Acts 10:1-23
The distance from Joppa to Caesarea was about 30 miles. Men could reasonably walk about three miles an hour, so that distance is a ten-hour journey. So on day 1 Cornelius has a vision around 3 pm. On day 2 the three men travel to Joppa and stay overnight. On day 3 Peter and the three men and other men from Joppa travel to Caesarea. So it’s day 4 before Peter and Cornelius spend time together – tomorrow’s reading. I am recounting all this to point out that God is not limited by time and distance. You may recall that this was a message we heard a week ago when our missionaries from Egypt spoke to us. If God were concerned with efficiency, he could have had Cornelius contact another apostle, Philip, who very possibly (very likely!) lived in Caesarea (Acts 8:40) and Philip could have come over the same day! But clearly God was working with Peter and it would be through Peter that the apostolic leaders in Jerusalem could extend a hand of discipleship to the Gentiles.
See also: February 8 / Acts 10:1-8; February 9 / Acts 10:9-16; February 10 / Acts 10:17-23
I love the book of Acts of the Holy Spirit. Peter is already starting to get past the rules in staying with a tanner (“unclean” Jewish believer). He has a vision about eating all types of “unclean” foods. Then he is told to go to the Roman centurion (“unclean” gentile). These are mind-boggling to any Jewish believer, all in one story.
Cornelius is a centurion with the Italian cohort, from Rome itself or Italy, a home boy who likely returned to Rome. While Pentecost and the persecutions spread the gospel to some Jewish believers in Rome before Peter or Paul got there, what are the chances that God picked Cornelius to share with other gentile Romans and some in the legion, like the devout soldier who accompanied his servants to get Peter? Jesus had already healed a centurion’s daughter. Cornelius? Another that Cornelius knew since it is likely that centurions had a network? The Spirit is on the move!
Good comment, Debbie. I love reading between the lines, or more’s the case with your comment, reading well outside the lines! I had never imagined that Cornelius, the “centurion from the Roman/Italian cohort” may well have returned with his regiment/cohort to Rome as a converted Gentile. That’s interesting!
Debbie’s comment about Centurions having a network also started me thinking about the two Centurions.
The Centurion in Luke 7:1-10, appears to be reaching out to Jesus out of desperation to cure his beloved servant (like Debbie, I originally thought the Centurion was Jairus with a sick daughter but Jairus was a synagogue ruler). Jesus cures the servant from a distance because of the Centurion’s faith. But there is no indication of what faith the Centurion had other than he was convinced that Jesus had authority from God to heal.
In contrast, the Centurion in Acts 10 is said to be devout and God fearing who gives alms to those in need. He is also said to be respected by all Jewish people. It seems unlikely that Jews and early Christians would refer to someone who is faithful to the Roman gods (including the Emperor’s cult) to be God fearing and devout. Also, giving alms to Jewish people in need doesn’t sound like high tenets of the Roman religion. This Centurion is not desperately seeking a cure, he appears to be stepping out of his spiritual background to actively seek God. This is speculation, but it seems to me that he is probably influenced by speaking with Jews about the Jewish religion (which is so much more sophisticated and deeper than the Roman religion). And if Philip (whichever one??) is in the neighborhood of Caesarea, this Centurion likely has heard him speak as well. It is also logical to conclude that word of a miraculous healing by Jesus of another Centurion’s servant would have made the rounds, and this Centurion would have heard about it and been intrigued.
So, two Centurions at two different places on their spiritual journey. Our God meets both of them where they are and is inviting both of them in. We have a loving and gracious God who seeks us!
Just a thought – Peter, of course, is the ultimate “closer” to bring the 2nd Centurion to God. But there must have been many other influencers of this Centurion along the way to cause him to seek God further. Sometimes, when we step out and share our faith with someone who doesn’t seem to be interested, perhaps we are also planting a seed that will help the person become a seeker later or be more receptive to a “closer”.
Fred,
Just a minor point of clarification… In your post you call Philip in Caesarea an apostle, but — as you pointed out in your July 9 post — that Philip is “Deacon Philip” (aka “Philip the Evangelist”), not the Apostle Philip (i.e., one of the Twelve, whom we otherwise see in the Gospels). Of course, your point about God’s apparent lack of concern for efficiency remains the same regardless. For whatever reason, God chose to use Peter to convey His message to Cornelius rather than using someone closer to hand. Nevertheless, it is sometimes easy to confuse folks with the same name (e.g., multiple Johns, Jameses, and Philips), but it pays to keep them straight.
Good comment, John. So you’ve got me wondering and I went back to chapter 8; a few days ago I commented on Deacon Philip traveling to Samaria, but there’s no clarification as to whether that Philip was the deacon or the apostle. But Philip traveling to Samaria in chapter 8 follows so closely to Stephen’s martyrdom in chapter 7 that we (and Bible scholars) naturally conclude that it was Philip the deacon, not Philip the apostle.
The case for the Philip in Acts 8 being “Deacon Philip” and not “Apostle Philip” is stronger than just having his story follow that of Stephen. Acts 8:1 explicitly states that the apostles stayed in Jerusalem, while the rest of the church was scattered. But this Philip is “out and about” preaching the gospel (the “euaggelion” in Greek — hence, “Philip the Evangelist”) away from Jerusalem.