Podcasts about islamic faith

Summary: Eavesdroppers, prepare to be inspired! In this episode of "Eavesdrop with Ella," host Ella Parlor welcomes Dr. Essraa Nawar, a scholar, advocate, and dynamic force in interfaith understanding and leadership. Her commitment to fostering inclusivity and personal empowerment resonates deeply with Ella's dedication to challenging misconceptions about Islam. Together, they delve into the commonalities between Islam and Christianity, promoting tolerance, addressing biases in DEI work, and strategies for meaningful interfaith connection. Get ready to have your perspectives challenged and leave inspired to build bridges across communities.Highlights:How Dr. Nawar's work is advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in education and beyond.Islam and Christianity: Finding common ground and dispelling myths.The hijab as a symbol of empowerment for Muslim women.Why religious acceptance is vital in our globalized world.Using storytelling to bridge divides and create understanding.Quotes:"We love Jesus... He's a very significant figure in Islam, just as in Christianity." - Essraa Nawar"The hijab is a symbol of empowerment and liberation, contrary to common misconceptions." - Essraa Nawar"Religious acceptance... allows us to appreciate our differences and celebrate this rich puzzle of diversity." - Essraa Nawar"Education is power... it enables us to embrace religious acceptance." - Essraa NawarKeywords & Themes: Inclusivity, Diversity and Equity, the Islamic Faith, Religious Misconceptions, Empowerment, the Symbolism of the Hijab, Religious Acceptance, Commonalities Across Faiths, Storytelling, Cultural Understanding, and the Importance of a Global CommunityConnect with Guest:Dr. Essraa NawarLinkedIn: Essraa NawarInstagram: @essraanawarResource Links:Serendipity by Essraa Nawar on MediumRethinking DEI by Essraa Nawar on MediumTune into this powerful episode to explore the nuances of interfaith understanding and the role of diversity in shaping our world, as Ella and Essraa discuss the transformative power of acceptance and open-hearted conversations. Connect With Ella: EllaParlor.com IG / FB / TikTok / LinkedIn: @ellayourbella Follow & Share using #EavesdropWithElla

Title: Imperfect Perfection Text: Acts 10:1-8 FCF: We often struggle with the tension of works and faith. Prop: Because Christ is well-pleasing to God, we can live in imperfect obedience and be counted righteous by faith in Christ, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts chapter 10. In a moment I'll be reading starting in verse 1 from the NET which you can follow in the pew bible on page 1242 or in whatever version you prefer. Chapter 10 of the book of Acts represents a rather pivotal point in the expansion of the gospel of Jesus. In keeping with its significance, this next narrative episode is quite lengthy. From start to finish it encompasses a chapter and a half, 66 verses. That is the longest narrative episode we've seen yet in the book of Acts. Because it is so long it is difficult to know exactly where to break it up. At first, I had verses 1-23. Then I narrowed it down to 1-20. Then I went 1-16. I finally settled for 1-8. In this way I hope to build each detail of the narrative, one block at a time, as Luke does. The narrative as a whole is somewhat of a puzzle. We have several pieces handed to us, but until they are assembled, we won't see the full picture. So, let's begin with the first detail of the story… lets start with a man from Caesarea named Cornelius. Please stand with me to focus on and show respect for The Word of God. Transition: [Slide 2] Has this ever happened to you. You are standing in the line at the grocery store. It is a very busy day. Snow's coming tomorrow so people are out in droves to make sure they have their bread milk and toilet paper. You are waiting and waiting, the line is moving slowly. Finally, you are getting close to the front. The magazines in the rack distract you… ok being honest it is the candy in the line that is distracting. All of a sudden you hear those wonderful words… “I can help you in line 3. You look up hoping to meet the gaze of the cashier only to find that this cashier had said this to the person who literally just got in line. Makes you a little hot right? Like, HEY! I've been here this whole time. What would justice be? Would it be that they have to wait the same amount you do, or more? We all kinda feel this way about short cuts don't we. But Jesus taught a parable of men being hired for work at various times of the day and still getting paid the same amount. The employer couldn't be accused of being stingy because he paid everyone a day's wage. But to the one who worked less, it seemed like he got more. Jesus' point was that it was the employer's prerogative to be generous in the way He wished to be generous. Today, we will see the abundant graciousness and generosity of our Lord to offer the Jewish Messiah to a gentile. Let's look at verse 1. I.) No matter how good man is perceived to be, he is not good enough by God's standards, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (1-2) a. [Slide 3] 1 – Now there was a man in Caesarea i. [Slide 4] Caesarea as we can see on our map, is the furthest Northwest that the gospel has ever gone in the book of Acts. ii. Damascus represents the furthest northeast. iii. Caesarea is almost at the furthest north border of Samaria. iv. In short, the gospel is spreading far and wide throughout all of Judea and Samaria. It doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. b. [Slide 5] named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort. i. Cornelius is a Latin name meaning Of the horn. Cornucopia means horn of plenty. ii. Having a Latin name is not the only indication that this man is a gentile. iii. He is also a centurion. Meaning he is the leader of about 100 men within the Roman army. iv. He was also part of a larger Italian division of the Roman army called a Legion or a Cohort. v. A legion or Cohort consisted of 600 men. Meaning that Cornelius was no doubt one of 6 military leaders within this particular division of the military. vi. All this establishes Cornelius not only as a gentile but also a prominent one at that. vii. The question arises, if this man was in the Italian Cohort, why was he in Caesarea? viii. Caesarea is a highly valued port city on the Mediterranean and it would not be unthinkable for the Roman Emperor to keep a Legion station here. Especially in the wake of the political upheaval of Caligula becoming emperor and Herod Antipas being exiled around this time. ix. It would actually make a great deal of sense to have extra troops in the area just in case something happens. x. But there is more to this man than simply his prominence and his nationality. c. [Slide 6] 2 - He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was all his household; i. What does Luke mean that he was a devout God-fearing man? ii. In some ways this could be a simple description of Cornelius' affiliation with the Jewish faith. However, Luke hasn't shied away from using the term proselyte. In Luke 6 he mentioned Nicholas who was a Gentile proselyte now converted to Christ. iii. So, what exactly is Cornelius? Is he a proselyte or something else? iv. [Slide 7] To answer this question, we must look back among the first century historical and archeological records to understand a hierarchy that existed within the Jewish faith. 1. First there were Hebraic Jews. These were Jews who refused to allow Greek influence to spread among them. They continued to speak Hebrew or at least Aramaic. They did not assimilate into Greek traditions and heritages. They attended all the feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 2. Second there were Hellenistic Jews. These were Jews who had succumbed to Greek influence in some way or another. Though still devout and Jewish, they had lost the ability to speak Hebrew and possibly even Aramaic. They, in some cases, had allowed Greek thought and culture to influence other aspects of their lives. They still attended feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 3. Third there would be gentile proselytes. These would be gentiles who converted to Judaism and submitted themselves fully to the religious, ritualistic, and legal practices of the Jews. They would endure circumcision and offer whatever sacrifices they were permitted to offer though they would not be permitted in the inner courts of the temple. 4. Fourth there would be what would be known as God-Fearers. This is specifically a group of gentiles that are favorable to Jewish culture and faith and perhaps even in the process of becoming a proselyte, but are not yet truly converted. They were not circumcised. They did not necessarily attend the festivals and feasts, and they did not offer sacrifices at the temple. They would adopt monotheism and attempt to keep the 10 commandments in their lives. 5. Finally, would be, essentially, everyone else. The pagans and polytheists. These are the furthest away from God, since they worship false gods and not the one true God. v. [Slide 8] Cornelius then, is a God-Fearer. He is not quite a proselyte but is sympathetic to Jewish culture and faith. vi. Why is this significant? 1. This is the first time in the book of Acts so far that a non-Jew by blood and by religion becomes the focal point of the story. 2. Second, we've seen Luke's story arch up to this point and it is reasonable to conclude even if we've never read the rest of this narrative, that the gospel circle is widening yet again. 3. Will the gospel go to gentiles not fully assimilated into Judaism? If so, do they need to be Jews first? We'll have to see. vii. We also see that his whole household were also God-Fearers. Now what does this mean? 1. A household is the basic unit of social structure. But it differed from our household structure we have today. 2. Ignoring for the moment the fracturing of the modern household; even in the ideal with Father, Mother, children this would represent a much smaller sphere than 1st century households. 3. A household in the first century could include a much wider spectrum of kinship. There could also be servants and slaves included in the term household. 4. In short, a household could include anyone who lived in the home and met in the home as family. 5. And so, as we might expect, everyone in Cornelius' house were God-Fearers also. We get the impression that he led the effort for this to be so. Most likely he was the patriarch and priest of his family. viii. How else did he lead? d. [Slide 9] he did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God regularly. i. Alms giving and prayer have long been a standard measure for the truly pious. ii. As such the Pharisees were critiqued for their show of contributing large sums of money and long public prayers in order to seem very devout and pious. iii. Alms giving and prayer are two of the five pillars of the Islamic Faith. iv. Alms giving and prayer are sometimes a means of restitution in the Catholic Church. v. And even in the 1st century, Roman and Greek philosophers idealized acts of charity and devoted prayer to deities. vi. In short, giving charity to those who are less fortunate and praying regularly have always been associated with those who are devout and pious people. Whether it is true or not. And regardless of religion. You at least appear to be pious when you give alms and are consistently praying. vii. We ought also to see the correlation between Tabitha and Cornelius. Tabitha was a disciple of Christ who gave charitably too. We are not told that she prayed often, but it is reasonable to conclude she did. viii. On the surface then, we are given a man who has everything right, but he is missing one piece of the puzzle. But here is a hint. The piece of the puzzle he is missing isn't that he hasn't yet become a Jewish proselyte. e. [Slide 10] Summary of the Point: As wonderful of a man as Cornelius was, admired by men, prominent, a leader, a manager of a house, and pious to boot, he was still not good enough. He still lacked something. No doubt everyone admired and respected a man like Cornelius. And even though he wasn't quite Jewish, we will see later he is highly respected by the Jews. The core truth we see in this first point is that a man can be judged to be a good man by all of society and still be short of the standard of God. For God does not require a good man. He requires a perfect man. Jesus died for sinners… even those whom our society labels as saints. So, we must not rest on our laurels and our own self-righteousness, for it will never be good enough. But we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Transition: [Slide 11 (blank)] But we have made some logical leaps here. Is God not pleased at all by Cornelius' lifestyle? And how do we know Cornelius lacks Jesus? Well, God sends this man an angel. Let's see what the angel says. II.) God is pleased with and graciously corrects those who sincerely worship Him, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (3-6) a. [Slide 12] 3 – About three o'clock one afternoon he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God, who came in and said to him, “Cornelius.” i. At 3 in the afternoon, it would be a traditional time for sacrifices and prayers to be offered up at the temple. ii. It was at this time that Cornelius, who was probably entering again into prayer, saw a waking vision. iii. A vision is something that appears clearly, vividly, and credibly in the mind but is not actually present. iv. An angel appears to him in this vision and calls to him. v. Like Jesus to Saul before him, this angel identifies Cornelius by name. b. [Slide 13] 4 – Staring at him and becoming greatly afraid, Cornelius replied, “What is it, Lord?” i. Cornelius had never seen anything like this before. ii. Like every person who encounters an angel of God, he becomes sorely afraid. iii. Cornelius responds to this angel's call by using almost the same words Saul used when he was met by Christ. iv. Saul asked, who are you, Lord? And Cornelius says, “What is it, Lord?” v. What does this mean? vi. It is difficult to know whether Cornelius has assumed that he was seeing God Himself or whether he is using this term “lord” in its less theologically charged meaning, “Sir.” vii. Even if he did mistake this angel for God, would you blame him? viii. Regardless of what Cornelius meant, the angel makes it plain that he is not God but bears God's message to him. c. [Slide 14] The angel said to him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have gone up as a memorial before God. i. The angel indicates clearly that he is not God, but informs him that his prayers and charity have gone up before God. ii. What does it mean that his prayers and offerings have “Gone up before God?“ iii. And what is meant by it being a memorial or as other translations have it a “memorial offering?” iv. In the book of Leviticus, in several sacrifices the priests are instructed to take a handful of the offering and burn it on the altar before the Lord. The rest of the offering would be used by the priests. v. These are called memorial offerings because the one who gives the offering and the one burning the offering are all reminded that though God deserves all of the offering, he is pleased with a small portion. vi. How appropriate for the angel messenger to convey this to Cornelius. vii. Cornelius is, after all, not circumcised. He does not go to the temple for sacrifices. He meets in synagogues to learn of the Jewish faith and practice, and attempts to live accordingly, but is not Jewish. viii. Yet Yahweh, The God of Israel, through His angel, tells Cornelius that his charity and prayers have amounted to a memorial sacrifice. They have pleased God. ix. Though he has never sacrificed in the temple, his charity and prayers have been his offering. x. And his offering has pleased God. xi. So, is he good? Is Cornelius saved? Is that enough? Did he earn his salvation by an offering? xii. No. The angel had more to say. d. [Slide 15] Now send men to Joppa and summon a man named Simon, who is called Peter. 