1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,660 Is the dawn out of hope 2 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:59,980 Thank you. 3 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:29,980 Thank you. 4 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:59,980 Thank you. 5 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:41,400 Good morning, everybody. 6 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:45,160 We're going to get started today in our time of worship. 7 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:49,200 If we want to go ahead and stand, we'll do our Scripture reading together. 8 00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:52,340 We're going to be reading out of Ephesians 2. 9 00:04:52,340 --> 00:04:57,000 And we're going to be doing 18 through 20. 10 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:00,780 And it starts, 11 00:05:00,780 --> 00:05:07,220 For through him we both have access in one spirit to the Father. 12 00:05:07,220 --> 00:05:12,140 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, 13 00:05:12,140 --> 00:05:19,360 but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 14 00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:24,280 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, 15 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:28,580 Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 16 00:05:28,580 --> 00:05:37,420 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 17 00:05:37,420 --> 00:05:46,520 In him you are being built, sorry, together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. 18 00:05:46,520 --> 00:05:48,120 This is the word of the Lord. 19 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:50,140 Let's pray. 20 00:05:50,140 --> 00:05:54,180 God, we thank you for our time together today. 21 00:05:54,180 --> 00:06:01,540 We thank you that we can gather and also gather together online, and we thank you for the encouragement that we are to each other. 22 00:06:01,540 --> 00:06:07,200 We ask that you be with our service today. We thank you for the opportunity to worship you, 23 00:06:07,200 --> 00:06:14,760 and we thank you that through Jesus we've been brought close to you, and we thank you for that sacrifice. 24 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:19,480 And just be with our service today and allow it to glorify you. In Jesus' name, amen. 25 00:06:21,780 --> 00:06:39,320 All right. Our first Song we're going to be doing is called Glorious Day. It is a newer song. It is different than the normal Glorious Day that I thought it was, but it is a good song. The words are good, so just follow along if you can, and we'll start with that one today. 26 00:06:47,260 --> 00:06:48,460 I don't have any sound. 27 00:06:48,460 --> 00:06:51,300 I might be needed. 28 00:06:51,300 --> 00:06:52,780 Stop. 29 00:06:52,780 --> 00:06:55,360 Uh-oh. 30 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:57,480 I think I just cleared the plane. 31 00:06:57,480 --> 00:06:59,580 Hang on. 32 00:06:59,580 --> 00:07:04,260 Technical and old person. 33 00:07:04,260 --> 00:07:08,660 Okay. 34 00:07:08,660 --> 00:07:11,000 There we go. 35 00:07:17,260 --> 00:07:23,420 I was buried beneath my shame. 36 00:07:23,420 --> 00:07:32,180 Who could carry that kind of weight? 37 00:07:32,180 --> 00:07:36,460 It was my turn. 38 00:07:36,460 --> 00:07:39,900 And you. 39 00:07:42,420 --> 00:07:48,900 I was breathing but not alive. 40 00:07:48,900 --> 00:07:57,300 All my failures I tried to hide. 41 00:07:57,300 --> 00:08:06,200 It was my turn till I met. 42 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:14,380 You called my name, and I ran out of that grave. 43 00:08:14,380 --> 00:08:23,700 Out of the darkness, into your glorious day. 44 00:08:23,700 --> 00:08:32,340 You called my name, and I ran out of that grave. 45 00:08:32,340 --> 00:08:38,120 Out of the darkness 46 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:40,480 To you 47 00:08:40,480 --> 00:08:53,040 Now your need has saved my soul 48 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:59,760 Now your freedom is all 49 00:08:59,760 --> 00:09:02,200 That I know 50 00:09:02,200 --> 00:09:07,280 The only knew 51 00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:10,720 Jesus when I met you 52 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:15,940 You called my name 53 00:09:15,940 --> 00:09:19,280 And I ran out of that grave 54 00:09:19,280 --> 00:09:24,100 Out of the darkness 55 00:09:24,100 --> 00:09:27,860 Into your glorious day 56 00:09:27,860 --> 00:09:33,080 You called my name 57 00:09:33,080 --> 00:09:36,500 And I ran out of that grave 58 00:09:36,500 --> 00:09:41,240 Out of the darkness 59 00:09:41,240 --> 00:09:45,140 Into your glorious day 60 00:09:45,140 --> 00:09:54,840 I can't rest 61 00:09:54,840 --> 00:09:57,500 My sin was empty 62 00:09:57,500 --> 00:10:01,800 The chains break at the way of your glory 63 00:10:01,800 --> 00:10:05,980 I needed shelter, I was an orphan 64 00:10:05,980 --> 00:10:10,280 Now you call me a citizen of heaven 65 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:13,900 When I was broken, my healing 66 00:10:13,900 --> 00:10:17,940 Now your love is even 67 00:10:17,940 --> 00:10:22,340 I have a future, my eyes are open 68 00:10:22,340 --> 00:10:25,300 Cause when you call my name 69 00:10:25,300 --> 00:10:29,520 I ran out of that grave 70 00:10:29,520 --> 00:10:34,480 Out of the darkness 71 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:38,280 Into your glorious aid 72 00:10:38,280 --> 00:10:43,460 You call my name 73 00:10:43,460 --> 00:10:47,020 I ran out of that grave 74 00:10:47,020 --> 00:10:51,760 Out of the darkness 75 00:10:51,760 --> 00:11:10,040 All right, good job. 76 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:16,060 Our next song we're going to do is Jesus Messiah. 77 00:11:16,060 --> 00:11:18,400 And then we're going to move into our prayer and share time. 78 00:11:18,620 --> 00:11:24,000 And if you're watching online, there'll be a slide up with a phone number to text for your prayer requests. 79 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,620 If you want to send those, we'd love to pray with you on that. 80 00:11:26,620 --> 00:11:29,180 And we will be muted here during that time. 81 00:11:29,180 --> 00:11:32,420 So we'll be back after we're done doing that together here. 82 00:11:32,420 --> 00:11:35,340 So we'll be singing together Jesus Messiah. 83 00:11:48,620 --> 00:12:02,560 He became sin 84 00:12:02,560 --> 00:12:05,480 Who knew no sin 85 00:12:05,480 --> 00:12:08,360 That we might become 86 00:12:08,360 --> 00:12:10,620 His righteousness 87 00:12:10,620 --> 00:12:13,780 He humbled Himself 88 00:12:13,780 --> 00:12:17,380 And carried the cross 89 00:12:17,380 --> 00:12:45,300 Love's so amazing, love's so amazing, Jesus Messiah, name above all names, blessed Redeemer. 90 00:12:47,380 --> 00:13:14,380 Emmanuel, the rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah, Lord of all. 91 00:13:17,380 --> 00:13:20,260 His body, the bread 92 00:13:20,260 --> 00:13:23,420 His blood, the wine 93 00:13:23,420 --> 00:13:27,100 Broken and poured out 94 00:13:27,100 --> 00:13:29,640 All for love 95 00:13:29,640 --> 00:13:32,820 The whole earth trembled 96 00:13:32,820 --> 00:13:35,660 And the veil was torn 97 00:13:35,660 --> 00:13:40,400 Love so amazing 98 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:46,120 Love so amazing 99 00:13:46,120 --> 00:14:13,120 Yeah, Jesus Messiah, name above all names, blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel, the rescue for 100 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:40,120 Jesus, Messiah, Lord of all, all our hope is in you. 101 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:59,580 All our hope is in you, the glory is in you, God, the light of the world. 102 00:14:59,580 --> 00:15:05,260 Jesus, I hear 103 00:15:05,260 --> 00:15:10,520 Name of all names 104 00:15:10,520 --> 00:15:15,600 Blessed Redeemer 105 00:15:15,600 --> 00:15:19,860 Emmanuel 106 00:15:19,860 --> 00:15:27,020 The rescue for sinners 107 00:15:29,580 --> 00:15:44,140 The ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah, Lord of all. 108 00:15:44,140 --> 00:15:56,140 Jesus, Messiah, Lord of all. 109 00:15:59,580 --> 00:16:29,560 We'll be right back. 110 00:16:29,580 --> 00:16:38,060 My praise and hallelujah, louder than the unbelief. 