Unlikely Relationship - Acts 10:1-19

2023 Gilligan/Manton House Chapel Sermon

From Antony and Cleopatra to John and Yoko, history is filled with unlikely relationships.

And depending on your attitude to history you might look at these relationships as either Empire building or Empire destroying, as the breakup of one of the greatest bands or the start of an innovative artistic partnership.

Our personal attitudes to unlikely relationships shape the way we view these relationships.

History is filled with relationships between people that on the surface seem unlikely, or even forbidden. We see countless examples of individuals or groups transcending geographic, cultural or other man-made barriers in order to build relationships with people they were told they should avoid. Sometimes these relationships lead to destruction and despair. But more often than not they lead to flourishing partnerships and opportunities to learn and grow from different perspectives and experience we might never have previously had.

Our reading today speaks of one such unlikely relationship and marks a pivotal moment in the history of the Early Church. In this interesting story we have two key characters, Peter, Jesus’ right-hand man and primary disciple, and Cornelius, a Roman Centurion and solider in the Roman Army.

This story is told in the book of Acts, the stories of earliest followers of Jesus in the years following Jesus’ departure. Here we find the early Christians trying to work out how they can continue following God and teaching about Jesus and we see the Gospel message beginning to be spread across the Mediterranean world. But it’s important to note that at this time, the Christian message is being taught to people who are Jewish and there is a strong feeling among many of the early followers that Gentiles, non-Jews, shouldn’t be allowed to hear or receive the teachings of Jesus.

But all that changes in this story.

The story starts with a man names Cornelius, whom we’re told is a Roman soldier stationed in the region. As a Roman Centurion, he is there to impose law and order and reinforce the might of the Roman Empire in a remote province of the Empire where political uprisings were known to occur. No doubt, Cornelius and his fellow soldiers would have been despised by much of the local population because they represented the oppression of Empire.

Yet surprisingly, we’re told Cornelius is a follower of God. To follow the one true God of Christianity and Judaism would have meant considerable risk to Cornelius, where, as a Roman soldier, he’d be expected to worship the Pantheon of Roman Gods and the Emperor himself. Yet Cornelius does just that, he worships God and offers prayers and homage to God. And because of his faithfulness he receives a vision, telling him to seek out Peter, Jesus’ closest follower, in order to deepen his faith. And so Cornelius sends out a retinue from his household to the place where he’s told Peter is residing.

Meanwhile, the story tells us that Peter was resting at a home and having an afternoon siesta after a long lunch when he too receives a vision from God. But this is a much more puzzling vision. In it he sees a series of animals that, in Jewish tradition, were considered unclean and therefore forbidden to eat. The vision from God tells Peter to eat these animals that were forbidden. Peter protests, but God through the vision tells Peter that these things that were once considered unclean are now considered clean by God.

In this, Peter is receiving a metaphorical vision about who is now accepted in God’s kingdom. Previously Gentiles, non-Jews, were considered ‘unclean’ and therefore not able to be preached to. Yet through this vision God is telling Peter that now they too were accepted as part of God’s kingdom and should be preached to and supported in faith.

Just at that moment Cornelius’ soldiers come to Peter’s house and escort him back to Cornelius, where, on seeing Peter, Cornelius and his family, bow down and worship Peter. Peter in turn welcomes them and offers them God’s love and begins teaching them about Jesus.

From this moment things begin to change, and the disciples start preaching to both Jews and Gentiles and the message of Jesus is spread. This moment between Peter and Cornelius sets up the precedence of acceptance and love of all people that Christians should try to follow today.

There are many things that is remarkable about this story, but most significantly I think is the encounter between these two individuals, who both put themselves at significant risk by going to meet the other.

For Cornelius, he risks his entire career and his livelihood by seeking out Peter, a follower of Christ whom the Roman authorities were trying to persecute. If Cornelius’ superiors found him out, he would have been dismissed from his post, and possibly faced a criminal trial for engaging with ‘the enemy’.

And Peter too faced great risk in going to Cornelius’ house. He knew full well that the Roman authorities were out to get him and so to willingly go to a Roman soldier’s house was a risky endeavour. He could well have thought that it was a trap. Yet he went because he trusted in the vision of God which told him that this was the right thing to do.

This story gives us a model of relationships in our own lives and challenges us to go beyond our comfort zones to forge relationships with people that, on the surface, we might disagree with.

It encourages us in the playground to engage with people outside of our normal friendship groups to meet someone who does different activities to us at school.

It challenges us in our workplaces or community groups to engage with people of different cultural backgrounds or experiences, to go beyond our comfort zone to make relationships with someone who we might otherwise have ignored.

It can be very easy to maintain relationships with the same people who are just like us, those who prop up our own assumptions and agree with our view of the world. Yet, by broadening ourselves to seeking relationships with people who are different to us our whole worldview can be changed. We can learn more about others, and also learn more about ourselves and in turn become richer for the experience.

The story of Peter and Cornelius challenges us to build relationships that go beyond the norm. It’s through that that we can grow and become better people and create a more accepting community. May that be the kind of relationship we strive for in our daily living. Amen.