As I read through Acts 10 this week some questions came to mind.
- How did Cornelius, a "pagan" Gentile, come to be devout and God-fearing? Who taught him about God?
- How difficult would we find a world in which two towns that are 30 miles apart, Caesarea and Joppa, constitutes a full day's journey? It's hard to imagine all the implications of the time it took to get from place to place.
- Why did Peter's vision have to happen three times? Was God concerned that he might dismiss it otherwise?
- What about Peter's speech in verses 28-29 about how he is rising above tradition by associating with Cornelius? Is he trying to impress Cornelius? Is he trying to convince his own companions, or even himself, that he's doing the right thing? It seems an odd way to enter a house.
- When Peter lays out the Gospel so clearly and beautifully with "God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him" and "everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name", why is it that Peter's friends are "astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles"? Wasn't that part of the point Peter just went out of his way to make? What does that tell us about the prejudices that existed? What does that tell us about the gift of the Holy Spirit?
Amen and amen. God bless you.
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