Thank you for listening to Servants for Christ. In all that we do, in all that we say, we want to give glory and honor to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Thank you for tuning us in as we get into the wonderful Word of God. For the next few minutes, let's take the beautiful Word of God and share it with each and every one of you as we have a sense of anticipation to take the Word of God and to listen to its truth for each and every one. Amen, thank you for tuning us in. I'm Darrell Bailey, Service for Christ. Take your Bibles over to Acts chapter 10, Acts chapter 10. I wanna talk to you about breaking down barriers, breaking down barriers, hallelujah. I'm glad that we look here for the very first time where the salvation gospel comes to the Gentiles. We see that it had been 10 years after Pentecost Up to this time, the gospel had been given to the Jews in Acts chapter two. Then it was given in chapter eight to the Samaritans, half Jew, half Gentile. But now in the 10th chapter of Acts, the door of faith is open to the Gentiles, the non-Jews. And this takes place, again, I say, after 10 years after Pentecost. the transition from ministering to the Jews to the Gentiles was gradual. And I see that when we look at this, we begin to realize that in the world, Prejudice and partiality exist. From the beginning of time, prejudice had existed with Cain and Abel in Genesis chapter four, verse one. Prejudice is everywhere in the world, in every nation, in every state, in every city, in every neighborhood. Prejudice, discrimination even exists within the families between parents and child, brother and sister, family and relatives. Feelings toward and against people are a tragic reality. But we know that there's two basic reasons for prejudice. People differ. They differ in nationality, in color, in belief, in religion, in speech, in looks, in behavior, ability, energy, position, status, social standing, possessions, wealth, birth, heritage. What can I say? Prejudice arises when people feel that they and their differences make them better than others. Now that doesn't make it right. And so people differ. But secondly, mistreatment causes prejudice, both mistreating others and being mistreated. When a person mistreats others or is mistreated by others, their nature is immediately aroused to become prejudicial and judgmental. And that mistreatment that gives rise to prejudice covers a wide range of behavior, ignoring, neglecting, joking, gossiping, opposing, cursing, abusing, fighting against, persecuting, passing over, segregating, and enslaving. Even churches got their own little clique. within the body of Christ, which is sad. But here we see a passage that strikes a fatal blow against prejudice. It shows forever that Jesus Christ has erased all prejudices and barriers between people. Jew and Gentile are now one in Christ Jesus. And the subject of this passage, as it goes into the background and understanding of what just is happening and significant of it all, Here in the book of Acts, you get hot sometimes and you get wet at other times because you're not only keep running into the fire of the Holy Spirit, but you keep falling into the waters of baptism. And no book in the Bible talks more about baptism than the book of Acts. And that ought to be a clue to us of just how important baptism is. Baptism is not just important because a Baptist or a Catholic or a Lutheran thinks it is, but because the Bible says it is. And the Bible talks about baptism no less than 74 times. Whatever else that you believe about baptism, understand baptism was not a Baptist idea. It wasn't a Methodist idea. It wasn't a Presbyterian idea. It wasn't a Episcopalian idea. It wasn't a Catholic idea. It was a Bible idea, hallelujah. And so we reach into the Bible and we look and we realize that here is a great illustration of a man by the name of Cornelius who feared God, but he didn't know God. Huh? He was religious but lost. And so, he was a devoted man, but he was not a saved man. Peter goes and he shares the gospel with him and his household, and he trusts Christ as his Lord and as his Savior. And I'm glad that that's the start of the story. But let's get into the Word of God. In Acts chapter 1, reading down to verse 23, there was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius. a centurion of a band called the Italian Band, a devout man, notice, and one who feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people and prayed to God always. In verse three, he saw in a vision, evidently about the ninth hour of the day, an angel of God coming in to him and saying unto him, Cornelius, In verse four, and when he looked on him, other words, the angel, he was afraid and he said, what is it, Lord? And he said unto him, your prayers and your alms are come up for a memorial before God. In verse five, and now send men to Joppa and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter. In verse six, he lodges with one Simon of Tanner whose house is by the seaside. He shall tell you what you ought to do. In verse seven, and when the angel which spoke unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants and a devout soldier of them who waited