Acts 11 - The Lord's Hand Was With Them!
Peter Explains His Actions
11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
The church wasn't quite ready yet for the inclusion of the Gentiles in the community of Christ. They were unhappy that Peter had even eaten with them. Peter went to the headquarters in Jerusalem where the most Jewish men criticized him for such actions.
4 Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6 I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. 7 Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’ 8 “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9 “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’ 10 This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.
Rather than argue with them, Peter told them what had happened to him verbatim. It wasn't like he personally chose to fraternize with the Gentiles. After all didn't they know what a religious Jew he was. Peter retold the story of how three times a vision came to where a sheet with all kinds of wild animals came from heaven down to him. When he objected to even the idea of eating these unclean creatures, the a voice told him from heaven,
"Don't call anything impure God has made clean!" This same vision and sequence had three times if it wasn't clear enough to Peter.
11 “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12 The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14 He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’
Three men came to get Peter and the Spirit gave him the green light to go with them. Six men who came with him and the three men who came to get him got to the house of the man who sent them. He told them the story of how an angel directed him to get Peter in Joppa.
15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with[a] water, but you will be baptized with[b] the Holy Spirit.’ 17 So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?” 18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
Peter explained to them when he began preaching to them, the same manifestation of the Spirit that had come on them came on these Gentiles. This reminded him of when Jesus told them John baptized with water, but they would be baptized (fully immersed) with the Holy Spirit. Peter reasoned that if God gave them the Holy Spirit, they too had come to believe in Jesus. The evidence was convicting and convince and they realized God led the Gentiles repented to come to life.
The Church in Antioch
19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
Just like had happened with Peter and Cornelius, those who had been scattered due to the persecution went preaching mainly to fellow Jews. You see the good news is ABOUT JESUS! The good news is that God sent Jesus to the world to show all people his great love. Jesus came to save all people, both Jew and Gentile, and people from every nation.
Importantly the Lord's hand was with them and a great number of people came to faith. What a great thing to desire in our ministry together that the Lord's hand would be with us. With the Lord's hand God will do great things through us, without it he can do nothing.
Is the Lord's hand with you? How would you know? What did they see happen when the Lord's hand was with them?
22 News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
The church in Jerusalem heard about this and they sent Barnabas, Paul's traveling companion there. Barnabas saw that the reports were true. These people were indeed believers in Jesus. God's grace was already working through them. Barnabas was described as a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith! Once again a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
Wouldn't it be cool to see a great number of people brought to the Lord today? Or, in our country you might say a great number of people coming back to the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. 27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29 The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.
Barnabas went back to get Saul and brought him back to Antioch, where he taught the believers there for a year. It was great that many came to the Lord but they still needed to be taught about Jesus. Interestingly the believers were first called Christians in Antioch, perhaps as a result of Saul's teaching.
A prophet named Agabus came and predicted a famine over the whole Roman world. This gave the believers outside of Jerusalem to help the poor there. We see there was one church. When one part of the church suffered so did the rest. We need to keep this mentality in the church today!
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