How Did the Gospel Reach the Gentiles in Acts 10?

   The gospel didn't just stay in Judea.  In Acts 10 we we see the gospel taking a definite turn to the Gentile world. This chapter opens up with a devout, Gentile centurion named Cornelius  praying and then an angel telling him to send for Peter who was staying in Joppa.  Meanwhile back in Joppa, Peter was also praying on the rooftop, and he receives a strange vision of a giant sheet filled with all kinds of animals that are unclean to Jews.  


    It's fascinating that exactly at the same time Peter's thinking about what this strange vision means, Cornelius's men are knocking at the door (Acts 10:22)!  This is a divine coincidence! As the chapter progresses, we can see Peter starting to make connections,  and this is really evident when he tells the ones whom Cornelius has gathered in verse 34-35:  "And opening his  mouth, Peter said, In truth I perceive that God is not a respecter of persons, but in every nation he who fears Him and works righteousness is acceptable to Him."  

    In these chapters Witness Lee points out that Peter and some of the other disciples just couldn't let go of their Jewish background,  and this made it difficult for them to fully get what the Lord was getting at in Acts 1:8 about their being witnesses to the remotest parts of the earth. This excerpt is on page 271:

"Although the disciples heard this word, they did not realize what the Lord was saying.  In this example the Lord Jesus was indicating that the disciples would need to break through the Old Testament dispensation.  From the disciples' experience we see that to hear is one thing, but to realize and experience what we hear is another.  Peter, for example, heard the Lord's word in 1:8, but he nevertheless had difficulty with the Lord's fulfillment of this word" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Acts. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1985, Print).

This Life-Study points out that besides seeing Peter jump a giant cultural hurdle in Acts 10, we also see the Lord fulfilling the word prophesied in Isaiah 42:6B "... I have kept You as a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations" (the Gentiles were called the nations in the Old Testament).  According to the truth in Ephesians 2 ,the Lord's Body is composed of both Jews and Gentiles.  And through Peter's sharing the gospel in Cornelius' home, we  see this starting to happen!  

You can listen to excerpts from the Life Study of Acts along with excellent commentary by tuning into the Life Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.

Other Blogs on the Life Study of Acts:

In the Book of Acts What is Christ Doing in Ascension?
What Does the Early Church Look Like in the Book of Acts?
According to Acts 5:31 What is the Lord Doing as the Ruler of the Earth?
How Did the Lord Spread the Gospel in Acts 8?
What Vision Did Saul Have at His Conversion in Acts 9:3-8?
How Does the Gospel Reach the Gentiles in Acts 10?
How is Acts a Book on God's Move & Prayer?
Seeing God's Move & Satan's Frustration in Acts 14
Prayer, the Spirit, & the Word - The Way the Lord Carries out His Work in the Book of Acts
Seeing God's New Testament Economy in the Book of Acts - Part 1 of 2 
Seeing God's New Testament Economy in the Book of Acts - Part 2 of 2