6 This man is staying as a guest with a man named Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” i. The angel communicates another message to Cornelius that, at first, appears to be separate from the first. ii. However, they are related. iii. He tells him to send men to fetch Peter and tells him where Peter is staying. iv. But we all know the reason for this. v. And later we find out that the angel told Cornelius not only that Peter needed to come to see him, but that he had a message to give to him. A message of salvation. For him, and his household. vi. It is almost as if God is telling Cornelius, “Remember, though you stand a far way off, you have gotten the important part of Judaism. You have gotten enough of Judaism to be ready for the next step in Judaism. Now Peter will come and show you what you lack.” vii. Is God giving Cornelius a shortcut? Is God saying… I desire obedience and not sacrifices? e. [Slide 16] Summary of the Point: And so, in this point, although those who are perceived as good and devout men are still not good enough, God is good and gracious to those who diligently seek Him. Though Cornelius had just enough truth and just enough good works to condemn him to hell, God rewards those who are pursuing Him. In many ways, Cornelius was probably more devout than most Jews of his day, because his motives were pure. He sincerely sought the Lord. God is pleased with those who, even imperfectly, sincerely worship Him. And God is sure to lead such people to what they lack. So, we must not be satisfied with our broken attempts to please God, even if He is pleased by our sincerity. Instead, we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. For it is in Jesus that the Lord has said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.” Transition: [Slide 17(blank)] God rewards Cornelius' diligent seeking by revealing his need. He needs to call on Peter. Peter needs to come and give him and his household a message. So, what do those who have been illuminated by God do? What do those whose eyes have been opened do? They obey… III.) All who God corrects and instructs with truth obey His commands, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (7-8) a. [Slide 18] 7 – When the angel who had spoken to him departed, Cornelius called two of his personal servants and a devout soldier from among those who served him, i. Like Aeneas and Tabitha before, Cornelius sets out to obey what has been revealed to him. ii. Aeneas was healed of his paralysis, Tabitha raised from death, but Cornelius was healed of another malady. A malady equally as hopeless. iii. You see for Cornelius though he was a God-Fearer, and though he could potentially achieve proselyte status in the Jewish faith and gain some measure of closeness to Yahweh, the God of Israel. He could never come closer than this. He could never enter the courts of the Jews much less the holy place or the Holy of Holies for that matter. iv. But what has his acts of charity and prayer done? It is a memorial offering. A reminder to him that though God requires all, He is pleased with what Cornelius has done. For he has done it while sincerely seeking Yahweh. v. So God rewards Cornelius by sending an angel, with the truth of the way he could be healed of that relational distance. vi. He has been told that he can come and receive the same gospel message that was given to the Jews. He need not be a proselyte first. Cornelius doesn't need to be circumcised. He doesn't need to become a Jew first. He simply needs the message that Peter will give him. What is that message? Jesus Christ crucified for sinners. 1. Jesus is the funnel. Jesus is the choke point. Jesus is not only the next and final redemptive step in Judaism, but He is also the next and final redemptive step for the Gentile as well. 2. He is the next and final step in the covenants He made with Adam and Eve. a. He is the sacrifice that was killed in their place so that they could be clothed perfectly and completely. b. He is the seed that has crushed the head of the serpent and enlarged the family of God. c. He is the New Adam, our new representative, keeping the covenant of works perfectly. 3. He is the next and final step in the covenant made with Noah. a. He is the ark delivering His people from the world of sin and the judgment that will overwhelm it. b. He is the bow of promise establishing peace between the Father and His people. c. He is bringing the next baptism with the Spirit and with Fire. 4. All the covenants of God, to Jews and Gentiles alike, are funneled down to Jesus. vii. And what does Cornelius do after receiving this command which he is told will be the solution for his malady of relational distance to Yahweh? What does he do when he is told that Peter holds the key for that distance to be erased? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter. b. [Slide 19] 8 - and when he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. i. It is difficult to know exactly what he tells these two servants and soldier. ii. The text says he had explained everything. iii. It seems as though everything he knew, saw, and believed was given to these men as he sent them to bring Peter. iv. Cornelius not only believed the angel, but wanted his whole house to believe as well. c. [Slide 20] Summary of the Point: We've seen how the devotion and goodness of Cornelius was not enough, that he still lacked true righteousness. We've also seen the faithfulness and compassion of God to reward those who seek Him diligently. And finally, we see the faithful obedience of all whom God reveals truth to… Cornelius was given life changing truth that would free him from his relational distance to God. And that truth would be given to him by Peter the apostle. So, what does Cornelius do when he is told that Peter holds the key for him to be brought into a close and special relationship with Yahweh? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter immediately. My friends, we know the piece that Cornelius was missing. It is Jesus crucified for sinners. So, we too must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Conclusion: So, CBC, what has the Lord said and how then shall we live? What doctrinal takeaway can we pull from this today? Doctrinal Takeaway: [Slide 21] Men and women can live lives that are devout and pious, being paragons of good among humanity. God is pleased with those who attempt to live out His law and seek to please Him. But mankind's devotion and piety is not enough to satisfy the holy standard of God. So, God in His grace rewards those who diligently seek to please and worship Him. He rewards them by revealing to them how they can be made right with Him. In this we see the tension of mankind's spiritual status as dead and paralyzed juxtaposed against being able to actually, in some way, please God with our meager efforts. Another riddle. The great answer is that God's legal standard is perfection, even if it is pleasing for us to obey Him and seek Him, it will never satisfy the legal requirement of perfection. But that is why God has sent His Son. And that is why God promises to reward those who seek Him. Cornelius was rewarded for faithfully pursuing the God if Israel. How was He rewarded? He was rewarded by God offering Him the next and final step in His redemption. And it was not to make him a Jew first. It was to transfer him directly into the family of the Son. So Cornelius obeyed the Lord and sent for Peter. Jesus is the answer for all men and not just the Jews. All the covenants of God are fulfilled in Him. My friends, although it is true that when we are God's people, we obey Him… our obedience is not what we rely on. Because our obedience will always be imperfect in this life. Instead, we depend on Christ's righteousness. For it is only in Christ that the Lord's legal standard is met. The best we can hope for is God to be pleased with us. With Christ, The Father is well-pleased. So let me improve upon this point in a few ways for us this morning. 1.) [Slide 22] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that no matter how much righteousness we can muster, it will never satisfy God's perfect standard. a. Cornelius was a man who put many Jews to shame. He devoted himself and his entire household to upholding monotheism and the law of the God of Israel. b. Even though he would never be accepted into the inner relationship to Yahweh, he still served Him and sought Him. c. This is a far cry from the Sadducees who only wanted power with their piety. It is lightyears away from the Pharisees who desired honor from men by their devotion to God. d. Nevertheless, as righteous as he was, Cornelius was still missing something. As pleasing as his actions were to God, he still lacked what Peter would bring. e. From meticulous legalism to liberal sincerity, mankind cannot ever achieve the perfect standard of God. f. As we spoke last week, we are all dead in sin. We are hopeless to heal ourselves. Hopeless to raise ourselves. The Lord must do this work. g. But our problem only begins there. Even though the Lord must raise us from sin death that is only half of our problem. For not only are we dead in sin, but we also dead to righteousness, h. Mankind, my friends, is in quite the pickle. Not only do they not want to please God, but even if they did want to, they couldn't. You see God can't bring us to life and then let us go. For we would simply die in sin again when we fail. i. No. God must unite us to something that will never fail. j. This is what orthodox Christianity teaches. Mankind is doubly damned. Not only are we dead in sin, but God's standard is perfection. You cannot be perfect if you are by nature dead in flaws. k. Like a computer with a hardware problem. Even if you reboot it and debug it… if there is a flaw with the hard drive or the motherboard… it will never function properly. The bad hardware must be replaced. l. Mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well. 2.) [Slide 23] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that being dead in sin means we are unable to do good. a. Some having misunderstood this teaching have critiqued it by saying, “If mankind is dead in sin, If mankind is not righteous, then why do my Muslim neighbors shovel my driveway out of kindness? Why do my lost family members buy me flowers when I'm down? Why do my unbelieving co-workers pay their taxes and offer sacrificial love to their families?” b. They offer a wise critique to a doctrine no one is teaching. c. No one teaches that because mankind is dead in sin they can do no good thing. No one is teaching that because mankind is enslaved to sin that all they can do is sin. d. What we mean when we say that mankind is totally depraved or totally unable is that man is not able and not willing to spiritually free himself from sin or seek God or be made right with God. e. In the previous example we said that “mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well.” Now think with me… if we are the computer, can we do that on our own? f. And I know you are thinking – well sometimes my computer reboots on its own. g. Does it? Or did someone program the computer to reboot under certain conditions? h. This is what this doctrine means. Just like a computer, we are not able to reboot ourselves or change our hardware. i. But that doesn't mean that the computer can't do some good things right? It just means that those good things don't fix the problem. j. Cornelius proves this out. He was able to do good things, things that were pleasing to God – but he still needed God to send an angel and an apostle to bring him to Christ. 3.) [Slide 24] De-Exhortation: “What actions should we stop doing” or “What behaviors do we naturally practice that this passage tells us to stop doing?” We must stop relying on our own obedience to perfectly please God. a. No doubt we all sometimes succumb to this erroneous teaching that has bound so many of God's dear children. b. We speak harshly to our wives and hit every red light on the way to work. Immediately we observe, God is punishing me for being harsh. c. We pray for our neighbor and then we inherit a small house form a distant uncle who passed. Apparently, God is pleased with me for praying for my neighbors. d. If I wear this, or go to that movie, or drink that, or say this, God will be most displeased with me. e. Even though there is a certain measure of truth in some of this – God is pleased and displeased by our choices, the thing that is faulty is our reliance on our performance to please God. f. My friends, our performance is not what perfectly pleases God. Why? Because our performance is never perfect. g. The scriptures teach us that there is no condemnation in Christ. The scriptures teach us that although we will be rewarded with crowns for our faithfulness to God – we will cast them all at the feet of Jesus. h. The whole of it my friends is that we can't be more or less pleasing to God because we are in Christ. And with Christ, the Father is well-pleased. i. But we could pendulum swing here couldn't we… 4.) [Slide 25] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must obey the Lord while trusting that Christ has satisfied God's perfect standard of performance. a. You see my friends, we obey the Lord out of love and thanksgiving. b. We are not trying to please Him more or fear displeasing him. We are obeying His law because we love Him and are thankful that He first loved us. c. We rest in the perfect righteousness of Christ, knowing that we will never lose that perfect standing before our Father. And then in that state of declared righteousness, we imperfectly obey. d. This is the beauty of the gospel. e. We are imperfectly perfect by faith in Christ. f. And it works because He changes our desires. We no longer want to wallow in imperfection. Instead, we long to be like Christ, while knowing that God has made us to be His righteousness. g. What a great God we serve that although His standard is perfection, He has achieved it for us while changing us to continue to desire it. 5.) [Slide 26] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God will reveal Himself to those who diligently pursue Him. a. Perhaps you left last week with a feeling of despair. b. God must wake up people from spiritual death and paralysis. I get it. But what if someone really really really wants to serve God but God says no to waking them up? c. What if someone really wants to be saved but God never turns the lights on, God never opens the prison cell. God never raises them up. What happens then? d. My friends… God promises that those who diligently seek Him will be rewarded. Those who keep knocking on His door, He won't cast out. He will welcome them in. e. Perhaps that is you today. Perhaps you have desired to be God's child and have been knocking and knocking and still He has not answered. f. Will you give up now? Will you turn away? Where will you go? Who else can save like our God? g. There is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved. He is the Son of God who has the words of life… where else can you go? h. Don't stop knocking my friends. The Lord promises that He will let you in. Let me close with a prayer from the church father Eusebius of Caesarea, fitting since Cornelius was from this city. We give you thanks, our God and Savior, and to you, O Christ, in our own feeble way. You are the supreme providence of the mighty Father, who both saves us from evil and teaches us in the way of truth. I say these things not to praise, but simply to give thanks. Who among us is worthy to give you praise? You called creation into being from nothing. You illuminated it with your light. You regulated the confusion of the elements by your laws of harmony and order. More than that, we recognize your lovingkindness. You caused those whose hearts inclined toward you to sincerely seek a divine and blessed life. You've allowed us to pass along what we've received from you, like merchants of wisdom and true blessings. We reap the everlasting fruit of your goodness. Freed from the net of sin, and permeated with a love for others, mercy is always our point of view. We hope for the promise of faith, and we are devoted to modest living – all the virtues we had once thrown aside, but are now restored by you whose generous care is over all. In Jesus name we pray… Amen. May the God who did not spare His own Son, But sent Him to gladly bear our burden on the cross, Remind you always of these things, though you Know them and are firmly established in the truth, Until you arrive to a full measure of glory. Until we meet again… Go in peace.

