In Acts chapter 10, the apostle peter saw a baffling vision of a large sheet holding animals, birds, and reptiles being lowered from the sky by its four corners. He was urged to get up, kill, and eat. As a Jew, Peter stuck rigidly to God’s prescribed dietary laws, so I can imagine him sitting there questioning what he had seen and heard.
Verse 10 says peter was hungry, and a meal was being prepared. Intense hunger does strange things to the human mind. I’m sure you can relate. Have you ever been stuck in a traffic jam with your stomach rumbling, conjuring up visions of mouth-watering culinary delights? You might start with something specific. A juicy steak, or a home-cooked roast swimming in rich gravy. But eventually, you reach a point where literally anything will do. You become desperate and irritable, but you’re in the middle of nowhere, and you haven’t seen a shop for hours. You vow that you’ll stop at the first convenience store for a bar of chocolate and a packet of crisps. You know you should make healthier choices, but who cares? You’ve just got to have something!
Did peter presume his vision of forbidden food was a temptation in response to his hunger? Hadn’t the self-same thing happened to Jesus when Satan came to him during his forty-day wilderness fast, tempting him to turn stones into bread? Peter had heard the words, “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean,” but he knew Satan had twisted the scriptures with Jesus, so was he up to his old tricks again? The vision came while peter was praying, so was it a distraction, sent to shift his focus? I can picture him pacing the flat roof, rebuking the enemy, and forcing his mind back to holier things.
However, peter’s vision refused to go away. It came a second, then a third time. I bet by this point it was driving him crazy! His stomach thundered, and all he could think about was food. Verse 17 informs us that Peter was very perplexed. That’s probably an understatement! Perplexed, confused, frustrated… I’d be all the above and more! If this happened to me, I might even be tempted to vent my frustrations. “I’m trying to pray here, Lord–to do the things you’ve taught me! I’ve rebuked this vision until I’m blue in the face, but it’s not going away!”
When did Peter dare to wonder whether his conundrum was a message from God, rather than a tool of the enemy? Was it when men arrived looking for him from the house of a devout, god-fearing Roman officer called Cornelius, who had received a confusing Word from the Lord to send to Joppa for a man he’d never met?
Both Peter and Cornelius held pieces of the puzzle, but neither of them saw the full picture. This often happens to us when we receive words, pictures, or visions from the almighty. At first, they may seem confusing and contradictory, so we question whether they are really from God. We look for signs or Scriptures, tempted to dismiss them because if we are wrong, we might offend God or go against his will. WE fear the Old Testament warnings about false prophets and those who seek to lead others astray. We don’t want to be part of that camp, so it’s easier to stifle our visions and keep quiet.
Imagine what would have happened if either Peter or Cornelius had done this. Cornelius wouldn’t have sent for peter, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the gentiles might have been delayed. Up on the roof, God said three men were waiting, and when Peter went downstairs, there they were. Yet all they could add to his growing confusion was the fact that Cornelius needed to hear peter’s message. Another clue, but the meaning remained incomplete.
As a gentile, I’m so glad peter trusted God’s vision and visited Cornelius. In verse 28, he said, “You know it is against our laws for a Jewish man to enter a Gentile home like this or to associate with you. But God has shown me that I should no longer think of anyone as impure or unclean.” Peter was learning to broaden his thinking, and as he and Cornelius talked, the pieces came together. Clarity emerged, and Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favouritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right. This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.” (Acts 10:34-36 NLT).
As Peter shared the gospel with the gathering in Cornelius’s house, the Spirit fell upon them, and Peter’s stunned Jewish traveling companions heard the gentiles speaking in tongues and praising God. Baptisms followed, with a time of unity and rejoicing! Another wall of division had crumbled as Jews and gentiles worshipped together.
Today, I read this story and felt an affinity with Peter. God gives me visions, pictures, or words, but my gut reaction is to question their validity; particularly if they challenge my cosiness. Scripture encourages us to test and to seek confirmation. As we have already seen, peter’s vision came three times, and it was confirmed by his visitors. However, there may be times when God stirs up our mindsets, our traditions, or our routines to bring us into a place of greater freedom. Some of our so-called god-made traditions are actually man-made, coming from a misunderstanding or misapplication of Scripture.
In these last days, God is stirring his people into action, but this may challenge our status quo. He is calling us out of our boxes tied neatly with ribbons and bows, so will we dare to step out of our comfort zones and follow him? It is good to seek wise council from Scripture and trusted Christian friends, but how long will we hold back and resist moving forwards in obedience? That’s a question only we can answer, so I’ll leave you to ponder it alongside me, praying that when God calls, you and I will be bold enough to answer.