on him continually. In verse eight, and when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa. Here we see the vision. That picks up in verse nine. And on the morrow, as they went on their journey and drew near unto the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray about the sixth hour at 12 noon. And he became very hungry and would have eaten. But while they made ready, he fell into a trance. In verse 11, and saw heaven opened. and a certain vessel descended unto him as it had been a great sheet knit at the four quarters and let down to the earth. In verse 12, wherein were all manner of four-footed beast of the earth and of wild beasts and creeping things and fowls of the air. In verse 13, and there came a voice to him, rise Peter, kill and eat. In verse 14, but Peter said, not so Lord, for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean. In verse 15, and the voice spoke unto him again the second time, what God has cleansed that call not thou common. In verse 16, this was done thrice, and the vessel was received up again. into heaven. And verse 17, now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made inquiry for Simon's house and stood before the gate and called and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there. Verse 19, and while Peter thought on the vision, The Holy Spirit said unto him, behold, three men seek you. And verse 20, arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing, for I have sent them. Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius, and said, behold, I am he whom you seek. What is the cause wherefore you are come? And verse 22, and they said, Cornelius the centurion. A just man and one who fears God and of good report among all the nation of the Jews was warned from God by a holy angel to send for you into his house and to hear words of you. And lastly, in verse 23, then called he them in and lodged them. And on the morrow, Peter went away with them and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him. Father, we thank you for the reading of the word of God. And we ask now, God, that you would take this word. Lord, this salvation gospel to the Gentiles, this breaking down the barriers, Father, I pray that Lord, through all of the prejudice and partiality that are in the world, this is a salvation for all and for all nationalities, Lord, for all manner of race, Father. And I ask God that may this break through all of the barriers that exist out there, Father. May we be ones that witness with the word and take it and proclaim it and instruct it, Lord, as we worship you in spirit and truth. May we take the word of God and share it with your family and with the world and add your blessings unto it. In Jesus' marvelous mighty name, amen. We look and we begin to realize that the gospel as it had been given was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of a band called the Italian. a devout man. And as the curtain opens in chapter 10, a man by the name of Cornelius that lived in Caesarea, I had been there before, a man with John Hagee. And it's about 65 miles northwest of Jerusalem. It was a Roman capital in Judea. built by Herod the Great in honor of Caesar. A very important city to Rome. Cornelius was a centurion of the Italian Bayon. What does that mean? In the Roman army, a full Roman legion was 6,000 soldiers. And these 6,000 soldiers were divided up into cohorts. Regiments, bands of men with 600 in each regiment or band. Cornelius belonged to the Italian regiment. He was a centurion. That means a leader of 100 men, a legion of the 6,000. That would be 60 centurions. a very important position. Centurions were strong, responsible, reliable men. And we're told that Cornelius was devout, God-fearing, generous in giving, consistent in prayer life. And that was very unusual for a Roman soldier because many of the soldiers stole from the people. But Cornelius was as close to Judaism as he could get without being a proselyte. A proselyte was a person who converted from one religion to another. And the Jews would prefer to someone like Cornelius as a God-fearer. He believed in God. He responded to the truth that had been given. He sought out the Lord and the light had been given to the world about the existence of God through his creation. And I'm glad that here we look and we begin to realize that God loves the world. He loves everyone in the world. Yes, he gives us different backgrounds and distinctions, and it is his will that he would love and reach all people. It's God's will that Jews and Gentiles be one in Christ, and yet there was a great prejudice and mistreatment between the Jews and the Gentiles. All of us grow up with some form of prejudice. The Jews considered the Gentiles to be dogs. In fact, they would go through a ritualistic process to cleanse themselves after coming in contact with a Gentile. And in this passage, we see how God intervenes to remove prejudice and opens the gospel to all people. One of the first things that we see in verses 1 through 15 is the commandments of the Lord. Because to Cornelius, he was a centurion in the Roman army. He commanded 100 soldiers. from Italy. He was stationed in Caesarea, a Gentile city where no