The Gentile Pentecost (Part 1)

Acts 10:1-23

– In the Old Testament, God sent Jonah on a mission to evangelize the Gentiles but instead he ran away to the port city of Joppa.   Now in the Book of Acts, Peter finds himself in Joppa and faces the same difficult choice

– Today we will see God’s grace in preparing the way for the Gentile mission

Part 1

(Sunday June 30th)

I.       Preparation of Cornelius  (10:1-8)

1)     Who was Cornelius?

a.       A Roman Centurion (cf. Luke 7:1-10)

b.      Stationed in a city of influence

c.       A devout and generous ‘God-fearer’

2)     The Vision from God

a.       God didn’t send Philip (cf. Acts 8:40)

b.      God didn’t communicate the gospel directly through the angelic vision

c.       God chose to send His Apostle on a groundbreaking mission to the Gentiles!

3)  God’s sovereign work of preparation in a person’s heart usually begins long before the moment of conversion

II. Preparation of Peter (10:9-23)

1)     Demolishing the Dividing Wall

a.       Jewish laws and cultural traditions were the biggest hindrance to the Gentile mission

b.      God often challenges the Evangelist before He challenges the Non-believer!

c.       Peter’s actions in chapter 10 are remarkable for a devout Jewish man

• He resides in the house of an ‘unclean’ tanner (9:43)
• He extends hospitality to Gentiles (10:23)

2)     What cultural barriers will we need to challenge as  we seek to fulfill the Great Commission in our generation?