In Acts 10, we have the intriguing account of the centurion Cornelius and his family coming to faith in Christ. My question is, why did God choose Cornelius?
We may be tempted to respond with the following reasons:
- He was godly 2
- Fear to God 2
- The family was Godly 2
- He did many alms. 2
- He always prayed 2
- He had an affect on his servants and fellow soldiers 7
Even the angelic visitor highlights his prayers and alms!
Later in verse 22 other qualities are mentioned:
- Righteous man
- Feared God
- Good testimony in all Jewish nations
Verse 33 mentions
- that he had called the family and were ready to hear and do everything the Lord commanded.
This guy deserved an angelic visit, didn't he? He was like Abraham, and Noah or Moses, who were men who deserved to be chosen. Right? Wrong! As it is written, there is no righteous one, none (Romans 3:10).
We have an unscriptural view when we think that a human being deserves to be chosen by God. We do not deserve anything from God. However, God in his grace, and mercy, grants salvation. He chooses people for his purpose and Cornelius was one of them.
The fact that Cornelius was all these good things, I am sure, helped the Jewish believers to see that when Cornelius and family received the Holy Spirit, these Gentiles were being saved just as the Jews had been saved ten years earlier. There didn't seem to be any tricks going on as it seems to happen with the "conversions" nowadays. Cornelius and his clan became the first Gentile converts to Christianity. Which is so important for us Gentiles. God opened the heart of this family in a special way and he does the same today. However, don't expect to get an angelic visit or one from Peter either!
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