SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP SERVICE, 25 January 2026
Sermon Series: “The Acts of the Apostles” (#16)
Sermon Text: Acts 11:1-18
Main Points:
Introduction
I. From objection
II. To explanation
III. To adoring submission
Conclusion
Reading an autobiography is uniquely fascinating because it reveals the central focus of a person’s life. For instance, consider John Calvin. His life was driven by a single, relentless mission – that is, to teach the church through the faithful exposition of Scripture. That single-minded focus caused the seeds of the 16th century Reformation to blossom and grow into what we now know as the Reformed faith.
Now, imagine writing your own autobiography, intending it to leave a definitive record of your life. What central focus would you want your children and friends to see? Naturally, your chapters would reflect that priority, devoting the most space to what matters most.
We see this principle at work in the Book of Acts, chs. 10 and 11. The account of Cornelius’ conversion is the longest narrative in the entire book. To put it in perspective: sixty-six verses are dedicated to Cornelius. By comparison, the conversion of Saul – the great Apostle to the Gentiles – takes up only thirty-one verses. Even Pentecost, which inaugurated the New Covenant and the birth of the Church, occupies just thirteen verses.
The record of Cornelius is twice as long as Saul’s and five times longer than Pentecost. This proportionate focus signals to us that, in the eyes of the author and the Holy Spirit, Cornelius’ conversion was a watershed moment for the early church.
Why was it so pivotal? First, it confirmed that the Gospel was never meant for the Jews alone, but for the Gentiles as well. Just as the Gospel was never intended to be ‘owned’ by us here at St. Columba’s, or confined to Sunday mornings, it is always meant to be declared to every ear in society, every single day.
Second, it was the moment the early Church learned to submit its own prejudices to God’s sovereign purposes. The Church realised how wrongly they had opposed God’s work, and how clearly His grace was being revealed to ‘outsiders.’ They learned to submit joyfully to His plan.
As we reflect on this text, we are called to recognise what happens when the Church aligns itself with God’s purposes.
I. From Objection
The path to submitting to God’s work usually, if not always, begins with objection. When God moves, our first instinct is often resistance. We see this clearly in Acts ch. 11.
While the Apostle Peter was still with Cornelius, news of the Gentiles’ conversion reached the church leadership throughout Judea. When Peter later went up to Jerusalem, it seems clear that he went to give an account of what had happened. The conversion of Gentiles would’ve been just as shocking to the leaders and members of the church as it had been to Peter.
But notice how Luke introduces this scene. Instead of welcoming Peter’s report, a group of believers known as ‘the circumcision party’ immediately confronted him. That tells us something about the atmosphere. They were not waiting to listen; they were ready to challenge. Before Peter is given the opportunity to explain what God had done, he is required to defend what he had done.
What, exactly, do they criticise him for? Not for preaching the gospel to Gentiles. Not for baptising them in the name of Jesus Christ. Not for witnessing the Holy Spirit fall upon them. Instead, they criticise him for this, as in v. 3, “You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
To our ears as 21st century Christians, this sounds strangely narrow and even trivial. But for a devoted Jew in 1st century Palestine, it was anything but. According to Jewish tradition, a Jew was not to associate with Gentiles, much less enter their homes or eat their food. To do so was regarded as ‘defilement.’ And, by ‘defilement,’ they did not mean simply getting dirty or being socially improper. They meant being separated from God’s favour – unless one was lawfully cleansed. In today’s terms, it felt like risking one’s standing before God. Such defilement would require remedy; washing, separation, sometimes even sacrificial acts. So, from their point of view, Peter had crossed a very serious line.
That is the background of their criticism. From their perspective, Peter’s actions lacked justification. To their eyes, he had failed in his role as an apostle and as a leader of the church.
Now, for a moment, let us try to see this from their side. They had grown up as Jews. They had been shaped by rabbinic teaching. When they came to faith in Jesus as the Messiah, they did not suddenly lose their sense of being Jews, God’s chosen people. if anything, it may have felt strengthened. So the instinct to separate from Gentiles was as natural to them as breathing. And as faithful followers of Jesus, they assumed those principles would be reinforced – not overturned. That was the inner logic behind their objection.
In truth, we’re not so different. Every one of us brings something with us from our life before Christ. We’re shaped by our culture, our upbringing, and our personal experiences. We do not leave those things at the church door. They influence how we serve, how we interpret Scripture, and how we respond to what God is doing. In fact, our cultural formation often becomes the lens through which we judge God’s work.
That’s exactly what is happening here in Acts 11. The circumcision party is not simply opposing Peter; they’re opposing what God is doing – because it does not fit their inherited categories. Oh, my dear fellow Christians, let us pause and examine ourselves – are we acting like the circumcision party, trying to judge God’s purposes through the lens of our own prejudices?
II. To Explanation
After objection, comes explanation. Peter does not respond defensively, emotionally, or politically. He does not appeal to his authority as an apostle. Instead, he does something far more important – that is, he simply tells the story of what God did.