Jew would ever set foot. Note, Caesarea was named after Caesar Augustus and was about, as we say, it was 30 miles north of Joppa, and he was devout. We see a vision was given. Cornelius was praying when he saw an angel, a devout man. It was very unusual for Cornelius to pray, but this time he receives an answer in a form that he was not expecting. He was sent for Peter. He sent for Peter because Cornelius had religion but had not been saved and he needed someone to explain the way of salvation just as the Ethiopian unit needed Philip to explain Isaiah 53 and Christ's sacrificial death to him. I believe any seeking man, woman, boy or girl will be found of the Lord when they begin to seek out. And so a vision was given and he was to send for Peter. And Peter went up on the roof of the house to pray at noon each day. And while Peter was praying, he fell into a trench. He saw a large sheet, linen sheet, tied at the four corners. From the sheet came all manner of unclean animals. According to the Jewish law, he heard a voice commanding him to eat. And Peter was greatly perplexed. He had never eaten unclean food. God was moving his heart in compassion for the Gentiles. While we do not and should not accept sinful practices, we should still have a heart to see people saved. And Peter was learning that God was preparing the way for the Gentiles to be saved. I'm glad that every one of us, when we look and realize that the only standard that counts is God's standards. Our world is always busy moving the moral targets around to accommodate their wickedness. In our modern day, many people are honored and praised for their many ways of doing things, but God's standards of morality have not changed. His word is settled in heaven. His son is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And as religious as Cornelius was, he knew that he was lost in sin. He was praying for salvation. He wanted to know the truth. God made sure that he would know the truth of the gospel. Steps were taken against the gospel to this man. But let's stop here for a moment. Are you religious but lost? Religious works and rituals and memberships and baptisms being nice to people earn eternal life for no one. Because if you're dependent on these things, you may be good and religious, but you're lost in sin and on your way to a devil's hell. I'm glad that the Bible says, not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost. And so, here, Cornelius saw a vision about the ninth hour of the day, an angel of God coming to him, saying unto him, Cornelius, and when he looked on him, he was afraid. He said, what is it, Lord? And he said in him, thy prayers and thy alms are come up for a memorial before God. The ninth hour of the day was around 3 p.m. It was an important time of public prayer in the Jewish temple. Cornelius had a vision. An angel of God had told him that his prayers and his giving were a memorial, a burnt offering to the Lord. And God took notice of his devotion to prayer and his generosity. The Lord takes note of what you do too. Never underestimate the importance of prayer life. And when the Christian gets into the throne room of heaven, he or she unleashes power that can move mountains, transform a person's heart and heart, accomplish what seems to be impossible by the most unusual means. And so, I'm reminded of Dobie Gaddett, a schoolteacher for 13 years decided to travel across America and see the sights that she had taught about to her students. Traveling alone in a truck with a camper in tow, she launched out on her adventure. One afternoon, rounding a curve on Interstate 5 near Sacramento, California in rush hour traffic, a water pump blew on her truck. She was tired. She was scared. She was all alone. In spite of the traffic jam that she caused, no one seemed interested in helping her. Leaning up against the trailer, she prayed, please God, send me an angel. one with mechanical experiences. And with four minutes, a huge Harley motorcycle drove up, ridden by an enormous man, sporting long black hair, a beard, a massive tattooed arms, incredible air of confidence. He jumped off and without even glancing at duty, went to work on that truck. And within another few minutes, he flagged down a larger truck and attached a tow shade to the frame of that disabled Chevy and whisked the whole 56-foot rig off the freeway. He took it to a side street where he calmly continued to work on the water pump. An intimidated schoolteacher was so dumbfounded to talk when she read The words on the back of the leather jacket of the man, Hell's Angel, California. She got an angel all right, but not the kind that she had expected. And as he finished the task, she finally got up the courage to say, thank you so much, and carried on a brief conversation. He smiled, closed the hood of the truck, straddled his Harley with a friendly wave. He was gone as fast as he had appeared. God had answered Doody's prayer and took care of her. Thank God for his promises. It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer, and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. Jeremiah said, call unto me and I'll answer thee and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not. Never