NL 141: Peter's Vision

image: "Acts of the Apostles Chapter 10-2” (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)" ,Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons



Acts 10:1-17, 34-48

Initial Thoughts

  • In the RCL this is the Easter text for each year

    • The resurrection is a sign that all Jesus did on earth should be carried on. The resurrection is proof that Jesus is Lord of the living and the dead - all things.

Bible Study

  • Peter’s Elevator Witness

  • Used to describe what Baptism and Christian faith are about

    • Fear of God - i.e. faith

    • Doing right - i.e. work

  • Cornelius

    • Caesarea - the seat of Roman power in the province, named after Caesar

    • Centurion in the Italian Company- officer in charge of 50-100 soldiers

    • May have been a part of the gens Cornelia family- a prominent patrician family in Rome

    • “a righteous man, and a God-worshiper who is well-respected by all Jewish people.”

      • Similar to the unnamed centurion in Luke 7:1-10

  • Joppa - same place where God spoke to Jonah telling him to bring God’s message to his enemies, the Assyrians/Ninevites

    • In Matthew, Peter is called Simon, son of Jonah (Mt. 16:17)

    • Simon the Tanner - “The occupation of tanner was considered unclean by many Jews, because tanners had to work with dead animals.” Demetruis K. Williams, “The Acts of the Apostles”, True to Our Native Land, p.230

  • Three O’clock - was the time for the Jewish evening prayers

    • This setting is very important - and Peter even says so immediately before this speech, which is about God’s mercy being open to all.

    • Must be understood within context

      • Peter just had a vision that abolished the food laws of clean and unclean

      • Cornelius has a vision to summon Peter

      • Peter goes and preaches to and among gentiles

      • “What God has made clean, you must not call unclean” - this is basis of God’s impartiality

  • Peter’s vision

    • “The revolution descends on a sheet. The sheet is everything. The sheet is radical. The sheet shatters and destroys. Its four corners are harbinger of its range and its reach across a planet and a universe. Peter in his hunger beholds this horror. The sheet contained the known world and unknown tastes. It contained animals, clean and unclean… And then the word of God comes to Peter, ‘Arise Peter, kill and eat!’ These words stand over against all other words of God, forever recasting them and turning them to new purposes…. These words echo across the church’s history, but they have rarely, if ever - maybe never- really been heard in all their redemptive density.” (Willie James Jenning, Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible, Acts, Westminster John Knox Press, p. 106)

  • The Good News is for everyone

    • There are no cultural or ethnic requirements

    • God calls all people through Jesus Christ

    • Not new to scripture- Deuteronomy 10:17, “God is not partial and takes no bribe.”

      • New to Peter

      • This applies to Jews and Gentiles

  • Impartiality

    • “Acts 10:34-36 was a key passage in the African American protest tradition, helping to level prophetic critiques of American racism and prejudice.” Williams, p. 231

  • Alan Gregory - Poetic rhythm of the story

    • You must fear God and do right

      • Jesus preaches peace to all people

    • Healing and freedom from oppression led to death

      • Jesus’ ministry was that of “doing good and healing everyone oppressed.” Jesus did this, and for it, he was killed.

    • Death is met is resurrection

    • Resurrection by judgment

    • Judgment with forgiveness

    • And we return to the impartiality of God

      • God is not partial to you or to your enemy- God is partial to reconciliation and forgiveness

  • Gentile Pentecost echoes Acts 2

    • Pouring out of the Spirit

    • Speaking in tongues

    • Astonished reaction

  • How do we determine what is of Christ and what isn’t?

    • doing good

    • healing the oppressed

    • Forgiveness

  • Whoever believes in him

    • Jesus or God?

    • If you do not believe in God or Jesus- do you care if you are forgiven?

      • An inclusive message to believers - NOT a message of judgment against unbelievers

    • Israel received the message first, but are not the exclusive receivers of the message

    • Immediately afterwards, this group of Romans began to speak in tongues, and were baptized.

    • After this episode with the Roman gentiles, Peter is questioned by the Jerusalem Church.

Thoughts and Questions

  • This is Peter’s 30 sec elevator witness - what is yours?

  • If God is impartial to Israel or the Jews, then isn’t God also impartial to the church? What does this mean for the church and our mission?

  • If God’s primary focus is forgiveness and reconciliation- How is the church living into this mission? How are each of us?

  • What cultural barriers stand in our way of participating in God’s mission? (just as not associating with Gentiles stood in Peter’s way)


Thank you listeners and get in touch:

Thanks to our Psalms correspondent, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan (psalmimmersion.com,@pomopsalmist). Thank you to Scott Fletcher for our voice bumpers, Dick Dale and the Del Tones for our Theme music (“Miserlou”), Nicolai Heidlas (“Sunday Morning”,"Real Ride"and“Summertime”) and Bryan Odeen for our closing music.