Title: God's Salvation (Acts 10:34-43)
Contents
There is a saying that it is three days. It means ‘I can’t make a decision for more than three days’ and it is a good expression of the weak will of the human being who can’t put it into practice as planned. But I know that it is no longer used by all of you. This is because most of the people who have implemented the plans made at the beginning of the year are still implementing them.
Watching the US-China summit that drew the world's attention last week, no one can deny that China has already grown into the world's second largest economy. It did not happen overnight that China, which had been torn apart by the invasion of Western powers at the end of the 19th century, has grown into an economic power on par with the United States in today's world. It is the result of the 11th five-year economic development plan since 1953, which has been consistently implemented without any setbacks.
Korea has also achieved economic development as it is today because of its long-term economic development plans, which have been steadily implemented since 1962, looking ahead. However, the rate of growth has been slow and the growth rate has become very low because the plan has not been continuously pursued since democratization was achieved.
Last Thursday night in the news, I saw that the Yanghwa Bridge in Seoul was stopped due to budget cuts during construction. Due to the confrontation between the ruling Seoul administration and the opposition-majority city council, the bridge construction project was completely halted because not a single penny was allocated for the bridge construction budget. The problem is that due to the detour made for construction, the bridge is shaped like a square, so the risk of an accident is very high, and the people suffer. Because the plan was turned over after four years.
Through these things, we discover that planning and continuity are really important. We need to get rid of the narrow-minded notion that we can only succeed by erasing the remnants of our predecessors.
The text is the story of Peter visiting the house of Cornelius, a Gentile, and preaching the gospel. Cornelius, a centurion in the Roman army, accepted the gospel and was saved. Cornelius was the first person to be saved as a Gentile in the Bible. Through this, God made it clear that salvation through Jesus Christ is not limited to the Jews. This was done according to God's original plan of salvation. However, the Jews did not recognize the possibility of the salvation of the Gentiles due to the wrong idea of the chosen people, and they had to make great sacrifices for themselves.
God's Amazing Plan of Salvation
At that time, the world was the era of Roman hegemony centered on the Mediterranean Sea. There were many Roman-dominated cities on this Mediterranean coast, which were very prosperous due to economic development. As it is now, after economic development, there is always a conflict over the distribution of wealth. In those cities, after being destroyed by Babylon, the so-called Diaspora Jews, who spread throughout the city, were in control of the commercial realm.
At that time, Alexandria, the second largest city in the world after Rome, had a population of 1 million, of which 400,000 were Jews. The Jews took over the commerce and monopolized the economic wealth of Alexandria. Driven into poverty, the non-Jews lived a life of subordination to the Jews, and eventually discontent exploded, resulting in bloody clashes throughout the city. The Roman authorities, who had advocated for the peace of Rome and wished for a stable prosperity, tried to peacefully resolve the conflict that threatened to throw the entire empire into chaos, but the conflict between non-Jews and Jews was not easily resolved.
The troubled Roman authorities realized that there was a religious problem at the root of the conflict. The core of the problem was the idea of the exclusive chosen people who thought that only they could be saved. As a result, the Roman authorities and the Jewish people eventually waged an all-out war in June of AD 66, and with the collapse of the Temple in Jerusalem in August 70, the Jewish nation was destroyed and scattered all over the world.
In this situation, Christianity arose, and after Jesus Christ died on the cross, was resurrected and ascended into heaven, and in a new organization called the church that was formed after the coming of the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem, they lived their faith centered on the disciples of Jesus, waiting for the day when Jesus would come again. There was. Until then, however, the early Christians did not realize that salvation was not limited to the Jews. This is because, historically, God's salvation was accomplished in the history of Israel.
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God who saved Israel through Moses in Egypt, and the God who always defeated other peoples on the side of Israel in the war of conquest of Canaan. This God was definitely the God of Israel. Moreover, they vividly remember the covenant that God and Moses made on Mount Sinai. For thousands of years, they have not forgotten the promise that ‘God will be the God of Israel and Israel will be God’s people’.
Under such circumstances, it was unthinkable that God's plan of salvation was not limited to Israel but also extended to the Gentiles. However, the Jerusalem church had to accept the fact that the work of salvation through Israel was the fulfillment of God's plan of salvation to save the whole world. Because the Holy Spirit worked. The Jerusalem church came to realize God's salvation plan by breaking free from the wrong idea of the chosen people, breaking the bar on the fence of Judea and preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, and the first fruit was Cornelius in the text.
