God compelled Peter to go to the house Cornelius and preach the gospel — to not just a Gentile, but a commander in an occupying army!
(Act 10:34-43 ESV) 34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”
The fact that God shows no partiality is fundamental to his nature.
(Deu 10:17 ESV) 17 For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.
(Rom 2:9-11 ESV) 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality.
(Col 3:11 ESV) 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.
It’s astonishing, isn’t it, that despite this clear revelation about the nature of God, Christians in all ages have included bigots of all sorts. Somewhere we missed the point that Gentiles (such as myself and nearly all my readers) are only saved due to the impartiality of God. And so, we must be impartial because God is impartial, and yet we’re often not at all. It just shows how far removed from the scriptures we can be.
36 “As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.”
Peter next testifies that God preached “good news” through Jesus, who is Messiah and “Lord of all” (a term reserved for God!) and how Jesus “went about doing good and healing.” Notice that one sign that God is with Jesus is that he did good works. How will those we meet know whether God is with us?
“They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.”
We understand why Peter preached the crucifixion and the resurrection. But why mention that he was hanged “on a tree”? Well, Peter is referring to —
(Deu 21:22-23 ESV) 22 “And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, 23 his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.”
Like Stephen, Peter is arguing from irony. The Jewish authorities treated Jesus as a criminal who is accursed and who defiled the land, but he is in fact the One who removes the curse and who provides the true Israel the true inheritance.
42 “And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Finally, Peter comes to the traditional ending for a gospel sermon! He urges his listeners to have faith in Jesus to receive forgiveness of sins.
Now, as we’ve covered here many times, “faith” in this context is not merely intellectual assent. Peter, as always, is urging a change of loyalties. “Faith” includes the idea of faithfulness. To be faithful to Jesus is to submit to him as Lord. After all, he will judge the living and the dead!
But even here, the promise of forgiveness of sins is expressed in terms of the Old Testament prophets. Faith leads to forgiveness because this is the path into the new covenant and the Kingdom.
(Jer 31:34 ESV) 34 “And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
(Zec 13:1-2 ESV) “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness. 2 “And on that day, declares the LORD of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness.”
And so, why is faith in Jesus required for forgiveness of sins? The prophets say nothing about believing in Jesus in these passages; they just promise forgiveness for those in the Kingdom.
Ahh … here is one reason we need to understand the story. The Kingdom is no mere metaphor. It’s realm with a king. And you can only be a citizen of a kingdom if you submit to the authority of the king.
Obviously, that means we must acknowledge that the True King really is king! You can’t bow to an office. You bow to person.
Thus, you can’t enter the Kingdom until you agree that Jesus is the king, that is, the Messiah, that is, the Christ, and submit to his authority, that is, have faith in him, that is, be faithful to him.
Faith in the king of the kingdom is not a new concept added by the apostles. It’s the nature of a kingdom! But we have abstracted the “kingdom” so severely that it just means “church,” which is where you perform “five acts of worship.”
Rather, to enter the kingdom, you must declare your allegiance to its king, recognizing that this king will tolerate no mixed loyalties. There are no dual citizenships.
Therefore, the “five-step plan of salvation” understates the nature of the commitment. We tend to think of “repent” as “stop sinning” and “attend the right church regularly.” And those aren’t so much wrong — they’re not — as incomplete. To repent includes to stop serving Satan and to instead serve Jesus by participating in his redemptive mission. We enter his story to share in resolving the same conflicts he is working to resolve.
To repent is to kneel before Jesus, King of the Universe, and pledge your life and all that you have to him.
(Mat 10:35-39 ESV) 35 “For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
(John 12:25-26 ESV) 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
Jay, to what extent do you believe God "calls" sinners today as He did with Cornelius?
Have you ever sung the song, "To God be the Glory" ?? Verse 2:
O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
That Fanny was such a progressive…:)
good morning Jay
thought you deserved by way of yesterday’s little quiz,:-) the answer.
every time i ask this question ….
every one loses it…. it is kinda funny to me…
although,i have issues as we know.
i just think it is a simple question.
and if dumb ole me can answer the thing what,s the problem’ ya know it’s just a simple question.
Of course no one wants to stay on track.
but deviate into catch phrases,which do not apply.
and i bring them back on track.
which was no fun for anyone…
so…
if i were you,
and you knew the answer,
i would say:
RICH.
that question is non sequitor,
but then watch out now,
you gotta know why
and i do…
just kinda-sorta funny…to me….
so Jay
here is the answer
now then to take away fulfillment is to strip Christ of his faithfulness to the word of god
as the servant for the purpose of the promise
through grace
also ROM 15.8.
and to lay bare the work’s of
law to the attainment of righteousness by
merit. which is contrary to scripture
hence it is grace(gods promised blessing)by
faith,(my righteous one by faith shall live)ROM-1:17
ROM 9:30-32
gods righteousness which is by faith
and god being no respecter of a person
ROM 5:18 even while doing a righteous act the law made Jesus cursed of the father, and raised because of his faithfulness to the will of the father
blessings
etc. we are called to bring the Christ’s faith
through the gospel and receive the spirit
by acting as Christ according to the light of the love of Christ in us
the law of god is nullified through that faith
of Christ in each of us
zealous of good works
reciprocating the love of god through faith
GAL.
3
3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming26 a curse for us (because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)27 3:14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles,28 so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.
