A Study of Acts: Cornelius Has a Vision
Acts 10:1-8 - God provides a way if we are looking for His light.
“Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually. About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in and said to him, “Cornelius!” And fixing his gaze on him and being much alarmed, he said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God. Now dispatch some men to Joppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter; he is staying with a tanner named Simon, whose house is by the sea.” When the angel who was speaking to him had left, he summoned two of his servants and a devout soldier of those who were his personal attendants, and after he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.”
Acts 10:1-8 NASB1995
Acts 10 contains another one of those pivotal events in the development of the early church. This first passage concerns a centurion named Cornelius, who was stationed in Caesarea. Caesarea was about 30 miles north of Joppa, as noted on this map:
Cornelius was part of an Italian cohort. So what is a centurion? Here’s a great answer from Gotquestions.org:
During the New Testament era, a Roman centurion was a professional military officer commanding a platoon of troops called a “century.” This could be anywhere from nearly one hundred to several hundred men. Each Roman legion was composed of nearly 5,000 men, divided into multiple cohorts, each cohort composed of multiple centuries. As a result, a legion could contain as many as sixty centurions. Their importance was based on seniority, with the senior centurion in a legion being in a position of great prestige. Some historians have compared the top-level centurions to medieval knights. Roman centurions represented the bridge between enlisted troops and commissioned officers, in much the same way as warrant officers do in the modern U.S. military.
Soldiers were appointed as centurions by virtue of their bravery, loyalty, character, and prowess in battle. Centurions were held to high standards of conduct and were expected to fight on the front lines with their men. In fact, the centurion’s designated place in formation was at the end of the very front row. As a result, Roman centurions were well paid and held in high esteem, and they experienced high rates of injury and death during war. The combination of wealth, power, and prestige made them influential in society.
What is most intriguing about Cornelius is that he was a believer in a monotheistic God, the God of the Jewish people. He has set aside the typical Roman beliefs in many gods and is a devout follower (along with his household), giving alms and praying continuously. He was not a full convert to the Jewish faith and was still considered a Gentile. This event happens right after the miracles that Peter performed in Lydda and Joppa; some commentators estimate the timeframe to be about A.D. 40.
In spite of Cornelius and his faith, he is not yet saved. He has done many of the right things, but does not know about Jesus yet. His prayers and alms have risen up like incense (a memorial) to God and God responds by sending Cornelius a vision of an angel. This does not mean that we must do good works to get God’s attention, but Cornelius is seeking the true light and God provides a way for him and his household to be saved. An angel of God appears before Cornelius. This centurion, who had likely been in battle many times, is alarmed when he hears his name spoken. He answers humbly, “What is it, Lord?” The angel tells Cornelius about the man named Simon (also known as Peter) who is staying at the house of Simon the Tanner in Joppa. The angel tells Cornelius to send men to this house to bring Peter to Caesarea.
Do you notice something interesting here? The angel doesn’t preach the Gospel to Cornelius! He arranges for Cornelius to hear the Gospel from another man! This commentary, which was linked from Precept Austin, is superb (by Jack Arnold);
“About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in to him, and said to him, ‘Cornelius!’ And fixing his gaze upon him and being much alarmed, he said, ‘What is it, Lord?’ And he said to him, ‘Your prayers and alms have ascended as a manorial [memorial] before God. And now dispatch some men to Joppa, and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter; he is staying with a certain tanner named Simon, whose house is by the sea.’” -- Cornelius was praying at the regular three o'clock afternoon prayer time when an angel appeared to him. Perhaps Cornelius was praying with an aching heart something like this, “Oh, God, if I could only know you personally! If you would only fill the void in my life!” He was not expecting an angel and he was startled but he kept his cool and replied in good military fashion, “What is it, Sir?” (“Lord” can be translated “Sir“). The angel then made a statement that seems at first glance to indicate Cornelius merited something from God. He said, “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God.” This, however, does not imply that Cornelius somehow did something to merit his salvation, for the Bible says, “We have all gone astray, We have turned, everyone, to his own way” (Isa. 53:6). This does, however, imply that when a man seeks God (as he is being drawn by God) he will find God. God was merely taking note of a hungry heart, a searching soul, for the Bible does say, “He who seeks finds” (Matt. 7:8). God never says, “Seek Me in vain!” No, if a man will follow the light he does have, he will receive more light until he finds Christ and then his search for salvation will end.
My own quest for salvation was something like that of Cornelius's search. I was born in a pagan, non-Christian home, but from my youth I knew there was a God. In my youth I attended the Mormon Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Christian Science Church. At one point in high school, I said the Lord's Prayer every night. I went to a liberal church occasionally and attended a youth group regularly, but I never heard the gospel. I even did a few good deeds. In college I was still searching and I heard about Christ my freshman year. At that time I made some kind of superficial, external profession of Christ, but I was not saved. I even gave my testimony and people were blessed, but I was not converted. Finally, in my junior year at college, Christ came into my life and I took Him as my Lord and Savior. From that time, I stopped searching for a personal relationship with God because I had found it through Christ.
Notice how God gets the gospel to Cornelius. He did not do it through an angel. Why didn't God just have the angel tell Cornelius about Christ? Because God has commissioned men, not angels, to preach the good news of Christ to this world. God sent an angel to Cornelius but he tells him where he can find a man who can tell him about true salvation in Christ. God has ordained, beloved, that the gospel should be preached by men like you and me. What a humbling thought and what a high responsibility.
Cornelius immediately sends two servants and a devoted soldier to Joppa, after telling them what has happened. God knows exactly where Peter is residing and the angel even distinguishes between Simon (Peter) and Simon the Tanner. Peter will now be the recipient of a vision from God (three times!) as I explore Acts 10:9-16 in my next devotional.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I am so grateful to know that I was seeking Your light and You provided ways to bring me into salvation! I love you, Lord! Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Gotquestions.org was accessed on 10/07/2024 to answer the question, “What is a centurion?”
Precept Austin was accessed on 10/07/2024 to review commentary for Acts 10:1-8.