Bible Study: Acts 10-11
Acts
10 and first part of 11 mark an official breakthrough of taking the message of
Jesus to the Gentiles—those who are not ethnically Jewish. While the first
disciples, and Jesus himself, of course, were faithful and devout Jews, as the
church grows and expands geographically, diverse peoples hear the message,
receive the Spirit, and are baptized.
In
Acts 10, Jesus officially removes the ethnic barrier. In a vision to Peter,
Jesus instructs, “What God has made clean, you must not call profane.” (Act
10:15) When he is sent by that same vision to tell the story to the centurion
(Roman military official), Peter applies the “God has made clean” provision to
people, and Cornelius and his household receive the Spirit and are baptized.
(10:44-48)
The
problem with a revelation such as this is that the other Jewish leaders didn’t
receive it, and they challenge Peter upon his return. The issue is cleanliness
and purity. Jews were not to associate with Gentiles because of the possibility
of doing something that would constitute idol worship, and because of Jewish dietary
restrictions[1] (although this concern
seems to be held by Gnetiles and not supported by Jewish practice[2]).
So, the other leaders are concerned that Peter now has made himself unclean by
such an affiliation, not to mention how they are to move forward once this door
has been opened. In the first part of chapter 11, Peter recounts both the
vision and the resulting visit to Cornelius, and they are compelled to see that
God has provided a way for “even Gentiles” to be saved through Christ!
Some
details:
Religious
dietary laws, to which Peter refers when he reminds Jesus he has never eaten
anything unclean or profane (10:14), are found in the Torah and are a foundational
piece of faithfulness in Jewish tradition, even today. Leviticus 11 provides
description about dietary purity laws, which served to distinguish the
Israelites from other nations and to keep them alive by avoiding foods that
were not properly prepared. Even now we have warnings on menus about eating
undercooked meats and fish.
Cornelius is described as “a devout man who feared God”
(10:2) and “well-spoken of by the whole Jewish nation” (10:22). In this case, “devout”
means that he followed some Jewish customs, though he was not ethnically Jewish;
and “God-fearing” indicates that he was associated with a Jewish synagogue,
though he was a Gentile.[3]
He resided in Caesarea, an important trade city on the Mediterranean, built up
and brought to prominence by Herod the Great, grandfather of the Herod in this
part of Acts. He worked for the Roman military, yet practiced the Jewish faith.
So the conversion of Cornelius makes some sense; it isn’t entirely out of the
blue that God chose him to be one of the first Gentiles converted. He is on the
edge of Judaism, and perhaps had heard of the Jesus who caused so much trouble
for the Roman rulers.
To ponder:
Peter finishes his argument with compelling logic: “If then
God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus
Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?” The others are persuaded: “Then God
has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.” (11:17-18)
This line reminds us that God gives good things even to people who are not like
us, things like grace, forgiveness, peace, eternal life. In the story, “them”
are Gentiles, those who are not connected to the God of the Ancestors by genealogy.
We do not think about being Christian in the same way; there are Christians all
over the world, not restricted to nationality or language. So, who might “they”
be in our application of this story? Who are those who are systematically left
out, or those we might have decided God wants nothing to do with? Can we
consider that God gives gifts to Muslims? To Arab Christians (and other Arabs)?
To LGBTQ people who have been rejected by church? The disciples are amazed at
God’s generosity, to include “even Gentiles” by giving them the Holy Spirit. This
story reminds me to be careful about categories, which this surprising God will
surely overlook.
Our guiding questions:
1.
What is God doing?
2.
What are the people doing?
3. What
do we learn about being church?
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