Good morning! It’s great to have you here today. Repeat after me - “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

Do you believe that? I mean really believe that? Do you believe that everything that is, everything that was, and everything that will be belongs to the Lord alone?

 

There’s an old children’s’ song that says, “The mountains are his, the rivers are his, the stars are his handiwork, too. My God is so great so strong and so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do!”  Do you believe that? Does that include your house, backyard, car, retirement account? 

 

How about your husband, your wife, your parents, your kids?  How about terrorists or rude obnoxious people? “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

 

This has a special significance for us as Christians. God has a double ownership over us. Not only did he create, He redeemed us. He bought us back from our bondage to sin, not with silver of gold, but with the precious blood of Jesus, his Son. We are twice his!

 

With this in mind, let’s open our Bibles to Acts 10. The Scripture is clear, “…God wants all people be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.” 1 Tim 2:4

 

God has no throw-away people. How far will God go to save us? As far as the cross! Will all people be saved? No. But that’s a mystery of love and holiness beyond our comprehension. What we do know is this! “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”

Acts 10 “At Caesarea, there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in… the Italian Regiment.”  Caesarea was a Roman fortress town on the Mediterranean coast 30 miles north of the Jewish seaport of Joppa. Cornelius is a professional soldier. His rank corresponds to a captain/major in today’s army. He was responsible for 100 to 1000 men.  He was stationed in Caesarea with his family.

 

Cornelius is part of the occupation army of Rome, yet rather than despising the Jews, like many Roman soldiers did, he respected their teachings and their belief in one God.  He even followed their ritual of taking time out for prayer at 3 every afternoon.

 

One afternoon as he was praying, an angel appeared and called him by name! “What is it, Lord?” Cornelius asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts for the poor have been heard by God. Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Peter who is staying with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.”   “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

 

The next day at noon down in Joppa, the Jewish seaport 30miles down the coast, Peter is on the roof of Simon the tanner’s house praying while lunch is being prepared. Suddenly, he has a vision too!  A great sheet is let down from heaven filled with all kinds of animals, many of which are unclean for a pious Jew to eat.  A voice speaks to him, “Peter, kill and eat!” “No way”, said Peter, “I’ve never eaten anything impure in my life.” 

 

Now Peter’s claim is as bogus as a $3 bill!  First, Peter is staying at Simon the tanner’s house and by strict Jewish tradition, everything in that house is “unclean”   Second, Peter makes out to be a lot more pious in the presence of this vision than he ever did when he was hanging with the guys down at the fisherman’s terminal. There’s more than a little hypocrisy here. Does this hit close to home with anybody besides me?  Good thing we have a Savior would you agree?

 

Whoever is speaking to Peter seems to have bigger fish to fry than confronting Peter’s hypocrisy. The voice says to Peter, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”  Three times this was repeated. Peter always needed to hear it 3 times before he got it. Do we have any Peters among us this morning?

 

No sooner had the 3^rd rerun rerun, Peter’s ruminations are interrupted by 3 guys shouting from the front gate. “Hey, is there a guy named Peter staying here?” Suddenly the Holy Spirit speaks to Peter, “These guys have come for you. Go with them, for I have sent them to you.”

 

Now it has to be obvious to Peter that these men are agents of the Romans, they may even have been soldiers. But the Lord is teaching Peter that ancient truth…“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

 

So Peter begins the two day trip north to Caesarea, to meet with a Roman centurion, the same guys who just a few months before had nailed Jesus to the cross. In the meantime, Cornelius has gathered a whole crew of his friends and neighbors in anticipation of Peter’s coming. Let me ask you a question.  Who’s in charge of what’s going on here?  What’s the purpose? “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

 

As soon as Peter walks into the house, Cornelius meets him and falls at his feet.  Must have been shocking for Peter!  Peter tells him, “Get up, I’m only a man like you!”

 

Then Peter tells Cornelius, “I’m not supposed to be here… It’s against the law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or even visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure of unclean… so when I was sent for, I came without raising any objections. May I ask why you sent for me?”  Acts 10:27-29

 

Well, that’s most of the story but not all of it! I doubt seriously if Peter would have gone if the Lord hadn’t nailed him with that vision!  What do you think? I’ve learned that any God-ward move we make in our lives, the credit never goes to us. Always to the God! The only credit I can take in my own flesh is resisting him! Thank God he loves me enough to never give up!

When Cornelius finishes his testimony, Peter realizes God is continuing to rock his world. “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

Peter says, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.” Acts 10:34  - To fear God means to trust and obey him above all else.  It means our will is subject to his will. Our kingdom is subject to his kingdom. We are not saved to do as we want, but as we ought.  “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1

 

Peter finishes his testimony by saying, “All the prophets testify about him (Jesus) that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Acts 10:43

Does Peter have any personal experience with Jesus’ power to forgive sins and restore relationships? Certainly does!  Now he’s about to learn that that forgiveness isn’t only for himself, but for the world.

 

Look at verse 44 “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised (Jewish) believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.” Acts 10:44-46

 

“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1   Who does this include? What lines have you drawn that need to be erased?  Jesus didn’t die on the cross to set us free to continue in our sin; that would not be freedom. He died on the cross to set us free from our bondage to sin.  Two things that unite us all as a human family.

 

First, we are all created and loved by God, we belong to him. Second, we are all sinners in need of his forgiveness.  We all need to die to our old sinful nature and be born again through the Word of God and the waters of baptism to a new life of faith and trust and obedience.  

 

When that happens we become one as the family of God. Jew, Gentile, slave, free, black, white, those who grew up in the church, those who grew up without it, addicts, swindlers, liars, haters, resentful, self-centered, narcissistic, perverted, hypocrites, thieves, bullies, those who look down their noses at others, the Apostle Paul says, that’s who we all were, but we have all been brought together in Jesus who cleanses, forgives, changes and transforms us into new people and a new community of love and faith.  

 

He is in the business of erasing lines and putting shattered people and his shattered creation back together again. And he’s given us as his church the task of sharing the good news of his forgiveness, his love, his transforming power with the world. “The mountains are his, the rivers are his, the stars are his handiwork, too. My God is so great so strong and so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do!”   Last week we learned if Jesus can reach the murderer name Saul, and turn him into the world’s greatest missionary, he can reach and save anyone.

 “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it; the world and all who live in it!”  Psalm 24:1   Brothers and sisters, Peter learned from Cornelius that the church had a job to do, we still do. Let’s recommit ourselves to do whatever it takes to bring the light of Christ into the world!   AMEN