Cornelius' Friends And Family Day Series

Why do you suppose America is in those places today? I believe God is up to something! Did you know that after World War 2 there was a huge explosion of missionary activity in the very lands where our military men went to fight? It looks like God is preparing the church in America to be sent to open hearts in Islamic nations. I sure hope so. There is surely a desperate need. My mom sent me an email that said there were literally thousands of people seeking Bible studies from (I can’t publish this for the sake of those in harms way) and hundreds had already converted to Christianity. They still had to be very careful and secret about their where-abouts.

Look at Peter here. It’s one thing to go around Judea and preach the gospel to Jews and bring them to Jesus as Lord and Christ, but it’s another thing entirely to evangelize an Italian Roman Centurian Gentile. If it weren’t for the visions, the direct message from the Holy Spirit, and the angel’s instruction to Cornelius, Peter would never have made this visit. But here he is! Ready or not! Peter says, “So why did you send for me?”

(read 30-33)

Don’t you just love this! God has prepared this meeting! Peter and the six friends with him stand here in Cornelius’ house filled with friends and family just waiting to hear the Word of God! And you’ve got to love Cornelius’ last sentence there…

“Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

It doesn’t get any easier than that. What will Peter preach? As we have seen before, Peter only has one sermon and it’s all about Jesus. It’s hard to improve on an inspired, perfect sermon! (read 34-43)

I’m not sure we can fully appreciate Peter’s words here. Luke obviously abbreviated this sermon into an outline form. But it is all about Jesus’ coming, his ministry, his death, his resurrection, his appearances, his commission and his appointment as judge. The apostles’ eyewitness accounts and the Old Testament prophetic witnesses are Peter’s evidences. An unbeliever might read this and say, “Is that all there is? Is this it?” And the answer is, “Yes!”

Don’t you see? God has interrupted time and space, he has put his handprints into our history. Jesus, the Lord of all, has come. He preached good news of peace. He went about doing good. He showed his power over the devil. Think about it. Isn’t this the kind of character that would attract you? Isn’t this the kind of God that makes sense?

Jesus lived in actual history. This is no mythical religious figure conjured up in the creative mind of someone out of touch with reality. Jesus is flesh and blood real. When they saw him, they saw human flesh. When they heard him, they heard a human voice speaking God’s will and God’s word. And when they killed him by nailing him to that cross, Jesus experienced real death. But more than meets the eye was among us in Jesus the Christ. The prophet Isaiah said that God put all our sins upon him. Jesus, God’s perfect and only begotten Son, took all our sins upon himself on that cross. He took the punishment. He took the curse of God against sin. He carried our sorrows and bore our grief. Jesus, the one anointed with the Holy Spirit as the Christ, the Lamb of God. He died for us and because of us. But he didn’t stay dead! Jesus the King of kings and Lord of lords rose victorious over sin and death! He did! And he showed himself alive to witnesses who spent the rest of their lives declaring it to be true.