111 00:16:38,060 --> 00:16:49,440 My praise and hallelujah, my weapon is a melody. 112 00:16:52,380 --> 00:16:55,600 Always a hallelujah 113 00:16:55,600 --> 00:17:02,120 When heaven comes to fight for me 114 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:06,800 I want to see 115 00:17:06,800 --> 00:17:09,640 The middle of despair 116 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:12,820 Rounded in love 117 00:17:12,820 --> 00:17:15,040 Coming up with me 118 00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:17,840 It's more of the love of me 119 00:17:17,840 --> 00:17:20,400 As it's so hopeless 120 00:17:20,400 --> 00:17:50,380 I'm going to tell these things we need. I keep you down. I reach the hallelujah. I'm doing everything inside of me. I reach the hallelujah. 121 00:17:50,400 --> 00:18:20,380 Thank you. 122 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:50,380 We'll be right back. 123 00:18:50,400 --> 00:19:20,380 Thank you. 124 00:19:20,400 --> 00:19:24,020 Heaven comes to me for me. 125 00:19:24,020 --> 00:19:26,180 So, I love you. 126 00:19:26,180 --> 00:19:29,200 And my eyes are so happy. 127 00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:32,100 So, I love you. 128 00:19:32,100 --> 00:19:34,260 I love you. 129 00:19:34,260 --> 00:19:35,040 I love you. 130 00:19:35,040 --> 00:19:37,780 So, I love you. 131 00:19:37,780 --> 00:19:39,540 I love you. 132 00:19:39,540 --> 00:19:43,540 So, I love you. 133 00:19:43,540 --> 00:19:47,360 Heaven comes to me for me. 134 00:19:49,480 --> 00:19:55,040 I want to see the light of the storm. 135 00:19:55,040 --> 00:20:01,780 How there is no one ever made you come home. 136 00:20:01,780 --> 00:20:07,240 I'm going to be out to turn on your eyes. 137 00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:12,780 For the dead is in me, and keep it alive. 138 00:20:12,780 --> 00:20:18,440 I want to see the light of the storm. 139 00:20:19,480 --> 00:20:49,460 I'm going to be here. 140 00:20:49,480 --> 00:20:50,480 Amen. 141 00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:22,380 All our creation 142 00:21:22,380 --> 00:21:26,240 Roses to be yours 143 00:21:26,240 --> 00:21:30,960 Behold the Lord 144 00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:31,980 God 145 00:21:31,980 --> 00:21:35,160 Seated on his throne 146 00:21:35,160 --> 00:21:39,460 From the last authority 147 00:21:39,460 --> 00:21:45,260 Behold our King 148 00:21:45,260 --> 00:21:48,240 Nothing can compare 149 00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:52,380 God bless the Lord. 150 00:22:18,240 --> 00:22:48,220 Thank you. 151 00:22:48,240 --> 00:23:18,220 Thank you. 152 00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:30,960 all right as we move into our time of communion we're going to be singing there is a redeemer 153 00:23:48,240 --> 00:24:00,140 There is a Redeemer 154 00:24:00,140 --> 00:24:05,040 Jesus, God's own Son 155 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:10,580 Precious Lamb of God 156 00:24:10,580 --> 00:24:15,740 Messiah, Holy One 157 00:24:15,740 --> 00:24:27,960 Thank you, O my Father, for giving us your Son 158 00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:38,160 And leaving your Spirit till the work on earth is done 159 00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:50,260 Jesus, my Redeemer, name above all names. 160 00:24:50,260 --> 00:25:00,060 Precious Lamb of God, Messiah, full full sinner slain. 161 00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:22,260 Thank you, O my Father, for giving us your Son, and leaving your Spirit till the work on earth is done. 162 00:25:22,800 --> 00:25:34,280 When I stand in glory, I will see His face. 163 00:25:34,280 --> 00:25:44,340 And there I'll serve my King forever in that holy place. 164 00:25:45,000 --> 00:26:06,380 Thank you, O my Father, for giving us your Son, and leaving your Spirit till the work on earth is done. 165 00:26:07,140 --> 00:26:28,440 Thank you, O my Father, for giving us your Son, and living your Spirit till the work on earth is done. 166 00:26:37,140 --> 00:27:07,120 Thank you. 167 00:27:07,980 --> 00:27:12,780 I think my favorite thing is about, especially those evenings in the summertime where it 168 00:27:12,780 --> 00:27:19,400 cools down a little bit, is we like to sit around the campfire, sometimes with our family, 169 00:27:19,400 --> 00:27:25,340 sometimes some of the friends or neighbors come over, we sit around the campfire and drink coffee. 170 00:27:25,340 --> 00:27:31,160 I haven't decided if my favorite part is the campfire or the coffee, but it is a wonderful 171 00:27:31,160 --> 00:27:39,420 thing, just to sit with your friends and spend time together. And as we gather around the table 172 00:27:39,420 --> 00:27:46,280 this morning, I want us to think about that fellowship, because for God's people, this is 173 00:27:46,280 --> 00:27:52,420 the moment of encouragement and fellowship. And just like I love to sit around a campfire with a 174 00:27:52,420 --> 00:27:58,420 cup of coffee and some good friends and family, and it's an encouragement and a joy to my soul. 175 00:27:58,420 --> 00:28:07,020 so this table is for God's people this is a a joy and an encouragement to our souls in first John 176 00:28:07,020 --> 00:28:12,900 um John writes uh about which was from the beginning the things at the very beginning 177 00:28:12,900 --> 00:28:18,340 and he talks about i've seen these things i've experienced these things it's not just a rumor 178 00:28:18,340 --> 00:28:24,380 um the wonderful things i'm going to tell you i experienced personally um and he will talk about 179 00:28:24,380 --> 00:28:31,560 how we are given life through Jesus. And in verse 3, as he talks about this life, he'll say this, 180 00:28:31,560 --> 00:28:38,900 that we have seen and heard, we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us, 181 00:28:38,900 --> 00:28:46,360 and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. And what John says is, 182 00:28:46,360 --> 00:28:53,120 as Christians, we are in fellowship together in two directions, right? One is through the death 183 00:28:53,120 --> 00:28:59,180 and burial and resurrection of Jesus, we now have fellowship with God, right? We don't have to hide, 184 00:28:59,180 --> 00:29:05,000 we don't have to run away, we don't have to be fearful, but that we are, as Christians, part of 185 00:29:05,000 --> 00:29:10,020 the family of God. And I think most of us, when we think about communion, that's the relationship 186 00:29:10,020 --> 00:29:16,000 we think about. We think about the good news of the gospel, that God sent his only son to take 187 00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:22,960 our place on the cross, dying for our sins so that we could have eternal life. And it is a 188 00:29:22,960 --> 00:29:30,140 wonderful, encouraging, convicting, focusing moment. But John says something else about the 189 00:29:30,140 --> 00:29:35,820 Christian life. He'll say, so that you may have fellowship with us. You see, the Christian life 190 00:29:35,820 --> 00:29:43,360 goes vertical between us and God, but it also goes horizontal between you and me, between each other. 191 00:29:43,360 --> 00:29:50,600 And as we gather around this table, we're reminded of the sacrifice that brings us salvation. We're 192 00:29:50,600 --> 00:29:57,220 reminded of hope we're reminded of new life but we're also reminded that we are not alone right 193 00:29:57,220 --> 00:30:03,800 we gather at this place of fellowship which in the first century meals were your big form of 194 00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:10,340 fellowship who you ate with says these are my people and it's not an accident that Jesus 195 00:30:10,340 --> 00:30:18,020 institutes a meal for his church to remind us that we are not alone and so as we gather and 196 00:30:18,020 --> 00:30:24,380 as we break this bread may this be an encouragement to our soul as we consider the good news of the 197 00:30:24,380 --> 00:30:30,760 gospel that God loves us that he sent his son who died for us that our sins are forgiven and we have 198 00:30:30,760 --> 00:30:37,060 hope in heaven but also that we've been made part of a family that we have brothers and sisters in 199 00:30:37,060 --> 00:30:43,960 Christ who love us and care for us and walk with us and that we are not alone so I'm going to pray 200 00:30:43,960 --> 00:30:47,920 and we'll read from Scripture together and partake of the Lord's Supper. 