Introduction
• Sometimes the hardest person to convince isn’t the outsider—it’s the insider
• In Acts 10, God prepared the heart of Cornelius, a Gentile Roman soldier, to receive the message of the gospel. He was ready, but there was a problem. Peter, one of the disciples Jesus commissioned to take the good news to the ends of the earth, did not want to change.
• What we learn from the hard-headedness of Peter can inform how we should be willing to change and grow today.
• I’m Brent, and this is episode 56 of The Bible Unplugged. We take a look at the experiences and attitudes of Peter as God changes his heart and mind about taking the good news of Jesus to a population Peter didn’t want to be around.
• Please take a minute to look at the show notes for this episode at PowerLoveandMiracles.com. While you are there, check out my devotional series that I publish Monday through Friday.
Background
• In episode 55 we looked at the experience of Cornelius and how God prepared his already open and willing heart to hear about Jesus from Peter, the Apostle. Cornelius was immediately ready to uphold his end of the relationship but not so for Peter.
Peter’s Vision
• Acts 10:9-16 tell us about a vision Peter experienced the day after Cornelius’ sent his men.
• Peter went on top of the house he was in to pray. While he was there he got hungry. While he was waiting on his dinner he fell into a trance. He saw a container being lowered from heaven that contained an assortment of animals the Jews were forbidden from eating under Jewish law.
• A voice told him to kill and eat the animals. Peter, in his usual style, argued. He had never eaten anything unclean. The voice said, “What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean.” Acts 10:16 tells us that Peter refused three times.
• It’s important to note that Peter never accepted the message during the vision. That will come later.
Peter’s Reaction
• In Acts 10:17-23, Peter was still perplexed about the meaning of the vision when Cornelius’ men came to the house and asked to speak to Peter.
• The Holy Spirit told Peter to go with these men. Don’t doubt, just do. Peter invited them in for the night and left with them and some men from Joppa, where Peter was.
• This invitation to stay is an understated seismic shift in Peter’s worldview. The vision Peter had was a direct confrontation to his attitudes about doing anything outside his Jewish world, like eating unclean animals. To invite Gentiles, especially Roman soldiers, into the home where he was staying was evidence that Peter’s wall of separation was cracking.
Jewish Attitudes about Gentiles
• The Jews distanced themselves from Gentiles in every aspect of life.
• Jewish tradition considered Gentiles “unclean.” Entering a Gentile home or worse, inviting a Gentile into a Jewish home, risked being considered defiled and disqualified from participating in many rituals.
• Jews would not eat meals with Gentiles for the same reason. Sharing meals was a sign of covenant solidarity to the Jews. Eating with Gentiles could be construed as compromising with idolatry or impurity.
• Peter’s invitation to these men showed that he was already changing his view in spite of a lifetime of training and practice.
Comparing Cornelius and Peter
• The contrast between Cornelius and Peter is striking
• Cornelius was devout in his own right as Peter was. Cornelius risked ridicule from his own people for participating in the Jewish religion, but he was willing to reach out to Peter immediately.
• Peter faced several challenges, though.
• He had to overcome a lifetime of religious, cultural, and social habits to even think about associating with Gentiles.
• His risked rejection from his own people for accepting a non-Jew.
• Peter was harder to convince than Cornelius. Peter argued and rejected the meaning of his vision. God repeated the command in the vision three times before Peter began to change.
• Cornelius was waiting for and willing to accept what God had to offer through Peter.
• Peter was still resisting, though. He was trying to figure out what this vision meant, but God told him to go with the men who were coming to him and to doubt nothing. Peter was commanded to overcome the hardheadedness that had gotten him into trouble in the past.
What Do We Learn from This?
• Having strong beliefs and attitudes helps us maintain a consistent life, but these beliefs can also get in the way of changing and growing. We should be open to learning what God shows us and not reject a new idea because of our entrenched beliefs.
• God worked in and through Cornelius differently than with Peter. God knows what and how we need to change and grow. Be sensitive to what God is trying to teach you. Pray for a willing heart and a confirmation that God is behind this change.
• Inner transformation goes through phases in us just as it did in Peter.
• Confrontation of attention-getting– seeing the unclean animals caused Peter to resist the meaning of the vision, but it got his attention.
• Time and repetition for the meaning to settle- God repeated the command three times before Peter began to change his heart
• Absorbing the new idea– Peter was perplexed afterward and wondered what the vision meant
• Application– God gave Peter an immediate opportunity to apply his new learning
What Do We Do with This?
• Learn about your own entrenched beliefs and ideas. Make a list of things you firmly believe about the Bible and how God relates to you. Study these beliefs. Look up the relevant verses in the Bible. You may find that some of your long-held beliefs aren’t quite accurate.
• What types of people do you feel are not as worthy of being in your church as your current members? What does God have to say about that? Make it a point to get to know a new visitor who may feel uncomfortable being there. Both of you will benefit from it.
• What uncomfortable and persistent feelings have you experienced recently? God may be trying to get you attention and help you grow in new and amazing ways.
The conclusion
• Yes, we have reached the end of this episode, but I’ve got a lot more on the way.
• I hope this has been helpful. If so, take a minute to give this podcast a high rating and share it with someone you know.
• In the next episode we continue the story with Peter’s visit to Cornelius. Peter, and the whole church, changed directions in meaningful ways that day.
• My prayer for you is that you will be sensitive to God’s attempt to get your attention and that you will be transformed in the process.
• Have a blessed week.
The disclaimers
• Just to let you know:
• All opinions are my own. If you agree, keep listening. If you don’t… keep listening. If you listen long enough you’ll agree with something I say.
• All Bible quotations come from the World English Bible which is a public domain work.
• Our show theme song is “Awesome Call” by Kevin MacLeod and is available under a Creative Commons license.
• The content of this podcast is copyrighted 2025 by J. Brent Eaton
• This has been a Power Love and Miracles production.
