and come together under a common love for Game Day and hatred of the NCAA.




Understand… Because the existence of genuine community in spite of this basic human tendency to segregate is so hard to achieve, the work Jesus began 2000 years ago in Acts 10 indeed presents such a radical contrast to the rest of the world. 


Not only does the Gospel transcend the petty things that divides us, but it has proven to have a unique ability to bring together people of all different walks of life. And yet, as we’ll see this morning, this unnatural result only occurs when people come to a full understanding of God’s grace and are willing to surrender to the moving of His Spirit!


3 things essential to our understanding of this story: 


1. God’s plan has always been to reach the world (Jew and Gentile) with the Gospel. 


2. The mechanism by which God would accomplish this would be through Jewish men who held long standing prejudices towards the rest of the world. 


3. Knowing what it would take for Peter to be obedient to cross this racial barrier, Jesus has spent the last several years preparing him for this very important moment. As we’re about to see Peter has one more lesson before the final exam…




Acts 10:9-10, “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. Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance…” 




As the men sent from Cornelius are making the 30 mile journey down the coast from Caesarea to Joppa, Luke shifts the scene back to Peter residing at the home of Simon. 


According to the text around “the sixth hour” or noon Peter decides to spend some time in prayer. Note: Lunch time is a bad time to pray because no sooner than Peter begins praying we’re told “he became very hungry and wanted to eat.” 


I like the fact that instead of “powering through” Peter decides to stop and ask someone to make him lunch. And you know… It didn’t prohibit God from communicating to him! 


While Peter is waiting for some food, Luke tells us “he fell into a trance.” This word “trance” is the Greek word “ekstasis” from which we get our English word “ecstasy.” The word literally means “a throwing of the mind out of its normal state.”




Acts 10:11-14, “Peter saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth. In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. And a voice came to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.” 




Three components to this Vision: 


1. What Peter saw… An “object” or literally a “vessel” which was “like a great sheet bound at the four corners” filled with “all kinds of animals” descends from heaven. 


2. What Peter heard… “A voice came to him…” and said, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” What made this command bizarre was that contained on this vessel were animals that were not considered kosher according to Jewish Law. 


3. How Peter responds… “Not so, Lord!” Though Peter’s reply is contradictory, it’s clear he’s struggling to understand why God would ask him to violate the dietary restrictions of the Law. He even goes so far as to justify his inaction by boasting that he had “never eaten anything common or unclean.”


Observation: Though he’s been saved by the blood of Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter is still Peter. The fundament struggle of his personality didn’t change.


If you recall Peter had a tendency to say “No, Lord” throughout the Gospels… Especially if he was being faced with a dynamic he didn’t fully understand!



Galatians 5:16-18, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” 


Understand, if the struggle for the believer no longer remained then there would have been no reason for Paul to exhort that we choose to walk in the Spirit.




Acts 10:15-16, “And a voice spoke to him again the second time, “What God has cleansed you must not call common.” This was done three times. And the object was taken up into heaven again.”




Q: What was the point of this vision?


While many teach that the vision was designed to illustrate to Peter that the church would be made up of both Jews and Gentiles (clean and unclean), I don’t believe this vision has anything to do with the Gentiles or the church, and instead had everything to do with Peter! 


As a matter of fact, I’m convinced the entire vision was designed to address a far bigger issue that existed within the framework of this first century church. Note: You can never overcome a prejudice without first addressing the basis for that prejudice.


The key to our understanding of this particular passage rests in one fundamental, but often unasked question… Why did Peter refuse to obey God’s command to eat things that were against the dietary restrictions laid out in Leviticus 11? 


Sadly, the answer to this question reveals a pervasive misunderstanding that existed in a predominately Jewish church when it came to the full nature of salvation. (A misunderstanding that fostered this prejudicial attitude towards the Gentiles and one that if not corrected would make diversification simply impossible.)


Though everyone would agree salvation only came through Jesus’ atoning work on the cross, many saw God’s favor still being based in a person’s obedience to the Mosaic Law. In essence, salvation was seen as a combination of faith + works, which explains why most believed that in order to be a Christian you also had to become a practicing Jew.


The text is clear that while Peter undoubtedly understood his salvation was based in his faith in Jesus’ work on the cross, he still held to a belief that his favor with God was intertwined with his obedience to the Law… “I have never eaten anything common or unclean.”


With this in mind I believe God’s point in commanding Peter to “kill and eat” was not to change his diet, but instead to challenge his perspective! Consider God’s reply to Peter’s justification… “A voice spoke to him a second time saying what God has cleansed you must not call common.” In context, what had God cleansed? Had God somehow cleansed the animals the Law had been clear were unclean? I don’t think so. 


It seems to me that “what God had cleansed” was in actuality Peter! Think about how these words would have reverberated in his heart. “Peter your obedience to the Law didn’t make you clean. I did this work! At this point what you eat has no effect on this reality!” 


It’s as though this entire vision is God’s way of telling Peter that his obedience to the Law (eating things clean or unclean) had and still has no fundamental barring when it came to his favor with God. Justification and sanctification were both a result of Jesus’ work on the cross. 