201 00:30:47,920 --> 00:30:51,820 Father in heaven, thank you for this moment of refreshing 202 00:30:51,820 --> 00:30:56,760 and of fellowship and of hope and of focus. 203 00:30:56,760 --> 00:31:02,620 So may in this moment, may we focus our minds and our hearts and our lives 204 00:31:02,620 --> 00:31:06,960 on the good that you have done for us through your Son, 205 00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:12,240 that we may remember his sacrifice, his body and his blood that were given 206 00:31:12,640 --> 00:31:16,320 so that we could be forgiven and brought into a new relationship with you. 207 00:31:16,320 --> 00:31:17,700 Thank you for that hope. 208 00:31:17,700 --> 00:31:21,660 But also as we eat together, remind us of each other, 209 00:31:21,660 --> 00:31:24,380 that we have brothers and sisters in Christ, 210 00:31:24,380 --> 00:31:26,880 and we are not alone, and we do not walk alone, 211 00:31:26,880 --> 00:31:30,360 and that you have given us your people to encourage us 212 00:31:30,360 --> 00:31:31,800 and to be a family to us. 213 00:31:31,800 --> 00:31:34,940 It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 214 00:31:34,940 --> 00:31:40,040 Jesus will take bread, and he will distribute it to the disciples, 215 00:31:40,040 --> 00:31:42,820 and will say, this is my body, which is for you. 216 00:31:42,820 --> 00:31:44,700 Do this in remembrance of me. 217 00:31:44,700 --> 00:31:53,140 And after supper, he will take the cup 218 00:31:53,140 --> 00:31:57,280 and he will tell the disciples that this is the new covenant in his blood. 219 00:31:57,280 --> 00:32:02,040 And he'll call them and he calls us to do this in remembrance of him. 220 00:32:05,440 --> 00:32:10,120 And while this reminds us and refocuses us 221 00:32:10,120 --> 00:32:13,940 and points us to the good news of the gospel, 222 00:32:13,940 --> 00:32:15,720 to Jesus and to his people, 223 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:17,740 it's also a proclamation. 224 00:32:17,740 --> 00:32:19,480 Jesus will say, 225 00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:22,120 for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, 226 00:32:22,120 --> 00:32:25,420 you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 227 00:32:25,420 --> 00:32:27,420 And what he is saying to us is that 228 00:32:27,420 --> 00:32:29,840 when we eat this bread and drink this cup, 229 00:32:29,840 --> 00:32:31,460 we're declaring our allegiance, 230 00:32:31,460 --> 00:32:33,380 we're declaring our hope, 231 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:38,960 and we're declaring where our life is directed toward. 232 00:32:38,960 --> 00:32:39,480 Let's pray. 233 00:32:39,480 --> 00:32:42,180 Father, thank you for this bread and this cup. 234 00:32:42,180 --> 00:32:46,760 Be with us as we open your word in just a moment. 235 00:32:46,760 --> 00:32:50,780 May you strengthen us, encourage us, teach us, 236 00:32:50,780 --> 00:32:53,580 help us that we would see the good news of the gospel, 237 00:32:53,580 --> 00:32:57,800 that we would see your love for the outsider, 238 00:32:57,800 --> 00:33:01,680 that you would see how you have invited us in to be part of your family. 239 00:33:01,880 --> 00:33:04,100 In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 240 00:33:04,100 --> 00:33:11,900 We're going to be in Acts, the 10th chapter. 241 00:33:11,900 --> 00:33:15,500 We're picking it up this morning in just a minute in verse 1. 242 00:33:15,500 --> 00:33:19,080 And we're going to do things just a little bit differently. 243 00:33:19,080 --> 00:33:24,460 Normally we have sort of a Scripture reading and then we spend time studying it. 244 00:33:24,460 --> 00:33:29,160 What I want to do this morning is our text this morning is a little bit long. 245 00:33:29,440 --> 00:33:35,800 It's 33 verses, and so what I want to do as we walk through this is we're going to sort 246 00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:40,380 of take it piece by piece, and so we'll take a look at a section and we'll talk about it. 247 00:33:40,380 --> 00:33:43,500 We'll take a look at a section and we'll talk about it, and we'll take a look at the third 248 00:33:43,500 --> 00:33:45,640 section and talk about it. 249 00:33:45,640 --> 00:33:50,820 And as we do, I encourage you to follow along in your Bibles or with the handouts or with 250 00:33:50,820 --> 00:33:53,600 the words that are on the screen. 251 00:33:53,880 --> 00:33:59,580 And so in Acts chapter 10, you have a sort of a surprising turn for the church. 252 00:33:59,580 --> 00:34:03,180 In fact, this is going to occupy the next several chapters, 253 00:34:03,180 --> 00:34:07,320 and actually the sort of the resounding effects of this event 254 00:34:07,320 --> 00:34:10,860 are going to stretch not just through a couple chapters of Acts, 255 00:34:10,860 --> 00:34:13,800 but you're going to see it again in dispute in the church. 256 00:34:13,800 --> 00:34:17,280 In Acts chapter 15, you're going to see this moving through 257 00:34:17,280 --> 00:34:20,740 not just the New Testament, but through church history. 258 00:34:20,740 --> 00:34:27,300 This is a remarkable, wonderful, wonderful, pivotal moment in the life of the church. 259 00:34:27,300 --> 00:34:32,440 And so one of the traditions that I really like that Rachel has sort of established in 260 00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:36,780 our family is when our kids have a birthday, one of the things that just sort of happened 261 00:34:36,780 --> 00:34:41,420 the first couple times, now it's sort of something that she does intentionally. 262 00:34:41,420 --> 00:34:45,840 We sit down with the kids and we look through sort of pictures when they were born, and 263 00:34:45,840 --> 00:34:49,860 and here they are as a baby, and we talk about when they were born, 264 00:34:49,860 --> 00:34:53,020 and we talk about, oh, and then grandma and grandpa came to visit you, 265 00:34:53,020 --> 00:34:56,560 grandma and granddad came to visit you, grandpap came to visit you. 266 00:34:56,560 --> 00:35:01,420 And we look through all of these pictures that I realize now, 267 00:35:01,420 --> 00:35:06,480 what it does is it cements the fact that you're born into part of a family. 268 00:35:06,480 --> 00:35:10,880 And it's a wonderful thing to look back and relive those memories. 269 00:35:10,880 --> 00:35:15,800 And for us, especially those of us who are not ethnically Jewish, 270 00:35:15,840 --> 00:35:25,320 this is sort of that moment for us where we look back at this picture and this is where we 271 00:35:25,320 --> 00:35:31,820 as people who are not Jewish are welcomed into the church of God this is sort of the the birthday of 272 00:35:31,820 --> 00:35:38,240 the Gentiles coming to Christ and so we've been journeying with Peter as he travels and we started 273 00:35:38,240 --> 00:35:43,920 last week and we said he's sort of making this big loop he's gonna leave Jerusalem he's gonna head 274 00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:47,760 west. He's going to go up to the coast. He's going to move up the coast, and then eventually he'll 275 00:35:47,760 --> 00:35:53,520 circle back to Jerusalem. And he's been in Joppa for several days. He's getting about, he's getting 276 00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:59,720 ready to go to Caesarea. And one of the things that I think is important for us is to place the 277 00:35:59,720 --> 00:36:07,280 events of Acts chapter 10 in the sort of the larger context of Scripture. In Matthew, the 16th 278 00:36:07,280 --> 00:36:12,120 chapter, and this