Title: Imperfect Perfection Text: Acts 10:1-8 FCF: We often struggle with the tension of works and faith. Prop: Because Christ is well-pleasing to God, we can live in imperfect obedience and be counted righteous by faith in Christ, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts chapter 10. In a moment I'll be reading starting in verse 1 from the NET which you can follow in the pew bible on page 1242 or in whatever version you prefer. Chapter 10 of the book of Acts represents a rather pivotal point in the expansion of the gospel of Jesus. In keeping with its significance, this next narrative episode is quite lengthy. From start to finish it encompasses a chapter and a half, 66 verses. That is the longest narrative episode we've seen yet in the book of Acts. Because it is so long it is difficult to know exactly where to break it up. At first, I had verses 1-23. Then I narrowed it down to 1-20. Then I went 1-16. I finally settled for 1-8. In this way I hope to build each detail of the narrative, one block at a time, as Luke does. The narrative as a whole is somewhat of a puzzle. We have several pieces handed to us, but until they are assembled, we won't see the full picture. So, let's begin with the first detail of the story… lets start with a man from Caesarea named Cornelius. Please stand with me to focus on and show respect for The Word of God. Transition: [Slide 2] Has this ever happened to you. You are standing in the line at the grocery store. It is a very busy day. Snow's coming tomorrow so people are out in droves to make sure they have their bread milk and toilet paper. You are waiting and waiting, the line is moving slowly. Finally, you are getting close to the front. The magazines in the rack distract you… ok being honest it is the candy in the line that is distracting. All of a sudden you hear those wonderful words… “I can help you in line 3. You look up hoping to meet the gaze of the cashier only to find that this cashier had said this to the person who literally just got in line. Makes you a little hot right? Like, HEY! I've been here this whole time. What would justice be? Would it be that they have to wait the same amount you do, or more? We all kinda feel this way about short cuts don't we. But Jesus taught a parable of men being hired for work at various times of the day and still getting paid the same amount. The employer couldn't be accused of being stingy because he paid everyone a day's wage. But to the one who worked less, it seemed like he got more. Jesus' point was that it was the employer's prerogative to be generous in the way He wished to be generous. Today, we will see the abundant graciousness and generosity of our Lord to offer the Jewish Messiah to a gentile. Let's look at verse 1. I.) No matter how good man is perceived to be, he is not good enough by God's standards, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (1-2) a. [Slide 3] 1 – Now there was a man in Caesarea i. [Slide 4] Caesarea as we can see on our map, is the furthest Northwest that the gospel has ever gone in the book of Acts. ii. Damascus represents the furthest northeast. iii. Caesarea is almost at the furthest north border of Samaria. iv. In short, the gospel is spreading far and wide throughout all of Judea and Samaria. It doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. b. [Slide 5] named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort. i. Cornelius is a Latin name meaning Of the horn. Cornucopia means horn of plenty. ii. Having a Latin name is not the only indication that this man is a gentile. iii. He is also a centurion. Meaning he is the leader of about 100 men within the Roman army. iv. He was also part of a larger Italian division of the Roman army called a Legion or a Cohort. v. A legion or Cohort consisted of 600 men. Meaning that Cornelius was no doubt one of 6 military leaders within this particular division of the military. vi. All this establishes Cornelius not only as a gentile but also a prominent one at that. vii. The question arises, if this man was in the Italian Cohort, why was he in Caesarea? viii. Caesarea is a highly valued port city on the Mediterranean and it would not be unthinkable for the Roman Emperor to keep a Legion station here. Especially in the wake of the political upheaval of Caligula becoming emperor and Herod Antipas being exiled around this time. ix. It would actually make a great deal of sense to have extra troops in the area just in case something happens. x. But there is more to this man than simply his prominence and his nationality. c. [Slide 6] 2 - He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was all his household; i. What does Luke mean that he was a devout God-fearing man? ii. In some ways this could be a simple description of Cornelius' affiliation with the Jewish faith. However, Luke hasn't shied away from using the term proselyte. In Luke 6 he mentioned Nicholas who was a Gentile proselyte now converted to Christ. iii. So, what exactly is Cornelius? Is he a proselyte or something else? iv. [Slide 7] To answer this question, we must look back among the first century historical and archeological records to understand a hierarchy that existed within the Jewish faith. 1. First there were Hebraic Jews. These were Jews who refused to allow Greek influence to spread among them. They continued to speak Hebrew or at least Aramaic. They did not assimilate into Greek traditions and heritages. They attended all the feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 2. Second there were Hellenistic Jews. These were Jews who had succumbed to Greek influence in some way or another. Though still devout and Jewish, they had lost the ability to speak Hebrew and possibly even Aramaic. They, in some cases, had allowed Greek thought and culture to influence other aspects of their lives. They still attended feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 3. Third there would be gentile proselytes. These would be gentiles who converted to Judaism and submitted themselves fully to the religious, ritualistic, and legal practices of the Jews. They would endure circumcision and offer whatever sacrifices they were permitted to offer though they would not be permitted in the inner courts of the temple. 4. Fourth there would be what would be known as God-Fearers. This is specifically a group of gentiles that are favorable to Jewish culture and faith and perhaps even in the process of becoming a proselyte, but are not yet truly converted. They were not circumcised. They did not necessarily attend the festivals and feasts, and they did not offer sacrifices at the temple. They would adopt monotheism and attempt to keep the 10 commandments in their lives. 5. Finally, would be, essentially, everyone else. The pagans and polytheists. These are the furthest away from God, since they worship false gods and not the one true God. v. [Slide 8] Cornelius then, is a God-Fearer. He is not quite a proselyte but is sympathetic to Jewish culture and faith. vi. Why is this significant? 1. This is the first time in the book of Acts so far that a non-Jew by blood and by religion becomes the focal point of the story. 2. Second, we've seen Luke's story arch up to this point and it is reasonable to conclude even if we've never read the rest of this narrative, that the gospel circle is widening yet again. 3. Will the gospel go to gentiles not fully assimilated into Judaism? If so, do they need to be Jews first? We'll have to see. vii. We also see that his whole household were also God-Fearers. Now what does this mean? 1. A household is the basic unit of social structure. But it differed from our household structure we have today. 2. Ignoring for the moment the fracturing of the modern household; even in the ideal with Father, Mother, children this would represent a much smaller sphere than 1st century households. 3. A household in the first century could include a much wider spectrum of kinship. There could also be servants and slaves included in the term household. 4. In short, a household could include anyone who lived in the home and met in the home as family. 5. And so, as we might expect, everyone in Cornelius' house were God-Fearers also. We get the impression that he led the effort for this to be so. Most likely he was the patriarch and priest of his family. viii. How else did he lead? d. [Slide 9] he did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God regularly. i. Alms giving and prayer have long been a standard measure for the truly pious. ii. As such the Pharisees were critiqued for their show of contributing large sums of money and long public prayers in order to seem very devout and pious. iii. Alms giving and prayer are two of the five pillars of the Islamic Faith. iv. Alms giving and prayer are sometimes a means of restitution in the Catholic Church. v. And even in the 1st century, Roman and Greek philosophers idealized acts of charity and devoted prayer to deities. vi. In short, giving charity to those who are less fortunate and praying regularly have always been associated with those who are devout and pious people. Whether it is true or not. And regardless of religion. You at least appear to be pious when you give alms and are consistently praying. vii. We ought also to see the correlation between Tabitha and Cornelius. Tabitha was a disciple of Christ who gave charitably too. We are not told that she prayed often, but it is reasonable to conclude she did. viii. On the surface then, we are given a man who has everything right, but he is missing one piece of the puzzle. But here is a hint. The piece of the puzzle he is missing isn't that he hasn't yet become a Jewish proselyte. e. [Slide 10] Summary of the Point: As wonderful of a man as Cornelius was, admired by men, prominent, a leader, a manager of a house, and pious to boot, he was still not good enough. He still lacked something. No doubt everyone admired and respected a man like Cornelius. And even though he wasn't quite Jewish, we will see later he is highly respected by the Jews. The core truth we see in this first point is that a man can be judged to be a good man by all of society and still be short of the standard of God. For God does not require a good man. He requires a perfect man. Jesus died for sinners… even those whom our society labels as saints. So, we must not rest on our laurels and our own self-righteousness, for it will never be good enough. But we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Transition: [Slide 11 (blank)] But we have made some logical leaps here. Is God not pleased at all by Cornelius' lifestyle? And how do we know Cornelius lacks Jesus? Well, God sends this man an angel. Let's see what the angel says. II.) God is pleased with and graciously corrects those who sincerely worship Him, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (3-6) a. [Slide 12] 3 – About three o'clock one afternoon he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God, who came in and said to him, “Cornelius.” i. At 3 in the afternoon, it would be a traditional time for sacrifices and prayers to be offered up at the temple. ii. It was at this time that Cornelius, who was probably entering again into prayer, saw a waking vision. iii. A vision is something that appears clearly, vividly, and credibly in the mind but is not actually present. iv. An angel appears to him in this vision and calls to him. v. Like Jesus to Saul before him, this angel identifies Cornelius by name. b. [Slide 13] 4 – Staring at him and becoming greatly afraid, Cornelius replied, “What is it, Lord?” i. Cornelius had never seen anything like this before. ii. Like every person who encounters an angel of God, he becomes sorely afraid. iii. Cornelius responds to this angel's call by using almost the same words Saul used when he was met by Christ. iv. Saul asked, who are you, Lord? And Cornelius says, “What is it, Lord?” v. What does this mean? vi. It is difficult to know whether Cornelius has assumed that he was seeing God Himself or whether he is using this term “lord” in its less theologically charged meaning, “Sir.” vii. Even if he did mistake this angel for God, would you blame him? viii. Regardless of what Cornelius meant, the angel makes it plain that he is not God but bears God's message to him. c. [Slide 14] The angel said to him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have gone up as a memorial before God. i. The angel indicates clearly that he is not God, but informs him that his prayers and charity have gone up before God. ii. What does it mean that his prayers and offerings have “Gone up before God?“ iii. And what is meant by it being a memorial or as other translations have it a “memorial offering?” iv. In the book of Leviticus, in several sacrifices the priests are instructed to take a handful of the offering and burn it on the altar before the Lord. The rest of the offering would be used by the priests. v. These are called memorial offerings because the one who gives the offering and the one burning the offering are all reminded that though God deserves all of the offering, he is pleased with a small portion. vi. How appropriate for the angel messenger to convey this to Cornelius. vii. Cornelius is, after all, not circumcised. He does not go to the temple for sacrifices. He meets in synagogues to learn of the Jewish faith and practice, and attempts to live accordingly, but is not Jewish. viii. Yet Yahweh, The God of Israel, through His angel, tells Cornelius that his charity and prayers have amounted to a memorial sacrifice. They have pleased God. ix. Though he has never sacrificed in the temple, his charity and prayers have been his offering. x. And his offering has pleased God. xi. So, is he good? Is Cornelius saved? Is that enough? Did he earn his salvation by an offering? xii. No. The angel had more to say. d. [Slide 15] Now send men to Joppa and summon a man named Simon, who is called Peter. 6 This man is staying as a guest with a man named Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” i. The angel communicates another message to Cornelius that, at first, appears to be separate from the first. ii. However, they are related. iii. He tells him to send men to fetch Peter and tells him where Peter is staying. iv. But we all know the reason for this. v. And later we find out that the angel told Cornelius not only that Peter needed to come to see him, but that he had a message to give to him. A message of salvation. For him, and his household. vi. It is almost as if God is telling Cornelius, “Remember, though you stand a far way off, you have gotten the important part of Judaism. You have gotten enough of Judaism to be ready for the next step in Judaism. Now Peter will come and show you what you lack.” vii. Is God giving Cornelius a shortcut? Is God saying… I desire obedience and not sacrifices? e. [Slide 16] Summary of the Point: And so, in this point, although those who are perceived as good and devout men are still not good enough, God is good and gracious to those who diligently seek Him. Though Cornelius had just enough truth and just enough good works to condemn him to hell, God rewards those who are pursuing Him. In many ways, Cornelius was probably more devout than most Jews of his day, because his motives were pure. He sincerely sought the Lord. God is pleased with those who, even imperfectly, sincerely worship Him. And God is sure to lead such people to what they lack. So, we must not be satisfied with our broken attempts to please God, even if He is pleased by our sincerity. Instead, we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. For it is in Jesus that the Lord has said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.” Transition: [Slide 17(blank)] God rewards Cornelius' diligent seeking by revealing his need. He needs to call on Peter. Peter needs to come and give him and his household a message. So, what do those who have been illuminated by God do? What do those whose eyes have been opened do? They obey… III.) All who God corrects and instructs with truth obey His commands, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (7-8) a. [Slide 18] 7 – When the angel who had spoken to him departed, Cornelius called two of his personal servants and a devout soldier from among those who served him, i. Like Aeneas and Tabitha before, Cornelius sets out to obey what has been revealed to him. ii. Aeneas was healed of his paralysis, Tabitha raised from death, but Cornelius was healed of another malady. A malady equally as hopeless. iii. You see for Cornelius though he was a God-Fearer, and though he could potentially achieve proselyte status in the Jewish faith and gain some measure of closeness to Yahweh, the God of Israel. He could never come closer than this. He could never enter the courts of the Jews much less the holy place or the Holy of Holies for that matter. iv. But what has his acts of charity and prayer done? It is a memorial offering. A reminder to him that though God requires all, He is pleased with what Cornelius has done. For he has done it while sincerely seeking Yahweh. v. So God rewards Cornelius by sending an angel, with the truth of the way he could be healed of that relational distance. vi. He has been told that he can come and receive the same gospel message that was given to the Jews. He need not be a proselyte first. Cornelius doesn't need to be circumcised. He doesn't need to become a Jew first. He simply needs the message that Peter will give him. What is that message? Jesus Christ crucified for sinners. 1. Jesus is the funnel. Jesus is the choke point. Jesus is not only the next and final redemptive step in Judaism, but He is also the next and final redemptive step for the Gentile as well. 2. He is the next and final step in the covenants He made with Adam and Eve. a. He is the sacrifice that was killed in their place so that they could be clothed perfectly and completely. b. He is the seed that has crushed the head of the serpent and enlarged the family of God. c. He is the New Adam, our new representative, keeping the covenant of works perfectly. 3. He is the next and final step in the covenant made with Noah. a. He is the ark delivering His people from the world of sin and the judgment that will overwhelm it. b. He is the bow of promise establishing peace between the Father and His people. c. He is bringing the next baptism with the Spirit and with Fire. 4. All the covenants of God, to Jews and Gentiles alike, are funneled down to Jesus. vii. And what does Cornelius do after receiving this command which he is told will be the solution for his malady of relational distance to Yahweh? What does he do when he is told that Peter holds the key for that distance to be erased? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter. b. [Slide 19] 8 - and when he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. i. It is difficult to know exactly what he tells these two servants and soldier. ii. The text says he had explained everything. iii. It seems as though everything he knew, saw, and believed was given to these men as he sent them to bring Peter. iv. Cornelius not only believed the angel, but wanted his whole house to believe as well. c. [Slide 20] Summary of the Point: We've seen how the devotion and goodness of Cornelius was not enough, that he still lacked true righteousness. We've also seen the faithfulness and compassion of God to reward those who seek Him diligently. And finally, we see the faithful obedience of all whom God reveals truth to… Cornelius was given life changing truth that would free him from his relational distance to God. And that truth would be given to him by Peter the apostle. So, what does Cornelius do when he is told that Peter holds the key for him to be brought into a close and special relationship with Yahweh? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter immediately. My friends, we know the piece that Cornelius was missing. It is Jesus crucified for sinners. So, we too must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Conclusion: So, CBC, what has the Lord said and how then shall we live? What doctrinal takeaway can we pull from this today? Doctrinal Takeaway: [Slide 21] Men and women can live lives that are devout and pious, being paragons of good among humanity. God is pleased with those who attempt to live out His law and seek to please Him. But mankind's devotion and piety is not enough to satisfy the holy standard of God. So, God in His grace rewards those who diligently seek to please and worship Him. He rewards them by revealing to them how they can be made right with Him. In this we see the tension of mankind's spiritual status as dead and paralyzed juxtaposed against being able to actually, in some way, please God with our meager efforts. Another riddle. The great answer is that God's legal standard is perfection, even if it is pleasing for us to obey Him and seek Him, it will never satisfy the legal requirement of perfection. But that is why God has sent His Son. And that is why God promises to reward those who seek Him. Cornelius was rewarded for faithfully pursuing the God if Israel. How was He rewarded? He was rewarded by God offering Him the next and final step in His redemption. And it was not to make him a Jew first. It was to transfer him directly into the family of the Son. So Cornelius obeyed the Lord and sent for Peter. Jesus is the answer for all men and not just the Jews. All the covenants of God are fulfilled in Him. My friends, although it is true that when we are God's people, we obey Him… our obedience is not what we rely on. Because our obedience will always be imperfect in this life. Instead, we depend on Christ's righteousness. For it is only in Christ that the Lord's legal standard is met. The best we can hope for is God to be pleased with us. With Christ, The Father is well-pleased. So let me improve upon this point in a few ways for us this morning. 1.) [Slide 22] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that no matter how much righteousness we can muster, it will never satisfy God's perfect standard. a. Cornelius was a man who put many Jews to shame. He devoted himself and his entire household to upholding monotheism and the law of the God of Israel. b. Even though he would never be accepted into the inner relationship to Yahweh, he still served Him and sought Him. c. This is a far cry from the Sadducees who only wanted power with their piety. It is lightyears away from the Pharisees who desired honor from men by their devotion to God. d. Nevertheless, as righteous as he was, Cornelius was still missing something. As pleasing as his actions were to God, he still lacked what Peter would bring. e. From meticulous legalism to liberal sincerity, mankind cannot ever achieve the perfect standard of God. f. As we spoke last week, we are all dead in sin. We are hopeless to heal ourselves. Hopeless to raise ourselves. The Lord must do this work. g. But our problem only begins there. Even though the Lord must raise us from sin death that is only half of our problem. For not only are we dead in sin, but we also dead to righteousness, h. Mankind, my friends, is in quite the pickle. Not only do they not want to please God, but even if they did want to, they couldn't. You see God can't bring us to life and then let us go. For we would simply die in sin again when we fail. i. No. God must unite us to something that will never fail. j. This is what orthodox Christianity teaches. Mankind is doubly damned. Not only are we dead in sin, but God's standard is perfection. You cannot be perfect if you are by nature dead in flaws. k. Like a computer with a hardware problem. Even if you reboot it and debug it… if there is a flaw with the hard drive or the motherboard… it will never function properly. The bad hardware must be replaced. l. Mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well. 2.) [Slide 23] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that being dead in sin means we are unable to do good. a. Some having misunderstood this teaching have critiqued it by saying, “If mankind is dead in sin, If mankind is not righteous, then why do my Muslim neighbors shovel my driveway out of kindness? Why do my lost family members buy me flowers when I'm down? Why do my unbelieving co-workers pay their taxes and offer sacrificial love to their families?” b. They offer a wise critique to a doctrine no one is teaching. c. No one teaches that because mankind is dead in sin they can do no good thing. No one is teaching that because mankind is enslaved to sin that all they can do is sin. d. What we mean when we say that mankind is totally depraved or totally unable is that man is not able and not willing to spiritually free himself from sin or seek God or be made right with God. e. In the previous example we said that “mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well.” Now think with me… if we are the computer, can we do that on our own? f. And I know you are thinking – well sometimes my computer reboots on its own. g. Does it? Or did someone program the computer to reboot under certain conditions? h. This is what this doctrine means. Just like a computer, we are not able to reboot ourselves or change our hardware. i. But that doesn't mean that the computer can't do some good things right? It just means that those good things don't fix the problem. j. Cornelius proves this out. He was able to do good things, things that were pleasing to God – but he still needed God to send an angel and an apostle to bring him to Christ. 3.) [Slide 24] De-Exhortation: “What actions should we stop doing” or “What behaviors do we naturally practice that this passage tells us to stop doing?” We must stop relying on our own obedience to perfectly please God. a. No doubt we all sometimes succumb to this erroneous teaching that has bound so many of God's dear children. b. We speak harshly to our wives and hit every red light on the way to work. Immediately we observe, God is punishing me for being harsh. c. We pray for our neighbor and then we inherit a small house form a distant uncle who passed. Apparently, God is pleased with me for praying for my neighbors. d. If I wear this, or go to that movie, or drink that, or say this, God will be most displeased with me. e. Even though there is a certain measure of truth in some of this – God is pleased and displeased by our choices, the thing that is faulty is our reliance on our performance to please God. f. My friends, our performance is not what perfectly pleases God. Why? Because our performance is never perfect. g. The scriptures teach us that there is no condemnation in Christ. The scriptures teach us that although we will be rewarded with crowns for our faithfulness to God – we will cast them all at the feet of Jesus. h. The whole of it my friends is that we can't be more or less pleasing to God because we are in Christ. And with Christ, the Father is well-pleased. i. But we could pendulum swing here couldn't we… 4.) [Slide 25] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must obey the Lord while trusting that Christ has satisfied God's perfect standard of performance. a. You see my friends, we obey the Lord out of love and thanksgiving. b. We are not trying to please Him more or fear displeasing him. We are obeying His law because we love Him and are thankful that He first loved us. c. We rest in the perfect righteousness of Christ, knowing that we will never lose that perfect standing before our Father. And then in that state of declared righteousness, we imperfectly obey. d. This is the beauty of the gospel. e. We are imperfectly perfect by faith in Christ. f. And it works because He changes our desires. We no longer want to wallow in imperfection. Instead, we long to be like Christ, while knowing that God has made us to be His righteousness. g. What a great God we serve that although His standard is perfection, He has achieved it for us while changing us to continue to desire it. 5.) [Slide 26] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God will reveal Himself to those who diligently pursue Him. a. Perhaps you left last week with a feeling of despair. b. God must wake up people from spiritual death and paralysis. I get it. But what if someone really really really wants to serve God but God says no to waking them up? c. What if someone really wants to be saved but God never turns the lights on, God never opens the prison cell. God never raises them up. What happens then? d. My friends… God promises that those who diligently seek Him will be rewarded. Those who keep knocking on His door, He won't cast out. He will welcome them in. e. Perhaps that is you today. Perhaps you have desired to be God's child and have been knocking and knocking and still He has not answered. f. Will you give up now? Will you turn away? Where will you go? Who else can save like our God? g. There is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved. He is the Son of God who has the words of life… where else can you go? h. Don't stop knocking my friends. The Lord promises that He will let you in. Let me close with a prayer from the church father Eusebius of Caesarea, fitting since Cornelius was from this city. We give you thanks, our God and Savior, and to you, O Christ, in our own feeble way. You are the supreme providence of the mighty Father, who both saves us from evil and teaches us in the way of truth. I say these things not to praise, but simply to give thanks. Who among us is worthy to give you praise? You called creation into being from nothing. You illuminated it with your light. You regulated the confusion of the elements by your laws of harmony and order. More than that, we recognize your lovingkindness. You caused those whose hearts inclined toward you to sincerely seek a divine and blessed life. You've allowed us to pass along what we've received from you, like merchants of wisdom and true blessings. We reap the everlasting fruit of your goodness. Freed from the net of sin, and permeated with a love for others, mercy is always our point of view. We hope for the promise of faith, and we are devoted to modest living – all the virtues we had once thrown aside, but are now restored by you whose generous care is over all. In Jesus name we pray… Amen. May the God who did not spare His own Son, But sent Him to gladly bear our burden on the cross, Remind you always of these things, though you Know them and are firmly established in the truth, Until you arrive to a full measure of glory. Until we meet again… Go in peace.

