What God Has Cleansed, No Longer Consider Unholy

Introduction:

Superlatively Important chapter

Time of transition… one system to another

Colossians 1:26–27 “that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

Paul to reveal/open a mystery thats been obscured

something god had held back, that according to his purposes, would be revealed at his will

mystery of the church… gentiles

The only reason we assemble today is because of what happened, in Cornelius’ household, in Caesarea, that we read here in Acts 10.

The key person in the early days of the church was Peter

You remember, that the church was founded on Pentecost

Exploded in Jerusalem, spread to Judea and Samaria

1000’s were being saved

Peter, John, Stephen, Phillip, Paul

All teaching and exhorting the people in their day

But Peter has been the dominant figure so far

You may remember the special commission given to him by Christ…

Matthew 16:19 (NASB95)

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven;”

Saying to him: ‘I am giving you the keys… to UNLOCK the door separating mankind from my kingdom’.

Peter was the point of contact between the Spirit and the Church

We saw it FIRST… in Acts 2. The Holy Spirit, God Himself, poured down upon the apostles in Jerusalem, and it was PETER who gave that powerful and explanatory sermon that convicted the Jews of their sin

We THEN saw it… in Acts 8. Remember Philip had done great signs and wonders in Samaria… that the whole town received his word and believed? Yet it was PETER and JOHN who came down to do what?… For what purpose? For the Spirit of God to pour down upon them

Now we see it… in Acts 10. The last and most impactful key on Peter’s keyring. A key… to the Gentiles

But that was a MASSIVE barrier!

The Jews… hated the Gentiles!

Didn’t enter a Gentile house

Didn’t eat with a Gentile

Didn’t associate with anything UNCLEAN

The Gentiles… hated the Jews!

Resting on Sabbath?

Worshipping an invisible God?

Abstinence from certain foods?

All this and more was set in CONTRAST to the Gentile way of living

It was THIS barrier that God sought to tear apart!

And to make the TWO into ONE new man!

Ephesians 2:11–14 (NASB95)

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “cCircumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands—

remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have cbeen brought near by the blood of Christ.

For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall,

Eph 3 tells us that the Jew and Gentile becoming ONE, was a mystery that only God knew and would bring about

Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

1. Cornelius’s Vision

The Man

Acts 10:1–2 NASB95

Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually.

Caesarea is an ancient coastal city…

And it being a seat of government for Rome, makes it significant in the plan of God to include the Gentiles believers as His people

Still, more significant, is the MAN whom was chosen

Officer of the Roman Army

The very emblem and image of that which the Jews despised

Yet, this centurion having been trained in Italy, finds himself embracing the monotheistic God of the Jews

It seems to me that the LAST place to look for the first Gentile Christian would be in the barracks of Caesarea, yet its here that God’s angel went and found him.

Cornelius was drawn to the Jewish religion:

Adopted hours of prayer

Cut of any idolatry from hisself

Gave alms to the people

Acknowledged their God as HIS God!

And by the display of his devotion, his entire household came to revere God

The Vision

Acts 10:3–4 NASB95

About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in and said to him, “Cornelius!” And fixing his gaze on him and being much alarmed, he said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God.

This Roman centurion receives a vision at 3 in the afternoon,

Acts 3:1 says is the hour of prayer..

and what he sees is an angel of God saying: “Cornelius!”

“Lord” seems to be a title of reverence here

‘Man’s prayer and alms keeps God in mind of him’

The Decree

Acts 10:5–8 NASB95

“Now dispatch some men to Joppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter; he is staying with a tanner named Simon, whose house is by the sea.” When the angel who was speaking to him had left, he summoned two of his servants and a devout soldier of those who were his personal attendants, and after he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.

2. Peter’s Vision

The Man

Acts 10:9–10 NASB95

On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. But he became hungry and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance;

First, consider the scene

Tanners House!

