Session 8: Breaking Barriers (11:1-28)
In a previous session we noted that the first disciples and all of the apostles were Jewish from Palestine. The members of the first church in Jerusalem were all Jewish. Even though we have the work of Philip with the Ethiopian and the work among the Samaritans, the church continued to be Jewish. Apparently no one, not even the apostles, considered that the gospel could be for non-Jews as well. This session shows how the Holy Spirit broke the racial and religious barriers so that all people who believed in Jesus could be accepted into the Christian fellowship.
Read 10:1-8
1. How was Cornelius? __________________________________________________
2. How is Cornelius described? ____________________________________________
3. Who spoke to Cornelius and what was the message? _________________________
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4. What was Cornelius response? __________________________________________
Read 10:9-16
5. Where was Peter and what was he doing? __________________________________
6. What did Peter see in his vision? _________________________________________
7. What instructions did Peter get with the vision? _____________________________
8. What was the significance of the content of the sheet that Peter saw?
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9. What was Peter’s response? What did these actions show about Peter’s personal religious convictions?
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10. What was God’s response to Peter? _____________________________________
11. An adage says, “Follow the last instructions given.” How does this relate to these instructions to Peter and the Old Testament dietary laws?
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12. How many times was this action repeated for Peter’s benefit? _________________
13. Why was it important for God to repeat this several times? ___________________
Read 10:17:33
14. What instructions did God give Peter about the men who came to see him?
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15. Did Peter hesitate about accompanying the men to Caesarea? ________________
16. How did Cornelius respond to meeting Peter? _____________________________
17. What was Peter’s response to Cornelius action? ____________________________
18. How did Peter show that he now understood the vision he had received about clean and unclean things?
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Read 10:34-43
19. What did Peter say was the basis for being acceptable to God?
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20. Who did Peter say were the witnesses to all that Jesus had proclaimed?
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21. What did Peter say was the mission of those who had witnessed Jesus ministry and life?
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22. What happened to those who heard Peter’s message? _______________________
23. What was the response by the other Jews who had accompanied Peter to these events?
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24. How did Peter respond to the other Jews? _________________________________
25. What did Peter command for these new believers? __________________________
In today’s session, we see how a barrier was breached when Peter was willing to share the gospel with the Gentiles and they believed in Jesus as Lord and Savior and were baptized. Another barrier was broken when the Jerusalem Jews were willing to accept the authenticity of the Gentiles’ conversion. Until these barriers were broken the Christian movement remained a segment of Judaism.
Are there barriers that prevent our church from reaching our community? If so, what must we do to overcome them? Each of us must examine our own hearts to see if we harbor resentments to spring from personal prejudices and then seek repentance for desiring to exclude some from God’s family. As each of us seeks to fulfill the Great Commission to make disciples of the entire world, then our church becomes a manifestation of the will of all and thus we can willingly proclaim Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of the entire world.