Title: Imperfect Perfection Text: Acts 10:1-8 FCF: We often struggle with the tension of works and faith. Prop: Because Christ is well-pleasing to God, we can live in imperfect obedience and be counted righteous by faith in Christ, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts chapter 10. In a moment I'll be reading starting in verse 1 from the NET which you can follow in the pew bible on page 1242 or in whatever version you prefer. Chapter 10 of the book of Acts represents a rather pivotal point in the expansion of the gospel of Jesus. In keeping with its significance, this next narrative episode is quite lengthy. From start to finish it encompasses a chapter and a half, 66 verses. That is the longest narrative episode we've seen yet in the book of Acts. Because it is so long it is difficult to know exactly where to break it up. At first, I had verses 1-23. Then I narrowed it down to 1-20. Then I went 1-16. I finally settled for 1-8. In this way I hope to build each detail of the narrative, one block at a time, as Luke does. The narrative as a whole is somewhat of a puzzle. We have several pieces handed to us, but until they are assembled, we won't see the full picture. So, let's begin with the first detail of the story… lets start with a man from Caesarea named Cornelius. Please stand with me to focus on and show respect for The Word of God. Transition: [Slide 2] Has this ever happened to you. You are standing in the line at the grocery store. It is a very busy day. Snow's coming tomorrow so people are out in droves to make sure they have their bread milk and toilet paper. You are waiting and waiting, the line is moving slowly. Finally, you are getting close to the front. The magazines in the rack distract you… ok being honest it is the candy in the line that is distracting. All of a sudden you hear those wonderful words… “I can help you in line 3. You look up hoping to meet the gaze of the cashier only to find that this cashier had said this to the person who literally just got in line. Makes you a little hot right? Like, HEY! I've been here this whole time. What would justice be? Would it be that they have to wait the same amount you do, or more? We all kinda feel this way about short cuts don't we. But Jesus taught a parable of men being hired for work at various times of the day and still getting paid the same amount. The employer couldn't be accused of being stingy because he paid everyone a day's wage. But to the one who worked less, it seemed like he got more. Jesus' point was that it was the employer's prerogative to be generous in the way He wished to be generous. Today, we will see the abundant graciousness and generosity of our Lord to offer the Jewish Messiah to a gentile. Let's look at verse 1. I.) No matter how good man is perceived to be, he is not good enough by God's standards, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (1-2) a. [Slide 3] 1 – Now there was a man in Caesarea i. [Slide 4] Caesarea as we can see on our map, is the furthest Northwest that the gospel has ever gone in the book of Acts. ii. Damascus represents the furthest northeast. iii. Caesarea is almost at the furthest north border of Samaria. iv. In short, the gospel is spreading far and wide throughout all of Judea and Samaria. It doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. b. [Slide 5] named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort. i. Cornelius is a Latin name meaning Of the horn. Cornucopia means horn of plenty. ii. Having a Latin name is not the only indication that this man is a gentile. iii. He is also a centurion. Meaning he is the leader of about 100 men within the Roman army. iv. He was also part of a larger Italian division of the Roman army called a Legion or a Cohort. v. A legion or Cohort consisted of 600 men. Meaning that Cornelius was no doubt one of 6 military leaders within this particular division of the military. vi. All this establishes Cornelius not only as a gentile but also a prominent one at that. vii. The question arises, if this man was in the Italian Cohort, why was he in Caesarea? viii. Caesarea is a highly valued port city on the Mediterranean and it would not be unthinkable for the Roman Emperor to keep a Legion station here. Especially in the wake of the political upheaval of Caligula becoming emperor and Herod Antipas being exiled around this time. ix. It would actually make a great deal of sense to have extra troops in the area just in case something happens. x. But there is more to this man than simply his prominence and his nationality. c. [Slide 6] 2 - He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was all his household; i. What does Luke mean that he was a devout God-fearing man? ii. In some ways this could be a simple description of Cornelius' affiliation with the Jewish faith. However, Luke hasn't shied away from using the term proselyte. In Luke 6 he mentioned Nicholas who was a Gentile proselyte now converted to Christ. iii. So, what exactly is Cornelius? Is he a proselyte or something else? iv. [Slide 7] To answer this question, we must look back among the first century historical and archeological records to understand a hierarchy that existed within the Jewish faith. 1. First there were Hebraic Jews. These were Jews who refused to allow Greek influence to spread among them. They continued to speak Hebrew or at least Aramaic. They did not assimilate into Greek traditions and heritages. They attended all the feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 2. Second there were Hellenistic Jews. These were Jews who had succumbed to Greek influence in some way or another. Though still devout and Jewish, they had lost the ability to speak Hebrew and possibly even Aramaic. They, in some cases, had allowed Greek thought and culture to influence other aspects of their lives. They still attended feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 3. Third there would be gentile proselytes. These would be gentiles who converted to Judaism and submitted themselves fully to the religious, ritualistic, and legal practices of the Jews. They would endure circumcision and offer whatever sacrifices they were permitted to offer though they would not be permitted in the inner courts of the temple. 4. Fourth there would be what would be known as God-Fearers. This is specifically a group of gentiles that are favorable to Jewish culture and faith and perhaps even in the process of becoming a proselyte, but are not yet truly converted. They were not circumcised. They did not necessarily attend the festivals and feasts, and they did not offer sacrifices at the temple. They would adopt monotheism and attempt to keep the 10 commandments in their lives. 5. Finally, would be, essentially, everyone else. The pagans and polytheists. These are the furthest away from God, since they worship false gods and not the one true God. v. [Slide 8] Cornelius then, is a God-Fearer. He is not quite a proselyte but is sympathetic to Jewish culture and faith. vi. Why is this significant? 1. This is the first time in the book of Acts so far that a non-Jew by blood and by religion becomes the focal point of the story. 2. Second, we've seen Luke's story arch up to this point and it is reasonable to conclude even if we've never read the rest of this narrative, that the gospel circle is widening yet again. 3. Will the gospel go to gentiles not fully assimilated into Judaism? If so, do they need to be Jews first? We'll have to see. vii. We also see that his whole household were also God-Fearers. Now what does this mean? 1. A household is the basic unit of social structure. But it differed from our household structure we have today. 2. Ignoring for the moment the fracturing of the modern household; even in the ideal with Father, Mother, children this would represent a much smaller sphere than 1st century households. 3. A household in the first century could include a much wider spectrum of kinship. There could also be servants and slaves included in the term household. 4. In short, a household could include anyone who lived in the home and met in the home as family. 5. And so, as we might expect, everyone in Cornelius' house were God-Fearers also. We get the impression that he led the effort for this to be so. Most likely he was the patriarch and priest of his family. viii. How else did he lead? d. [Slide 9] he did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God regularly. i. Alms giving and prayer have long been a standard measure for the truly pious. ii. As such the Pharisees were critiqued for their show of contributing large sums of money and long public prayers in order to seem very devout and pious. iii. Alms giving and prayer are two of the five pillars of the Islamic Faith. iv. Alms giving and prayer are sometimes a means of restitution in the Catholic Church. v. And even in the 1st century, Roman and Greek philosophers idealized acts of charity and devoted prayer to deities. vi. In short, giving charity to those who are less fortunate and praying regularly have always been associated with those who are devout and pious people. Whether it is true or not. And regardless of religion. You at least appear to be pious when you give alms and are consistently praying. vii. We ought also to see the correlation between Tabitha and Cornelius. Tabitha was a disciple of Christ who gave charitably too. We are not told that she prayed often, but it is reasonable to conclude she did. viii. On the surface then, we are given a man who has everything right, but he is missing one piece of the puzzle. But here is a hint. The piece of the puzzle he is missing isn't that he hasn't yet become a Jewish proselyte. e. [Slide 10] Summary of the Point: As wonderful of a man as Cornelius was, admired by men, prominent, a leader, a manager of a house, and pious to boot, he was still not good enough. He still lacked something. No doubt everyone admired and respected a man like Cornelius. And even though he wasn't quite Jewish, we will see later he is highly respected by the Jews. The core truth we see in this first point is that a man can be judged to be a good man by all of society and still be short of the standard of God. For God does not require a good man. He requires a perfect man. Jesus died for sinners… even those whom our society labels as saints. So, we must not rest on our laurels and our own self-righteousness, for it will never be good enough. But we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Transition: [Slide 11 (blank)] But we have made some logical leaps here. Is God not pleased at all by Cornelius' lifestyle? And how do we know Cornelius lacks Jesus? Well, God sends this man an angel. Let's see what the angel says. II.) God is pleased with and graciously corrects those who sincerely worship Him, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (3-6) a. [Slide 12] 3 – About three o'clock one afternoon he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God, who came in and said to him, “Cornelius.” i. At 3 in the afternoon, it would be a traditional time for sacrifices and prayers to be offered up at the temple. ii. It was at this time that Cornelius, who was probably entering again into prayer, saw a waking vision. iii. A vision is something that appears clearly, vividly, and credibly in the mind but is not actually present. iv. An angel appears to him in this vision and calls to him. v. Like Jesus to Saul before him, this angel identifies Cornelius by name. b. [Slide 13] 4 – Staring at him and becoming greatly afraid, Cornelius replied, “What is it, Lord?” i. Cornelius had never seen anything like this before. ii. Like every person who encounters an angel of God, he becomes sorely afraid. iii. Cornelius responds to this angel's call by using almost the same words Saul used when he was met by Christ. iv. Saul asked, who are you, Lord? And Cornelius says, “What is it, Lord?” v. What does this mean? vi. It is difficult to know whether Cornelius has assumed that he was seeing God Himself or whether he is using this term “lord” in its less theologically charged meaning, “Sir.” vii. Even if he did mistake this angel for God, would you blame him? viii. Regardless of what Cornelius meant, the angel makes it plain that he is not God but bears God's message to him. c. [Slide 14] The angel said to him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have gone up as a memorial before God. i. The angel indicates clearly that he is not God, but informs him that his prayers and charity have gone up before God. ii. What does it mean that his prayers and offerings have “Gone up before God?“ iii. And what is meant by it being a memorial or as other translations have it a “memorial offering?” iv. In the book of Leviticus, in several sacrifices the priests are instructed to take a handful of the offering and burn it on the altar before the Lord. The rest of the offering would be used by the priests. v. These are called memorial offerings because the one who gives the offering and the one burning the offering are all reminded that though God deserves all of the offering, he is pleased with a small portion. vi. How appropriate for the angel messenger to convey this to Cornelius. vii. Cornelius is, after all, not circumcised. He does not go to the temple for sacrifices. He meets in synagogues to learn of the Jewish faith and practice, and attempts to live accordingly, but is not Jewish. viii. Yet Yahweh, The God of Israel, through His angel, tells Cornelius that his charity and prayers have amounted to a memorial sacrifice. They have pleased God. ix. Though he has never sacrificed in the temple, his charity and prayers have been his offering. x. And his offering has pleased God. xi. So, is he good? Is Cornelius saved? Is that enough? Did he earn his salvation by an offering? xii. No. The angel had more to say. d. [Slide 15] Now send men to Joppa and summon a man named Simon, who is called Peter. 6 This man is staying as a guest with a man named Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” i. The angel communicates another message to Cornelius that, at first, appears to be separate from the first. ii. However, they are related. iii. He tells him to send men to fetch Peter and tells him where Peter is staying. iv. But we all know the reason for this. v. And later we find out that the angel told Cornelius not only that Peter needed to come to see him, but that he had a message to give to him. A message of salvation. For him, and his household. vi. It is almost as if God is telling Cornelius, “Remember, though you stand a far way off, you have gotten the important part of Judaism. You have gotten enough of Judaism to be ready for the next step in Judaism. Now Peter will come and show you what you lack.” vii. Is God giving Cornelius a shortcut? Is God saying… I desire obedience and not sacrifices? e. [Slide 16] Summary of the Point: And so, in this point, although those who are perceived as good and devout men are still not good enough, God is good and gracious to those who diligently seek Him. Though Cornelius had just enough truth and just enough good works to condemn him to hell, God rewards those who are pursuing Him. In many ways, Cornelius was probably more devout than most Jews of his day, because his motives were pure. He sincerely sought the Lord. God is pleased with those who, even imperfectly, sincerely worship Him. And God is sure to lead such people to what they lack. So, we must not be satisfied with our broken attempts to please God, even if He is pleased by our sincerity. Instead, we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. For it is in Jesus that the Lord has said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.” Transition: [Slide 17(blank)] God rewards Cornelius' diligent seeking by revealing his need. He needs to call on Peter. Peter needs to come and give him and his household a message. So, what do those who have been illuminated by God do? What do those whose eyes have been opened do? They obey… III.) All who God corrects and instructs with truth obey His commands, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (7-8) a. [Slide 18] 7 – When the angel who had spoken to him departed, Cornelius called two of his personal servants and a devout soldier from among those who served him, i. Like Aeneas and Tabitha before, Cornelius sets out to obey what has been revealed to him. ii. Aeneas was healed of his paralysis, Tabitha raised from death, but Cornelius was healed of another malady. A malady equally as hopeless. iii. You see for Cornelius though he was a God-Fearer, and though he could potentially achieve proselyte status in the Jewish faith and gain some measure of closeness to Yahweh, the God of Israel. He could never come closer than this. He could never enter the courts of the Jews much less the holy place or the Holy of Holies for that matter. iv. But what has his acts of charity and prayer done? It is a memorial offering. A reminder to him that though God requires all, He is pleased with what Cornelius has done. For he has done it while sincerely seeking Yahweh. v. So God rewards Cornelius by sending an angel, with the truth of the way he could be healed of that relational distance. vi. He has been told that he can come and receive the same gospel message that was given to the Jews. He need not be a proselyte first. Cornelius doesn't need to be circumcised. He doesn't need to become a Jew first. He simply needs the message that Peter will give him. What is that message? Jesus Christ crucified for sinners. 1. Jesus is the funnel. Jesus is the choke point. Jesus is not only the next and final redemptive step in Judaism, but He is also the next and final redemptive step for the Gentile as well. 2. He is the next and final step in the covenants He made with Adam and Eve. a. He is the sacrifice that was killed in their place so that they could be clothed perfectly and completely. b. He is the seed that has crushed the head of the serpent and enlarged the family of God. c. He is the New Adam, our new representative, keeping the covenant of works perfectly. 3. He is the next and final step in the covenant made with Noah. a. He is the ark delivering His people from the world of sin and the judgment that will overwhelm it. b. He is the bow of promise establishing peace between the Father and His people. c. He is bringing the next baptism with the Spirit and with Fire. 4. All the covenants of God, to Jews and Gentiles alike, are funneled down to Jesus. vii. And what does Cornelius do after receiving this command which he is told will be the solution for his malady of relational distance to Yahweh? What does he do when he is told that Peter holds the key for that distance to be erased? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter. b. [Slide 19] 8 - and when he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. i. It is difficult to know exactly what he tells these two servants and soldier. ii. The text says he had explained everything. iii. It seems as though everything he knew, saw, and believed was given to these men as he sent them to bring Peter. iv. Cornelius not only believed the angel, but wanted his whole house to believe as well. c. [Slide 20] Summary of the Point: We've seen how the devotion and goodness of Cornelius was not enough, that he still lacked true righteousness. We've also seen the faithfulness and compassion of God to reward those who seek Him diligently. And finally, we see the faithful obedience of all whom God reveals truth to… Cornelius was given life changing truth that would free him from his relational distance to God. And that truth would be given to him by Peter the apostle. So, what does Cornelius do when he is told that Peter holds the key for him to be brought into a close and special relationship with Yahweh? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter immediately. My friends, we know the piece that Cornelius was missing. It is Jesus crucified for sinners. So, we too must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Conclusion: So, CBC, what has the Lord said and how then shall we live? What doctrinal takeaway can we pull from this today? Doctrinal Takeaway: [Slide 21] Men and women can live lives that are devout and pious, being paragons of good among humanity. God is pleased with those who attempt to live out His law and seek to please Him. But mankind's devotion and piety is not enough to satisfy the holy standard of God. So, God in His grace rewards those who diligently seek to please and worship Him. He rewards them by revealing to them how they can be made right with Him. In this we see the tension of mankind's spiritual status as dead and paralyzed juxtaposed against being able to actually, in some way, please God with our meager efforts. Another riddle. The great answer is that God's legal standard is perfection, even if it is pleasing for us to obey Him and seek Him, it will never satisfy the legal requirement of perfection. But that is why God has sent His Son. And that is why God promises to reward those who seek Him. Cornelius was rewarded for faithfully pursuing the God if Israel. How was He rewarded? He was rewarded by God offering Him the next and final step in His redemption. And it was not to make him a Jew first. It was to transfer him directly into the family of the Son. So Cornelius obeyed the Lord and sent for Peter. Jesus is the answer for all men and not just the Jews. All the covenants of God are fulfilled in Him. My friends, although it is true that when we are God's people, we obey Him… our obedience is not what we rely on. Because our obedience will always be imperfect in this life. Instead, we depend on Christ's righteousness. For it is only in Christ that the Lord's legal standard is met. The best we can hope for is God to be pleased with us. With Christ, The Father is well-pleased. So let me improve upon this point in a few ways for us this morning. 1.) [Slide 22] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that no matter how much righteousness we can muster, it will never satisfy God's perfect standard. a. Cornelius was a man who put many Jews to shame. He devoted himself and his entire household to upholding monotheism and the law of the God of Israel. b. Even though he would never be accepted into the inner relationship to Yahweh, he still served Him and sought Him. c. This is a far cry from the Sadducees who only wanted power with their piety. It is lightyears away from the Pharisees who desired honor from men by their devotion to God. d. Nevertheless, as righteous as he was, Cornelius was still missing something. As pleasing as his actions were to God, he still lacked what Peter would bring. e. From meticulous legalism to liberal sincerity, mankind cannot ever achieve the perfect standard of God. f. As we spoke last week, we are all dead in sin. We are hopeless to heal ourselves. Hopeless to raise ourselves. The Lord must do this work. g. But our problem only begins there. Even though the Lord must raise us from sin death that is only half of our problem. For not only are we dead in sin, but we also dead to righteousness, h. Mankind, my friends, is in quite the pickle. Not only do they not want to please God, but even if they did want to, they couldn't. You see God can't bring us to life and then let us go. For we would simply die in sin again when we fail. i. No. God must unite us to something that will never fail. j. This is what orthodox Christianity teaches. Mankind is doubly damned. Not only are we dead in sin, but God's standard is perfection. You cannot be perfect if you are by nature dead in flaws. k. Like a computer with a hardware problem. Even if you reboot it and debug it… if there is a flaw with the hard drive or the motherboard… it will never function properly. The bad hardware must be replaced. l. Mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well. 2.) [Slide 23] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that being dead in sin means we are unable to do good. a. Some having misunderstood this teaching have critiqued it by saying, “If mankind is dead in sin, If mankind is not righteous, then why do my Muslim neighbors shovel my driveway out of kindness? Why do my lost family members buy me flowers when I'm down? Why do my unbelieving co-workers pay their taxes and offer sacrificial love to their families?” b. They offer a wise critique to a doctrine no one is teaching. c. No one teaches that because mankind is dead in sin they can do no good thing. No one is teaching that because mankind is enslaved to sin that all they can do is sin. d. What we mean when we say that mankind is totally depraved or totally unable is that man is not able and not willing to spiritually free himself from sin or seek God or be made right with God. e. In the previous example we said that “mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well.” Now think with me… if we are the computer, can we do that on our own? f. And I know you are thinking – well sometimes my computer reboots on its own. g. Does it? Or did someone program the computer to reboot under certain conditions? h. This is what this doctrine means. Just like a computer, we are not able to reboot ourselves or change our hardware. i. But that doesn't mean that the computer can't do some good things right? It just means that those good things don't fix the problem. j. Cornelius proves this out. He was able to do good things, things that were pleasing to God – but he still needed God to send an angel and an apostle to bring him to Christ. 3.) [Slide 24] De-Exhortation: “What actions should we stop doing” or “What behaviors do we naturally practice that this passage tells us to stop doing?” We must stop relying on our own obedience to perfectly please God. a. No doubt we all sometimes succumb to this erroneous teaching that has bound so many of God's dear children. b. We speak harshly to our wives and hit every red light on the way to work. Immediately we observe, God is punishing me for being harsh. c. We pray for our neighbor and then we inherit a small house form a distant uncle who passed. Apparently, God is pleased with me for praying for my neighbors. d. If I wear this, or go to that movie, or drink that, or say this, God will be most displeased with me. e. Even though there is a certain measure of truth in some of this – God is pleased and displeased by our choices, the thing that is faulty is our reliance on our performance to please God. f. My friends, our performance is not what perfectly pleases God. Why? Because our performance is never perfect. g. The scriptures teach us that there is no condemnation in Christ. The scriptures teach us that although we will be rewarded with crowns for our faithfulness to God – we will cast them all at the feet of Jesus. h. The whole of it my friends is that we can't be more or less pleasing to God because we are in Christ. And with Christ, the Father is well-pleased. i. But we could pendulum swing here couldn't we… 4.) [Slide 25] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must obey the Lord while trusting that Christ has satisfied God's perfect standard of performance. a. You see my friends, we obey the Lord out of love and thanksgiving. b. We are not trying to please Him more or fear displeasing him. We are obeying His law because we love Him and are thankful that He first loved us. c. We rest in the perfect righteousness of Christ, knowing that we will never lose that perfect standing before our Father. And then in that state of declared righteousness, we imperfectly obey. d. This is the beauty of the gospel. e. We are imperfectly perfect by faith in Christ. f. And it works because He changes our desires. We no longer want to wallow in imperfection. Instead, we long to be like Christ, while knowing that God has made us to be His righteousness. g. What a great God we serve that although His standard is perfection, He has achieved it for us while changing us to continue to desire it. 5.) [Slide 26] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God will reveal Himself to those who diligently pursue Him. a. Perhaps you left last week with a feeling of despair. b. God must wake up people from spiritual death and paralysis. I get it. But what if someone really really really wants to serve God but God says no to waking them up? c. What if someone really wants to be saved but God never turns the lights on, God never opens the prison cell. God never raises them up. What happens then? d. My friends… God promises that those who diligently seek Him will be rewarded. Those who keep knocking on His door, He won't cast out. He will welcome them in. e. Perhaps that is you today. Perhaps you have desired to be God's child and have been knocking and knocking and still He has not answered. f. Will you give up now? Will you turn away? Where will you go? Who else can save like our God? g. There is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved. He is the Son of God who has the words of life… where else can you go? h. Don't stop knocking my friends. The Lord promises that He will let you in. Let me close with a prayer from the church father Eusebius of Caesarea, fitting since Cornelius was from this city. We give you thanks, our God and Savior, and to you, O Christ, in our own feeble way. You are the supreme providence of the mighty Father, who both saves us from evil and teaches us in the way of truth. I say these things not to praise, but simply to give thanks. Who among us is worthy to give you praise? You called creation into being from nothing. You illuminated it with your light. You regulated the confusion of the elements by your laws of harmony and order. More than that, we recognize your lovingkindness. You caused those whose hearts inclined toward you to sincerely seek a divine and blessed life. You've allowed us to pass along what we've received from you, like merchants of wisdom and true blessings. We reap the everlasting fruit of your goodness. Freed from the net of sin, and permeated with a love for others, mercy is always our point of view. We hope for the promise of faith, and we are devoted to modest living – all the virtues we had once thrown aside, but are now restored by you whose generous care is over all. In Jesus name we pray… Amen. May the God who did not spare His own Son, But sent Him to gladly bear our burden on the cross, Remind you always of these things, though you Know them and are firmly established in the truth, Until you arrive to a full measure of glory. Until we meet again… Go in peace.

