​Whilst staying in the home of a certain Simon the Tanner in Joppa, Saint Peter has a vision of a large sheet being lowered from the heavens.  In this sheet are all kinds of unclean animals (i.e., animals which the Jews are forbidden by the Law of Moses to eat). Peter hears the voice of the Lord saying, "Get up, Peter, kill and eat." Peter, however, refuses, protesting that the animals are unclean. The voice then replies by saying, "What God has made clean, do not call unclean." This happens 2 more times before the vision is removed from Peter's eyes.

The vision reaffirms a truth asserted by Jesus himself during his earthly ministry; namely, that it is not what goes into a person but what comes out (i.e., from the heart) that makes a person unclean.  However, this vision is more than just about food. It is about PEOPLE.

In the same way that Peter was taught to believe certain foods are unclean, he was also taught to believe that certain PEOPLE (among them, the gentiles) are unclean. Peter, however, has now learned something new; namely, that God shows no partiality. Having learned this profound truth, Peter is then led to the home of Cornelius (a Roman Centurion) where he preaches his first sermon to a gentile audience. In today's sermon, we take a closer look at what Peter says to Cornelius and what that means for us.