Bg – Peter Goes to the House of Cornelius 10: 23b-48

Peter Goes to the House of Cornelius
The Gentiles are Saved
Through the Preaching of Peter
10: 23b-48

38-42 AD

Peter goes to the house of Cornelius DIG: Given Peter’s experience in 10:9-23 and what you see of Cornelius here, what do you imagine each man was feeling as they greeted one another? Jews regarded even people like Cornelius as pagans, unless they took on the yoke of the Torah (15:7-11). Knowing that, what would verse 28 have meant for Peter? For Cornelius? Why is the story of Cornelius so important in verses 28, 34-35 and 43? What is the main point in Peter’s speech? How does that compare with his speeches in 2:36-39 and 3:17-23? From these sermons, what do you see as central to the Gospel message? In light of the astonished reaction of the Jews in verse 45, what was the purpose of the Gentiles speaking in tongues? How does this reinforce the private vision of Peter in 10:9-23?

REFLECT: Using this story, how would you respond to the question, “Can people who have never heard the gospel be saved? If your answer is “yes,” why then did God send Peter to preach (also see 11:4)? If it is “no,” how do you explain verses 34-35? Toward what types of people do you feel prejudiced? How has that evolved? What evidence is there that the lesson of Peter’s vision has broken through to you with respect to these people? Consider the makeup of your Messianic community or church. Are there some types of people who would just assume that your place of worship is not for them? What could you change to remove those barriers?

The next day Peter got up and went with them (10:23b). Centuries previous to this, another Jew had come to Joppa with another a solemn message from Ha’Shem (see the commentary on Jonah, to see link click Aj – The Word of the LORD came to Jonah: Go to Nineveh and Preach Against It). Jonah took a ship from Joppa; however he ran from God’s call, and he did not share ADONAI’s heart for the lost. Peter, however, was willing to re-examine his traditions and prejudices in light of God’s word, and he shared ADONAI’s heart for the lost. Are you a Jonah or a Peter?²²⁶

And six Jewish brothers from Joppa accompanied him (10:23b and 11:12). This was a very wise decision on his part so they could serve as witnesses, which they would in Chapter 11 when Peter is confronted by the Jewish believers concerning his claim that salvation had come to the Gentiles. In obedience to the command he received in his vision, Peter returned to Caesarea with the two servants and the soldier Cornelius had sent. This seemingly insignificant decision on Peter’s part becomes extremely important later in the story.

The following day he entered Caesarea. Two worlds were about to collide, as seven devout orthodox Jews were about to meet a houseful of pious Gentiles. A milestone had been reached. Meanwhile, Cornelius was waiting for them in faith, and he had not been idle. Eagerly anticipating what Peter had to share with him, he had called together his Gentile relatives and close friends (10:24). Although Cornelius knew about the Jewish attitudes towards Gentiles, he had no doubt that Peter would show up.

The rabbis taught that entering the house of a Gentile would defile you. The very dust of a Gentile house was unclean and defiled by contact. It was regarded like a grave, or like the putrescence of death – unclean, defiled, and defiling everything that it touched.

As Peter entered, he showed that his heart and mind had changed, and that he had learned the lesson of his vision (see Bf – Peter’s Vision). Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet to welcome him, and also to honor him as God’s messenger, but not to worship (as some versions have translated it). As a God-fearer, Cornelius would have known better. Yet, Peter’s response of pulling him up, saying: Stand up! I too am just a man, shows that he misread what Cornelius did as an act of idolatry to be expected from a pagan (10:25-26).²²⁷ Notice that Peter, this so-called first “Pope” would not allow anyone to bend his knee to him.

Talking with him, Peter went inside and found an expectant group of Gentiles gathered anxious to hear the interpretation that Cornelius had seen (10:27). This was very important. There is no record that ADONAI had commanded Cornelius to assemble those people, yet their presence was evidence of divine providence using the will of Cornelius. If only Cornelius had been saved, the Messianic Community in Yerushalayim may have considered him merely an abnormality. But, since a group of Gentiles were saved, the Jews would have to accept that God was including the Gentiles into Messiah’s Community.²²⁸

Then, Peter needed to explain why he, a devout Jew (who was also a believer), entered the house of a Gentile. So, he explained the message he received in the vision, realizing the YHVH wasn’t only talking about food. Addressing this group of Gentiles, he said to them, “You yourselves know that it is not permitted by the Oral Law (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ei – The Oral Law) for a Jewish man to associate with a non-Jew or to visit him (John 4:9, 18:28; Acts 11:2-3, 22:21-22; Galatians 2:12). That was the standard by which Peter had lived his life. Yet, Peter said: God has shown me that I should no longer call Gentiles unholy or unclean. Peter had grasped the analogy between the unclean food and the Gentiles. Both had been declared kosher. So based upon the vision, I came without objection when I was sent for. But, he was still unsure why he was present at Cornelius’ house, so he asked, “What is the reason why you sent for me” (10:28-29)?

