A Vision for the World

Acts 10:1-48

Introduction

Darren Carlson tells the following story:

A friend of mine tells of a Persian migrant who arrived at a refugee center at 6 a.m., visibly upset. He told his story to a Persian pastor: During the night he saw someone dressed in white raise his hand and say, “Stand up and follow me.” The Persian man said, “Who are you?” The man in white replied, “I am the Alpha and the Omega. I’m the way to heaven. No one can go to the Father, except through me.”

He began to ask the Persian pastor: “Who is he? What am I going to do? Why did he ask me to follow him? How shall I go? Tell me.”

In response, the pastor held out his Bible and asked, “Have you seen this before?”

“No,” he replied.

“Do you know what it is?”

“No.”

The pastor then opened to the Book of Revelation: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.” The man started crying and said, “How can I accept him? How can I follow him?” So the pastor led him in prayer and peace came over him. The pastor then gave the man a Bible and told him to hide it, since the Muslims in the camps could cause him trouble.

But the man replied, “The Jesus that I met today, he’s more powerful than the Muslims in the camp.” He left and an hour later returned with 10 more Persians and told the pastor, “These people want a Bible.” No one had to teach him an evangelistic strategy.

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/muslims-dream-jesus/

We take for granted that everybody knows about Jesus.

If we can only imagine that there are countless numbers just waiting to hear the Gospel

Sometimes we get caught up in our own little part of the world and forget that there are others who have never heard the name of Jesus.

Back in Acts 1:8, Jesus said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.””

So far in the book of Acts we have seen the gospel spreading from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria. Now we will see how the gospel is shared with the Gentiles, in this story of Cornelius.

In Acts 10, God is going to send Peter to the home of a Gentile soldier with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

But before God sends Peter to Cornelius’s house, He has to get Peter spiritually ready.

Peter needed a vision for the world. And so do we.

Vision – is a clear mental picture of a preferable future imparted by God to His chosen servants.

Quote John Stott - “The principle subject of this chapter is not so much the conversion of Cornelius as the conversion of Peter.”

Peter needed a change of attitude about the lost Gentile world – Gentiles needed Jesus too.

God was confronting Peter’s cold attitude against the Gentiles

This attitude left unchecked would have hindered the spread of the Gospel

Large areas of the world including people like you and me would have been written off as beyond God’s grace

*Peter’s story takes seventy- seven verses and tells his vision twice- God wanted to make sure we didn’t miss the point! (Hughes, 153)

We too may need a change of heart about some of the lost in our world as well. We may have written some off as beyond God’s grace.

What steps did God use to create a world vision in Simon Peter…and you and me? I. A Lost Man (vs.1-2) Cornelius-Caesarea – important city located some 30 miles north of Joppa (MacArthur, 293) Centurion-a military leader

A Roman Legion at full strength was 6000 men. A centurion commanded 100 of these men, and of course each legion had 60 of these men who were the backbone of the Roman army. (MacArthur, 293)

Cornelius had reached his rank by proving to be a strong, reasonable, reliable man (MacArthur, 293)

Devout man- his was a seeking heart. He had lived up to the light that he had, and God was about to give him more. (MacArthur, 293)

Feared God- He was a God-fearer. God had moved on his heart and he had abandoned his pagan religion to worship the true God (MacArthur, 293)

Gave alms generously…prayed always

So, here is a man who is very generous in giving to others, and a man who prays regularly, but he is still lost in his sins.

Cornelius, is like many people in our world today, he was religious, but lost

There are many today that hold to a form of religion, but are lost without a relationship with Christ, and some of them are in the church!

*Even though Cornelius worshiped God to the best of his knowledge, and even though he was sincere and generous, he could not be saved apart from a correct understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (MacArthur, 294)

**If Cornelius was okay the way he was, God would not have revealed Himself to him any further- but Cornelius needed the Gospel. This is the reason we must go to the world with the gospel.

Acts 4:12-Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

John 14:6- Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

God was arranging to provide Cornelius with that knowledge (MacArthur, 294)

People without a relationship with Jesus Christ are lost.