Title: Imperfect Perfection Text: Acts 10:1-8 FCF: We often struggle with the tension of works and faith. Prop: Because Christ is well-pleasing to God, we can live in imperfect obedience and be counted righteous by faith in Christ, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts chapter 10. In a moment I'll be reading starting in verse 1 from the NET which you can follow in the pew bible on page 1242 or in whatever version you prefer. Chapter 10 of the book of Acts represents a rather pivotal point in the expansion of the gospel of Jesus. In keeping with its significance, this next narrative episode is quite lengthy. From start to finish it encompasses a chapter and a half, 66 verses. That is the longest narrative episode we've seen yet in the book of Acts. Because it is so long it is difficult to know exactly where to break it up. At first, I had verses 1-23. Then I narrowed it down to 1-20. Then I went 1-16. I finally settled for 1-8. In this way I hope to build each detail of the narrative, one block at a time, as Luke does. The narrative as a whole is somewhat of a puzzle. We have several pieces handed to us, but until they are assembled, we won't see the full picture. So, let's begin with the first detail of the story… lets start with a man from Caesarea named Cornelius. Please stand with me to focus on and show respect for The Word of God. Transition: [Slide 2] Has this ever happened to you. You are standing in the line at the grocery store. It is a very busy day. Snow's coming tomorrow so people are out in droves to make sure they have their bread milk and toilet paper. You are waiting and waiting, the line is moving slowly. Finally, you are getting close to the front. The magazines in the rack distract you… ok being honest it is the candy in the line that is distracting. All of a sudden you hear those wonderful words… “I can help you in line 3. You look up hoping to meet the gaze of the cashier only to find that this cashier had said this to the person who literally just got in line. Makes you a little hot right? Like, HEY! I've been here this whole time. What would justice be? Would it be that they have to wait the same amount you do, or more? We all kinda feel this way about short cuts don't we. But Jesus taught a parable of men being hired for work at various times of the day and still getting paid the same amount. The employer couldn't be accused of being stingy because he paid everyone a day's wage. But to the one who worked less, it seemed like he got more. Jesus' point was that it was the employer's prerogative to be generous in the way He wished to be generous. Today, we will see the abundant graciousness and generosity of our Lord to offer the Jewish Messiah to a gentile. Let's look at verse 1. I.) No matter how good man is perceived to be, he is not good enough by God's standards, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (1-2) a. [Slide 3] 1 – Now there was a man in Caesarea i. [Slide 4] Caesarea as we can see on our map, is the furthest Northwest that the gospel has ever gone in the book of Acts. ii. Damascus represents the furthest northeast. iii. Caesarea is almost at the furthest north border of Samaria. iv. In short, the gospel is spreading far and wide throughout all of Judea and Samaria. It doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. b. [Slide 5] named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort. i. Cornelius is a Latin name meaning Of the horn. Cornucopia means horn of plenty. ii. Having a Latin name is not the only indication that this man is a gentile. iii. He is also a centurion. Meaning he is the leader of about 100 men within the Roman army. iv. He was also part of a larger Italian division of the Roman army called a Legion or a Cohort. v. A legion or Cohort consisted of 600 men. Meaning that Cornelius was no doubt one of 6 military leaders within this particular division of the military. vi. All this establishes Cornelius not only as a gentile but also a prominent one at that. vii. The question arises, if this man was in the Italian Cohort, why was he in Caesarea? viii. Caesarea is a highly valued port city on the Mediterranean and it would not be unthinkable for the Roman Emperor to keep a Legion station here. Especially in the wake of the political upheaval of Caligula becoming emperor and Herod Antipas being exiled around this time. ix. It would actually make a great deal of sense to have extra troops in the area just in case something happens. x. But there is more to this man than simply his prominence and his nationality. c. [Slide 6] 2 - He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was all his household; i. What does Luke mean that he was a devout God-fearing man? ii. In some ways this could be a simple description of Cornelius' affiliation with the Jewish faith. However, Luke hasn't shied away from using the term proselyte. In Luke 6 he mentioned Nicholas who was a Gentile proselyte now converted to Christ. iii. So, what exactly is Cornelius? Is he a proselyte or something else? iv. [Slide 7] To answer this question, we must look back among the first century historical and archeological records to understand a hierarchy that existed within the Jewish faith. 1. First there were Hebraic Jews. These were Jews who refused to allow Greek influence to spread among them. They continued to speak Hebrew or at least Aramaic. They did not assimilate into Greek traditions and heritages. They attended all the feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 2. Second there were Hellenistic Jews. These were Jews who had succumbed to Greek influence in some way or another. Though still devout and Jewish, they had lost the ability to speak Hebrew and possibly even Aramaic. They, in some cases, had allowed Greek thought and culture to influence other aspects of their lives. They still attended feasts and festivals and made sacrifices in the temple. 3. Third there would be gentile proselytes. These would be gentiles who converted to Judaism and submitted themselves fully to the religious, ritualistic, and legal practices of the Jews. They would endure circumcision and offer whatever sacrifices they were permitted to offer though they would not be permitted in the inner courts of the temple. 4. Fourth there would be what would be known as God-Fearers. This is specifically a group of gentiles that are favorable to Jewish culture and faith and perhaps even in the process of becoming a proselyte, but are not yet truly converted. They were not circumcised. They did not necessarily attend the festivals and feasts, and they did not offer sacrifices at the temple. They would adopt monotheism and attempt to keep the 10 commandments in their lives. 5. Finally, would be, essentially, everyone else. The pagans and polytheists. These are the furthest away from God, since they worship false gods and not the one true God. v. [Slide 8] Cornelius then, is a God-Fearer. He is not quite a proselyte but is sympathetic to Jewish culture and faith. vi. Why is this significant? 1. This is the first time in the book of Acts so far that a non-Jew by blood and by religion becomes the focal point of the story. 2. Second, we've seen Luke's story arch up to this point and it is reasonable to conclude even if we've never read the rest of this narrative, that the gospel circle is widening yet again. 3. Will the gospel go to gentiles not fully assimilated into Judaism? If so, do they need to be Jews first? We'll have to see. vii. We also see that his whole household were also God-Fearers. Now what does this mean? 1. A household is the basic unit of social structure. But it differed from our household structure we have today. 2. Ignoring for the moment the fracturing of the modern household; even in the ideal with Father, Mother, children this would represent a much smaller sphere than 1st century households. 3. A household in the first century could include a much wider spectrum of kinship. There could also be servants and slaves included in the term household. 4. In short, a household could include anyone who lived in the home and met in the home as family. 5. And so, as we might expect, everyone in Cornelius' house were God-Fearers also. We get the impression that he led the effort for this to be so. Most likely he was the patriarch and priest of his family. viii. How else did he lead? d. [Slide 9] he did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God regularly. i. Alms giving and prayer have long been a standard measure for the truly pious. ii. As such the Pharisees were critiqued for their show of contributing large sums of money and long public prayers in order to seem very devout and pious. iii. Alms giving and prayer are two of the five pillars of the Islamic Faith. iv. Alms giving and prayer are sometimes a means of restitution in the Catholic Church. v. And even in the 1st century, Roman and Greek philosophers idealized acts of charity and devoted prayer to deities. vi. In short, giving charity to those who are less fortunate and praying regularly have always been associated with those who are devout and pious people. Whether it is true or not. And regardless of religion. You at least appear to be pious when you give alms and are consistently praying. vii. We ought also to see the correlation between Tabitha and Cornelius. Tabitha was a disciple of Christ who gave charitably too. We are not told that she prayed often, but it is reasonable to conclude she did. viii. On the surface then, we are given a man who has everything right, but he is missing one piece of the puzzle. But here is a hint. The piece of the puzzle he is missing isn't that he hasn't yet become a Jewish proselyte. e. [Slide 10] Summary of the Point: As wonderful of a man as Cornelius was, admired by men, prominent, a leader, a manager of a house, and pious to boot, he was still not good enough. He still lacked something. No doubt everyone admired and respected a man like Cornelius. And even though he wasn't quite Jewish, we will see later he is highly respected by the Jews. The core truth we see in this first point is that a man can be judged to be a good man by all of society and still be short of the standard of God. For God does not require a good man. He requires a perfect man. Jesus died for sinners… even those whom our society labels as saints. So, we must not rest on our laurels and our own self-righteousness, for it will never be good enough. But we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Transition: [Slide 11 (blank)] But we have made some logical leaps here. Is God not pleased at all by Cornelius' lifestyle? And how do we know Cornelius lacks Jesus? Well, God sends this man an angel. Let's see what the angel says. II.) God is pleased with and graciously corrects those who sincerely worship Him, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (3-6) a. [Slide 12] 3 – About three o'clock one afternoon he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God, who came in and said to him, “Cornelius.” i. At 3 in the afternoon, it would be a traditional time for sacrifices and prayers to be offered up at the temple. ii. It was at this time that Cornelius, who was probably entering again into prayer, saw a waking vision. iii. A vision is something that appears clearly, vividly, and credibly in the mind but is not actually present. iv. An angel appears to him in this vision and calls to him. v. Like Jesus to Saul before him, this angel identifies Cornelius by name. b. [Slide 13] 4 – Staring at him and becoming greatly afraid, Cornelius replied, “What is it, Lord?” i. Cornelius had never seen anything like this before. ii. Like every person who encounters an angel of God, he becomes sorely afraid. iii. Cornelius responds to this angel's call by using almost the same words Saul used when he was met by Christ. iv. Saul asked, who are you, Lord? And Cornelius says, “What is it, Lord?” v. What does this mean? vi. It is difficult to know whether Cornelius has assumed that he was seeing God Himself or whether he is using this term “lord” in its less theologically charged meaning, “Sir.” vii. Even if he did mistake this angel for God, would you blame him? viii. Regardless of what Cornelius meant, the angel makes it plain that he is not God but bears God's message to him. c. [Slide 14] The angel said to him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have gone up as a memorial before God. i. The angel indicates clearly that he is not God, but informs him that his prayers and charity have gone up before God. ii. What does it mean that his prayers and offerings have “Gone up before God?“ iii. And what is meant by it being a memorial or as other translations have it a “memorial offering?” iv. In the book of Leviticus, in several sacrifices the priests are instructed to take a handful of the offering and burn it on the altar before the Lord. The rest of the offering would be used by the priests. v. These are called memorial offerings because the one who gives the offering and the one burning the offering are all reminded that though God deserves all of the offering, he is pleased with a small portion. vi. How appropriate for the angel messenger to convey this to Cornelius. vii. Cornelius is, after all, not circumcised. He does not go to the temple for sacrifices. He meets in synagogues to learn of the Jewish faith and practice, and attempts to live accordingly, but is not Jewish. viii. Yet Yahweh, The God of Israel, through His angel, tells Cornelius that his charity and prayers have amounted to a memorial sacrifice. They have pleased God. ix. Though he has never sacrificed in the temple, his charity and prayers have been his offering. x. And his offering has pleased God. xi. So, is he good? Is Cornelius saved? Is that enough? Did he earn his salvation by an offering? xii. No. The angel had more to say. d. [Slide 15] Now send men to Joppa and summon a man named Simon, who is called Peter. 