is a familiar passage if you've been in the church for any period of time, Jesus 279 00:36:12,120 --> 00:36:19,440 speaks to the disciples and he says who do people say that I am and so the disciples will come up 280 00:36:19,440 --> 00:36:24,120 with all the answers that everybody gives you're a prophet you're John the baptizer all of these 281 00:36:24,120 --> 00:36:29,480 things then Jesus will make the question a little bit more personal and he'll say well who do you 282 00:36:29,480 --> 00:36:36,160 say that I am and if you remember it's Peter who sort of jumps up and says you're the Christ the 283 00:36:36,160 --> 00:36:41,800 son of the living God. And we call that the good confession. And Jesus will go on to say 284 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:46,720 that the flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, Peter, that this is the work of the 285 00:36:46,720 --> 00:36:51,760 Holy Spirit. He'll say, on this rock, I will build my church. And the rock he's speaking 286 00:36:51,760 --> 00:36:56,020 there is Peter's confession, right? That Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living 287 00:36:56,020 --> 00:37:02,060 God. And then Jesus is going to say something interesting to Peter. He says this, I will 288 00:37:02,060 --> 00:37:07,820 give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. And whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in 289 00:37:07,820 --> 00:37:12,680 heaven. Whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. And we might say, well, that seems 290 00:37:12,680 --> 00:37:17,360 strange. What are these keys to the kingdom? And the simple fact of the matter is that the keys 291 00:37:17,360 --> 00:37:23,160 open doors, right? So when you get home and your house is locked, you get out your key and you open 292 00:37:23,160 --> 00:37:28,740 the door. And so before anybody can go into that house, the key has to be put in, the door has to 293 00:37:28,740 --> 00:37:35,000 be unlocked. And one of the remarkable things you see in these first 10 chapters of Acts is Peter 294 00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:40,920 opening the door for the gospel for all kinds of different groups. So in Acts chapter 2, it's to 295 00:37:40,920 --> 00:37:45,800 the Jews who are gathered on the day of Pentecost where Peter gets up and through the Holy Spirit 296 00:37:45,800 --> 00:37:52,380 proclaims the good news of the gospel. What happens? The door to the Jewish people are open and the 297 00:37:52,380 --> 00:37:59,280 gospel is proclaimed. And then as Philip goes and testifies in Samaria, people want to hear about 298 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:05,640 the gospel and they begin to believe. And so what happens? Some apostles, Peter and John, come to 299 00:38:05,640 --> 00:38:11,420 Samaria, the enemies of the Jews. And what happens? Peter proclaims the gospel, the Holy Spirit is 300 00:38:11,420 --> 00:38:19,020 given and the door is open for the Samaritans to come into the church. And here in John, or in Acts 301 00:38:19,020 --> 00:38:25,100 chapter 10 Peter is called the house of a Gentile and what's going to happen he's going to proclaim 302 00:38:25,100 --> 00:38:30,000 the gospel the Holy Spirit's going to be given and what the door to the Gentiles is going to be 303 00:38:30,000 --> 00:38:38,140 opened it's no accident that Peter is opening these doors to different groups of people and 304 00:38:38,140 --> 00:38:43,920 we see how God in his plan has put all of these things together so as we look at our text this 305 00:38:43,920 --> 00:38:47,500 morning we're going to take it into three parts we're going to meet Cornelius we're going to 306 00:38:47,500 --> 00:38:50,720 Meet Peter, and then we're going to sort of put them all together. 307 00:38:50,720 --> 00:38:52,520 So let's read the first eight verses. 308 00:38:52,520 --> 00:39:00,320 At Caesarea, there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian cohort. 309 00:39:00,320 --> 00:39:05,820 A devout man who feared God with all his household gave alms generously to the people 310 00:39:05,820 --> 00:39:08,400 and prayed continually to God. 311 00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:12,220 And about the ninth hour of the day, he saw clearly in a vision, 312 00:39:12,220 --> 00:39:16,220 the angel of God come in and say to him, Cornelius. 313 00:39:16,720 --> 00:39:19,280 And he stared with him in terror and said, What is it, Lord? 314 00:39:19,280 --> 00:39:23,860 And he said, Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. 315 00:39:23,860 --> 00:39:28,300 And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon, who is called Peter. 316 00:39:28,300 --> 00:39:32,240 He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. 317 00:39:32,240 --> 00:39:36,620 And when the angel spoke to him and had departed, he called two of his servants 318 00:39:36,620 --> 00:39:39,480 and a devout soldier from among them, those who attended him. 319 00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:43,680 And having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. 320 00:39:43,760 --> 00:39:48,540 So we meet Cornelius, who is a Roman soldier, specifically a centurion. 321 00:39:48,540 --> 00:39:56,740 And so what happens, the way that the Roman army is organized is that it's organized into legions of about 6,000 men. 322 00:39:56,740 --> 00:40:04,180 And those legions are then organized into cohorts, about 10 cohorts of 600 people. 323 00:40:04,180 --> 00:40:11,320 And then those cohorts are organized into centuries or groups of 100 men, right? 324 00:40:11,460 --> 00:40:15,720 So when you hear centurion, you hear that word century, which means a hundred. 325 00:40:15,720 --> 00:40:26,220 And so Cornelius is a commander of a hundred Roman soldiers, part of this cohort, the Italian cohort, part of a bigger legion. 326 00:40:26,220 --> 00:40:34,420 And what you find is that in the Roman army, centurions are sort of the backbone that holds the Roman army together, right? 327 00:40:34,520 --> 00:40:39,020 They're responsible for their 100 men, but they're also responsible sort of up the chain 328 00:40:39,020 --> 00:40:42,180 to organizing and moving those men according to their orders. 329 00:40:42,180 --> 00:40:46,340 And so centurions are sort of the backbone of the Roman army. 330 00:40:46,340 --> 00:40:51,260 And what's interesting biblically, I think there's like seven centurions mentioned throughout 331 00:40:51,260 --> 00:40:57,240 the entire Bible, and every single one of these centurions is a good guy. 332 00:40:57,240 --> 00:41:02,080 The Bible doesn't say negative things about these centurions. 333 00:41:02,200 --> 00:41:04,600 So generally, they had good character. 334 00:41:04,600 --> 00:41:08,920 They generally were good, responsible men of the Roman army. 335 00:41:08,920 --> 00:41:13,060 And so this centurion specifically is spiritually searching for something. 336 00:41:13,060 --> 00:41:19,420 And so he has turned his back at this point on the pagan gods of the day, right? 337 00:41:19,420 --> 00:41:22,440 The Roman gods that normally would have been worshipped, 338 00:41:22,440 --> 00:41:25,180 which would have included worship of the Roman emperor. 339 00:41:25,180 --> 00:41:28,080 And he's searching for something else. 340 00:41:28,080 --> 00:41:29,900 And we see his faith. 341 00:41:30,000 --> 00:41:32,800 He's a devout man who feared God. 342 00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:35,600 We see his giving where it says he gave alms. 343 00:41:35,600 --> 00:41:40,300 When it talks about to the people, likely that means to the Jewish people. 344 00:41:40,300 --> 00:41:44,620 So he was, while he wouldn't have been a member of the synagogue because he wasn't Jewish, 345 00:41:44,620 --> 00:41:48,600 he was giving money to support the Jewish people. 346 00:41:48,600 --> 00:41:52,720 And then we see it in his continual prayers. 347 00:41:52,720 --> 00:41:57,540 And as he is praying one day, probably about 3 p.m. in the afternoon, 348 00:41:57,720 --> 00:42:01,680 There is this vision, and it's sort of humorous how it's written, 349 00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:04,920 because the angel of the Lord shows up and goes, Cornelius. 