The One Year New Testament

November 18

Acts 11:1-18

Acts 11:1-18

Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying, “You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.” But Peter began and explained it to them in order: “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, something like a great sheet descending, being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to me. Looking at it closely, I observed animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air. And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ But I said, ‘By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ But the voice answered a second time from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.’ 10 This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into heaven. 11 And behold, at that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we were, sent to me from Caesarea. 12 And the Spirit told me to go with them, making no distinction. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man's house. 13 And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter; 14 he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’ 15 As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?” 18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

Reflection

Word spread about the conversion of the household of Cornelius, so when Peter went to Jerusalem he faced criticism for associating with Gentiles (nonJews; Acts 11:1–2). Peter explained that God had told him not to reject the Gentiles (vv. 5–12), and that the experience at Cornelius’s home had convinced him not to stand in God’s way (vv. 13–17).

The pouring out of God’s Spirit on the household of Cornelius brought about the realization that salvation is not for Jews only—the Gentiles have also been “granted repentance that leads to life” (v. 18). God had uniquely placed his favor upon Israel and its forefathers for thousands of years but was now fulfilling his plan to make his blessings available to any who are willing to turn away from sin to embrace Christ. The door was now wide open to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19).

Jude 5-13

Jude 5-13

Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day— just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones. But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” 10 But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively. 11 Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam's error and perished in Korah's rebellion. 12 These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.

Reflection

Grace forgives disobedience but it does not produce disobedience, nor is it a free pass to disobey. Jude recalls God’s mighty deeds in history to remind his readers of coming judgment for the wicked. We are given three sobering reminders in these verses.

First, hell is real. Judgment for wickedness is not theoretical. Sadly, hell is painfully real. Second, hell is eternal. Note Jude’s language of “eternal chains” (v. 6) and “punishment of eternal fire” (v. 7). Third, there are some who participate in the spiritual communities of heaven and earth who are going to hell in the end. Jude gives three examples: some Israelites, certain angels, and the cities surrounding Sodom and Gomorrah. A superficial connection to the church does not guarantee our escape from the punishment of sin. There are indeed “people who have crept in” to the community of faith (v. 4) who don’t truly know Jesus. So where is the comfort amid all this gloom and doom? Jude gives it to us in verse 5. It is Jesus, who saved God’s people out of bondage in Egypt. Christ alone saves. He did it in the days of the exodus, and he does it today, for sinners who turn to put their hope in him.

Psalm 110:5-6

Psalm 110:5-6

The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth.

Thoughts For Prayer

Talk with God about the reality of hell. Pray that your heart would be able to praise and respect him for his perfect justice. Pray also that you would feel a great urgency to tell others about the grace God offers to any who will put their trust in Christ.

Missions Prayer Requests More

  • March 29, 2024

    Supported Workers: Parkside Heights Church

    Country: United States of America

    Please pray that many people from the surrounding community and colleges would come to the Good Friday and Easter services at Parkside Heights and hear the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Several college students and others from their church family will be traveling for spring break and/or Easter. Pray for their safe travels and for meaningful conversations with family and friends.

    Thailand (Asia). Population: 71,801,279 Believers: 0.5%. Thailand means “Land of the Free” because it successfully retained its freedom when surrounding countries were colonized by Western powers. Yet the land is held captive in a complex web of Buddhism, traditional culture, spirit appeasement, and even occult practices, with a social cohesiveness out of which few have dared to come. For many Thai, their nationality and religious identity are inextricably linked. Pray for a spiritual breakthrough so that, in the Lord Jesus, the Thai may be free indeed. From Operation World DVD-ROM 2010 and www.operationworld.org