6 This man is staying as a guest with a man named Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” i. The angel communicates another message to Cornelius that, at first, appears to be separate from the first. ii. However, they are related. iii. He tells him to send men to fetch Peter and tells him where Peter is staying. iv. But we all know the reason for this. v. And later we find out that the angel told Cornelius not only that Peter needed to come to see him, but that he had a message to give to him. A message of salvation. For him, and his household. vi. It is almost as if God is telling Cornelius, “Remember, though you stand a far way off, you have gotten the important part of Judaism. You have gotten enough of Judaism to be ready for the next step in Judaism. Now Peter will come and show you what you lack.” vii. Is God giving Cornelius a shortcut? Is God saying… I desire obedience and not sacrifices? e. [Slide 16] Summary of the Point: And so, in this point, although those who are perceived as good and devout men are still not good enough, God is good and gracious to those who diligently seek Him. Though Cornelius had just enough truth and just enough good works to condemn him to hell, God rewards those who are pursuing Him. In many ways, Cornelius was probably more devout than most Jews of his day, because his motives were pure. He sincerely sought the Lord. God is pleased with those who, even imperfectly, sincerely worship Him. And God is sure to lead such people to what they lack. So, we must not be satisfied with our broken attempts to please God, even if He is pleased by our sincerity. Instead, we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. For it is in Jesus that the Lord has said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.” Transition: [Slide 17(blank)] God rewards Cornelius' diligent seeking by revealing his need. He needs to call on Peter. Peter needs to come and give him and his household a message. So, what do those who have been illuminated by God do? What do those whose eyes have been opened do? They obey… III.) All who God corrects and instructs with truth obey His commands, so we must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. (7-8) a. [Slide 18] 7 – When the angel who had spoken to him departed, Cornelius called two of his personal servants and a devout soldier from among those who served him, i. Like Aeneas and Tabitha before, Cornelius sets out to obey what has been revealed to him. ii. Aeneas was healed of his paralysis, Tabitha raised from death, but Cornelius was healed of another malady. A malady equally as hopeless. iii. You see for Cornelius though he was a God-Fearer, and though he could potentially achieve proselyte status in the Jewish faith and gain some measure of closeness to Yahweh, the God of Israel. He could never come closer than this. He could never enter the courts of the Jews much less the holy place or the Holy of Holies for that matter. iv. But what has his acts of charity and prayer done? It is a memorial offering. A reminder to him that though God requires all, He is pleased with what Cornelius has done. For he has done it while sincerely seeking Yahweh. v. So God rewards Cornelius by sending an angel, with the truth of the way he could be healed of that relational distance. vi. He has been told that he can come and receive the same gospel message that was given to the Jews. He need not be a proselyte first. Cornelius doesn't need to be circumcised. He doesn't need to become a Jew first. He simply needs the message that Peter will give him. What is that message? Jesus Christ crucified for sinners. 1. Jesus is the funnel. Jesus is the choke point. Jesus is not only the next and final redemptive step in Judaism, but He is also the next and final redemptive step for the Gentile as well. 2. He is the next and final step in the covenants He made with Adam and Eve. a. He is the sacrifice that was killed in their place so that they could be clothed perfectly and completely. b. He is the seed that has crushed the head of the serpent and enlarged the family of God. c. He is the New Adam, our new representative, keeping the covenant of works perfectly. 3. He is the next and final step in the covenant made with Noah. a. He is the ark delivering His people from the world of sin and the judgment that will overwhelm it. b. He is the bow of promise establishing peace between the Father and His people. c. He is bringing the next baptism with the Spirit and with Fire. 4. All the covenants of God, to Jews and Gentiles alike, are funneled down to Jesus. vii. And what does Cornelius do after receiving this command which he is told will be the solution for his malady of relational distance to Yahweh? What does he do when he is told that Peter holds the key for that distance to be erased? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter. b. [Slide 19] 8 - and when he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. i. It is difficult to know exactly what he tells these two servants and soldier. ii. The text says he had explained everything. iii. It seems as though everything he knew, saw, and believed was given to these men as he sent them to bring Peter. iv. Cornelius not only believed the angel, but wanted his whole house to believe as well. c. [Slide 20] Summary of the Point: We've seen how the devotion and goodness of Cornelius was not enough, that he still lacked true righteousness. We've also seen the faithfulness and compassion of God to reward those who seek Him diligently. And finally, we see the faithful obedience of all whom God reveals truth to… Cornelius was given life changing truth that would free him from his relational distance to God. And that truth would be given to him by Peter the apostle. So, what does Cornelius do when he is told that Peter holds the key for him to be brought into a close and special relationship with Yahweh? He obeys the angel and sends for Peter immediately. My friends, we know the piece that Cornelius was missing. It is Jesus crucified for sinners. So, we too must seek out and trust in the righteousness of Christ. Conclusion: So, CBC, what has the Lord said and how then shall we live? What doctrinal takeaway can we pull from this today? Doctrinal Takeaway: [Slide 21] Men and women can live lives that are devout and pious, being paragons of good among humanity. God is pleased with those who attempt to live out His law and seek to please Him. But mankind's devotion and piety is not enough to satisfy the holy standard of God. So, God in His grace rewards those who diligently seek to please and worship Him. He rewards them by revealing to them how they can be made right with Him. In this we see the tension of mankind's spiritual status as dead and paralyzed juxtaposed against being able to actually, in some way, please God with our meager efforts. Another riddle. The great answer is that God's legal standard is perfection, even if it is pleasing for us to obey Him and seek Him, it will never satisfy the legal requirement of perfection. But that is why God has sent His Son. And that is why God promises to reward those who seek Him. Cornelius was rewarded for faithfully pursuing the God if Israel. How was He rewarded? He was rewarded by God offering Him the next and final step in His redemption. And it was not to make him a Jew first. It was to transfer him directly into the family of the Son. So Cornelius obeyed the Lord and sent for Peter. Jesus is the answer for all men and not just the Jews. All the covenants of God are fulfilled in Him. My friends, although it is true that when we are God's people, we obey Him… our obedience is not what we rely on. Because our obedience will always be imperfect in this life. Instead, we depend on Christ's righteousness. For it is only in Christ that the Lord's legal standard is met. The best we can hope for is God to be pleased with us. With Christ, The Father is well-pleased. So let me improve upon this point in a few ways for us this morning. 1.) [Slide 22] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that no matter how much righteousness we can muster, it will never satisfy God's perfect standard. a. Cornelius was a man who put many Jews to shame. He devoted himself and his entire household to upholding monotheism and the law of the God of Israel. b. Even though he would never be accepted into the inner relationship to Yahweh, he still served Him and sought Him. c. This is a far cry from the Sadducees who only wanted power with their piety. It is lightyears away from the Pharisees who desired honor from men by their devotion to God. d. Nevertheless, as righteous as he was, Cornelius was still missing something. As pleasing as his actions were to God, he still lacked what Peter would bring. e. From meticulous legalism to liberal sincerity, mankind cannot ever achieve the perfect standard of God. f. As we spoke last week, we are all dead in sin. We are hopeless to heal ourselves. Hopeless to raise ourselves. The Lord must do this work. g. But our problem only begins there. Even though the Lord must raise us from sin death that is only half of our problem. For not only are we dead in sin, but we also dead to righteousness, h. Mankind, my friends, is in quite the pickle. Not only do they not want to please God, but even if they did want to, they couldn't. You see God can't bring us to life and then let us go. For we would simply die in sin again when we fail. i. No. God must unite us to something that will never fail. j. This is what orthodox Christianity teaches. Mankind is doubly damned. Not only are we dead in sin, but God's standard is perfection. You cannot be perfect if you are by nature dead in flaws. k. Like a computer with a hardware problem. Even if you reboot it and debug it… if there is a flaw with the hard drive or the motherboard… it will never function properly. The bad hardware must be replaced. l. Mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well. 2.) [Slide 23] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that being dead in sin means we are unable to do good. a. Some having misunderstood this teaching have critiqued it by saying, “If mankind is dead in sin, If mankind is not righteous, then why do my Muslim neighbors shovel my driveway out of kindness? Why do my lost family members buy me flowers when I'm down? Why do my unbelieving co-workers pay their taxes and offer sacrificial love to their families?” b. They offer a wise critique to a doctrine no one is teaching. c. No one teaches that because mankind is dead in sin they can do no good thing. No one is teaching that because mankind is enslaved to sin that all they can do is sin. d. What we mean when we say that mankind is totally depraved or totally unable is that man is not able and not willing to spiritually free himself from sin or seek God or be made right with God. e. In the previous example we said that “mankind not only needs a reboot, but a hardware replacement as well.” Now think with me… if we are the computer, can we do that on our own? f. And I know you are thinking – well sometimes my computer reboots on its own. g. Does it? Or did someone program the computer to reboot under certain conditions? h. This is what this doctrine means. Just like a computer, we are not able to reboot ourselves or change our hardware. i. But that doesn't mean that the computer can't do some good things right? It just means that those good things don't fix the problem. j. Cornelius proves this out. He was able to do good things, things that were pleasing to God – but he still needed God to send an angel and an apostle to bring him to Christ. 3.) [Slide 24] De-Exhortation: “What actions should we stop doing” or “What behaviors do we naturally practice that this passage tells us to stop doing?” We must stop relying on our own obedience to perfectly please God. a. No doubt we all sometimes succumb to this erroneous teaching that has bound so many of God's dear children. b. We speak harshly to our wives and hit every red light on the way to work. Immediately we observe, God is punishing me for being harsh. c. We pray for our neighbor and then we inherit a small house form a distant uncle who passed. Apparently, God is pleased with me for praying for my neighbors. d. If I wear this, or go to that movie, or drink that, or say this, God will be most displeased with me. e. Even though there is a certain measure of truth in some of this – God is pleased and displeased by our choices, the thing that is faulty is our reliance on our performance to please God. f. My friends, our performance is not what perfectly pleases God. Why? Because our performance is never perfect. g. The scriptures teach us that there is no condemnation in Christ. The scriptures teach us that although we will be rewarded with crowns for our faithfulness to God – we will cast them all at the feet of Jesus. h. The whole of it my friends is that we can't be more or less pleasing to God because we are in Christ. And with Christ, the Father is well-pleased. i. But we could pendulum swing here couldn't we… 4.) [Slide 25] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must obey the Lord while trusting that Christ has satisfied God's perfect standard of performance. a. You see my friends, we obey the Lord out of love and thanksgiving. b. We are not trying to please Him more or fear displeasing him. We are obeying His law because we love Him and are thankful that He first loved us. c. We rest in the perfect righteousness of Christ, knowing that we will never lose that perfect standing before our Father. And then in that state of declared righteousness, we imperfectly obey. d. This is the beauty of the gospel. e. We are imperfectly perfect by faith in Christ. f. And it works because He changes our desires. We no longer want to wallow in imperfection. Instead, we long to be like Christ, while knowing that God has made us to be His righteousness. g. What a great God we serve that although His standard is perfection, He has achieved it for us while changing us to continue to desire it. 5.) [Slide 26] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God will reveal Himself to those who diligently pursue Him. a. Perhaps you left last week with a feeling of despair. b. God must wake up people from spiritual death and paralysis. I get it. But what if someone really really really wants to serve God but God says no to waking them up? c. What if someone really wants to be saved but God never turns the lights on, God never opens the prison cell. God never raises them up. What happens then? d. My friends… God promises that those who diligently seek Him will be rewarded. Those who keep knocking on His door, He won't cast out. He will welcome them in. e. Perhaps that is you today. Perhaps you have desired to be God's child and have been knocking and knocking and still He has not answered. f. Will you give up now? Will you turn away? Where will you go? Who else can save like our God? g. There is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved. He is the Son of God who has the words of life… where else can you go? h. Don't stop knocking my friends. The Lord promises that He will let you in. Let me close with a prayer from the church father Eusebius of Caesarea, fitting since Cornelius was from this city. We give you thanks, our God and Savior, and to you, O Christ, in our own feeble way. You are the supreme providence of the mighty Father, who both saves us from evil and teaches us in the way of truth. I say these things not to praise, but simply to give thanks. Who among us is worthy to give you praise? You called creation into being from nothing. You illuminated it with your light. You regulated the confusion of the elements by your laws of harmony and order. More than that, we recognize your lovingkindness. You caused those whose hearts inclined toward you to sincerely seek a divine and blessed life. You've allowed us to pass along what we've received from you, like merchants of wisdom and true blessings. We reap the everlasting fruit of your goodness. Freed from the net of sin, and permeated with a love for others, mercy is always our point of view. We hope for the promise of faith, and we are devoted to modest living – all the virtues we had once thrown aside, but are now restored by you whose generous care is over all. In Jesus name we pray… Amen. May the God who did not spare His own Son, But sent Him to gladly bear our burden on the cross, Remind you always of these things, though you Know them and are firmly established in the truth, Until you arrive to a full measure of glory. Until we meet again… Go in peace.

