Title: The Vision of Cornelius
Contents
Cornelius's Vision Acts 10:1-8
Chapter 9 mentions Saul's conversion and Peter's itinerant evangelism work, and after the basic work of Gentile missionary work was laid, today's chapter 10, Gentiles, through the evangelization of Cornelius's family, the gospel of Jesus Christ spreads through Judea and Samaria. It explains the process of spreading to foreign regions.
In other words, this gospel that came to Jerusalem deals with the very important and decisive event of going out to the Gentiles and the nations for the first time.
This is the story of a Gentile named Cornelius meeting with Peter. Their meeting is not an ordinary meeting, but an important meeting that changes the fate of the world.
Dear saints,
I hope that all of us in this room will be used as people who change history. We want you to be a tool used to change the world, a tool to change homes, and a tool to change communities. I hope you live with this vision. do it all together. Although it is not enough, please use me as a tool to change the souls of Okayama citizens.
Look at verse 1.
First, Caesarea is a city founded by Herod and is a port city on the Mediterranean coast. Herod refers to this area as Caesarea, which means that he respects Augustus.
It is different from the region called Caesarea Philippi in Matthew 16:13.
This is where Philip, one of the seven deacons, laid the foundation for the preaching of the gospel.
However, he is visited by the Apostle Peter. And it is the place where Paul visited several times, preached the gospel (Acts 9:30, 18:22, 21:8), and was imprisoned twice in Acts 24-26.
When Peter stood firm in Jerusalem, Samaria, and Galilee, he began touring evangelism.
(Acts 9:31-32) Caesarea is the 3rd region of the tour.
The first place we visited was Lydda, and the second was Joppa (Acts 9:35, 42).
Today's protagonist, Cornelius, was a Roman soldier. It is a military that leads a hundred soldiers. It is said that at that time the Italian or Roman army consisted of six hundred men. In other words, a unit of 100 men is formed to form a solidarity. In the New Testament, there are many people called centurions.
Jesus praised the centurion who appears in Matthew 8:5 and below that he had never seen such faith in Israel.
Apostle Paul's epistles use military terminology well, and Christians often use the term military-like, and some theologians say that perhaps his father's relationship with the tent business was influenced by his relationship with military supplies. (See 2 Timothy 2:3-4.)
Dear saints,
Soldiers have no privacy, nor do we believe in God. If you try to please God and live according to God's will, you can't believe it when you do what you want to do.
The Christian life is to give up and live one by one from the things you have enjoyed and enjoyed so far.
Look at verse 2.
Although Cornelius was uncircumcised and had not converted to Judaism, he was always a prayerful and devout man according to the Jewish outlook.
The word godliness here is the Greek word euseves, which refers to the devoutness of faith.
In today's text verse 2, he was a godly man who feared God. The word godliness does not appear many times in the New Testament. Here godliness implies all faith. True faith is godliness.
True faith is living a godly life, a life that fears God, and living a godly life as God's servant even though we live on this earth. Cornelius is one such person. He says he and his family are reverent as well.
It is very difficult for the whole family to be recognized as pious. However, the Bible records that Cornelius's family was devout.
Dear saints,
And he was a savior. Verse 7 tells us that he was devout, and that even his slaves were devout men. And he was a praying man.
And look at 10:22 how much these servants respect their master.
In fact, true prayer is realized when we love God and have a good heart.
He is not a repeater, but an answered prayer.
He had a vision while praying. He was a Roman soldier who was not baptized.
But he was a godly man who personally feared God and gave alms personally.