Rules For Reaching Souls

Tonight we will look at an amazing story about Peter’s vision, Peter’s visitors, Peter’s visit, and Peter’s victory. Acts 10:9-48 The lessons that Peter learned through Cornelius applies to us today. God’s desire to reach souls is greater than our doctrines, dogma’s or denominations.

Rules For Reaching Souls

1. God can clean anyone at anytime of any thing in any place. V.15 Peter’s vision needs to be the vision of the church for reaching souls. It is so easy to get to the place where people believe the church is all about when the saints come marching in, and not about the mission of reaching souls for Christ. Some churches have placed certain people as off limits for the gospel, because they are just too messed up for God. But God gives us this revelation, don’t ever come to the place that you feel someone is beyond God’s grasp or love. Don’t write Ichabod on anyone’s soul, that is not our job anyway.

2. Religion builds walls not bridges—v.28 It is amazing that Peter felt it necessary to inform everyone that he shouldn’t be there. God sends him to Cornelius but his old religious rulebook still had a grip on his heart. Don’t let man’s law override God’s commands.

3. People are Searching For God—v.30-33 Cornelius tells about his prayer and fasting in his pursuit of God. Probably Peter was shocked to even think that this gentile sinner was even able to pray. Don’t judge the book by the cover, just because someone has tons of problems in their life, doesn’t mean they have no desire for God. Generally the more desparate a situation is, the more desparate for God people will become.

4. God desires everyone to be saved—v.34 Peter gets this brand new revelation, it isn’t all about me, it isn’t all about us. God desires that everyone gets saved. How could he miss someone so simple as that, how can anyone miss that the greatest message of the Bible is that God so loved the world.

5. We have the only message the world needs to hear—v.38-43

Jesus is the Son of God, He has power over the Devil, He is the resurrection and the life, He is the Savior of our soul, only He can wash away sins, He is coming soon.

The reason why the world is not be impacted is the message has been changed. Some people feel that the old message won’t work anymore, so we have a new message. Paul said, if you don’t preach this gospel you are cursed. We might need to change some methods to reach the world, but never should we change the message.

6. You can have Spiritual Power—v.44-45 When the Spirit of God was poured out on the Gentiles, it was amazing to Peter and those who had traveled with him. Here is a key point in reaching souls, if the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in you, He will quicken your mortal bodies. We need sinners to understand their need for Spiritual power to live for God.

7. Discipleship—v.48—don’t love them and leave them. Peter was admonished to stay with them, they knew they needed some further instruction and training.

Close: one final thought, Peter was sent to go visit Cornelius, not Cornelius sent to visit Peter. I think God was giving the early church a simple revelation that we are to take the message to the world, we can’t sit around waiting for the world to come hear the message.