underestimate the power of prayer. I'm glad when we look and realize that the mission that was before here in Cornelius, that about a 30-mile trip, they were seeking out Peter who would tell Cornelius what to do. Cornelius was still in the dark. He was religious, but he was lost. I'm glad that God's breaking down barriers every day, that the gospel may go to all. Boy, the Lord wanted to work in Cornelius' life, but he also wanted to work in Peter's life, too. He could have used Philip, who was already living in Caesarea. But God sent for Peter for another reason. The Lord had given the responsibility of proclaiming the gospel to men, not angels. And the angel could have told Cornelius the gospel here, but he didn't. Angels have never been saved like people who have trusted in Christ for salvation. So after the angel departed, Cornelius obeyed immediately. He declared and explained to his servants a devout soldier under his command what they needed to do. The soldier is unnamed here, but he was a blessing and an encouragement to Cornelius. He served him as well as with him in battle, and that's the kind of blessing God wants us to be to other people. True servanthood does not have hidden aspirations to be great in the eyes of men. When we think of our relationship to Christ, can it be said of us that we want only to serve Him? One day G. Campbell Morgan, he was praying, and the Lord seemed to say to him, which do you want to be, a servant of mine or a great preacher? And G. Campbell Morgan replied, may I not be both, Lord? A spiritual struggle ensued as he thought, God may want me to be an unknown minister in an obscure place. And then Morgan submissively prayed, oh Lord, my greatest wish is to be a servant of thine. And the Lord responded by making him one of the greatest preachers of his time. And although religious philosophy and beliefs were very questionable, as we go through life. I'm going to tell you, Albert Swetzer was a man willing to abandon a great career in order to serve his fellow man. In 1913, he sailed for Africa, having turned his back on fame, money, and prestige. His first hospital was an old abandoned hen house, and his first operating table was an old camp board. On the trip to the United States, a reporter asked, Dr. Swetzer, have you found happiness in Africa? He replied, I have found a place of service, and that is enough for anyone. Let me ask you, are you serving Jesus Christ, or are you distracted by the counterfeit thrills of this world? Boy, I'm gonna tell you, each and every one of us as we go through life, we realize that moments with the Lord, because in verse nine, on the morrow as they went on their journey and drew near unto the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray about the sixth hour at 12 noon. As Peter went on his journey, he stopped to take time to pray. Atop of the house would be a quieter place than the hustle of the streets, and the sixth hour of the day was noon. What a reminder for us to take time to pray on our lunch break. and take time for the Lord to find a quiet place and talk to him and to read his word. And so, I'm glad there are many things that can distract a person from praying, but one big distraction is hunger. Peter was extremely hungry in verses 10 through 16. And he was craving for food, but he went on ahead and prayed a while. And all of a sudden, while he was praying, he fell into a trance. And it means that his mind was thinking on other things. And all of a sudden, in that day's condition, Peter had a vision of a sheet coming down from the sky full of animals, clean animals as well as unclean animals that was described out of the book of Leviticus. And the voice in this vision told Peter to kill an animal and eat it. Boy, I'm gonna tell you, what did Peter see when he went up on the housetop to pray? I'm glad it's almost like the teacher of a children's Bible club taught the story to her students. She asked them, what did Peter see when he went up on the housetop to pray? And one little boy waved his hand and he yelled, pigs in a blanket. You know what? Peter believed he heard the voice of the Lord. And he told the Lord, not so Lord, not so. And so, the contradiction of the words, if Jesus is your Lord, then you cannot honestly tell him, no way, I'm not gonna do that, Lord, because you'll be disobeying the Lord. There are many Christians today who claim Jesus is their Lord when he's not their master at all. And so, you know what? Peter said, I have not eaten common or unclean food. Food was a major distinction between Gentiles and Jews. Leviticus chapter 11 provided a list of foods that the Jews were not to eat. And God was breaking this barrier. The voice spoke a second and a third time. What God has cleansed don't call common or unclean. The message of the vision was Gentiles did not have to become Jews first in order to be saved. God could save them just as they were coming. just as they were by coming to Jesus Christ alone. There was no longer to be any distinction between Jew and Gentile. They would be one in Jesus Christ. If you're a Jew and you're listening to this message, many of you will say, I'm a Jew. I'm a Jew. I don't need salvation. I