In our world today, there are many people groups who have little or no access to the gospel.

Stat A people group - An ethno-linguistic group with a common self-identity that is shared by the various members.

11,995 people groups in the world – 7.9 billion people

UPG – 7,364 people groups – 4.7 billion – less than 2% evangelical Christian

UUPG – 3,215 people groups – 272 million – no Christian witness, no Bible, no church strategy

https://peoplegroups.org/ Accessed - 6/2/22

“To the best of our knowledge … nobody has [these unengaged people groups] on the radar screen. It’s like having people standing out in the cold around your house, while you’re enjoying a wonderful, warm meal. You know they’re out there, but you have no plan to go out there and offer them anything.” — Tom Elliff, President of IMB

“When we say ‘unreached,’ we’re not just talking about lostness. We're talking about access. Unreached means that you don’t even have access to hear the Gospel. There’s no church, no Christian, no Bible available around you.” — David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills, Birmingham, Ala.

“What drives passion for unreached peoples is not guilt. It’s glory. Glory for a King, for a King who deserves the praise of every people group on the planet.” — David Platt

If lostness impacts everything we do, then everything we do should impact lostness.

Illustration John Decenzo calling about an emergency and wanting Eddie or Randy to go. I immediately thought of a medical emergency, but he was talking about a spiritual emergency. A friend of his was lost and he needed someone to go share the gospel before he left town to go home to Baltimore.

Why don’t we think of lostness as an emergency? I believe we need to ask God to give us that same burden for those that are spiritually lost II. God’s Leading (vs.2-22) We see God at work in the life of Cornelius and Simon Peter God is getting ready to bring them together

God could have used the angel to deliver the message of salvation in Christ, but God has chosen to use human instruments We see several component involved in this orchestration of the Lord

A. Prayer V. 2 Cornelius prayed to God always V.9- Peter went up on the housetop to pray Prayer was and is the way that God speaks to His people

Prayer was the vehicle God used to spread the Gospel and to make His will known

We cannot escape the mandate to pray

1 Thes. 5:17- Pray without ceasing

Jesus tells us to pray and not give up (Luke 18:1)

Rom. 10:1- Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.

Missions and evangelism is energized by prayer

Praying for lost friends and lost peoples should be part of our prayer time

B .Visions (v.3, 9-16) God used a vision to prepare Cornelius and Peter We need to be careful, that we don’t rely upon something experiential instead of the Word- But there are places where a Bible is not readily accessible Reports are coming out of the mission field of how that God is using visions to show people their need for Jesus

1 .Cornelius (vs.3-5) A vision of an angel telling him to send to Joppa to get Simon Peter So he was obedient to the vision Illustration I heard about a missionary in a dangerous part of the Middle East who started an underground church. Locals tried to discover the location of that assembly in order to persecute the believers there, but they could never find it. Late one night, however, the missionary heard a knock on the door of the secret church. He cautiously opened it to see a tribesman standing there. The man explained that he had walked for days in order to find the missionary. He said, “I had a vision three days ago that there would be a man standing at this address who would tell me how to get to heaven. Sir, are you this man?” That tribesman, like Cornelius, was given a vision leading him to an evangelist who would teach him how to cross from spiritual death to abundant life.

(Merida, Tony. Exalting Jesus in Acts (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3449-3454). Holman Reference. Kindle Edition.) It reminds us that even though God can use visions to nudge people toward faith, He still uses witnesses to explain the Good News of salvation. 2. Peter (vs.9-16)

A great sheet with all kinds of animals, both clean and unclean (OT dietary laws mentioned in Lev. 11 and Lev.20) God was bringing both Jews (clean) and Gentiles (unclean) into one body (MacArthur, 296)

Acts—The Church Afire Changed by Personal Revelation (10:1–23)

The sheet’s contents indicate the swarming millions that populate the earth. Cornelius, all his soldiers, all his servants, all the Roman people, all other nations on the face of the earth—all mankind were bound up together in one loathsome bundle. And Peter was standing above them, surveying them all and spitting out revulsion and rejection.

