The fourth sermon in the book of Acts: Acts 10:23-48 (specifically Acts 10:34-43)
Setting: Caesarea
Speaker: Peter
Audience: Cornelius, his family, and close friends – all Gentiles (that is, non-Jews)
Preceding Events: Through a dream, God tells Peter to go to Cornelius’s house.
Overall Theme: God makes no distinction between people; traditional barriers have been broken, everyone can come to Jesus.
Scripture Quoted: none (as a non-Jewish audience, citing the Bible would not likely have been helpful to those listening)
Central Teaching: God shows no favoritism.
Subsequent Events: When Paul says “everyone who believes in him…,” his message is interrupted by the Holy Spirit, who comes upon the Gentiles who have just believed.
Key Lesson: Don’t allow our past or perceptions to dictate who we interact with; Jesus is for everyone.
Peter had to set aside his traditions and the law of Moses to do what God told him.
Would you being willing to do the same?
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 700-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