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). It introduces the process of propagation through Samaria and to the ends of the earth. In addition, it is emphasized in various places that such things are by the will of God. The reason I mentioned the history of Israel several times through the mouths of Stephen and Paul is to reveal that God's plan of salvation was to save the whole world from the beginning.
We, as Gentiles, were saved not because we were lucky enough to have the Gospel preached to us. We must realize and give thanks because God's plan of salvation, which he had before the ages, was realized in us by the Holy Spirit.
Those who fear God and do righteousness
To Cornelius and his family, Peter began preaching the gospel by saying, “God does not respect the outward appearance” (verse 34). “Appearance” refers to ethnic and ancestral conditions such as Jew or Gentile. Also, it is said that those whom God accepts are “out of all nations, those who fear God and do righteousness” (verse 35). The word ‘each nation’ contains the fact that God’s salvation is not limited to Israel.
Cornelius was then a centurion in the Roman army. The fact that the first Gentile believer was a centurion in the Roman army is very significant. At that time, the world was ruled by Rome. To rule by Rome means to enter and garrison the Roman army. After all, the centurion's salvation is an important event that shows that all people in the world can be saved in the same way.
By the salvation of Cornelius, a centurion of the Roman army, it was clearly proclaimed that God's salvation was not only for the Jews, but for all peoples in every nation and in the whole world. However, this does not mean that God's plan of salvation promised to Israel in the past was abolished or modified. God's plan of salvation for all people in the world has already been testified by the prophets of the Old Testament times, and Peter said, 'All the prophets testify of this fact, saying that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.' (43) confirmed. The fact that the titles 'God of Israel' and 'God of hosts' are used together in the Old Testament means that God is the God of all peoples, not just the people of Israel, even in the Old Testament times. Not just Judah, but all other nations.
The surprising fact that even Gentiles can be saved is not a right we can claim as Gentiles, but a grace given by God. Therefore, we must fear God. We must live with God as God at the center of our lives. We should always strive to please God. We must realize that living a God-centered life, not self-centered, is the duty of those who have experienced the grace of salvation given to sinners like me. Please keep in mind that salvation is entirely a gift from God.
Confirmation of the Holy Spirit
Peter, who was staying in Joppa, went to visit Cornelius in Caesarea, entirely according to God's command. Peter compelled him to do things that were not easily tolerated by the Jewish sentiment, which up until then had forbidden contact with Gentiles. In verse 36 and below, as I was summarizing the earthly ministry of Jesus, I saw the Holy Spirit descending on those who heard the word. This was the work of the Holy Spirit confirming that Peter's work and the gospel he preached up to now were according to the will of God. It means that the way of salvation was opened to the Gentiles by the coming of the Holy Spirit to them, and it has been proven that all of this is due to God's unchanging plan of salvation.
Through the work of salvation accomplished by Jesus Christ, we have been saved, starting with Cornelius, a Gentile, to this day. However, how many people have doubts about how the event of Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago can become an event that saves me at this moment.
It is only possible through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is Lord of all (verse 36). But, according to Paul, “confessing Jesus as Lord and believing in your heart” is the condition of salvation. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation” (Romans 10:9). -10) said. But Paul also said that it is impossible to confess Jesus as Lord without the help of the Holy Spirit. “No one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3). That is, confessing and believing in Jesus as my Lord is the condition for salvation, and this is only possible through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Please believe that it is possible through the power of the Holy Spirit that the crucifixion of Jesus 2,000 years ago becomes my event at this moment. It is impossible for us to meet Jesus Christ, confess Him as our Lord, and receive Him in our hearts. This is possible only through the power of the Holy Spirit, who is God. That is why Paul emphasized that the salvation bestowed upon us is not by human power, but by God's power. “For this gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).
Seeing the Holy Spirit coming upon Cornelius and his family broke Peter's hard stereotypes. Since then, he has been a witness proclaiming God's salvation to all people in all ages. Likewise, we should deeply understand what our mission is to be saved through Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God for saving us as Gentiles.
We confessed Jesus Christ as our Lord and received salvation by the power of the Holy Spirit. Now, in the power of the Holy Spirit, we must live a life filled with the Holy Spirit in order to please God with a heart of reverence for God, looking at God's plan of salvation for all ages and people. If we live in the power of the Holy Spirit, God will use us, like Peter, as an instrument for God's salvation. Just as God's salvation event itself is a mystery and is God's power, we hope that you believe that it is possible only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can be used by God to accomplish God's will, and put more effort into preaching the gospel of salvation.