With a Sincere Heart

A woman praising God in worship in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. 

Scripture:

Acts 10:30   Cornelius replied, “Four days ago at this very hour, at three o’clock, I was praying in my house when suddenly a man in dazzling clothes stood before me. ³¹ He said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. ³² Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon, who is called Peter; he is staying in the home of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.’ ³³ Therefore I sent for you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. So now all of us are here in the presence of God to listen to all that the Lord has commanded you to say.”

Observation:

Cornelius was an unusual man and as a “centurion of the Italian cohort” he would have been assigned to serve the Roman government in the town of Caesarea. That city had been built by Herod over a period of ten years and by this time would have had about 50,000 occupants. Within the walls of the city would have been numerous temples and shrines to gods. To be truly Roman was to be polytheistic, worshipping many of the different gods. How unusual for a Roman soldier to become engaged in the life of the Jewish synagogue. We read that he gave generously and prayed regularly. 

This gentile who would have been considered an enemy of the Jews was turning toward the one true God with a sincere heart. He adopted the lifestyle of prayer that accompanied one who embraced Judaism. As a result, God heard, and answered his prayer. We enter the story today when Peter has arrived and Cornelius is relaying what happened while he was praying. Cornelius was living in all the light that he had received through the synagogue and now, God was going to give him all the light, or the full revelation of Jesus, the Messiah. 

Once again Cornelius shows great understanding. He doesn’t wait to hear what Peter has to say, but all that the Lord has commanded Peter to say. He understands that Peter is an envoy of the living God who has come to reveal truth to him. 

Application:

Cornelius’ sincere heart was seen through his prayers and almsgiving. Something about the revelation of God through the practice of Judaism had stirred him. For those of us who are followers of Christ, we should follow the example of Cornelius. There are people who stand on the outskirts of our faith who can sometimes be better examples for us than those who consider themselves to be at the very center. That’s because God looks on the heart and can see what motivates us. It’s in response to the heart that is right before God that Jesus is revealed, and this can change our lives. 

We are challenged to see the authenticity of faith in one like Cornelius. The religious folks of the day would have judged him outside the circle of faith and yet, he was actually a doorway through which the gospel could be spread to all the gentiles. He represented a people who would be grafted into the family of God through the power of the Holy Spirit. God is still in the business of grafting people into the community of faith who come to him with sincere hearts and overflowing generosity. 

Finally, we are to see in Cornelius a pattern for our own lives. A sincere heart should result in a commitment to prayer and fasting. It’s in those moments of prayer and fasting that we are invited into a realm in which we share in God’s nature. Cornelius prayed and he had a vision. Peter prayed and he had a vision. They both saw something that was beyond themselves. Something inexplicable happens in the space of prayer when prayer becomes more than just us talking to God. Prayer is an invitation into quiet listening where we become familiar with the very nature of the Triune God. Fasting heightens our senses so that we are not distracted by earthly satisfactions. When everything else is to put to the side we are able to look into the very heart of God where the Messiah is revealed. Then, we stand ready and alert to listen and learn everything that God wants to say to us. 

But it all begins with a sincere heart. 

Prayer:

Lord, I desire to have a sincere heart. Please, help me to be your sincere child. Amen.