42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. 43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. 44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word (Acts 10:42-44).
In this passage Cornelius, a Roman centurion, had summoned Peter to hear the Gospel. Cornelius had received a vision to call upon Peter, and Peter had also been instructed to spread the good news of the Gospel to the Gentiles. We now know in light of scripture that this was God’s plan from the beginning, a plan to have a people from all nations. But at the time, this was a huge change in thinking for the followers of Jesus. They were Jews and there was no thought that they should interact with Gentiles. The command however from Christ before His ascension was to make disciples of people from all nations. Notice too that the Holy Spirit is present and working to bring about conversion. Conversion is always an act of God, a gracious act of God to individual people, who in turn repent. These people are set apart by God for their good and His glory.
In this passage Cornelius, a Roman centurion, had summoned Peter to hear the Gospel. Cornelius had received a vision to call upon Peter, and Peter had also been instructed to spread the good news of the Gospel to the Gentiles. We now know in light of scripture that this was God’s plan from the beginning, a plan to have a people from all nations. But at the time, this was a huge change in thinking for the followers of Jesus. They were Jews and there was no thought that they should interact with Gentiles. The command however from Christ before His ascension was to make disciples of people from all nations. Notice too that the Holy Spirit is present and working to bring about conversion. Conversion is always an act of God, a gracious act of God to individual people, who in turn repent. These people are set apart by God for their good and His glory.
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