- Muslims in Canada are facing challenges in the public education system. - Recent protests in Canada aimed to protect parental rights and children's religious beliefs but were portrayed by media as anti-LGBTQ. - Concerns include the imposition of LGBTQ views on Muslim children in schools. - Some provinces have reversed policies requiring parental consent for children under 16 to change names and pronouns. - A study shows that a significant portion of Canadians believes parents should be informed and consent to such changes. - Family life holds great importance in Islamic faith, with parents responsible for both worldly and spiritual well-being. - Teaching Islamic values involves providing a good role model, formal education, and guidance through various stages of a child's development. Friday Juma Khutba September 22nd, 2023 Donate towards our programs today: https://jaffari.org/donate/ Jaffari Community Centre (JCC Live)

On this episode, Michelle San Miguel reports on a program in Providence that offers work and training to refugees who have re-settled in the state. Their recipe for success – savory, sweet and chewy granola. Then, we debut a new continuing series called Turning Point. In this first episode, producer Isabella Jibilian interviews a woman whose life changing moment came on her first day of school in the fourth grade back in 1968. A warning, this segment includes racial slurs. Finally, On the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorists attacks, we revisit a story we first aired in 2021 and hear from two local Rhode Islander's about their Muslim faith and about their lives before and after 9/11.

A never before heard insight into centre of the siege. From communicating with snipers across the scene, to briefing the Prime Minister. But it's not all as it seems. The public was told a different story.  Danny is a former NSW Police Officer who was a pivotal part of three of Sydney's most high profile criminal investigations. The Bilal Skaf case, also known as the Sydney Gang Rapes saw Danny as part of a search crew - looking for victims and building a case against Skaf and his affiliates.  The Cronulla Riots, where Danny stood guard at the Lakemba Mosque amid an onslaught of violence; and then the Lindt Cafe Siege, arguably Sydney's most notable hostage situation.   Danny goes into intense detail, and outlines beat by beat the details and processes of the investigation and the convictions. Unpack Danny's career in the force and the work he's doing now with host Brent Sanders.  To see more of Danny, he can be found on Tik Tok.  For more episodes, download the LiSTNR app.  If this content affected you, the number for lifeline is 13 11 14. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first half of the today's episode Rabi Mark shares the origins of his faith and how he found his spirituality in Judaism. He speaks on how science and religion aren't necessarily in conflict. We see that science speaks to the how but religion speaks to the why. Rabi Mark gives a thorough break down of the history of the faith and some of their practices. Well known figures of the faith like Moses and Abraham are discussed and insight is given to how they guided and affected the religion.  The second half focuses on the Muslim faith. Mark is joined by the president of the Islamic Center of Hagerstown Basheer Azizi. Their focus is at the Center is on connecting the local community and to give people a place to practice the faith. Azizi speaks on what it looks like to serve as a Muslim in Hagerstown and how that has changed over the decades. He explains how his faith has given a purpose in his life and how growing up during 9-11 shaped his adult life. Mark and Basheer break stereotypes within Islam and Judaism as well as speaking on the extremists in both of their groups. 

