Check out all the previous Acts readings here.
Acts Reading Plan | Week 9 | Day 1
Prayer
Isaiah 50:5 says, “The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears.” Pause for a moment. Think about the fact that you are coming to listen to God. Now pray that he would open your ears to hear from Him.
Bible Reading: Acts 10:24-33
Read these verses three times slowly.
The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”
While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?”
Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”
Reflection & Questions
Today we pick up again the story from last week of Cornelius, the Roman centurion who is seeking God. God sent Peter to help Cornelius – it’s a divine match up and today we see why. Cornelius wants to know Jesus – so Peter can take care of that. But God wants Peter to see that he is no longer to think of Gentiles, like Cornelius, as second class. Peter was raised in a Jewish system where eating certain foods and hanging out with Gentiles (non-Jews) was banned because they were deemed unclean. Through the vision Peter received, Peter has come to see that “he should not call anyone impure or unclean.”
It’s hard as Gentiles to understand the huge switch that has happened in Peter’s mind. The reality is though, we all know what it is to look down on others. We all know how we can think we are better than others and even be unwilling to associate with certain types of people. That is not God’s heart. Peter discovered that. We need to discover that, too.
Cornelius continues to be very impressive. His statement to Peter in this reading is a great example for all of us: “We are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.” Cornelius is all ears. He shows us a great example of the attitude to have as we come to a weekend service or any other type of Bible teaching: ears wide open.
- Is there a type of person you look down upon? Why? How would Peter counsel you about that?
- Are you all ears when it comes to listening to Bible teachers? How does Cornelius’ attitude challenge you?
Prayer
Talk to God in response to the reading today.
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate
