What is the answer to inequality?
We clamor for solutions for true freedom, equality, individual rights, ethnic and racial tensions, and economic disparity. By themselves, our ideas and even our very best intentions are not enough. But really, we do know the ultimate answer to things like lasting change and reconciliation: the gospel of grace.
Cornelius’s life is a reminder of the great mystery of the gospel. In that day and age, there were distinct lines drawn between Jews and Gentiles, separating them by belief and ceremony, and many other practices, both cultural and religious. And so Cornelius’s story is a reminder that salvation belongs to our God, and the gospel is freely given to all who choose to receive it (Revelation 7:10; Matthew 10:8). From the beginning, the only answer to the tumult of human struggle, to the walls of social division, to the lines of entrenched hatred, is the gospel. God alone can do something new, transformative, and lasting, making “a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19). As the first Gentile to put his trust in Jesus, Cornelius was forever changed by a visit from an angel at three o’clock in the afternoon, a vision that put him on a journey that completely reframed his entire worldview.
Peter also had a vision around that same time, and the clean and unclean animals are a reminder of this truth. This was not chiefly a social realization; it was the direct act of a gracious God who, in His own time, opened the eyes of man to see exactly what Christ’s coming truly meant: that sinners of every race, clan, tongue, and nation, could be made new and holy by faith in Jesus Christ. God sent a vision to Cornelius, even as He sent the vision to Peter. However, the chief character in this story is not Cornelius, nor is it Peter—it is God Himself. In the same way, we do not receive salvation by our own actions or merit, but because of the merit and actions of Christ Himself. In each case, it is God who calls and justifies, sanctifies and glorifies. Our salvation and reconciliation to God are not of ourselves.
A remarkable scene ensues after Peter agrees to go to the house of Cornelius. We are told that Peter stands and begins to deliver the message of the gospel to the Gentiles assembled there, and “while Peter was still speaking… the Holy Spirit came down on all those who heard” (Acts 10:44), making the message very clear: the salvation of man is not of man, but wholly of God—in God’s time, in God’s way, by God’s own doing. “What God has made clean, do not call impure” (v.15).
Like Peter, we need to remember that we are all human, but that through Jesus Christ alone, we all have access to salvation (vv. 36). We can join with all the people of the world, united in our calling to be about the business of “declaring the greatness of God” to a world that desperately needs to hear it (v.46), just like you and I do.
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37 thoughts on "Cornelius"
I love how the Bible is so timely, especially during these times of racial tension. I pray that I would see all people the way that God sees them.
Churchmouse!!! You are never at a loss for words❤️ This is SO true and I will carry it with me for days to come. Thank you for your constant insight into God’s word….
I am praying for you Dorothy! May God watch over you, keep you safe and have a speedy recovery ❤️
I’ve been struggling with my feelings and opinions with the current rise in racial tension in the world. This devotion helps me understand more of what God says about it. ♥️
I didn’t know that there was a report of the Holy Spirit coming upon new believers !! This is an awesome powerful account of our Father knowing where we are and what we need and working through His children to answer those needs. So exciting!! We do well not to question what He is directing us to do- I believe that we can know His voice and trust
Rebecca, I’m writing a children’s devotional on the Armor of God. I loved the sentence your wrote about God and the gospel message being the only thing that can give reconciliation or transformation making “Ways in the wilderness and streams in the dessert. “ I wanted to see how I could get in touch to ask permission to quote that in one of my chapters! I love the idea you shared, and it is a perfect addition to my project, just what I have been looking for!
Rebecca makes so many great points in her devotion today. I think my favorite though is when she writes, “However, the chief character in this story is not Cornelius, nor is it Peter—it is God Himself. In the same way, we do not receive salvation by our own actions or merit, but because of the merit and actions of Christ Himself. In each case, it is God who calls and justifies, sanctifies and glorifies. Our salvation and reconciliation to God are not of ourselves.” This hit home and made me really think hard today about how often I make it about everyone but God.
Sisters, please pray for me, I found out I’m going to have to have surgery on my left hand for carpel tunnel (I’m left handed). I’ll be off work for two weeks due to the surgery. Have a good day and God bless.
Laura, I am praying for your daughter and that our loving God will go after her — and comfort you. Also, wanted to share that I just read an article in another devotional this morning from a pastor / speaker / author who went thru hard times and years of rebellion with 3 teenagers / young adults. She wrote that she and her husband prayed Daniel 10:12 for years. I googled her – Lorie Hartshorn and she has a study called Finding Freedom. She and her family also made some Utube videos.