350 00:42:04,920 --> 00:42:08,860 And he goes, who are you? He's scared. 351 00:42:08,860 --> 00:42:12,560 And the angel says something remarkable. 352 00:42:12,560 --> 00:42:18,200 Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. 353 00:42:18,200 --> 00:42:21,880 And I want to look specifically at what that means 354 00:42:21,880 --> 00:42:28,280 and what is happening when the angel relays that message to Cornelius. 355 00:42:28,280 --> 00:42:31,320 So that word memorial before God, 356 00:42:31,320 --> 00:42:33,520 we think of memorials as sort of big statues. 357 00:42:33,520 --> 00:42:36,000 The word here is literally an offering. 358 00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:38,140 So there was an offering that Jewish people would make 359 00:42:38,140 --> 00:42:41,040 where they would add some spices like frankincense 360 00:42:41,040 --> 00:42:44,940 and it would put out this sort of sweet, savory aroma, 361 00:42:44,940 --> 00:42:46,940 something that you would smell and you would say, 362 00:42:46,940 --> 00:42:49,640 that smells good. 363 00:42:50,240 --> 00:42:54,060 So it was like this morning when I put the cinnamon rolls in the oven and came up here 364 00:42:54,060 --> 00:42:57,780 to make sure all the lights were on and the air conditioner was set right, and I went 365 00:42:57,780 --> 00:43:01,320 downstairs and said, man, it smells really good like cinnamon rolls. 366 00:43:01,320 --> 00:43:02,860 I wonder who's responsible for that. 367 00:43:02,860 --> 00:43:03,740 Oh, that's me. 368 00:43:03,740 --> 00:43:05,060 I'm responsible for that, right? 369 00:43:05,060 --> 00:43:07,220 And we've all experienced that, right? 370 00:43:07,220 --> 00:43:11,980 We walk in and there's dinner cooking in the house and we say, man, that smells good. 371 00:43:11,980 --> 00:43:16,580 Or our neighbor fires up his barbecue and you go, man, that smells good. 372 00:43:16,580 --> 00:43:24,320 somebody's baking a cake and we say, that smells so good. That's the picture of Cornelius's prayers 373 00:43:24,320 --> 00:43:32,920 before God. That God, as he hears, it is something that is pleasant and wonderful to Cornelius. Now, 374 00:43:32,920 --> 00:43:42,480 what's the point of all of that? Simply this, God loves to hear people pray. God is not bothered by 375 00:43:42,480 --> 00:43:47,180 your prayers. God is not annoyed by your prayers. We've all had that experience where we've asked 376 00:43:47,180 --> 00:43:53,380 something of someone, and they acted so annoyed to help us. Maybe not intentionally, but that's 377 00:43:53,380 --> 00:43:57,780 how we felt. We say, man, I don't really want to ask them for anything anymore. In fact, this week 378 00:43:57,780 --> 00:44:03,160 there was a perfect example. I went to get Rachel her coffee, and I went to one coffee place to get 379 00:44:03,160 --> 00:44:08,580 hers, and then I went to the place where I normally get coffee, but not anymore after this experience, 380 00:44:08,800 --> 00:44:14,500 And I ordered my coffee, and I'm there like eight out of seven days a week. 381 00:44:14,500 --> 00:44:16,420 Like, I'm there a lot. 382 00:44:16,420 --> 00:44:19,960 And I pull up to the drive-thru, I say, mobile order for Brandon. 383 00:44:19,960 --> 00:44:22,280 And the lady doesn't say, hello. 384 00:44:22,280 --> 00:44:24,200 She doesn't say, how are you today? 385 00:44:24,200 --> 00:44:29,420 She just like slaps my coffee by the window and then walks off while scowling at me. 386 00:44:29,420 --> 00:44:31,680 It doesn't make you feel great, right? 387 00:44:31,680 --> 00:44:35,440 Especially when I went to Rachel's Coffee Place, and it's like, hey, how are you? 388 00:44:35,440 --> 00:44:36,700 Such a great day. 389 00:44:36,780 --> 00:44:39,300 I hope you enjoy this wonderful coffee, right? 390 00:44:39,300 --> 00:44:42,180 And it makes you feel a certain way 391 00:44:42,180 --> 00:44:45,180 when someone is excited and joyful 392 00:44:45,180 --> 00:44:48,060 versus someone who you're obviously putting out 393 00:44:48,060 --> 00:44:50,100 by asking them for something. 394 00:44:50,100 --> 00:44:53,540 And you and I sometimes are discouraged in our prayers 395 00:44:53,540 --> 00:44:56,060 because we think, well, am I bothering God? 396 00:44:56,060 --> 00:44:57,540 Is this too small? 397 00:44:57,540 --> 00:45:00,120 Does he want to hear what I have to say? 398 00:45:00,120 --> 00:45:02,560 And here is this picture of the fact 399 00:45:02,560 --> 00:45:05,500 that God is not resentful, he's not bothered, 400 00:45:05,660 --> 00:45:12,340 He's not too busy, but he loves to hear his people pray, and I love that picture, and it's 401 00:45:12,340 --> 00:45:19,980 so encouraging for us that the God of heaven, the creator of all things, loves to hear you 402 00:45:19,980 --> 00:45:20,220 pray. 403 00:45:20,220 --> 00:45:21,340 It's a wonderful thing. 404 00:45:21,340 --> 00:45:25,560 Now, the scene here is going to shift to Peter. 405 00:45:25,560 --> 00:45:26,660 We'll pick it up in verse 9. 406 00:45:26,660 --> 00:45:33,180 The next day, they went on their journey, and approaching the city, Peter went up to 407 00:45:33,180 --> 00:45:39,060 the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. So that's about noon. And he became hungry and wanted 408 00:45:39,060 --> 00:45:43,560 something to eat just like we do when it gets close to noon. And so while they were preparing 409 00:45:43,560 --> 00:45:47,360 it, people in the house are making lunch. It says he fell into a trance. And what that means is he 410 00:45:47,360 --> 00:45:52,400 sort of literally took leave of his senses, right? He wasn't paying attention to the roof or the sun 411 00:45:52,400 --> 00:45:59,500 or the heat. But he's up there praying and he saw the heavens open and something like a great 412 00:45:59,500 --> 00:46:05,140 sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth, and in it all kinds of 413 00:46:05,140 --> 00:46:10,000 animals and reptiles and birds of the air, and there came a voice to him saying, Rise, Peter, 414 00:46:10,000 --> 00:46:15,440 kill and eat. And Peter said, By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything that is common or 415 00:46:15,440 --> 00:46:21,260 unclean. And the voice came again a second time, What God has made clean do not call common. And 416 00:46:21,260 --> 00:46:27,160 this happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven. And so what God is doing is 417 00:46:27,160 --> 00:46:29,180 He's working to prepare Peter. 418 00:46:29,180 --> 00:46:31,180 And we saw a glimpse of that last week. 419 00:46:31,180 --> 00:46:34,700 We know that Peter is going to the house of a Gentile, 420 00:46:34,700 --> 00:46:38,660 something that no good Jewish person would do. 421 00:46:38,660 --> 00:46:42,640 They wouldn't want anything to do with the house of a Gentile. 422 00:46:42,640 --> 00:46:45,300 But God has begun to prepare Peter, first of all, 423 00:46:45,300 --> 00:46:47,860 by having him stay at the house of Simon the Tanner, 424 00:46:47,860 --> 00:46:51,540 a man who ceremonially in the Jewish religion would be unclean 425 00:46:51,540 --> 00:46:55,920 because his primary work involves dealing with dead animals. 426 00:46:56,420 --> 00:47:03,320 And so God has begun preparing Peter, and now he's going to continue to prepare Peter with this vision. 427 00:47:03,320 --> 00:47:07,600 Now, this vision seems a little bit strange. 428 00:47:07,600 --> 00:47:13,920 And I remember several times during my youth, either during Sunday school or children's church, 429 00:47:13,920 --> 00:47:17,840 the Sunday school teacher, the children's church leader, what they do, they bring in a big bed sheet. 430 00:47:17,840 --> 00:47:20,300 And in some cases, this was my parents. 431 00:47:20,300 --> 00:47:22,000 It's like, gather up all your stuffed animals. 432 00:47:22,000 --> 00:47:23,600 We're in Acts chapter 10 today. 