don't need anything. God says otherwise. God says otherwise. You can claim that you're a Jew all day long, but you got to come by the way of the cross. And so, Here we see an example of God's timing because Paul told us in Romans 8.28, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who call or called according to his purpose. We find a divine appointment. God prepared Peter's heart and three men showed up at the right time after the vision, a reminder that we should trust God's timing in our lives and not get impatient. I'm glad that's why I like to use timing at the gravesite. Because when I'm laying someone to rest, God's timetable is always the right time. God knows the times. God knows the days. God knows your life better than anyone else. And I'm glad that Peter was not sure what the vision meant at that point. He doubted or was at a loss of its men. And while he pondered, the servants of Cornelius showed up at the gate of the house asking for Peter and the Holy Spirit told Peter that three men were looking for him and he was to go with these strangers without any hesitation because the Lord sent these men. Peter greeted the men and identified himself. I'm glad here We see the commandment of the Lord, amen, in verses one through 15. But here is the cooperation of godly men, because here was the answer that we see. As Peter greeted the men and identified himself, he wanted to know the reason for their visit. And they told Peter about Cornelius's vision of the angel and their instructions to him to seek out Peter. Peter invited him into his home, showed hospitality to him, praise God. And this revealed that Peter was learning the lesson of a vision that he saw. Why? The answer was no self-respecting Jew would lodge a Gentile, especially a hated Roman soldier of the occupation army. You need to understand the disdain that Jews had toward Gentiles in that day. And so it's sad because even in those times, that they called Gentiles, dogs. They would have no contact with a Jew unless absolutely necessary. And then after contact, they had to go through a religious ceremony to be cleansed. They will not even help a Gentile woman who was given birth, lest another Gentile be born into the world. And it was into such a world that the church was born, a world of prejudice, of Jew against Gentile, of Gentile against Jew, of Gentile against Gentile. How was God going to overcome and break down the walls and the bears of prejudice that had been built up through the centuries of history? How was he going to get his church, his people to break away from their Jewish roots and reach out to the whole world? The doors of God's salvation was about to be gloriously swung open to the people of the world. Every man would soon have the wonderful privilege of hearing the marvelous message proclaim, God is love and has sent his dear son into the world that the world might be saved and not perish. And the passage shows how God broke through the prejudicial environment and the customs and all and Peter to be able to have a story of history. that begin to break through the barriers of prejudice, raciality, religious, and all of the other things to erase them forever in the name of his dear son who came to show that God loved all men and wishes all men to be saved. And I'm glad as we look and begin to realize this, that we see that out of all the things God begin to give us a great blessing that he broke down barriers for the gospel. Peter's response that the walls between Jew and Gentile weren't coming down. And on the next day, Peter departed with them to go to the home of Cornelius. Peter was not perfect, but he was growing in the Lord just like you and I are to be growing spiritually. And I'm glad that each and every one of us, Peter provided a sympathy of virtues that helps us from becoming ineffective and unproductive in our desire and pursuit because I'm glad that in 2 Peter chapter 1 verses 5 through 9, we had Peter that gave us virtue, that was goodness and purity, knowledge. temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, amen. And I'm glad that each and every one of us, that we're able to come together, charity, amen. And I'm glad that all of us, when we look and realize that God has given us a great blessing. The commandments of the Lord in verses one through 15, the cooperation of godly men in verses 16 through 26, amen. But I'm glad that in verses 17 through 23, we see the men of Cornelius arrive at Peter's residence in Joppa. Peter lodged the men. If he had not received the instruction from God, Peter would never have asked Gentiles, especially Roman soldiers, to stay in the same house with him. But the Jews' hatred for the Gentiles in general was nothing compared to the contempt for the soldiers occupying their country. Cornelius welcomes Peter. I'm glad because of his faith, Peter went with several believers, Jewish believers. Worship of any person other than Christ is never appropriate, but I'm glad that not only the commandments of the Lord in verses one through 15, the cooperation of godly men in verses 16 through 26, but lastly, the conviction of Peter in verses 27 down to verse 36. We see Peter had been teachable in his