Being Jewish, obeying Jewish Law, holding to Jewish customs, had no impact on God’s favor! Isaiah 64:6 says, “We are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses like filthy rags.” God’s favor had been given to Peter, not earned by his obedience. It was a work of faith based in God’s grace alone. Paul would say in Galatians 2:21, “I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”


Q: Why was this an important lesson in the context of what’s to follow? 


A: If justification and sanctification are both a work of God independent of an individual’s adherence of the Law, then the doors of salvation have now swung wide open for all of humanity. Being an obedient Jew was no longer a prerequisite to receive God’s favor and be apart of His chosen people!


In order to drive home this point, I don’t think it’s an accident “this was done three times.” If you study God’s handling of Peter you will observe that patterns of three were common…


1. Jesus had to call Peter three times to follow Him… In John's gospel, Peter is first called after being introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew. In Mark and Matthew's accounts, Jesus again calls Peter while he’s mending his nets on the shore. And in Luke, while in Peter’s boat Jesus calls him for a third and final time.


2. Then, following Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, a haughty Peter would be humbled when he denied Jesus three times before the rooster crowed. 


3. Finally, in the process of restoring a broken Peter in one of His post-resurrection appearances, Jesus has to ask him three times “Peter, do you love me?”


I believe in presenting this vision three times Peter couldn’t help but recall the incredible grace God had already demonstrated towards him! “Peter, do you really want the basis of my favor to be your performance or my grace?” 


Understand… When you come to the realization that your righteous standing with God is based only in His amazing grace, showing moral prejudice towards another becomes a baseless proposition. The only segregation that exists on Calvary is the Man on the cross and the rest of us on our knees!




Acts 10:17-20, “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. And they called and asked whether Simon, whose surname was Peter, was lodging there. While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.” 




I like the fact that God was clearly working on both ends when it came to setting up this all important meeting. While Cornelius had received a word from the Lord and sent men to retrieve Peter, God also was working on Peter’s end confirming that he should indeed go with the men who had been sent. It would appear God’s timing was perfect.


Observation: God uses others to confirm His instructions, not dictate them.




Acts 10:21-23, “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?” 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.” Then he invited them in and lodged them. On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him.”




Imagine Peter’s reaction when at the door he discovers that the men God sent for him were two gentile servants and a Roman soldier! And to make matters worse, not only had God commanded that he “go with them,” but the destination was the home of a Roman centurion!


Observation: Anytime God teaches you a lesson you can expect a situation to almost immediately arise where you have to put that lesson into practice.


Don’t overlook the significance of this detail that Peter “invited them in and lodged them.” In the original language “lodged them” meant Peter “entertained them as an honored guest.” Understand… This is a pajama party that would have been inconceivable if not for the vision Peter had just received. The magnitude of God’s grace transcended anything that might have previously prohibited their fellowship.


Because Peter senses the gravity of the moment and understands the radical implications of what’s taking place, he does something very wise. Luke tells us Peter not only “went away with them,” but that he had “some brethren from Joppa accompany him.” We will discover in Acts 11 that Peter takes six Jewish believers with him to be witnesses.


Side Note: If you’re familiar at all with the Old Testament, you will note that it’s not an accident this entire scene and Peter’s heavenly vision took place in Joppa. 


Some 800 years before Peter would head to the house of Cornelius, God would call another man staying in Joppa to carry the Gospel to the gentiles. And yet, instead of being obedient to overcome his hatred towards the Assyrians by going to the city of Nineveh, Jonah would instead board a boat and head the opposite direction. I’m sure as Peter considered his options being obedience to the commands of God seemed to be a better proposition than being swallowed up by a great fish! 




In conclusion, I believe our greatest witness to the world occurs when diverse people willingly come together to experience genuine community with one another. I mean it’s so abnormal it can only be chalked up as being supernatural.


And it’s with this in mind that I find it sad when people end up choosing a church community based solely upon racial comfort, age similarities, life-status, or stylistic preferences. Not only do we unintentionally minimize the unifying power of grace and God’s Spirit, but by doing the easier thing we end up robbing ourselves of the benefits diversity affords! 


Please consider… What kind of church community do you want to be a part of? 


Hail-Bopp Church - In this church the members are more interested in dying together than leaving behind some type of lasting, sustainable ministry.


Frat Church - In this church everyone’s young, wild, and stupid because they’re no adults around. There might be lots of energy, but without any experience no one is grounded.


Gingerbread Man Church - In this church everyone feels very comfortable because they all look and dresses the same. Tragically, since everyone in this church is cut from the same mold it doesn’t take very long for things to grow bland and predictable. I mean can you really expect anything different since everyone’s made out of gingerbread?


Heavenly Church - This church provides the world a little taste of heaven!


Though the existence of genuine community in the face of our natural diversities is really difficult to achieve, Acts 10 illustrates the key… Possess a commonality so incredible that it ultimately trumps any of our differences! 


The common bond of God’s amazing grace presents the only basis by which a diverse congregation can seek to love one another, abide in community with each other, and learn to cherish the very things that make each of us so different.

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