So Cornelius declared: Four days ago at this hour, I was praying minchah (the ninth hour) in my house. Suddenly, a man stood in front of me in shining clothes. He said: Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your tzedakah remembered before God. Therefore send to Joppa and ask for Simon, who is also called Peter. He is staying in the house of Simon the tanner, by the sea. So I sent for you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. Cornelius thanked Peter for breaking Jewish custom. Now then, in light of all this, we are all here before God to hear all that you have been commanded (Greek: prostasso, referring to a military order) by the Lord (10:30-33). As a military man, he understood a military order demanding obedience. He was ready to receive his orders from the Lord.

So Peter and Cornelius both had been sovereignly prepared by YHVH and had responded obediently to His directions. All was ready for Peter’s gospel presentation, which would result in the salvation of Cornelius, his relatives and close friends.²²⁹ Peter could have no better-prepared audience than this.

And he was quick to seize it. Then Peter opened his mouth. The phrase “to open one’s mouth,” is used when something of great significance is to follow (8:34). Then he began by smashing what remained of the barrier separating Jews and Gentiles with his fresh insight. The truth of Yeshua’s words: I have other sheep, which are not of this fold (John 10:16), had become reality for him. Actually, this should not have been something new to any Jew because God said to Abraham: I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all the [Gentile] peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:2-3).

Abraham needed to be more than a recipient; ADONAI said that Abraham would be a blessing (12:2b). Therefore, with every top line blessing comes a bottom line responsibility. As he was blessed, he would become a blessing to others. This promise has justifiably been regarded as one of the first promises of the coming Savior, who would bring salvation to all nations. God had long ago made it clear that the Savior would be born into the human family as the Seed of the woman (3:15), and now it became clear to Abram that this would be accomplished through his own family.²³⁰

You would think that Peter might have realized this sooner. He had spoken the same words on Solomon’s Colonnade after the healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate (3:25): And all the [Gentile] peoples of the earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:3b). However, the reality of that had not sunk-in until his vision from the Lord (see Bf – Peter’s Vision). Abraham was to become a channel of blessing to the whole world – not just the Jews. This would extend to the Gentiles (Romans 11:11-24). The Scriptures foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you” (Galatians 3:8). They are the ones to whom Abraham would be a blessing. This is the one promise that goes beyond Yisra’el and would be reaffirmed to all the patriarchs, later it is reaffirmed to Abraham in 22:15 and 18, it is reaffirmed to Isaac in 26:3-4, and to Jacob in 28:14. This blessing would be accomplished through the seed of Abraham, the Messiah. As the prophets pointed out, it is through Him that the Gentiles will receive spiritual blessings (Isaiah 42:1, 6, 49:5-6 and Amos 9:11).

But finally, Peter really understood what Abraham meant, overcame his cultural prejudices, was obedient to his vision and immediately cut to the heart of the matter when he said: I truly understand that God is not one to show favoritism, however, in every nation the one who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him (10:34-35). Some have misunderstood this verse to be teaching universalism, that YHVH accepts all who are sincere on the basis of their works. Yet, that is obviously inconsistent with biblical teaching and absurd. If Cornelius and the others were already saved, what was Peter doing there preaching that only through the name of Yeshua can souls be saved (10:43)? Peter is simply expressing the reality that the Ruach ha-Kodesh is at work in the heart of the sinner (John 16:8-11; Acts 11:18; Second Timothy 2:25). In other words, God had worked in Cornelius’ heart so that he sought to know and obey God, and when he heard the saving truth of the gospel, he eagerly responded.²³¹

Then Peter turned to the main theme of the gospel, namely that salvation comes through Messiah Yeshua to anyone from any nation. You know the Word (Greek: logos) He sent to Bnei-Yisra’el, proclaiming shalom through Messiah Yeshua, He is Lord of all – both the Jews and the Gentiles as well. Caesarea was the seat of Roman government in Judea, so Peter could affirm to Cornelius and the others that you yourselves know the message that has spread throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the immersion that John proclaimed. Then Peter summarized the life and ministry of Yeshua Messiah. You know how God anointed Yeshua of Natzeret with the Ruach ha-Kodesh and power to do His work (in fulfillment of Isaiah 61:1-3) – how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him (10:36-38).