Great word!
Praying for Jill and Laura.
I pray that I may be a minister of reconciliation to God 1st, and then to others during these contentious times. Amen
Laura, Jill K, Sarah D, Diana Fleenor, and any others who have family that are running away from our Savior- I am praying for them. Just ad I am praying for my three children And their children. Heavenly Father, bring them in to Your fold. I pray that they would seek You and not run away from You. I pray that You would bring someone into their lives who will speak Your truth to them.
I’m so thankful that we can agree together in
Prayer sisters. No matter our backgrounds or circumstances.
Blessings to you!
Tricia
The ground at the foot of the cross is level. Grace and mercy is offered to all who humble themselves there.
Amen.
LAURA, I prayed the song by Chris Tomlin for your daughter today.
May her earthly birthday bring light to her need for an eternal/spiritual birthday.
Jesus Loves Me…by Chris Tomlin
I was lost, I was in chains the world had a hold of me.
My heart was a stone, I was covered in shame when He came for me.
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His presence.
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His arms.
Jesus, He loves me, He loves me. He is for me.
Jesus, how can it be, He loves me. He is for me.
It was a fire, deep in my soul, I’ll never be the same.
I stepped out the dark and into the light, when He called my name.
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His presence.
I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His arms.
Jesus, He loves me, He loves me. He is for me.
Jesus, how can it be, He loves me. He is for me.
He holds the stars and He holds my heart.
With healing hands that bear the scars.
The rugged cross where He died for me.
My only hope.
My everything.
Jesus, He loves me, He loves me. He is for me.
Jesus, how can it be, He loves me. He is for me.
I add your family members SARAH D. and JILL…and my own.
Praise God for His amazing love.
I keep going back to how Cornelius invited a large gathering of relatives and close friends to hear Peter. The angel had not asked him to do this, yet Cornelius was eager to share in whatever news the Lord was bringing him. Because of this, the Holy Spirit was able to reach the entire room of people instead of just Cornelius himself.
In my sin and pride and pain, I may have been tempted to meet with Peter alone, to hoard up this good news for myself, dropping morsels of it to others in ways that would glorify me instead of God. As I read and delight in God and His word, mainly keeping it to myself, I stop and wonder if that’s not exactly what I’m already doing.
God chose Cornelius because He knew Cornelius would respond in obedience. May I live worthy to respond as such.
This is an important piece of insight for me
LAURA, SARAH D & JILL K: I stand with you both in prayer for your daughter, your sister, and your son respectively. It’s heart breaking as I, too, have family members (e.g. husband, sisters, brother) who have some notion of “Christianity”, but it’s a jumble of picking and choosing of what they want to believe. Yet, as we pray together for them, I join your hearts of faith that it is God who saves, who loves the lost, and who softens hardened hearts. I pray he breaks through their blindness like he did Saul’s when he thought he was right with God! Bless each of you today.
I’m grateful for Rebecca’s words which remind us that it is the gospel of grace which transforms racist hearts, bitter hearts, jealous hearts. It is the gospel of grace which breaks down the walls of hostility between races, genders, economic groups, etc. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Any attempt to resolve the problems of hard hearts in our day without the gospel at the center will sure to fail. But through Christ victory is sure!
Laura, You are not alone. It’s my son on a dark path who has walked away from us and the rest of the family and the God he knew in his youth. So much wreckage in he leaves behind him. But God can turn it around for our children. He loves them perfectly. I’ll pray until I have no breath. He is able!
How wonderful that we can pray for each other. Praying for you and your son, Jill K.
Lord please guide me with the Holy Spirit. To know when and how to share your great news!
Praying for your daughter Laura! I’ve been recognizing how comfortable I’ve been in my faith…That I don’t share what I deem to be the most important thing in my life…My relationship with Jesus. But God, he sure does answer prayers, because I’ve been able to have some tough and deep conversations with my sister and her husband. Yesterday we were messaging about abortion. And honestly it just breaks my heart that they claim to be some type of “Christian”, and yet they are not truly. Their words and actions speak to that. They are blinded, and I would rather them say they are all in or all out, rather than picking and choosing the parts of Jesus they like and throwing out the others they don’t like. Prayers appreciated sweet sisters, for boldness and patience for me, and that Christ would open their eyes to truly see him in all his glory and truth. <3
The life story of Cornelius is important to me.