Someone who tanned the hides of animals

Peter, the PIOUS JEW… surrounded by carcasses… unclean

Joppa… another coastal town… on a rooftop

Possibly looking out at the Mediterranean Sea, seeing the waters roll in, roll out… sunshine above him, hefty breeze.

Could he be thinking of what next, what’s to come?

Or be looking out to some distant island he’d not yet taken the great commision?

Nonetheless, it was amidst this backdrop that the heavenly scene unfolded before him. And when the eyes of his heart were opened to SEE… that all men will be clean.

In Peter’s call to be a ‘fisher of men’… he no longer is fishing amongst the Jews… the small Galilean Sea… but amongst the Great Mediterranean. The vast expanse of the Gentiles!

Secondly, notice his hunger

Peter’s hunger is what magnifies the imagery of this scene!

The Vision

Acts 10:11–12 NASB95

and he *saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air.

Tarp or sheet… with a conglomeration of animals!

Particularly clean AND animals!

It is this SYMBOL of humanity as a whole

Jewish diet… Leviticus

Camels, Rabbits, Pigs, Certain birds

And to indulge in these WAS SIN for them!

So you can imagine the difficulty in the mind of Peter!

These laws were given… SURE for disease prevention… but primarily to show a DISTINCTION, between GOD’s people, and the WORLD!

Right after the dietary laws in Lev 20, it says:

Leviticus 20:26 NASB95

‘Thus you are to be holy to Me, for I the Lord am holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.

4 Corners… North South East West which consumes millions of men and women

The Decree

Acts 10:13–16 NASB95

A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.” Again a voice came to him a second time, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.” This happened three times, and immediately the object was taken up into the sky.

NO!

Paul said: ‘Who are you Lord?’

Cornelius said: “What is it Lord?”

Peter says: “NO!!!… by no means!!! There is NO WAY Lord!”

Peter had been made a ‘new man’ in Christ. But indeed, he was still a man.

And therein lies the great struggle within our very hearts.

We, who KNOW the TRUTH and TRUST in God… still fall.

It’s not a question of ‘Why’…we KNOW why!

But it’s a question of dependence, of repentance, of submission

“Lord I have fallen, lift me up, and cover my sin that I may no longer live in this way.”

The Truth behind the Vision:

1) God was abolishing the OT dietary laws … WHY?

Because they were designed to SEPARATE

And what is the body of Christ designed to do? … UNITE

And so this social barrier had to be removed for them to do just that

This wasn’t an easy transition… primary issue in the Roman church!

Privileged Jews & Seasoned Gentiles

2) God will include Gentiles in the Church

Clean animals: Jews

Unclean animals: Gentiles

Tarp: Church

All restrictions which differentiated Jew from Gentile have been abolished

The word ‘Cleansed’ isn’t to be understood as being purified from the Moral law… but describes the admission of all mankind to the same standing as the Jew

The gospel is to be preached to ALL men! And Jews don’t have priority!

The Remaining section:

Acts 10:17–20 NASB95

Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in mind as to what the vision which he had seen might be, behold, the men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for Simon’s house, appeared at the gate; and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. While Peter was reflecting on the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you. “But get up, go downstairs and accompany them without misgivings, for I have sent them Myself.”

Peter was an apostle, and because of that, he was given the illuminating power of the Spirit and KNEW the words of Christ that said “ The gospel shall EVEN be spread to the uttermost parts of the world.” He knew this

But what he needed was the lesson that the Gentiles could come into the church without going through the gate of Judaism

if all men shared in the cleansing, there was no need for keeping up any of the old restrictions, or insisting on Gentle being first received into the Jewish community as a stage in their progress towards Christianity.

It was repeated 3 times, the same number of times Peter denied his master, and had received the charge to feed His sheep.

Conclusion:

The 2 groups are being gathered together to be made clean

As sinners we are unclean… but if you have embraced Christ…

1-20

21-33

36… JMac & Lawson

34-43… JMac & Lawson

44-48