As an apostle, Peter confirmed that all they heard about Yeshua’s ministry was true: We are witnesses to all He did, both in the Judean countryside and in Jerusalem. They put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree (see the commentary on Galatians Bk – Cursed is Everyone Who Hangs on a Tree), yet God raised Him up on the third day and caused Him to be visible not to all the people (Isaiah 65:1), but to us, witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God. We ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. God’s choice to reveal the risen Yeshua to only 500 believers (First Corinthians 15:5-8) does not excuse unbelief, because there is enough evidence to convince a reasonable and open-minded person. Besides, there is never enough proof for unbelief. And He commanded us to proclaim to the people and to testify that He is the One ordained by God as Judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about Him – that everyone who puts his trust in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name (10:39-43).

Yeshua will either be everyone’s Deliverer or Judge.

These were the points of Peter’s sermon to these God-fearing Gentiles: Yeshua is sent by God and is still alive. He will be the final judge of all human beings. The TaNaKh points to Him. Those who trust in His mercy will be forgiven their sins through His name, that is, because of who He is and what He has done.²³²

While Peter was still speaking these words, Cornelius and his entire household believed in Yeshua as the Messiah, and as a result, his speech was dramatically interrupted. As Cornelius and the other Gentiles believed, the Ruach ha-Kodesh fell on all those hearing the message (see The Life of Christ Bw – What God Does For Us at the Moment of Faith). All six of the circumcised believers who came with Peter from Joppa were astonished, because the gift of the Ruach ha-Kodesh had been poured out even on the Gentiles. That the congregations of God were not exclusively Jewish must have come as a complete shock to them. Yet, they could hardly deny what was happening since they were hearing them speaking in different languages and magnifying God (nowhere does the Bible teach that the gift of tongues is anything other than human languages).²³³ This passage does not teach that speaking in languages is normally to be expected with the coming of the Ruach. The Spirit of God granted it on this occasion as visible proof that Peter did indeed hold the keys to the Kingdom, and ADONAI did indeed indwell those Gentiles (10:44-46a). It should be noted that here, as through Acts, speaking in languages is a group, not an individual, phenomenon.

The same thing happened here that happened in Samaria. This was a time of transition. Had there been no visible evidence of the Ruach ha-Kodesh, Peter and the others would not have been as quickly convinced that Gentiles were now a part of the body of Messiah. As it was, the Jewish believers saw an irrefutable demonstration that those Gentiles were in Messiah (Ephesians 1). Peter immediately concluded that they should be immersed (10:47). Obviously Peter was equating receiving the Spirit of God with salvation. The Gentiles had received the same Ruach ha-Kodesh who had come to the Jews. The norm is to receive salvation and reception of the Spirit of God at the same time.²³⁴

A closer look at the keys to the Kingdom: At Caesarea Philippi Peter declared that Yeshua was the Messiah, the Son of the living God. In response, Jesus said: I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Fx – On This Rock I Will Build My Church). Whenever the words key or keys is used symbolically in the Bible, it always symbolizes the authority to open or close doors (Judges 3:25; First Chronicles 9:27; Isaiah 22:20-24; Matthew 16:19a; Revelation 1:18, 3:7, 9:1 and 20:1). Peter will be responsible to open the doors of the Church. He has a special role in the book of Acts. In the Dispensation of the Torah, humanity was divided into two groups, Jews and Gentiles. However, in the Dispensation of Grace, because of what went on in the intertestamental period, there were three groups of people, Jews, Gentiles and Samaritans (Matthew 10:5-6). Peter would be the key person (pun intended) in bringing in the Jews (Acts 2), the Samaritans (Acts 8), and the Gentiles (Acts 10) into the Church by receiving the Holy Spirit.

Once he opened the door it stayed open.

As we proceed through the book of Acts we will be comparing the way salvation comes to the Jews, the Samaritans and the Gentiles, showing, as was the case with the way Yeshua healed, there is no set order. Acts is a transitional book and a historical book, and you can’t establish doctrine based upon history. You base doctrine on clear theological statements. The historical facts can illustrate the doctrine but they cannot develop doctrine on their own.