He had a beautiful attitude toward God but a lousy one toward the world (Hughes, 146-47)

Eph. 2:11-18

C .Divine Appointments (vs.17-18) Immediately after this vision- these Gentiles are knocking at the door Remember we are co-laborers with God

Never take for granted the person God puts in your path Watch and see what happens after we pray God was showing Peter that He loved the Gentiles as well as the Jews D. Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit (vs. 19-23a) Peter was sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit Knowing God’s will is all about the relationship

Rom.8:14- For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

God is leading us to go to the world with the Gospel

If we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit God will lead us to be witnesses of Him III. An Obedient Disciple (vs.23-48) A. He went

The New King James Version (Chapter 10)

Then he invited them in and lodged them.On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him

Obedience is the key

George Barna- “Time is the currency of our culture.”

We would rather give our money than to go

But God does something in our lives when we go

Illustration Andy Stanley, the Pastor of Northpoint Community Church told his church: If you attend regularly and give your money, but you are not involved in ministry, find another church. He said if not, that attitude would spread and eventually kill the church; the attitude of not going. B. Personal Prejudices had to be laid aside (v.28) Jews would normally not associate with Gentiles Sometimes we are reluctant to go to people who are not like us

(vs.34-35) God shows no partiality

God was teaching Peter some things.

Illustration Mahatma Gandhi shares in his autobiography that in his student days in England, he was deeply touched by reading the Gospels and seriously considered becoming a convert to Christianity, which seemed to offer a solution to the caste system that divided the people of India. One Sunday he attended church services and decided  to ask the minister for enlightenment on salvation and other doctrines. But when Gandhi entered the sanctuary, the ushers refused to give him a seat and suggested he go elsewhere to worship with his own people. He left and never came back. “If Christians have castes differences also,” he said to himself, “I might as well remain a Hindu.” (Hughes, 149)

C .He shared Jesus (vs.34-43) Peter opened his mouth- began to share about Jesus Life, death, and resurrection of Jesus v.43- whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins

The Kingdom Advancing (vs.44-48) The Holy Spirit fell upon those who heard the word (v.44) Peter laid down the major points, mentioned some outstanding facts, and was interrupted by a special working of the Holy Spirit! Cornelius and his household heard that “everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins,” and they responded in faith. No altar call! No invitation! They simply believed and were born again on the spot! Jews were astonished (v.45)

They were astonished because they never dreamed that the Gentiles could be saved The Holy Spirit fell the same as at Pentecost, and Samaria, and now the Gentiles This is just what Jesus said in Acts 1:8 D. Baptism (v.47) Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized…? (v.47)

And he commanded them to be baptized (v.48)

Baptism is the first step of obedience to Christ

For Peter and those with him, they realized that the Gospel is for everyone.

This is a lesson we need to learn as well

God is concerned about lost people everywhere from Centre to Milan and everywhere in between

Conclusion

Dr. H. A. Ironside said when his father was dying, this passage was running through his mind, and he kept repeating “A great sheet and wild beasts, and…and…and…” When he could not get the words out, he started over but stalled once more at the same place. Finally, a friend bent over and whispered, “Luke it says, ‘creeping things,’” “Oh yes,” he said. “That is how I got in. Just a poor, good for nothing, creeping thing, but I got in.”

If the apostles had not had a change of attitude about sharing the Gospel, none of us would have got in! (Hughes, 146)

Some draw a circle that shuts men out; Race and position are what they flout; But Christ in love seeks them all to win, He draws a circle that takes them in! Edward Markham, adapted (Hughes, 149)

Works Cited:

R. Kent Hughes, Acts: The Church Afire, Preach the Word Series, Wheaton: Crossway, 1996.

John MacArthur Acts 1-12, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Chicago: Moody, 1994.

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Preached: FBC, Mt. Vernon FBC, Centre 7-21-13 FBC, Centre 8/1/17 – series on vision

FBC, Centre, 6/5/22