Peter And Cornelius

On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. But he became hungry and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance; and he saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air. A voice came to him, "Get up, Peter, kill and eat!" But Peter said, "By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean." Again a voice came to him a second time, "What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy." This happened three times, and immediately the object was taken up into the sky. Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in mind as to what the vision which he had seen might be, behold, the men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for Simon's house, appeared at the gate; and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. While Peter was reflecting on the vision, the Spirit said to him, "Behold, three men are looking for you. "But get up, go downstairs and accompany them without misgivings, for I have sent them Myself."*   As a good Jew, Peter had been taught since he was a little boy that he could eat what God considered clean but he could not eat what God considered unclean. It was considered a sin against God to eat anything unclean. The Jewish people also looked at Gentiles as unclean in the same way as food. Remember a Gentile is any one who is not a Jew. A good clean Jew never associated with a unclean Gentile. Now things are changing and God wants Peter to understand that the Lord Jesus can make the Gentiles clean. The good news is that God makes us clean. Acts 10:9-20 (NASB)

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