433 00:47:23,820 --> 00:47:27,780 And you get there, and you throw all your stuffed animals into a sheet and hold it up, 434 00:47:27,780 --> 00:47:31,000 and you kind of act out what is happening here. 435 00:47:31,000 --> 00:47:34,820 And looking back on it, a little strange thing is kill your stuffed rabbit and eat it. 436 00:47:34,820 --> 00:47:37,240 It took kind of a weird turn. 437 00:47:37,240 --> 00:47:41,180 But that's really a picturesque thing happening here, right? 438 00:47:41,180 --> 00:47:44,680 This sheet that's just full of animals. 439 00:47:44,680 --> 00:47:46,400 And it's like, Peter, you're hungry. 440 00:47:46,400 --> 00:47:47,620 Here's some food. 441 00:47:47,620 --> 00:47:49,560 Go ahead and get the food. 442 00:47:49,560 --> 00:47:51,740 And Peter says, no, thank you. 443 00:47:51,740 --> 00:47:53,140 Now, here's the thing. 444 00:47:53,260 --> 00:48:01,200 Peter's objection to eating these animals is not because he doesn't like them, right? 445 00:48:01,200 --> 00:48:03,460 It's not like, no, thank you. 446 00:48:03,460 --> 00:48:04,700 I don't like giraffe. 447 00:48:04,700 --> 00:48:06,120 No, thank you. 448 00:48:06,120 --> 00:48:08,020 I'm not interested in eating this snake. 449 00:48:08,020 --> 00:48:14,180 Peter's objection is not based on what tastes good or what doesn't taste good, right? 450 00:48:14,180 --> 00:48:17,120 This is not a matter of liking or disliking. 451 00:48:17,120 --> 00:48:20,940 This is a matter for Peter of right and wrong, right? 452 00:48:21,000 --> 00:48:25,480 Under the Levitical law, some animals you were allowed to eat, some you were not. 453 00:48:25,480 --> 00:48:30,900 Because God had set his people apart, and he says, my people don't eat these things. 454 00:48:30,900 --> 00:48:35,980 And so Peter, this was not just a, I like this or I don't like this. 455 00:48:35,980 --> 00:48:38,940 This was being asked to commit some kind of sin. 456 00:48:38,940 --> 00:48:41,340 It'd be like riding down the road with your friend, and they look over at you and go, 457 00:48:41,340 --> 00:48:43,460 hey, let's stop and rob that bank, right? 458 00:48:43,460 --> 00:48:45,280 That's not a matter of preference. 459 00:48:45,280 --> 00:48:47,040 That's a matter of right and wrong, right? 460 00:48:47,040 --> 00:48:49,900 That's a matter of breaking the law. 461 00:48:50,440 --> 00:48:53,320 And what Peter sees himself being asked to do 462 00:48:53,320 --> 00:48:55,340 is, I don't do that. 463 00:48:55,340 --> 00:48:57,480 I don't break the law. 464 00:48:57,480 --> 00:48:59,880 It's not that he doesn't like this food. 465 00:48:59,880 --> 00:49:03,500 It's that it's a matter of doing what is right 466 00:49:03,500 --> 00:49:06,440 or doing what is wrong. 467 00:49:06,440 --> 00:49:10,620 And God just gives him this simple message 468 00:49:10,620 --> 00:49:12,840 that in the moment we find that, 469 00:49:12,840 --> 00:49:15,000 I think for Peter, it's a little confusing. 470 00:49:15,000 --> 00:49:16,480 God just simply says this, 471 00:49:17,520 --> 00:49:22,960 what God has made clean, do not call common. 472 00:49:22,960 --> 00:49:28,600 Nor another way of saying it is, what God has made clean, do not call unclean. 473 00:49:28,600 --> 00:49:31,020 And God does something remarkable. 474 00:49:31,020 --> 00:49:33,480 He doesn't just tell Peter this once, right? 475 00:49:33,480 --> 00:49:39,000 He tells it to him a second time, and he repeats this vision a third time, 476 00:49:39,000 --> 00:49:42,760 and he does that because you and I are hard-headed, right? 477 00:49:42,760 --> 00:49:43,740 We're stubborn people. 478 00:49:43,740 --> 00:49:46,620 And sometimes we have to hear something over and over again. 479 00:49:46,780 --> 00:49:48,820 And Peter is just like us. 480 00:49:48,820 --> 00:49:51,820 And so God drills into his head this message. 481 00:49:51,820 --> 00:49:56,080 What God has made clean, do not call unclean. 482 00:49:56,080 --> 00:49:57,520 You say, well, why does that matter? 483 00:49:57,520 --> 00:49:59,580 We see it in verse 17. 484 00:49:59,580 --> 00:50:01,720 Now, Peter was inwardly perplexed. 485 00:50:01,720 --> 00:50:04,920 He goes, I don't understand what God is trying to tell me. 486 00:50:04,920 --> 00:50:08,120 As to what the vision he had seen might mean, 487 00:50:08,120 --> 00:50:11,380 behold, men who were sent by Cornelius, 488 00:50:11,380 --> 00:50:14,780 having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the gate, 489 00:50:15,120 --> 00:50:18,480 And they called out to ask whether Simon, who was Peter, was lodging there. 490 00:50:18,480 --> 00:50:23,040 And while Peter is pondering the vision, so he's going, what does this mean? 491 00:50:23,040 --> 00:50:27,000 And as he's trying to figure out what this sheet full of animals means, 492 00:50:27,000 --> 00:50:29,580 these guys show up to talk to him. 493 00:50:29,580 --> 00:50:32,400 And they find the right house. 494 00:50:32,400 --> 00:50:36,080 And the Holy Spirit says, behold, three men are looking for you. 495 00:50:36,080 --> 00:50:40,440 Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them. 496 00:50:40,440 --> 00:50:43,980 And Peter went down to the men and said, I am the one you are looking for. 497 00:50:44,080 --> 00:50:45,780 What is the reason for your coming? 498 00:50:45,780 --> 00:50:50,800 And they said, Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-fearing man 499 00:50:50,800 --> 00:50:53,240 who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, 500 00:50:53,240 --> 00:50:57,960 was directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house 501 00:50:57,960 --> 00:50:59,680 and to hear what you have to say. 502 00:50:59,680 --> 00:51:02,400 So he invited them in to be his guests. 503 00:51:02,400 --> 00:51:05,680 And so this is a weird moment for Peter, right? 504 00:51:05,680 --> 00:51:09,140 He's trying to figure out what this vision means about clean and unclean 505 00:51:09,140 --> 00:51:12,200 and about the rules that he's followed his entire life. 506 00:51:12,300 --> 00:51:17,200 and these people knock on the door, and the people looking for him, one of them's a soldier, right? 507 00:51:17,200 --> 00:51:23,020 So your guy who's seen some persecution in the church, you've already been jailed a couple times, 508 00:51:23,020 --> 00:51:26,640 and somebody knocks on the door, and there's two servants and a soldier, and say, 509 00:51:26,640 --> 00:51:31,640 hey, the Romans are looking for Peter, right? You have to go, whoa, what is this all about? 510 00:51:31,640 --> 00:51:35,240 And they said, well, he wants to talk to you. Hear what you have to say. 511 00:51:35,240 --> 00:51:41,060 So two things I want you to see through what is happening so far in our text. 512 00:51:41,200 --> 00:51:43,920 One is that God works powerfully through prayer. 513 00:51:43,920 --> 00:51:49,300 Prayer isn't just us simply bringing the list of things to God, 514 00:51:49,300 --> 00:51:52,100 although he simply does want us to ask for the things that we need. 515 00:51:52,100 --> 00:51:56,460 But prayer is also God working on us. 516 00:51:56,460 --> 00:52:00,460 So notice when Cornelius' vision happens, what is he doing? 517 00:52:00,460 --> 00:52:02,000 He's praying. 518 00:52:02,000 --> 00:52:05,120 When does Peter's vision happen? 519 00:52:05,120 --> 00:52:07,280 When he is praying. 520 00:52:07,980 --> 00:52:11,920 When do both Cornelius and Peter receive direction from the Lord? 521 00:52:11,920 --> 00:52:14,800 While they are praying. 522 00:52:14,800 --> 00:52:18,300 And we're emphasized here in Cornelius' case 523 00:52:18,300 --> 00:52:20,920 that prayer is something that God loves to hear 524 00:52:20,920 --> 00:52:24,280 and it's pleasant and it's wonderful and it's good. 525 00:52:24,280 --> 00:52:28,620 It's during prayer that Cornelius is directed. 526 00:52:28,620 --> 00:52:31,520 It's during prayer that Peter is prepared 527 00:52:31,520 --> 00:52:34,060 and God wants to hear you pray. 528 00:52:34,060 --> 00:52:35,420 God works through prayer. 529 00:52:36,160 --> 00:52:39,780 Secondly, God's timing is always perfect. 530 00:52:39,780 --> 00:52:43,320 Now, I don't know about you, but we sometimes struggle with timing. 531 00:52:43,320 --> 00:52:46,840 Have you ever tried to coordinate to meet somebody somewhere? 532 00:52:46,840 --> 00:52:51,160 And what happens is one person's always early, one person's always late. 533 00:52:51,160 --> 00:52:54,280 So one person's always waiting, one person's always rushed. 