ACTS 10 CORNELIUS

[Doug]

Acts 10:1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
10:2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.

Cornelius was a Gentile, but, he was devout to the Lord.

Acts 10:5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:

He was told to send for Peter.

Acts 10:11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending upon him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:

Peter had a vision of the Lord and was told that what the Lord had said was clean should not be seen as otherwise. The Lord was talking of Gentiles, no longer being deemed as unclean.

The book of Acts is a transitional book; it moves from the old economy of the Law to the dispensation of Grace; it moves from the diminishing of Israel toward the Gentiles. It moves from the twelve to Paul.

Acts 10:34 Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:

Peter spoke to those gathered, consisting of Jews and Gentiles.

Acts 10:35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
10:36 The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)

Jesus is Lord of all, but he went first, to the house of Israel.

Acts 10:37 That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
10:39 And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:

Here Peter is accusing Israel, once again, in slaying Jesus.

Acts 10:40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
10:41 Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.

Peter is confirming the resurrection.

Acts 10:42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.

This is the "great commission", which can be noted, was not given to the Body of Christ, but to the Apostles (Luke 24:46-49 Acts 1:8 Mark 16:15-17). The Body of Christ is to be the ambassadors of Christ, pleading for all to be reconciled to God thru faith in Christ.

Acts 10:43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

Peter is not preaching the cross here, he is preaching faith in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins.

Acts 10:44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
10:45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.

The Gentiles believed and received the Holy Ghost, just as the Jews had. These Gentiles became members of the church of God, the believing remnant of Israel. They did not become members of the body of Christ.

Acts 10:46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
10:47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
10:48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Peter, preaching the Gospel of the Circumcision, commanded baptism under the program of Israel and the commandment of Christ in Mark 16:16.

 

[bdavidc]

Acts 10:1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
10:2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.

Cornelius was a Gentile, but, he was devout to the Lord.

Acts 10:5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:

He was told to send for Peter.

Acts 10:11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending upon him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:

Peter had a vision of the Lord and was told that what the Lord had said was clean should not be seen as otherwise. The Lord was talking of Gentiles, no longer being deemed as unclean.

The book of Acts is a transitional book; it moves from the old economy of the Law to the dispensation of Grace; it moves from the diminishing of Israel toward the Gentiles. It moves from the twelve to Paul.

Acts 10:34 Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:

Peter spoke to those gathered, consisting of Jews and Gentiles.

Acts 10:35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
10:36 The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)

Jesus is Lord of all, but he went first, to the house of Israel.

Acts 10:37 That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
10:39 And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:

Here Peter is accusing Israel, once again, in slaying Jesus.

Acts 10:40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
10:41 Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.

Peter is confirming the resurrection.

Acts 10:42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.

This is the "great commission", which can be noted, was not given to the Body of Christ, but to the Apostles (Luke 24:46-49 Acts 1:8 Mark 16:15-17). The Body of Christ is to be the ambassadors of Christ, pleading for all to be reconciled to God thru faith in Christ.

Acts 10:43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

Peter is not preaching the cross here, he is preaching faith in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins.

Acts 10:44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
10:45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.

The Gentiles believed and received the Holy Ghost, just as the Jews had. These Gentiles became members of the church of God, the believing remnant of Israel. They did not become members of the body of Christ.

Acts 10:46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
10:47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
10:48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Peter, preaching the Gospel of the Circumcision, commanded baptism under the program of Israel and the commandment of Christ in Mark 16:16.

I appreciate your effort to walk through Acts 10, but there are some serious errors in your interpretation that need to be corrected by Scripture. You said the Gentiles in Cornelius’ house did not become part of the Body of Christ, but that is not what the Bible teaches. 1 Corinthians 12:13 says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles.” There is no such thing as a Gentile being saved and not becoming part of the Body of Christ. The moment they believed, they were indwelt by the Holy Spirit and placed into the same body as every other believer.

You also claimed that Peter was preaching a different gospel than Paul, but that directly contradicts Galatians 1:8–9, which warns that if anyone preaches another gospel, they are accursed. Peter preached the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ in Acts 10:39–41. That is the same gospel Paul defines in 1 Corinthians 15:3–4. The gospel is not limited to the use of the word “cross,” it is the message of the crucified and risen Savior, which Peter clearly proclaimed.

Saying the Great Commission was not given to the Body of Christ is also off base. Jesus commanded His followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19), and Paul echoed this same mission in 2 Corinthians 5:20, saying we are ambassadors for Christ. The early church, including Paul, fulfilled the Great Commission by preaching the same gospel to both Jews and Gentiles, calling them to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Finally, saying that baptism in Acts 10 was part of Israel’s program only, and not for the Body of Christ, ignores the order of events. Cornelius and his household received the Holy Spirit before water baptism, proving that salvation was by faith alone. Peter then commanded baptism as an act of obedience, not as a requirement to enter any so-called Jewish program. Ephesians 4:4–5 says there is one body and one baptism, not separate baptisms or systems.

This is not my opinion, this is what the Bible says, there is one gospel, one body of believers, and one Spirit who saves both Jew and Gentile the same way, by grace through faith. We must let Scripture speak for itself, not divide God's plan into man-made programs.

 

[Doug]

I appreciate your effort to walk through Acts 10, but there are some serious errors in your interpretation that need to be corrected by Scripture. You said the Gentiles in Cornelius’ house did not become part of the Body of Christ, but that is not what the Bible teaches. 1 Corinthians 12:13 says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles.” There is no such thing as a Gentile being saved and not becoming part of the Body of Christ. The moment they believed, they were indwelt by the Holy Spirit and placed into the same body as every other believer.

Paul persecuted the church of God.....what church?.......it was the church formed by Christ and his disciples....Christ called it the little flock.....this church operated before Paul was converted and before Christ started forming the body of Christ at that time........the Gentiles in Acts 10 believed the preaching of Peter and were in the believing remnant not the body of Christ

 

[Doug]

You also claimed that Peter was preaching a different gospel than Paul, but that directly contradicts Galatians 1:8–9, which warns that if anyone preaches another gospel, they are accursed.

Look at this verse........[Gal 1:9 KJV] 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any [man] preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
If any preach unto YOU.....this is very specific........someone preaching a different gospel to those who received Paul's gospel would be the ones accursed..............Peter preached to Israel
Paul was not antagonistic to Peter and acknowledged his apostleship in Galatians 2:8 and they decided to separate their ministries in Galatians 2:9

 

[Doug]

Peter preached the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ in Acts 10:39–41.

[Act 10:39 KJV] 39 And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
Peter is not preaching that Christ died for our sins.....he is accusing them of killing their Messiah

[Act 10:40 KJV] 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
Peter is only saying he was raised and they were witnesses'......he never says he was raised for our justification as Paul does in Romans 4:25.......his resurrection was in the prophets in Psalm 16:10.....which Peter referenced in Acts 2:31
Peter preached his resurrection not for our justification but to sit on David's throne in his kingdom on earth in Acts 2:30

 

[Doug]

Saying the Great Commission was not given to the Body of Christ is also off base. Jesus commanded His followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19),

Jesus DID NOT tell his followers to obey this "commission" he commanded the eleven apostles

 

[Doug]

Paul echoed this same mission in 2 Corinthians 5:20, saying we are ambassadors for Christ.

We are indeed ambassadors but we are not preaching the gospel of the kingdom as in Matthew 24:14

 

[Doug]

Ephesians 4:4–5 says there is one body and one baptism,

The one baptism is not water it is being baptized by the Spirit.................[1Co 12:13 KJV] 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether [we be] Jews or Gentiles, whether [we be] bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.