Inheritance Comes from Promises and not Law
3:15 Brothers and sisters, I offer an example from everyday life: When a covenant has been ratified, even though it is only a human contract, no one can set it aside or add anything to it. 3:16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. Scripture does not say, “and to the descendants, referring to many, but “and to your descendant,” referring to one, who is Christ. 3:17 What I am saying is this: The law that came four hundred thirty years later does not cancel a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to invalidate the promise. 3:18 For if the inheritance is based on the law, it is no longer based on the promise, but God graciously gave it to Abraham through the promise.
3:19 Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the descendant to whom the promise had been made. It was administered43 through angels by an intermediary. 3:20 Now an intermediary is not for one party alone, but God is one. 3:21 Is the law therefore opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 3:22 But the scripture imprisoned everything and everyone49 under sin so that the promise could be given – because of the faithfulness of Jesus Christ – to those who believe.
JAY
was our Lord righteous by law or by promise…
and hence grace….
do hope you like this concept…their is a big bunch more…this should do for a start
blessings 🙂
rich constant
WE ARE ALL sinners just justified through the grace of god by his faithful son.
hence god saw the righteous deeds of Cornelius and sent peter to tell him the good news.
upon belief in the fathers work he received the gift as all do…
although immediately following PETER COMMANDED ORDERED ALL TO BE BAPTIZED.
a contingency of the great commission.
god is no respecter of persons.
and he never changes.
as in Amos 9
not one good seed will be lost,
Amo 9:8 Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the LORD.
Amo 9:9 For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
Amo 9:10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.
Amo 9:11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
along with ROM 9
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
Rom 9:25 As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved.
Rom 9:26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.
god sees the Spirit guides us to the the lost …
I think an interesting series related to this would be speculation on what happens to those who die without ever hearing about the Good News or hear a misrepresentation of what the Good News really is that they reject because they assume that was true Christianity when it wasn't. No doubt the Gospel is real, but what hints does God leave about this besides Romans 1 and 2 Thess. 1 which kind of contradict each other.
In a few days I'll put up two posts on Rom 5 that will directly address exactly that questionSent from my iPhone
WE ARE ALL sinners just justified through the grace of god by his faithful son.
when reading ROM.1
1-7 predicates the theme…
try reading 1:8-17 in conjunction with ROM 16:25-27
now then read ROM 3 god is faithful ROM 3:3 rom3:21-22
CAREFUL ATTENTION to the BUT NOW…also whose faithfulness
the difference ?
anthropocentric or christocintric:
is my salvation a work of what i believe
or what the lord did for me..
3:21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (which is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed –
3:22 namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Adam —
Maxey and Garrett (if you are doing your studying within COC walls) have written some interesting stuff on "available light". Similar to what Alabama John is suggesting. It's basically the Caveman argument: So are you saying a loving God would destroy a Caveman that existed in 34 A.D. and never got to hear the Good News? The "available light" doctrine (too strong of a word?) is an attempt to answer that question in a thoughtful way without saying, "Were they baptized? Did they even have faith? Obviously, they are in hell."
I like the idea of the Kingdom of God being where the King lives. If the King lives in your neighborhood, in your Church, in You… there should be evidence of His existance because every King has an agenda and goals for His Kingdom. IMO, a Church that exists only to provide Sunday Services is on shaky grounds evidence wise.
looking forward to Rom 5
let's just remember god is good,righteous,and merciful judge not wishing any to to be lost.
we might like to know more than we are capable of finding out just because of our
sociological predisposition to have blind spots because of a theological hermetic
ripe in the system of an anthropological ontological hermeneutics.
now then some body explain what i just said please…
richconstant
Will ThoseWho have Never Heard the Gospel be Lost?
http://apologeticspress.org/pdfs/courses_pdf/hsc0…
Price,Different people use “calls” in different senses. Paul and Jesus speak in terms of people being “called,” and so I believe people are called. It’s just a question of what “calls” means.
Check out — /2009/10/election-those-he-called/
/2009/10/election-those-he-called-part-2-paul/
There aren’t many cases where I disagree with both Al Maxey and Leroy Garrett, but I can’t find the “available light” doctrine in the scriptures. I covered this a while back at <a href="/index-under-construction/theology-general/available-light//index-under-construction/t… />I’ll address it more briefly in a couple of posts on Romans 5 soon to appear.Then again, I don’t accept the traditional view of eternal, conscious torment for all who never accept the gospel.
J
that link didn"t work for me…
Christ reigns as king over all the earth and head of the church. The “kingdom” certainly includes the church, but it is a much larger concept than the church. Christ is “King of kings and Lord of lords”, but not all kings and lords are “members of the church.”
We know in our Bible of what God did in basically the mideast with the Jews or Israel and then the Christians in that small area of the world because God tells us that is enough.
What, if anything, He did in other areas and times of the world we do not know.
There were people in our America thousands of years before Jesus was born, much less other parts of the world.
We also know Jesus was seen many years on this earth before he was born on this earth like the fire that went before them, the rock Moses struck, etc.
When Jesus, who could cover long distances, disappear and appear at will, after His crucifixion appeared to hundreds how do we know who those were and where in the world they were? Don’t limit Gods territory on earth. There are peoples far from the Mideast that tell stories of God that came to them in various disguises like the did the children in the wilderness and we all know we humans have a mental makeup for worshiping God, born with it..
Lets agree to let God do the judging.
We all are so ignorant of this subject and we of the Church of Christ have made ourselves look bad to the rest of the world for letting on we have all the answers. We do not!
No telling our marveling at how active He’s been on this earth without our knowledge when we get to heaven and hear THE REST OF THE STORY!!!.
So much could of been written that the world wouldn’t hold the books. Must be a lot we don’t know in those books.