1At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. 2He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. 3One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked.
The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.”
7When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. 8He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.–Acts 10
- Some people would pay anything get a vision experience from God.
- Remember, the book of Acts is not prescriptive. We are not living to get visions. We have the Bible and it is all we need.
- With that said, Cornelius had a reputation for generosity and faith.
- God had paid attention to Cornelius’ life and practice.
- The Memorial Offering in Leviticus was the part of the sacrifice that was burned just for God.
- God therefore saw Cornelius faith and life as special and dedicated to Him. When Cornelius prayed, he was different from his pagan polytheistic colleagues.
- Cornelius was a Centurion, a member of the hated Roman conquering military. And yet, God recognized his faith. God pays attention.–JMB
Joel M Bradshaw 
Leave a comment