Acts 11:1-18 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Acts 11:1-18. Let’s go!
Acts 11:1-18 (NIV)
1 The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.
2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him
3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
4 Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened:
5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was.
6 I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air.
7 Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’
8 “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
9 “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’
10 This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.
11 “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying.
12 The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house.
13 He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter.
14 He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’
15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning.
16 Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
17 So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?”
18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.”
On verses 1-18: The circumcised believers in Jerusalem criticized Peter for associating with Gentiles. So “starting from the beginning” (v2), Peter explains what happened to him: the vision he saw while praying (v5-10), the three men Cornelius sent and who arrived right at that same moment (v11), his meeting with Cornelius (v12-14), the way the Holy Spirit fell on these new Gentile believers as Peter was preaching (v15) and the lessons he learned from these experiences (v16-17).
Notice that before the circumcised believers heard Peter’s perspective, they were critical of him. After they heard Peter’s perspective, “they had no further objections and praised God” (v18) about the very situation they once criticized Peter for.
What can we learn from this?
1. Before you criticize and judge, make sure you understand the situation first. Don’t do the embarrassing and foolish thing of criticizing others before you understand where they are coming from.
As Proverbs 18:13 says, “What a shame—yes, how stupid!—to decide before knowing the facts!”
As James 1:19 says, we need to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to be become angry.
2. Sometimes what you need to diffuse a conflict is simply to explain the situation and background from your perspective, which the other person does not know. My wife and I have learned that in resolving conflict, often times what is missing and what leads to conflict is what we don’t know about the other person’s side of the story. When we take the time to explain our side of the story and listen to and acknowledge the other person’s side of the story, it’s funny how the conflict can quickly diffuse. So instead of making assumptions, take the time to explain your side of the story and understand the other person’s perspective, and you’ll likely be on your way to resolving the conflict.
Holy Spirit, I pray that I would not be quick to judge and criticize others. Instead, I pray that I would take the time to understand their side of the story and to know the facts before drawing a conclusion. May I be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