534 00:52:54,280 --> 00:52:58,360 I remember the first time Rachel and I made Thanksgiving dinner. 535 00:52:58,360 --> 00:53:02,400 You know, and you have like turkey and mashed potatoes and side dishes. 536 00:53:02,400 --> 00:53:05,220 And I'm trying to figure out how long the turkey goes. 537 00:53:05,280 --> 00:53:09,020 And it's like, well, how can we time all this to be done at the same time? 538 00:53:09,020 --> 00:53:09,700 And guess what happened? 539 00:53:09,700 --> 00:53:11,740 None of it was done at the same time, right? 540 00:53:11,740 --> 00:53:13,160 Mashed potatoes are ready. 541 00:53:13,160 --> 00:53:15,640 Turkey still has like two and a half hours to go, right? 542 00:53:15,640 --> 00:53:21,140 We're not oftentimes very good at getting everything done exactly at the right time. 543 00:53:21,140 --> 00:53:25,660 But notice how God works in this perfect timing. 544 00:53:25,660 --> 00:53:27,040 It can only be the hand of God. 545 00:53:27,040 --> 00:53:28,540 Cornelius has a vision. 546 00:53:28,540 --> 00:53:31,060 He dispatches his servants to get Peter. 547 00:53:31,060 --> 00:53:34,640 Peter is hungry, goes up on the roof to pray till lunch is ready. 548 00:53:34,960 --> 00:53:36,040 God gives him a vision. 549 00:53:36,040 --> 00:53:38,980 The vision ends and Peter's going, what does this mean? 550 00:53:38,980 --> 00:53:42,820 And the very people the vision relates to are knocking at the door downstairs. 551 00:53:42,820 --> 00:53:49,580 The only way the timing works out like this is because God is providentially in control. 552 00:53:49,580 --> 00:53:54,240 God's timing is always perfect. 553 00:53:54,240 --> 00:53:57,220 Now, we may not always see that. 554 00:53:57,220 --> 00:54:01,320 Sometimes in our impatience, we don't feel that way. 555 00:54:02,360 --> 00:54:04,440 But we see it so clearly in this text 556 00:54:04,440 --> 00:54:09,840 that God times everything in accordance with His will and perfectly. 557 00:54:09,840 --> 00:54:12,780 And so we see the power of prayer. 558 00:54:12,780 --> 00:54:14,760 We see this sort of strange vision. 559 00:54:14,760 --> 00:54:16,560 We'll see what it means here in a second. 560 00:54:16,560 --> 00:54:23,300 And we see how God works all these moving parts together so perfectly. 561 00:54:23,300 --> 00:54:24,660 Let's pick up in verse 24. 562 00:54:24,660 --> 00:54:29,780 And the following day, so they get up and they leave from Joppa and head to Caesarea. 563 00:54:30,200 --> 00:54:34,040 About a 30-mile walk, they entered Caesarea. 564 00:54:34,040 --> 00:54:38,180 Cornelius was expecting them, and he called together his relatives and close friends. 565 00:54:38,180 --> 00:54:42,860 So Cornelius isn't a guy just to sort of dip his toe into the water and say, 566 00:54:42,860 --> 00:54:45,240 well, let me hear, and then we'll sort of spread it out from then. 567 00:54:45,240 --> 00:54:48,720 He calls all of his friends, calls all of his close relatives, 568 00:54:48,720 --> 00:54:52,660 fills up his house, and he's waiting for Peter. 569 00:54:52,660 --> 00:54:56,940 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshipped him. 570 00:54:57,780 --> 00:55:01,560 But Peter lifted him up saying, stand up, I too am a man. 571 00:55:01,560 --> 00:55:05,540 So Peter doesn't take credit, Peter doesn't allow himself to be worshipped. 572 00:55:05,540 --> 00:55:11,160 And as he talked with him, he went in and found many persons gathered. 573 00:55:11,160 --> 00:55:15,160 So he thinks he's meeting with Cornelius, walks in and there's a giant crowd. 574 00:55:15,160 --> 00:55:24,380 And he said to them, you yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with anyone or anyone of another nation. 575 00:55:24,480 --> 00:55:30,120 but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. 576 00:55:30,120 --> 00:55:33,100 So when I was sent for, I came without objection. 577 00:55:33,100 --> 00:55:35,660 I asked then why you sent me, and Cornelius said, 578 00:55:35,660 --> 00:55:39,120 Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house, 579 00:55:39,120 --> 00:55:42,060 and at the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing, 580 00:55:42,060 --> 00:55:44,540 and said, Cornelius, your prayers have been heard, 581 00:55:44,540 --> 00:55:46,620 and your alms have been remembered before God. 582 00:55:46,620 --> 00:55:50,220 Send therefore to Joppa, ask for Simon, who is called Peter, 583 00:55:50,220 --> 00:55:53,680 for he is lodging at the house of Simon, a tanner by the sea. 584 00:55:54,240 --> 00:55:57,220 So I went at once, and you have been kind enough to come. 585 00:55:57,220 --> 00:56:01,940 Now therefore, we are all here in the presence of God 586 00:56:01,940 --> 00:56:04,840 to hear what you have been commanded by the Lord. 587 00:56:04,840 --> 00:56:08,260 The central verse in all of this is 28. 588 00:56:08,260 --> 00:56:10,220 Peter said to them, 589 00:56:10,220 --> 00:56:13,620 You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate 590 00:56:13,620 --> 00:56:15,700 or to visit anyone of another nation, 591 00:56:15,700 --> 00:56:23,980 but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. 592 00:56:24,240 --> 00:56:32,020 Right? The message that God has repeated to Peter three times is that what God has made is not unclean. 593 00:56:32,020 --> 00:56:36,440 What God has made is not unclean. What God has made is not unclean. 594 00:56:36,440 --> 00:56:41,440 And what God is telling Peter is that the gospel is for everyone. 595 00:56:41,440 --> 00:56:45,740 Because prior to this moment, Peter would not have darkened the door to this house. 596 00:56:45,740 --> 00:56:51,740 God had specifically come to a vision and say, I want everyone, right? 597 00:56:51,740 --> 00:56:54,160 Not just Jews, not just Samaritans, 598 00:56:54,160 --> 00:56:56,280 but I want everyone. 599 00:56:56,280 --> 00:57:00,860 And the wonderful truth is, 600 00:57:00,860 --> 00:57:06,220 if you are outside of Christ looking in, 601 00:57:06,220 --> 00:57:10,040 you don't have to be afraid that God doesn't want you. 602 00:57:10,040 --> 00:57:13,380 You don't have to ask yourself the question, 603 00:57:13,380 --> 00:57:15,400 am I supposed to be here? 604 00:57:15,400 --> 00:57:19,040 Am I allowed to be part of the family of God? 605 00:57:19,040 --> 00:57:22,400 because what Peter says is it's for everyone. 606 00:57:22,400 --> 00:57:25,340 Not just for the Jews, not just for the Samaritans, 607 00:57:25,340 --> 00:57:26,360 but for the Gentiles. 608 00:57:26,360 --> 00:57:28,720 It's for all people. 609 00:57:28,720 --> 00:57:33,400 And Christians, for us, this is a convicting statement 610 00:57:33,400 --> 00:57:36,960 because we have a tendency sometimes to look down on others. 611 00:57:36,960 --> 00:57:38,940 To look at other people and say, 612 00:57:38,940 --> 00:57:41,420 well, I'm pretty good, but they're not. 613 00:57:41,420 --> 00:57:46,340 And Peter's moment here with this vision and with Cornelius 614 00:57:46,340 --> 00:57:49,760 remind us that God wants all people. 615 00:57:49,760 --> 00:57:51,960 That He's called all people. 616 00:57:51,960 --> 00:57:53,440 That He loves all people. 617 00:57:53,440 --> 00:57:56,040 And He wants them to hear the Gospel. 618 00:57:56,040 --> 00:57:59,840 Ephesians 2 says it this way. 619 00:57:59,840 --> 00:58:02,160 But now in Christ Jesus, 620 00:58:02,160 --> 00:58:04,080 you who were once far off 621 00:58:04,080 --> 00:58:06,180 have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 622 00:58:06,180 --> 00:58:08,720 For He Himself is our peace 623 00:58:08,720 --> 00:58:10,200 who has made us both one 624 00:58:10,200 --> 00:58:11,720 and has broken down in His flesh 625 00:58:11,720 --> 00:58:13,280 the dividing wall of hostility. 626 00:58:13,280 --> 00:58:16,140 By abolishing the law of commandments 627 00:58:16,140 --> 00:58:17,580 expressed in ordinances 628 00:58:17,580 --> 00:58:20,380 so that he might create in himself 629 00:58:20,380 --> 00:58:22,400 one new man in the place of two, 630 00:58:22,400 --> 00:58:23,500 so making peace, 631 00:58:23,500 --> 00:58:26,800 and might reconcile us both to God 632 00:58:26,800 --> 00:58:28,420 in one body through the cross, 633 00:58:28,420 --> 00:58:29,940 thereby killing the hostility. 