Life Lessons From 25 New Testament CharactersSample

Grace For All

God wants all people to know Him. God responds to people who pray to Him and want to know Him deeper. Through Cornelius’ story, we see God’s heart for all the nations of the world. God wants to save both Jews and non-Jews. Cornelius was not a Jewish man, but God responded to his faith pursuit and sent Peter to bring him the Gospel. This is a vivid reminder to us to not hold back from telling others about Christ, no matter their background. God sent Christ to save both Peter and Cornelius from completely different upbringings. Faith in Christ is a gift from Heaven for all people, so let’s pay attention to those who desire to know God but may need to hear more about the Gospel to understand how to be saved and have a relationship with God through faith in Christ Jesus.

THINK and PRAY:

One lesson from Cornelius that we need to be reminded of is this: those who seek God will be rewarded! Cornelius knew very little about God, but he sought Him in prayer and in serving the poor. We may know much more about Jesus Christ, God’s Word, Christ’s Church, and God’s eternal plan than Cornelius did, but even though we may be filled with knowledge about Him, we can tend to grow apathetic and not hunger for God. For Cornelius, the message of the Gospel being extended to people beyond the Jews came as an unexpected and great gift. Are we thankful and approaching God consistently out of thanksgiving and awe of what God has done? How did God bring you the Good News of Christ's forgiveness for your sins? When have you been challenged to share the knowledge of God’s grace to other people of a background different from your own?