I am not a Jew. I am a gentile.
The message of the gospel of Jesus Christ was not for me.
I am the crusty, crustacean that Peter would have deemed unclean.
And yet, just as the veil was torn when Jesus died on Calvary to allow us access to God, I have been accepted in and made pure, by the blood of Jesus.
The gift of salvation IS for me, too.
The gift of salvation IS for you, too.
God does not show favoritism.
He understands our various accents, the languages we speak, and deems them beautiful.
He created the color of our skin from His personal paint palette.
Rich or poor is of no consequence; “material things” aren’t what is of value to Him.
We are chosen children.
We cannot earn salvation nor do we deserve it; it is a gift.
Although the cost was immense; it is offered free.
For all.
Paid for by Jesus.
We only need to accept it/Him, and come.
Yes the life story of Cornelius is important.
For once again, (as always) God is loving us, drawing us, uniting us, in His kingdom.
His children, His heirs.
Cornelius’s story matters.
Your story and mine matters, because… because, because, because…we belong to Jesus.
Oh God, use our life stories. Bring brothers and sisters of every tribe and tongue into the kingdom.
Be glorified in our lives today, each day, always.
Amen.
YES! We are needed to hear the good news! I can’t imagine life without my JESUS!
What a timely message for the place we find our world in today. Thank you, Rebecca, you always have the best words.
God is amazing. He does not need us to complete His work, but He chooses to use us and He is so gracious and patient in teaching us in the process. I love how God used one situation to teach 2 men different things. It reminds me that when I get so focused on my own agenda in ministry, I miss out on seeing what God may be trying to teach me. Through being yielded to the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to lead me in what He wants to do, that’s when I learn the most and grow the most. God is not willing that any should perish…I don’t get to stand there and pick and choose who deserves to hear the Good News, no matter what social norms may say. Salvation is the Lord’s to give to ANY who would receive it! I’m so thankful for that.
Amen!
Yes, this is so good!
It’s not about the motions, God sees the heart and He wants our whole heart. Seek the Lord and live.
In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. John 1:4 NIV
❤️
The Lord gave me the verse Isaiah 43:19 over 4 years ago when I was going through the most difficult time in my life. It took all 4 years, but the way was made, the river was found, and I am free and healed from that difficult experience. There is a new way there and I praise God for that!
I feel like He gave this verse to me again through this reading, as today is my daughter’s 21st birthday, but we will not be celebrating with her. She has cut us off from anything in her life, because we do not approve of the life choices she is making right now. She is going down a very dangerous and dark path, one that we have tried very hard to talk to her about, but her heart is so hard, so angry, so hateful towards us. I was feeling sad today, melancholy, but this verse and this truth from God’s word encouraged me. God is moving, God is making a river in the desert. He cares so very much about the lost, so much that He continues to move and work in others’ hearts so that those who are lost will hear the good news. I pray today that there will be someone in my daughter’s life who will be bold enough to share the Good News with her, and that God will move in her heart so that she will hear it.
Praying with you, Laura.
Praise be to God… for always..
Amen..
Happy Monday Sisters.. as you go about His business..❤
Jesus, your great love for me and amazing grace that you extend to me- completely overwhelm my human brain and busted up heart. I love you! I trust you! Amen.
Lord, when you have new things to teach us, may we hear the leading of the Holy Spirit as clearly as Peter and Cornelius did with visions and angels. May we recognize your voice. We so desperately need to know which way to go each day. Move powerfully in our world today, in us. May you raise up godly men and women like Cornelius to be in places of power in our world, who will actively work to bring heaven to earth. People who listen for your voice.
Amen to Rebecca’s words ” We can join with all the people of the world, united in our calling to be about the business of “declaring the greatness of God” to a world that desperately needs to hear it (v.46), just like you and I do.”
I really like this study. The verse of the day on the Bible app is: Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. If you get the YouVersion app there is a short teaching and a devotional too. This ties together with this devotional. When we talk to an unbeliever, we tell the truth of the Gospel or give our testimony. Share why we believe, but share with gentleness and respect. Here is a link to the written part: https://www.bible.com/en/reading-plans/13779
May many come to be in awe of Jesus for time and eternity.