Good morning. So the men told Peter about Cornelius who was
righteous and God-fearing who was divinely directed by a holy angel to send for
Peter to come to his house and hear a message. So he invited them in and gave
them lodging. They went to Caesarea where Cornelius was waiting for them with
his relatives and close friends. Thank about it: Cornelius had no guarantee
that Peter was coming; yet he was so confident that he brought together those
that mattered to him; for he wanted them to also hear the message of salvation.
Would we do that, if we were in his shoes? When Peter entered, Cornelius fell
at his feet and worshiped him. Peter told him to stand up; I too am just a man.
You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with
a foreigner or to visit him (it is this very issue that got Peter in trouble
later); and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or
unclean. It is too bad that throughout the ages since then that people have not
realized that. That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was
sent for. So I ask for what reason you have sent for me. Cornelius then
explains all about the vision of the angel and why he sent for Peter. So I sent
for you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are
all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the
Lord. Talk about an audience who was ready to hear the message of salvation!
Peter almost did not even have to give a message, just simply say come to the
altar. Next time we will see how he responded. Father send someone to our
friends and relatives who do not believe with the message of salvation. Prepare
their hearts to receive it and to make Jesus Lord of their lives!
Merry Christmas!
Good morning, and Merry Christmas! We are going to digress and look at the first Christmas. This was something that had been foretold centuries before; and yet people still did not understand what was going to happen. They were thinking that the Messiah was going to come as an adult and was going to re-establish the nation of Israel above all other nations. They were not expecting Him to come as a baby, supposedly born to a carpenter and placed in a manger. Many things had to happen at precisely the right time. You had to have the right person to be His mother and the right person to be His supposed father. You had to have a reason for them to be in Bethlehem on the night He was born – the census. It had to be when shepherds would be in the field near Bethlehem watching their flocks. And just at the right time – an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before the shepherds, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. And the angel said to them...
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