Acts 10 “Unthinkable!” (or “Food On A Stick”)

Ruins of Caesarea (Looking north at Herod's Palace)

In this post, I will be including the complete text of Acts 10 in a simple outline I developed for our church. At the end, I will simply list a few lessons which we might learn from amazing narrative. We should all hold this passage (along with the next chapter) dear to our hearts. It was as a result of this incident that the gospel, formerly reserved for the Jewish people alone, was extended to the gentiles. It is this incident that Peter uses as an apologetic for non-Jewish ministry at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15. God’s plan was for the gospel to go into all the world but his servants couldn’t see past their own customs and the Lord had to push them a bit…for such a development was culturally unthinkable! Let’s read it again with fresh eyes!

1) A People Prepared for the Message (v. 1-8)

         At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius,

                                            a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, 

                                            a devout man who feared God with all his household,

                                                                           gave alms generously to the people,

                                                                    and prayed continually to God. 

  About the ninth hour of the day     

                              he saw clearly in a vision 

    an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” 

  And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?”

  And he said to him, “Your prayers and

                                    your alms have ascended 

                                                              as a memorial before God.

  And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter.

                                    He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner,

                                                                                    whose house is by the sea.”

  When the angel who spoke to him had departed,

        he called two of his servants

                                    and a devout soldier

                                                      from among those who attended him,

                                    and having related everything to them,

        he sent them     to Joppa.

Let me take a moment to ask if the city of Joppa rings a bell for you? Did anything else in the Bible ever happen there? Ancient Joppa was a town on the Mediterranean coast, the closest port to Jerusalem, is now the modern city Jaffa. Centuries before Christ, the prophet Jonah was told to go north to the Assyrian capital of Nineveh with a warning of God’s judgment. However, he refused to go and set sail from Joppa for Tarshish (in Western Spain) likely the furthest known destination from Nineveh he could have picked.

2) A Messenger Prepared for the People (9-23a)

The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city,

                      Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. [noon]

   And he became hungry and wanted something to eat,

                                           but while they were preparing it,

           he fell into a trance  and saw the heavens opened

                                                       and something like a great sheet descending,

being let down by its four corners upon the earth. 

   In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. 

   And there came a voice to him: 

            “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” 

                But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; 

   for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” 

                    And the voice came to him again a second time,

 “What God has made clean, do not call common.” 

   This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

    Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed      

                              as to what the vision that he had seen might mean,

     behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius,

                          having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the gate 

                and called out to ask whether Simon

 who was called Peter was lodging there. 

     And while Peter was pondering the vision, 

                                                       the Spirit said to him,

“Behold, three men are looking for you. 

   Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, 

                      for I have sent them.” 

             And Peter went down to the men and said,

“I am the one you are looking for.

What is the reason for your coming?” 

   And they said, “Cornelius, a centurion,

                                           an upright and God-fearing man,

                                           who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation,

                                           was directed by a holy angel to send for you

                                             to come to his house and to hear what you have to say.” 

                So he invited them in to be his guests.

God had to prepare the messenger to take his message in this “unthinkable” direction. When we read of these visions with the various unclean animals that Peter was instructed to eat, I don’t think that we Americans, with our fixation on food, quite get how disturbing this was for Peter. Portland, Oregon is well known for its abundance of food carts serving many wonderful things to eat. Well, Beijing China also has lots of food carts, serving all kinds of “food on a stick.” However, the things which they serve are culturally unthinkable for most of us. I am going to provide a few pictures that will hopefully help us to understand how unthinkable this vision was to Peter.

Can you relate to Peter now?

3) God’s Mission Made Visible (v. 23-27)

The next day he rose and went away with them,

                           and some of the brothers from Joppa accompanied him. 

   And on the following day they entered Caesarea.

                           Cornelius was expecting them and

                                            had called together his relatives and close friends. 

   When Peter entered,

                           Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. 

       But Peter lifted him up, saying, “Stand up; I too am a man.” 

    And as he talked with him,

                he went in and found many persons gathered.

God showed his servant Peter and the Gentile “seeker” what to do. As the plan unfolded they even had an opportunity to share their respective visions with each other.

A) Peter’s Proclamation (v.28-29)  

     And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is

                              for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation,

but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. 

                              So when I was sent for,

                                             I came without objection.

                                             I ask then why you sent for me.”

What He had learned (28): “God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean.”

What he had done (29): “So when I was sent for, I came without objection.” He came without any discrimination or profiling. He didn’t try to hide, run away, or argue. He obeyed God, as opposed to Jonah, the Hebrew prophet, who left Joppa in the opposite direction from that of the mission God was sending him to complete.

What he wanted to know: “I ask then why you sent for me.” A great question to ask and have answered before one starts sharing what you think they want to hear.

B) Cornelius’ Proclamation (30-33)

Cornelius promptly filled Peter in on what he had heard from the angel that started this unthinkable chain of events four days earlier. He shared…

What he had seen (30): And Cornelius said,  “Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house at the ninth hour,  and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing.” 

What he had learned (31):   ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and

your alms have been remembered

before God. 

What he had been told to do (32) Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.’ 

His readiness to hear (33) So I sent for you at once,

                                                                   and you have been kind enough to come.

                          Now, therefore, we are all here in the presence of God

                                                  to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

I wonder… how often do we share our God-dreams with each other? You know, the things he has told us to do that are so far outside our comfort zone that we don’t even want to talk about it? We can be hesitant to tell others because then we might actually have to do what God told us, or we might be afraid that they will think we are crazy.

4) Gospel Message was Delivered at the Right Moment (v.34-43)

   So Peter opened his mouth and said:

“Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 

   but in every nation

                anyone who fears him

                and does what is right is acceptable to him. 

  As for the word that he sent to Israel, 

preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 

   you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea,

beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 

   how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth 

                          with the Holy Spirit and with power.

                                        He went about doing good and

                                                                 healing all who were oppressed by the devil,

      for God was with him. 

   And we are witnesses of all that he did

                                                both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. 

They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 

     but God raised him on the third day

             and made him to appear, 

                           not to all the people

                           but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses,

                                            who ate and drank with him

      after he rose from the dead. 

   And he commanded us to preach to the people

                                   and to testify that he is the one appointed by God

                                                                        to be judge of the living

                                                                                        and the dead. 

                        To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone

    who believes in him             receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

5) The Message is Confirmed by the Holy Spirit (v.44-48) [Gentile Pentecost]

   While Peter was still saying these things, 

                                      the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 

   And the believers from among the circumcised

                                who had come with Peter were amazed,

        because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 

             For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God.

    Then Peter declared,  

    “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people,

who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 

   And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.

    Then they asked him to remain for some days.

Seven Simple Yet Encouraging Lessons…

• Prayer to God and service to others is remembered (v. 4)
• God prepares us in anticipation of our next assignment (But we might not understand it at first.)
• God will surprise us when we listen to him (v. 44)
• God’s plan advances as he has said (Acts 1:8; Gen. 12:3)
• Our prejudices are not God’s (2 Cor. 5:16; Eph. 2:11-22; Gal. 33:28-29)
• When people gather together to hear the gospel, they do so in the presence of God (v.33)
• God goes to great lengths to bring the Gospel to those who need it.

There is so much more I could have said, but I am leaving the lessons to be found mainly in the reading of the narrative itself! 

By the way, it is important enough to Luke the Spirit-inspired author of Acts that he repeats the whole story in the next chapter! It is so profound that we must need to hear it more than once.