Acts · chapter 10 of 28
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Acts 10 tells how God prepares Cornelius, a God-fearing Roman centurion in Caesarea, and Peter through visions. Peter enters a Gentile's house, preaches Jesus and, while he is speaking, the Holy Spirit falls on those who listen. Peter orders them to be baptized: the gospel has reached the Gentiles without first passing through the Jewish law.
Up to this point the gospel has been preached to Jews and Samaritans, and in Acts 8 to an Ethiopian eunuch. This chapter marks a decisive turn: God opens the door of faith to a Gentile household so clearly that Peter, a faithful Jew, cannot deny it. It is one of the key moments of the whole book.
In Caesarea lives Cornelius, a centurion of the Italian Cohort, a devout man who fears God, gives alms and prays continually. About the ninth hour an angel in a vision tells him that his prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God, and that he should send to Joppa for Simon Peter, who is staying with Simon the tanner. Cornelius sends messengers.
Next day, as they draw near, Peter goes up on the housetop to pray about the sixth hour, becomes hungry and falls into a trance. He sees heaven opened and a sheet coming down with all kinds of animals, and a voice says: Rise, Peter; kill and eat. He answers that he has never eaten anything common or unclean, and the voice replies: What God has made clean, do not call common. This happens three times. Then the Spirit tells him that three men are looking for him and that he should go with them.
The next day Peter sets out with them and some brothers from Joppa. In Caesarea Cornelius is waiting with relatives and friends, and falls at his feet and Peter lifts him up. He acknowledges that it is unlawful for a Jew to associate with a foreigner, but God has shown him that he should call no one common or unclean.
Peter preaches: God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. He proclaims Jesus of Nazareth, anointed with the Holy Spirit and power, who went about doing good, was killed and was raised by God on the third day. All the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins. While Peter is still speaking, the Holy Spirit falls on all who hear the word. The believing Jews with Peter are amazed that the gift is poured out on the Gentiles too, who speak in tongues and praise God. Peter asks whether anyone can withhold water from those who have received the Spirit, and orders them baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The voice tells Peter that what God has made clean he must not call common. The vision uses food, but its meaning is wider: God has cleansed the Gentiles through Christ, and Peter must not treat them as outsiders.
Peter understands that God shows no partiality, and that in every nation the one who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. It does not mean all are saved without Christ, but that the door of the gospel is open to every nation.
Peter says all the prophets bear witness to Jesus: everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. Forgiveness is received by faith, whatever one's origin.
While Peter is still speaking, the Holy Spirit falls on all who hear the word, and the believing Jews are amazed that the gift is poured out on the Gentiles too. It is God, not a human argument, who shows that the Gentiles belong to his people.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: A centurion of the Italian Cohort in Caesarea, devout, who feared God, gave alms and prayed continually. — Acts 10:1-2
Answer: Send men to Joppa to bring Simon Peter. — Acts 10:5
Answer: A sheet coming down from heaven with all kinds of animals, and a voice telling him to kill and eat. — Acts 10:11-13
Answer: That God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. — Acts 10:34-35
Answer: The Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. — Acts 10:44
Answer: That they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. — Acts 10:47-48
Acts 10 puts a finger on our prejudices. Peter had to change lifelong habits to obey God. In your group, ask which people you consider hard to reach because of their culture, class or history, and what concrete steps you can take to approach them with the gospel.
The story also encourages anyone who is sincerely seeking God. God saw Cornelius's prayer and sent someone with the message of Jesus. When you pray for people who are searching, trust that God can arrange encounters you could never imagine.
Acts 10 ends with Peter staying a few days with Gentiles, something unthinkable before. In Acts 11 the brothers in Jerusalem call Peter to account, and he recounts what happened to show that God himself gave the Spirit to the Gentiles.
No. The same sermon concludes that everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins, and Cornelius needs to hear the message of Christ. The verse says God accepts people of every nation who seek him, not that there is another way of salvation.
Peter understands from Cornelius's visit that the message goes beyond food: God has declared the Gentiles clean, and there is no longer a barrier to eating with them or welcoming them into the church. Some Christians note that it also relates to the food laws, but the text interprets the vision as being about people.
Because Peter will say later that the Spirit fell on the Gentiles just as on the disciples at the beginning. It confirms that the Gentiles receive the same gift of the Spirit, without needing to become Jews first.