The gift of languages (tongues) can be seen four times in the book, Acts 2, Acts 8, Acts 10 and Acts 19. There is no set order leading up to immersion by the Spirit and subsequent speaking in tongues. Here in Acts 2 with salvation coming to the Jews, the order was first repentance, then water immersion, and then receiving Spirit immersion by the Ruach ha-Kodesh as evidenced by speaking in languages. In Acts 8 with salvation coming to the Samaritans, the order was this, first they believed, then came water immersion, then the apostles arrived, next they laid their hands on the Samaritans, and then they received Spirit immersion by the Ruach ha-Kodesh as evidenced by the speaking in languages. Again, you don’t build doctrine on history. Keep this order in mind and we will see how it was different with the Samaritans, the Gentiles and John’s disciples. Here in Acts 10 with salvation coming to the Gentiles, the order was first belief in Yeshua as the Messiah, the spirit immersion by the Ruach as evidenced by the speaking in languages, and finally, water immersion.

To understand the differences in the four appearances of languages in Acts, we will ask six questions as we come to each passage. However, the one key common element in all four cases is that languages (ie tongues) are for the purpose of authentication.

1. Who received it? Cornelius, his household and his friends (10:24 and 44).

2. What were they? They were Gentiles (10:1). There was a far greater rift between Jews and Gentiles than between Jews and Samaritans. At least the Samaritans believed in the five books of Moshe and they were circumcised. Yet Gentiles were neither. So it was easier for Jews to accept that Samaritans could be saved than it was for them to believe that Gentiles could be saved.

3. What were the circumstances? As a result of special revelation, Peter went into the home of a Gentile to present the gospel. And while doing so the Ruach fell on them, resulting in the outbreak of tongues (10:44 and 46).

4. What was the means? As in Acts 2, the means was direct. There was no laying on of hands as in Acts 8 with the Samaritans. The reason was that with the Gentiles, there was no danger of them setting up a rival Church as it was with the Samaritans. It was necessary for the Samaritans to recognize the authority of the apostles so that they would not set up a rival Church in opposition to the Messianic Community.

5. What was the purpose in this context? The key is to realize that the gift of languages for the Gentiles, like the Jews and the Samaritans, was for authentication. For the Gentiles, tongues authenticated that the message of Peter was true; for the Jews, tongues authenticated that Gentiles were on equal spiritual footing with them and could be saved. And later Peter would use this very experience as the evidence to defend his actions first, to the believing Jews in Tziyon (see Bh – Peter’s Report to Jerusalem), and later Peter used this experience to prove to the Messianic Community that the Gentiles were saved by faith apart from circumcision (see Bs – The Counsel at Jerusalem).

6. What were the results? First, it opened the door of salvation to the Gentiles, preparing the way for Paul’s ministry. Second, Gentiles were recognized as being truly saved by the apostles, other Jewish believers and the leadership of the Messianic community.

Here, as always in the B’rit Chadashah, immersion follows salvation. If Peter and company had not seen for themselves that the Ruach came upon those Gentiles exactly as on themselves of speaking in other languages (2:4), they would not have immersed them. Then Peter declared: Can anyone refuse water for these to be immersed, who have received the Ruach just as we Jewish believers did (the Greek construction demands a negative answer)? As with Peter, it took a supernatural act of God to dislodge their resistance to bringing the Gentiles into the Body of Messiah. So he commanded them to be immersed in the name of Messiah by the Jewish brothers who had accompanied him. Those Gentiles were not saved by being immersed; they were immersed because they were saved. Thus, Peter involved the Jews from Joppa in that historic moment, knowing that when they reported back to Jerusalem, he would need all the support he could muster. Then Cornelius and his fellow converts asked Peter to stay for a few days (10:46b-48). The desire for the fellowship of believers is the mark of genuine saving faith. Lydia expressed the same desire after her conversion (16:15).²³⁵ This inevitably involved table fellowship, which now presented no problem for Peter. It would, however, constitute a major difficulty for more conservative Jewish believers in Tziyon.

The inclusion of the Gentiles as equals in the Messianic Community was historic. The last barrier had fallen. Peter later described this great experience: Brothers, you know that in the early days God chose from among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the message of the Good News and believe. And God, who knows the heart, testified to them by giving them the Ruach ha-Kodesh – just as He also did for us (15:7-8). The way was thus opened for the spread of the Way throughout the Roman Empire through the tireless effort of Rabbi Sha’ul/Paul.