I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Acts 11-13.

    When Peter returned to Jerusalem from Cornelius’ house, the Jewish believers there (pretty much the only kind there were at this point outside of Cornelius’ household) criticized him for eating with a Gentile and staying in his home. However, and this is a very important however, once Peter explained the full story about why he agreed to go to Cornelius’ house, and what happened once he got there, they not only stopped objecting, they began to praise God for what had happened. It is worth noting that Peter had six witnesses to his account of what happened at Cornelius’ house(even though he was the only one who saw the vision). We should strive to imitate this. Peter did not get angry and defensive when other believers criticized his decision and those who criticized him listened to his explanation for his actions.

    Shortly after Peter went to Cornelius’ house word came to Jerusalem that believers in Antioch were preaching to Gentiles. The Church in Jerusalem was concerned about what these Gentiles were being taught, so they sent Barnabas. In context, it seems to me that what made this situation special, even after Peter baptized Cornelius and his household, was that these new believers were not “God-fearing” Gentiles before their conversion. That is, they were not Gentiles who attended the synagogue, prayed to God, and otherwise followed Jewish Law. When Barnabas saw how much they needed to learn about who God was and what God expected, he went and got the most knowledgeable person he knew on Jewish law and traditions, Saul. Another important lesson, we cannot necessarily expect new believers to just know the basics about what it means to be a Christian.