Luke says in Acts 11:4, “Peter began and explained it to them in order….” Peter gives them a careful, step-by-step account. He is not trying to justify himself; he is bearing witness to God’s work.
And notice what Peter unfolds – it comes in three parts. First, what God spoke to him. Peter recounts the vision he received in Joppa – the sheet coming down from heaven and the voice saying, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” This was not Peter’s idea. This was divine revelation. God Himself was redefining the categories of clean and unclean. Peter simply bears witness to what God has said.
Second, the way God led him. Peter tells them that the Spirit said to him, “Go with them, making no distinction.” He did not go to Cornelius by curiosity or strategy. He went by obedience. The Spirit directed him; the Spirit specifically ordered him to make no distinction.
Third, what God did for Cornelius and all who were with him. He tells them that while he was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell on the Gentiles just as He had fallen on the Jews at the beginning, on the day of Pentecost. God did not wait for Peter to finish his sermon. He acted sovereignly.
Therefore, Peter’s conclusion is simple and unanswerable, “Who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” That is not rhetoric. That is theology. Peter is saying, ‘If God is doing this, then the question is no longer what I think, but whether I will obey.’
So, Peter does not defend his behaviour with opinion. He defends it with revelation.
He does not argue with emotion. He argues with what God has said and done. In fact, this is how we discern God’s work – that is, through His Word, by the Spirit’s leading, and in the fruit of God’s sovereign action. When those three line up, the church’s task is not to control God’s work – but to recognise it. Recognise it by the Word, by the leading of the Spirit, and by the fruit of God’s sovereign action.
This points us to a profound truth – that our task is simply to present the gospel faithfully to all people, no matter who they are. We do not try to make the gospel clever. We do not try to justify it with human brilliance. We simply bear witness to God’s saving work through His Son, Jesus Christ – the only Lord and Saviour of the world. Human wit does not save. Human invention cannot improve the gospel. Human eloquence cannot add power to what God has already made powerful.
Listen to the Apostle Paul in 1 Cor. 1:17, “Christ … sent me … to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom.” Then, what if he did with words of eloquent wisdom? The answer should strike us deeply, and he says, “lest [if he did] the cross of Christ be emptied of its power”! In other words, when we try to dress up the gospel with human brilliance, we actually risk draining it of its divine power.
So, Paul continues in v. 18 that “the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” We might think that God’s word, in its plain and unembellished form, is too weak to impact people in this highly sophisticated generation. But God tells us the opposite: the word itself carries God’s power. Hear the words of 2 Cor. 2:17, “we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity … we speak in Christ.” So, Paul finally declares in Rom. 1:16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”
So, when God’s work is opposed, we do not try to improve the gospel. We simply trust the power of the gospel and deliver it faithfully to the ears of those who doubt or object. Peter did the same when challenged – he laid out everything to the church, step by step, just as God had directed.
III. To Adoring Submission
After objection and explanation, comes the turning point – that is, submission that leads to adoration.
When Peter finishes his account, Luke tells us in Acts 11:18: “When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God.” Their silence is not awkward. It is the silence of surrender, the silence of reverent awe. Moreover, they stop criticising or arguing because they realise they are not contending with Peter – they are contending with God.
Notice what happens next: they glorify God. Submission does not end in quiet agreement; it rises into worship. They do not say, ‘Well, Peter, you’ve made a good case.’ They say, ‘God has done this.’ So, in awe and with rejoicing, they confess in the second half of v. 18, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.” In this, their understanding of God’s purposes becomes pure doxology.
This pattern is not unique to the early church. We see the same principle in Jonah’s ministry. God sent Jonah to Nineveh, a city of Gentiles and enemies, with the message of repentance. Jonah himself struggled to submit to God’s plan, resisted the call, yet when he obeyed, God’s word accomplished exactly what He intended: the city repented, and God’s mercy was revealed. Just as with Cornelius, the response of God’s people was to recognise God’s sovereign work and rejoice in His grace.
So, the only fitting response for the Jerusalem church was adoration – active, joyful, and wholly God-glorifying worship. And the same was true for Jonah – obedience and heartfelt submission to God’s sovereign and gracious work.
Conclusion
So, what do we learn from this account of the early church, and from Peter facing opposition to God’s work? We learn that God’s saving work is sovereign and gracious, and that the church’s proper response is not control or critique, but humble, worshipful submission.
What leads us and Christ’s church to this conclusion is a faithful witness to what God says, and to what He leads and does. When the Word is faithfully proclaimed, when the Spirit guides, and when the fruit of God’s sovereign work is evident, event the most stubborn hearts cannot help but see God’s hand at work. We’re reminded that our calling is not to manipulate outcomes, argue over methods, or measure success by human standards, but to faithfully proclaim Christ, follow His leading, and rejoice in His work.
Therefore, let us go forth in awe and humility, trusting that the God who begins His work in salvation will complete it according to His perfect will. Let our lives, our church, and our witness reflect this truth: that all of life, all repentance, and all salvation are gifts of God’s grace, and our role is simply to bear faithful witness and submit joyfully to His sovereign hand. ***
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