Sermon on Acts 10 for 3/16/2014

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Friends, I don't know about you, but the mystery and tragedy surrounding the disappearance of this Malaysian Airlines flight has fascinated me. Whenever planes crash, the tragedy of the situation always overwhelms me as I think of the stories of the people on board. Lives are devoured in the unexpected, and the ripples carry throughout lives, through families, for decades to come.

This situation has proved particular tragic, as the search goes on for the missing plane. There are far more questions than answers, and for so many families the sad saga has drawn on, increasing their pain with each passing day.

It seems as though new information is coming to light with each passing day. One day, we're learning about stolen passports and wondering if that lead will bring us closer to a conclusion. Another day, we're learning about transponders and how they work and whether they would have been turned off. We've learned about the pilots and mysterious radar readings and Chinese satellite images. With every new piece of information, the search changes. One day, people are scouring the sea in one area, and the next another search area has been added. With each passing day and each new piece of information, the reality of the search is transformed, and the search broadens. They initially began searching in one place, and now the area has expanded to include more and more possibilities. It has become a far greater challenge than initially thought.

I'd like to propose that this can be fairly common in life. Often, when you start working through a problem, you believe that things will go one way, and the deeper you get, the more information you learn, and the more the situation changes. By the time you've finished, the solution looks very different then when you first imagined. Have you ever taken a car in for an oil change and then discovered that you need $800 worth of work done? New facts change the situation. My mom recently had someone come do some work on her house, and she's discovered she needs entirely new siding on the house. A rather simple project has transformed into a massive, multi-year undertaking. New facts change our mission.

In the early church, everyone was Jewish. Even Jesus was Jewish, a fact that is often forgotten by the church. Christ didn't come to set up a new church—he came to reform Judaism. The disciples, all Jewish, wanted to convince their Jewish communities to believe that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. The Jewish tradition had been anticipating the coming of Christ for centuries—Jesus was the realization of the promise made to the Jews. While Jesus constantly reached across established societal lines, the early church, that group of disciples trying to be faithful after the ascension of Jesus, was still primarily focused on the Jewish community.

But new facts changed their mission.

Here, in Acts 10, we see the introduction of something new, a transformation that is going to alter the direction and focus of the early church. God sends visions to two men, Peter and Cornelius, and by the end of the chapter, the arc of the church will have fundamentally changed and the focus will no longer be merely on the Jews—it will now include the Gentiles, meaning you and I. We are directly affected by this story.

<Read Acts 10:1-16>

So Peter and Cornelius, a Roman centurion who is devout towards God and humble towards others, both have visions when they are praying. Notice when this happens—when they are praying. I do not believe this is an insignificant point. If you want to hear from God, you need to put yourself in position to listen to God. You need to pray more. I need to pray more. We can't complain that God never speaks if we're not busy listening.

Cornelius gets the easier vision—he is called to bring Peter to his house, even though he doesn't know why. Peter has the tough one, a vision that threatens to undermine the Jewish dietary laws that serve to separate Jews from the larger community. This is a core part of their identity, and Peter doesn't understand why he's being asked to set it apart. This will all become clear later, as God is setting the stage to have nothing outside that distinguishes and defines the community, but rather God is hoping for a community that is primarily defined by worship of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and service to all people.

So Cornelius obeys his vision, and he sends men for Peter. Peter is still trying to work out his original vision when these men show up, and God gives Peter and extra nudge and tells him to go with the men. Peter obeys, and when he arrives at Cornelius' house he asks why he was sent. At this point, Cornelius reveals to Peter the details of his vision from God, and Peter recognizes that God is reaching out to the Gentiles.

New information has changed the direction of the church. The mission has been altered because God has revealed something new to Peter, who suddenly realizes that the church isn't meant to be filled only with the Jews who believe, but with all people who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. The traditions that limited the community are altered because of this new information. Life is transformed.

So Peter begins to preach.

<Read Acts 10:34-43>

This is a foundational shift in the history of the church. No longer do we believe that God shows partiality toward anyone. Everyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to God. It's no longer about having the right background or lineage. You can't be excluded from the community because of your background or heritage or origin—you are welcome if you fear God and do what is right. You belong in the house of God if you're willing to serve others and worship Christ. Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness, regardless of age, race, sex, etc. It's no longer about worldly culture, but it's now about belief in Christ alone.

New information transforms the mission of the church. They're no longer sent by God to just a certain community. They now recognize that they are sent by God to the whole world. Their mission is huge, and only God can make this possible. With this new information, the disciples see God's radical, non-exclusive love in action. The Holy Spirit falls on Cornelius and his entire household, and all are baptized. They are welcomed by Christ into life in Christ.

And so it falls to us, the church today, to look at the world around us. Do we believe that we are sent to the whole world? Are there traditions that are keeping us from serving certain communities, certain people? Is there new information from God that sends us in new ways to proclaim the endless and inclusive love of God? Are we willing to follow God into the world, no matter where he leads, to proclaim salvation in his name alone?

These are all questions we need to wrestle with. We are the reformed church, always being reformed according to the word of God. We need to listen, to pray, and to have the courage to reach out to all the world with the Good News of God's great love.

Let us pray