634 00:58:29,940 --> 00:58:32,320 And he came and preached peace 635 00:58:32,320 --> 00:58:33,700 to you who were far off 636 00:58:33,700 --> 00:58:35,660 and peace to you who were near. 637 00:58:35,660 --> 00:58:39,320 For through him we both have access 638 00:58:39,320 --> 00:58:41,920 in one spirit through the Father. 639 00:58:41,920 --> 00:58:45,880 And the wonderful news of this text 640 00:58:45,880 --> 00:58:48,320 is that God hears your prayers. 641 00:58:48,320 --> 00:58:50,720 He loves to hear your prayers. 642 00:58:50,720 --> 00:58:52,500 That He's at work when you pray. 643 00:58:52,500 --> 00:58:55,200 He's at work in the life of Cornelius as he prays. 644 00:58:55,200 --> 00:58:58,120 He's at work in preparing Peter as he prays. 645 00:58:58,120 --> 00:58:59,620 That God's timing, 646 00:58:59,620 --> 00:59:02,640 even though it might be surprising or strange to us, 647 00:59:02,640 --> 00:59:06,420 works out in accordance with His providential plan 648 00:59:06,420 --> 00:59:08,080 for the good news of the Gospel. 649 00:59:08,080 --> 00:59:10,920 And the message that's repeated over and over, 650 00:59:10,920 --> 00:59:11,960 three times to Peter, 651 00:59:11,960 --> 00:59:15,180 is that God wants those people 652 00:59:15,180 --> 00:59:17,520 that you might look at and say, unclean. 653 00:59:17,520 --> 00:59:19,540 That God welcomes them in, 654 00:59:19,540 --> 00:59:21,180 and as Paul says in Romans, 655 00:59:21,180 --> 00:59:24,040 he reconciles us both to God 656 00:59:24,040 --> 00:59:26,580 in one body through the cross, 657 00:59:26,580 --> 00:59:28,180 killing the hostility. 658 00:59:28,180 --> 00:59:30,920 He came and preached peace to those who were near 659 00:59:30,920 --> 00:59:32,480 and those who were far off. 660 00:59:32,480 --> 00:59:35,440 For through him, we both have access 661 00:59:35,440 --> 00:59:37,700 in one spirit through the Father. 662 00:59:37,700 --> 00:59:38,300 Let's pray. 663 00:59:38,300 --> 00:59:40,300 Father in heaven, 664 00:59:40,300 --> 00:59:42,360 I thank you for grace. 665 00:59:42,360 --> 00:59:44,000 I thank you for hope. 666 00:59:44,660 --> 00:59:46,860 I thank you that you hear us when we pray 667 00:59:46,860 --> 00:59:50,120 and that you love to hear the prayers of your people. 668 00:59:50,120 --> 00:59:53,800 I thank you that you work in our prayers. 669 00:59:53,800 --> 00:59:57,280 I thank you that you are at work preparing us 670 00:59:57,280 --> 01:00:00,420 for things that we may not even understand in this moment. 671 01:00:00,420 --> 01:00:02,340 We thank you for your timing 672 01:00:02,340 --> 01:00:06,260 and we thank you that you have invited us all in 673 01:00:06,260 --> 01:00:07,600 to be part of your family. 674 01:00:07,600 --> 01:00:10,600 It's in Jesus' name we pray, amen. 675 01:00:11,420 --> 01:00:14,920 Let's stand and sing our hymn of invitation. 676 01:00:14,920 --> 01:00:33,020 Who am I that the highest king would welcome me? 677 01:00:33,020 --> 01:00:41,240 I was lost, but he brought me in, oh, his love for me. 678 01:00:41,420 --> 01:00:45,420 Oh, his love for me 679 01:00:45,420 --> 01:00:49,680 Oh, the sun sets free 680 01:00:49,680 --> 01:00:53,680 Oh, it's free indeed 681 01:00:53,680 --> 01:00:57,420 I'm a child of God 682 01:00:57,420 --> 01:01:01,880 Yes, I am 683 01:01:01,880 --> 01:01:07,240 Free at last he has ransomed me 684 01:01:07,240 --> 01:01:10,600 His grace runs deep 685 01:01:10,600 --> 01:01:15,520 While I was a slave to sin 686 01:01:15,520 --> 01:01:18,880 Jesus died for me 687 01:01:18,880 --> 01:01:23,600 Yes, He died for me 688 01:01:23,600 --> 01:01:27,340 Who the Son sets free 689 01:01:27,340 --> 01:01:31,700 Who is free in Thee 690 01:01:31,700 --> 01:01:35,840 I'm a child of God 691 01:01:35,840 --> 01:01:39,480 Yes, I am 692 01:01:39,480 --> 01:01:48,160 In my Father's house, there's a place for me. 693 01:01:48,160 --> 01:01:52,560 I'm a child of God. 694 01:01:52,560 --> 01:01:55,360 Yes, I am. 695 01:01:55,360 --> 01:02:01,000 I am chosen, not forsaken. 696 01:02:01,000 --> 01:02:05,420 I am who you say I am. 697 01:02:05,420 --> 01:02:09,980 You are for me, not against me 698 01:02:09,980 --> 01:02:13,840 I am who you say I am 699 01:02:13,840 --> 01:02:17,660 Who the sun sets free 700 01:02:17,660 --> 01:02:21,920 Who is free indeed 701 01:02:21,920 --> 01:02:26,020 I'm a child of God 702 01:02:26,020 --> 01:02:29,500 Yes, I am 703 01:02:29,500 --> 01:02:34,440 In my Father's house 704 01:02:34,440 --> 01:02:38,600 There's a place for me 705 01:02:38,600 --> 01:02:42,780 I'm a child of God 706 01:02:42,780 --> 01:02:46,320 Yes, I am 707 01:02:46,320 --> 01:02:55,500 I want to thank you all for being with us this morning. 708 01:02:55,500 --> 01:02:58,740 We are so very glad that you are here. 709 01:02:58,740 --> 01:03:00,900 We'll be back Wednesday night 710 01:03:00,900 --> 01:03:03,600 as we've been walking through some of Paul's prayers. 711 01:03:04,160 --> 01:03:09,500 being encouraged and taught by how the Apostle Paul prays. 712 01:03:09,500 --> 01:03:13,260 So that's Wednesday night at 7 p.m. 713 01:03:13,260 --> 01:03:17,780 We'll be back next Sunday as we continue our journey with Peter. 714 01:03:17,780 --> 01:03:20,600 We've seen how Peter gets to Cornelius' house. 715 01:03:20,600 --> 01:03:23,460 Now we're going to see what happens next, 716 01:03:23,460 --> 01:03:31,040 which is a surprising and wonderful thing, I think, for Peter and for Cornelius. 717 01:03:31,040 --> 01:03:31,960 That'll be next Sunday. 718 01:03:32,100 --> 01:03:34,480 We'll finish up Acts chapter 10. 719 01:03:34,480 --> 01:03:38,800 Also, if you didn't know, we've got some cinnamon rolls and coffee, 720 01:03:38,800 --> 01:03:44,080 and there are some cupcakes from Ezra's birthday party in the back. 721 01:03:44,080 --> 01:03:47,280 I would just ask that you leave the banana walnut ones for me. 722 01:03:47,280 --> 01:03:50,480 They're also sugar-free, although you can't tell. 723 01:03:50,480 --> 01:03:51,800 They're really good. 724 01:03:51,800 --> 01:03:56,440 So help yourself to a cinnamon roll or a cupcake, 725 01:03:56,440 --> 01:04:01,220 and spend some time being encouraged by our brothers and sisters in Christ. 726 01:04:01,320 --> 01:04:07,060 So I'm going to pray, and then we'll read a verse, and then we'll sing the doxology. 727 01:04:07,060 --> 01:04:12,100 Father in heaven, thank you for the good things that you've given us. 728 01:04:12,100 --> 01:04:14,560 Thank you for our brothers and sisters in Christ. 729 01:04:14,560 --> 01:04:16,280 Thank you for your church. 730 01:04:16,280 --> 01:04:21,780 Thank you how you have taken people from different places and different walks of life and different ages. 731 01:04:21,780 --> 01:04:27,060 And you've brought us all together to be part of your family, not just here, but throughout the world. 732 01:04:27,060 --> 01:04:28,220 So thank you for that. 733 01:04:28,220 --> 01:04:31,040 In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 734 01:04:31,900 --> 01:04:35,500 So John, as he ends his first letter, will say this, 735 01:04:35,500 --> 01:04:39,760 We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding 736 01:04:39,760 --> 01:04:42,060 so that we may know Him who is true. 737 01:04:42,060 --> 01:04:47,320 And we are in Him who is true, in His Son, Jesus Christ. 738 01:04:47,320 --> 01:04:50,620 He is the true God and eternal life. 739 01:04:50,620 --> 01:04:53,920 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. 740 01:04:53,920 --> 01:04:55,880 Let's sing the doxology. 741 01:05:01,320 --> 01:05:09,920 Praise God from whom all blessings flow 742 01:05:09,920 --> 01:05:15,000 Praise Him all creatures here below 743 01:05:15,000 --> 01:05:20,860 Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts 744 01:05:20,860 --> 01:05:26,480 Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost 745 01:05:31,320 --> 01:06:01,300 Thank you. 746 01:06:01,320 --> 01:06:31,300 Thank you. 747 01:06:31,320 --> 01:07:01,300 Thank you.