spirit. And I believe God had already been working on Peter because we see that he stayed with Simon and Tanner who would have worked with unclean animals. And I'm glad that every one of us, when we begin to look and realize what God is wanting to do in all of our lives, amen, God wants to change us completely. God wants to break through these barriers that everyone has always been going through through the years, amen. And so, I'm glad that we see the lesson of confrontation learned by the Jew, the Gentile, and the prejudiced world. The preparation that as Peter, he took six Jewish believers, Orthodox Jews, with him. Peter knew that he was treading troubled waters by associating with Gentiles. He sensed that he would need witnesses to what he was doing, and therefore, he was preparing himself against attack. But the preparation by Cornelius, he was expected, excited, eagerly awaiting for their arrival. And I'm glad that he had called together his kinsmen and close friends, and I'm glad that the psalmist said, the Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants, and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate. Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust also in him and he shall bring it to pass. And so Cornelius was already witnessing by bringing people to hear the messenger from God. And I'm glad that each and every one of us as we go through life, the confrontation of the Jew and the Gentile and the two men humbled by God. Cornelius had been humbled by the vision from God. He had been mulling over the experience for four days now, being humbled and prepared more and more to receive the Jewish messenger. And when he confronted Peter, he was so humbled, he prostrated himself before Peter in an act of deep reverence. Peter demonstrated humility as well. It was the custom to bow before men of high honor, showing reverence and respect, but God had humbled Peter too. And Peter forbade the act and disallowed it. No man is to be idolized or reverenced in the sense of being held in awe. But Peter rebuked Cornelius. I myself also am a man, he said. Jesus accepted such reverence and worship. And he accepted it from Peter himself. But Peter says no man is to bow or reverence to another man. And I'm glad the lesson learned by Peter Peter now knew that no man was common or unclean. He now knew that Christ had abolished the distinction between Jew and Gentile, that Christ had abolished the wall or partition between Jew and Gentile, and that Christ had abolished all distinctions between men, whether racial, social, or some system No man was to treat any other man, woman, boy or girl with anything but love and care, mercy and forgiveness, concern and compassion. Peter's prejudice was wiped out, erased, overcome. It had been overcome by God, and the door of salvation was about to be thrown open to the Gentiles forever and ever. And now Peter's reference of how it was unlawful for a Jew to associate with a Gentile. But I'm glad that the lesson learned by Cornelius was threefold. The man who truly seeks God moves God. And Cornelius declared that God answered his prayer. And the man who seeks God must listen to God and obey God. Cornelius declared that he listened and he did exactly what God said and that he did it immediately. And the man who seeks God must be receptive to the word of God. I hope and pray that each and every one of us, as many of you have been baptized into Christ, but have put on Christ, I'm glad Galatians says, there's neither Jew nor Greek, there's neither bond nor free, and there's neither male nor female, for you're all one in Christ Jesus. God does not restrict his offer of salvation because Jesus came to die for the sins of the world. and it was a severe culture shock for the Jewish believers. But Peter recognized that their thinking regarding the Gentiles had to change and he was willing to give up his traditional prejudice and obey God. And so what we see is that we see the commandments of the Lord in verses one through 15, the cooperation of godly men in verses 16 through 26, and then in verses 27 down to verse 36, the conviction of Peter. I'm glad, but I only go down to verse 23 in our scripture, but Peter begins to go further. He says in verse 24, and the morrow after they entered into Caesarea, and Cornelius waited for them. and had called unto together his kinsmen and their friends. And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter took him up saying, stand up, I myself also am a man. And verse 27, and as he, Peter, talked with him, he went in and found many who were come together. And he said unto them, you know how that it is unlawful thing for a man who is a Jew to keep company one of another nation, but God has showed me that I should not call any man common or unclean. Therefore came I unto you without gain saying as soon as I was sent for I asked therefore for what intent you have sent for me and verse 30 and Cornelius said four days ago I was fasting until this hour and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house 3 p.m. And behold a man stood before me in bright clothing and said Cornelius your prayer is heard and your arms are at or had in remembrance in the sight