Tag Archives: Joppa

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES – PHASE TWO

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PHASE TWO

“Cornelius stared hard, wondering if he was seeing things. Then he said, ‘What do you want, sir?’

“The angel said, ‘Your prayers and neighbourly acts have brought you to God’s attention. Here’s what you are to do. Send men to Joppa to get Simon, the one everyone calls Peter. He is staying with Simon the Tanner, whose house is down by the sea.’

“As soon as the angel was gone, Cornelius called two servants and one particularly devout soldier from the guard. He went over with them in great detail everything that had happened, and then sent them off to Joppa.” Acts 10:4-8 (The Message).

Cornelius was busy carrying out his duty to God faithfully. He was not aware that there was much more to this “religion” he followed that he knew about. As far as he was concerned, he was doing what was required of him and doing it well and with all his heart.

But God had His eye on him. Cornelius was not one of His chosen people, but He was about to show this Gentile that His desire was to open the door of His grace to all nations. This had been His plan from the beginning. He had chosen Israel, not to have exclusive rights to His love and favour, but to be the vehicle through which He would reveal Himself to the world.

The Israelites had completely misinterpreted God’s requirement that they separate themselves from the idolatrous nations around them. God wanted them to be uncontaminated, not exclusive and isolated. They thought they were better than every other nation in spite of hob-nobbing with them and practising their wicked idolatry.

Instead of revealing the true nature of God as a loving and caring Father, they hated and despised the Gentiles, refusing to interact with them in any way. God would have to do something out of the ordinary to break down their prejudice and convince His followers that the good news of Jesus was for all nations, not only for the Jews.

Phase one was to alert Cornelius that there was something more in store for him. He was still living in a spiritual twilight zone and needed the supernatural intervention of God to move him into the light of new life in Jesus.

Cornelius was not used to anything as spectacular as a vision. He was flabbergasted and bewildered by the appearance of an angel. All he could stammer was ‘What do you want, sir?’ That the angel actually replied to him was even more of a mystery. Amazingly, he did not question his sanity or hesitate to do what he was instructed to do.

This was too dramatic and intrusive an experience to ignore. He called his subordinates to go at once to Joppa to fetch the man about whom he had received detailed instructions.

It is not often that anyone catches a glimpse of the supernatural realm of God which is all around us, but which we cannot see. In the ordinary course of life, we live and experience the natural world in the conviction that the realm of God’s presence is as near to us as our breath; but there are unusual times when God pulls aside the curtain for a brief moment for a specific purpose.

Cornelius needed just such a moment to convince him that God had noticed him and wanted him to enter that supernatural realm by faith in Jesus. He stood on the threshold of the greatest experience of his life when he would step over from darkness to light, from death to life and from the dominion of Satan into the kingdom of God.

This was not just another religious exercise. God was setting up an encounter with His Son that would transform Cornelius’ life forever, and open the door for a heavily prejudiced Jew to understand the enormity of the grace that sent His Son to be the Saviour of the world.

THE BOOK OF ACTS – GAZELLE

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GAZELLE

“Down the road a way in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha, “Gazelle” in our language. She was well known for doing good and helping out. During the time Peter was in the area she became sick and died. Her friends prepared her body for burial and put her in a cool room.”

“Some of the disciples heard that Peter was visiting in nearby Lydda and sent two men to ask if he would be so kind as to come over. Peter got right up and went with them. They took him into the room where Tabitha’s body was laid out. Her old friends, most of them widows, were in the room mourning. They showed Peter pieces of clothing the Gazelle had made while she was with them. Peter put the widows all out of the room. He knelt and prayed. Then he spoke directly to the body. ‘Tabitha, get up,’

“She opened her eyes. When she saw Peter, she sat up. He took her hand and helped her up. Then he called in all the believers and widows and presented her to them alive.” Acts 9:36-41 (The Message).

Peter was at it again, but this time it was a little different. Healing had become a way of life for him but he had never raised anyone from the dead. I wonder how he felt as he made the short trip to Joppa with the two strangers. Was he rehearsing in his mind the times when he had seen Jesus raise the dead? Was he hearing the Master’s commission before He left them? Was he planning his strategy or was he listening to the voice of the Spirit?

No doubt Peter’s confidence in Jesus was strong because he had no reason to doubt either His power or His will to raise this woman to life again. Jesus had done it many times – even Lazarus whose body was already decaying in the tomb.

When he arrived at the house, he found the customary mourners in the room with the body, not hired professionals but old friends who were heartbroken over the death of their companion. She had been a true disciple of Jesus, showing her faith in Him by doing what she could to make the lives of her fellow believers better. They showed Peter the evidence of her love.

As an imitator of Jesus, Peter did what Jesus did when He was called to the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler, to heal his daughter. Jesus sent everyone out of the room except the child’s parents and His three closest disciples. This was not a show for entertainment. This was a stand-off with death and Peter did not need any spectators, not even other believers, to distract him.

It was not his role to engage in battle with death. Jesus had done that on the cross and won. It was there that Satan’s power over death was forever broken. Peter’s role was to enforce that victory by standing on it in this situation. He knelt and prayed, signifying his submission to the Master, and then spoke to the dead woman, “calling those things which are not as though they were.” Just as Jairus’ daughter had done, Tabitha heard and responded and was restored to her friends alive.

There are some truths that we need to get hold of in this story. Tabitha had not died because of some sin in her life or because she did not have enough faith, which are the accusations often levelled at people who do not experience miracles. She was part of a fallen human race which is subject to sickness and death.

It was the Father’s will to display His glory in her healing. Is it still the Father’s will to heal? Yes! Does He still heal? Yes! Does He still raise people from the dead? Yes! Does He raise everyone from the dead? Not now, but He will when Jesus comes! Why does He not heal everyone? He will when Jesus comes! What He does now is only a foretaste of what is to come and must fit into the bigger picture.

“And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people and He Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'” Revelation 21:3-4 (NIV).