of God. Send therefore to Joppa and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter. He's lodged in the house of one Simon of Tanner by the seaside, who when he comes shall speak unto you." Immediately in verse 33, therefore, I sent to you and you have well done that you are come Now therefore, are we all here present before God to hear all things that are commanded of you. In verse 34, then Peter opened his mouth and said, of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons, but in every nation, he who fears him and works righteousness is accepted with him. Lastly, in verse 36, the word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ, he is Lord of all. I'm glad that we see the conviction of Peter. we see Peter had been teachable in his spirit. And I believe God had already been working on Peter because we see that he stayed with Simon, a tanner, who would have worked with unclean animals. Christ abolished the distinction between Jew and Gentiles. Amen. and we should witness to all people without question, without gainsaying, without hesitation. Peter did not hesitate to present the same gospel to Cornelius and his family that he had preached on the day of Pentecost and in the temple. And we know that all people, regardless of their origin, need to hear the message of salvation and deliverance. And as I close out, breaking down barriers in Acts chapter 10, We're all one in Christ, just like Peter and Cornelius. And we come from many backgrounds, and yet we have one Savior. Hallelujah. Only one Savior. And I'm glad that through Him, amen, that we're able. The proof that your heart is right in this area is that you become a soul winner yourself. God knows exactly what we need before we need it. And here, we're glad that we see peace and we see the blessings of God. Even Jewish people begin to change their lives at this point. I'm glad that each and every one of us, when we look at communion and when we look at baptism, what a significant factor that it plays in all of our lives. Amen. You may have never surrendered your life to Jesus Christ. You've made never repented and turned away from your sinful nature. And by faith, receive Christ as your savior and surrender to him as your Lord. That's always going to be the first order of business that you make a decision of your life to ask the Lord to save you and to come into your heart and life. And then after you've been saved, you need to step out on faith. and show the world what baptism is, because it's your testimony that every one of us, when we begin to show the world what baptism really means, amen. Baptism is just like a wedding ring. The wedding ring is a picture of the fact that we're a married man and women. And if I was to take my wedding ring off and put it in my pocket, I would still be married. I would still be married if I never wore a wedding ring or if I never put one on. If you don't have to be baptized to be a follower of Christ, and if you don't have to be baptized to have a relationship with God, but then why should a person be baptized? Jesus commanded it, number one. The orders for both the church and the whole individual believers are found in Matthew chapter 28, verse 19. Go ye therefore, making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. If a church does not baptize believers, it's disobeying God. And if believers refuse to be baptized, they're disobeying God. And when you live in disobedience, you're not right with God. And so Jesus commanded, number two, Jesus was baptized and set an example for us to follow. You probably don't know this if you've never been to Israel, but for Jesus to be baptized in the Jordan River where John baptized, he had to walk 60 miles one way. Why would Jesus do that? Why would Jesus make a three-day trip, take an entire week out of his life just to be baptized? He wasn't a sinner. Talk about being right with God. He was God. So why did he do it? To set an example for us to follow. If baptism was good enough for Jesus, it ought to be good enough for you and me. And not only did Jesus command it, not only was Jesus baptized to set an example for us to follow, But baptism is the way that you publicly profess your personal faith in Jesus Christ. Amen. And so I wear a wedding ring every day of my life because I want everyone to know and see that I was married to the most beautiful, wonderful woman on this planet. Baptism is the way you let everyone know that you have become a follower of Jesus Christ. And I close with this. You may be here listening to this message, and if you've never surrendered your life to Jesus Christ, if you've never repented, turned away from your sinful nature, and by faith received Christ as your Savior, and surrendered to Him as your Lord, that is always going to be the first order of business. Listen, the greatest decision of your life is that you would ask Jesus Christ to come into your heart and life right now. Father, forgive me, I'm a sinner. Change my life. I ask you to come into my heart and life and to change me and to help me break down these barriers that we've been talking about with Cornelius and Peter and save my soul completely from sin in Jesus' marvelous mighty name. you