This month we are campaigning around Cultural Awareness and for our second episode, we are bringing understanding to the Islamic faith, featuring Natasha Butt's Journey Reverting to Islam, Muslim Inclusion and Misconceptions. Natasha Butt is the Co-Founder & Recruitment Director of Expocast and with over 15 years of recruitment experience, she has been fortunate to work with some of the best talent in the events industry, specifically within exhibitions and conferences. In this conversation Diversity Alliance founder - Gabby and guest - Natasha covered:

As Islam spread quickly throughout the world in such a short period, many assume that the sword spread Islam by way of holy wars. But was this the case? One must distinguish between the Islamic State Empire and the Islamic Faith to understand this. Let's first address the Islamic State Empire. When leaders of the Empire believed they could offer a system better suited for civilizations, they sometimes enacted their powers to expand their reach to other nations, thus benefiting the people in those nations. Empires spread their system using military force, a method of choice throughout history—as is the case with the many western countries that conquered nations in an attempt to extend their system of democracy to lands where--they believed--people were oppressed. The Islamic State Empire started as a small group of people who eventually grew in number and struggled their way to the top. To a certain extent, the Islamic State Empire expanded just as many other Empires expanded throughout history.  Like every other Empire, the Islamic Empire wanted its reach to flourish through political conquests. Without political conquest, they would not have become and remained a superpower. If nations exist where their people are oppressed, their leaders may be confronted for their wrongdoing--as no people deserve mistreatment. One of Islam's main goals is to establish justice in the land and to invite others to know and accept the Message of God. People can hear the message of God without being forced into its acceptance. It would be a tragedy if the leaders of some nations prevented their peoples from hearing the Message of God.  Conquest was the law of the land, and Empires followed this edict to survive. Although most of the battles that Islams fought were defensive, fighting for the protection of their people, the Islamic Empire did expand its Empire by conquering other lands. The Islamic Empire expanded its justice domain by confronting other unjust Empires and letting others hear about Islam without forcing anyone to accept the faith. Unlike many other Empires, Islam's many rules ensure that everyone is treated with justice, boundaries are not crossed, and no injustice is done when they conquer a land. Islam prohibits Muslims from oppressing the people in their conquered lands or enslaving and selling them as other Empires did. The living situation of the conquered people should always be better in the wake of their conquest. Scholars state that offensive warfare should be avoided in this modern period and that striking peace treaties with other nations is the right approach.  Now we will address the manner in which the Islamic faith grew so quickly in such a short period. Were the citizens of the lands conquered by the Islamic State forced to convert to Islam? No. Forced conversion is not allowed in Islam, as stated in the Holy Quran:"Let there be no compulsion in religion, for the truth stands out clearly from falsehood. So whoever renounces false gods and believes in Allah has certainly grasped the firmest, unfailing hand-hold. And Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing" (Quran 2:256)

Dr. Adam Francisco joins us this week to teach us about Islam- its history, its doctrine, and the people who follow the teachings of Muhammad. He gives us ways we can interact with our Muslim neighbors and how we can introduce them to Christianity and the Bible considering what they have been taught in the Quran. #Y4Life #Youth4LifePodcast #made4life #life4U #wearethe4lifegeneration

Tonight we prove beyond any discussion or debate that Jesus Christ Himself spoke about the Rapture of the Church. And through current news reports (even on CNN) we discuss Major events. Not only concerning the Rapture of the Church. But concerning The Russian Oil Pipeline between Russia and Mainland Europe that could cause many to be without heat this winter as a result of sabotage. Who is responsible? Russia perhaps? Some even suggest it was the United States. We also discuss the 5 Red Heifers that arrived in Israel from the State of Texas. Is this the Final Step before the long awaited construction of a 3rd Temple in Jerusalem? And where will that Temple be constructed? Remember, those of the Islamic Faith consider the "Golden Dome" currently on the Temple mount in Jerusalem as the 3rd most Sacred Islamic Holy Site. US Press Association member JD Williams (ID # 802085263) tonight with permission as a member of the Press includes reports from the Watchman Newscast, and appearances by Amir Tsarfati and Pastor Jack Hibbs. Both speaking on a CNN News Report concerning the Rapture. And a report from our Friend and Bible Teacher Daniel Farley is also included. Please remember, the syndicated Last Christian Radio Show is Broadcast every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday Evening on Evangelism Radio. The #1 Christian Talk Digital Radio Station in the World. On Revelation Radio (www.revelationradio.net). On the "Last Christian" Website at (www.lastchristian.net), on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and all Major Podcast Platforms. Each Episode available in all 50 US States and more than 160 Countries Around the Globe. All Released Simultaneously on all platforms at exactly 7:30pm Central Time, Until the Trumpet Sounds!! Please be sure to to help us Spread the Word of God and Promise of Eternal Salvation by Subscribing, Liking, Commenting and Sharing our Shows with all your friends and family. As doing so helps us fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ and spreading the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ far and wide. Be sure to tune into Revelation Radio KRRB 24 hours a day and 7 Days a week for the latest Real News and Biblical Perspective at either (www.revelationradio.net) or Listen LIVE at ( https://embed.radio.co/player/7ecf23a.html?popout) Or listen on Alexa anytime 24/7 just say, "Alexa, open KRRB Revelation Radio” or click the Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B0BG2NRRZ9 And finally. If you have a Question or Wish To Appear as a Guest on the Show? Write JD Williams at office@youstreamit.net or TL Farley at anymoment@att.net. We'd love to hear from you, or have you on a future show. God Bless

Tonight we prove beyond any discussion or debate that Jesus Christ Himself spoke about the Rapture of the Church. And through current news reports (even on CNN) we discuss Major events. Not only concerning the Rapture of the Church. But concerning The Russian Oil Pipeline between Russia and Mainland Europe that could cause many to be without heat this winter as a result of sabotage. Who is responsible? Russia perhaps? Some even suggest it was the United States. We also discuss the 5 Red Heifers that arrived in Israel from the State of Texas. Is this the Final Step before the long awaited construction of a 3rd Temple in Jerusalem? And where will that Temple be constructed? Remember, those of the Islamic Faith consider the "Golden Dome" currently on the Temple mount in Jerusalem as the 3rd most Sacred Islamic Holy Site. US Press Association member JD Williams (ID # 802085263) tonight with permission as a member of the Press includes reports from the Watchman Newscast, and appearances by Amir Tsarfati and Pastor Jack Hibbs. Both speaking on a CNN News Report concerning the Rapture. And a report from our Friend and Bible Teacher Daniel Farley is also included. Please remember, the syndicated Last Christian Radio Show is Broadcast every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday Evening on Evangelism Radio. The #1 Christian Talk Digital Radio Station in the World. On Revelation Radio (www.revelationradio.net). On the "Last Christian" Website at (www.lastchristian.net), on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and all Major Podcast Platforms. Each Episode available in all 50 US States and more than 160 Countries Around the Globe. All Released Simultaneously on all platforms at exactly 7:30pm Central Time, Until the Trumpet Sounds!! Please be sure to to help us Spread the Word of God and Promise of Eternal Salvation by Subscribing, Liking, Commenting and Sharing our Shows with all your friends and family. As doing so helps us fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ and spreading the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ far and wide. Be sure to tune into Revelation Radio KRRB 24 hours a day and 7 Days a week for the latest Real News and Biblical Perspective at either (www.revelationradio.net) or Listen LIVE at ( https://embed.radio.co/player/7ecf23a.html?popout) Or listen on Alexa anytime 24/7 just say, "Alexa, open KRRB Revelation Radio” or click the Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B0BG2NRRZ9 And finally. If you have a Question or Wish To Appear as a Guest on the Show? Write JD Williams at office@youstreamit.net or TL Farley at anymoment@att.net. We'd love to hear from you, or have you on a future show. God Bless

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Episode seventeen of the second season of the Podcast on Crimes Against Women continues our four-part series on faith responses to domestic violence and sexual assault with Imam Omar Suleiman, Founder and President of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research and a professor of Islamic Studies at Southern Methodist University. Imam Suleiman examines the Islamic faith's view of domestic violence and how this has changed over time, how Islam speaks about domestic violence in its teachings, and what is being done about addressing this issue more directly with other Islamic leaders and followers. Imam Suleiman then goes on to discuss the reactions he receives on his work from other faith officials in the Islamic community, how the patriarchal element of this religion shapes the conversation of DV within Islam, and the changes he would like to see in the future to the approach or conversation around DV within Islam.

Show: Reads Topic: Our Islamic Faith and Basics Presenters: Hannat and Aamna Guest: Siddiquha

This week I talk with Maram Said, DO about their experience of co-parenting with her mother, raising 2 boys, and caretaking patients as they become parents themselves!  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/bringingforthpodcast)

Yalda Mansuri (former Teacher) works alongside her husband (Physician) as the business director of their medical clinics. She lives in Toronto with 2 boys, aged 3 and 1. She follows the Islamic faith and is passionate about raising her children with the same faith. We discuss the Islamic faith, purpose in life, and the benefits and challenges of raising kids in faith in a secular society. https://www.instagram.com/yaldamansuri/

On this week's episode we ask the age old question, Would you take back a cheating spouse?? But this episode is different. We have views from the Islamic Faith and from the Worldly point of view. Rahma and Kevin also tackle the point of the education system in Kenya. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thatssoharaam/message

Pious Ali, the first African-born Muslim American to be elected to a public office in Maine, joins Humanity Chats to discuss Youth Empowerment, Faith and the Democratic Process.

This weeks podcast we are speaking with Bianca 'Bam Bam' Elmir. She is  an Australian Champion boxer, winning the Oceania Championships in 2010 and the Australia Flyweight Championships. She also won the best women's boxer trophy at the Bee Gee International Boxing Tournament in Finland and is on track to becoming a World Champion later this year!We chat about what life was like for her growing up, how she was kidnapped by her Mother when she was young  in Lebanon and taken to Australia. She will also share some insight into her Islamic Faith and thoughts around the headscarf (the hijab) and what it means to be beautiful.Bianca is currently studying a Masters in Globalisation whilst smashing down barriers. She is a serious demonstration of pure grit, very focused and a born fighter. If you like it, it would mean to world if you could please subscribe, rate and share!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This weeks podcast we are speaking with Bianca 'Bam Bam' Elmir. She is  an Australian Champion boxer, winning the Oceania Championships in 2010 and the Australia Flyweight Championships. She also won the best women's boxer trophy at the Bee Gee International Boxing Tournament in Finland and is on track to becoming a World Champion later this year!We chat about what life was like for her growing up, how she was kidnapped by her Mother when she was young  in Lebanon and taken to Australia. She will also share some insight into her Islamic Faith and thoughts around the headscarf (the hijab) and what it means to be beautiful.Bianca is currently studying a Masters in Globalisation whilst smashing down barriers. She is a serious demonstration of pure grit, very focused and a born fighter. Subscribe to hear the full podcast, out on Thursday!  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

– The Islamic Faith in the Midst of the Pandemic – Organized by: City Government of Tagum. – Q & A Session – The post Ahmad Javier – FB Live: Ang Islam sa Panahon ng Pandemic. appeared first on Ahmad Javier.

In this episode a conversation about Greek Mythology and those fictitious texts, quickly unravel and lead Tamika and Caleb into comparisons of all religous texts. is only one Religon/Faith right? Or are we all? Tamika and Caleb ponder those questions while talking about some cool Greek myths along the way. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

In today’s episode, we’re discussing interfaith advocacy and specifically, the collaborative efforts between Catholics and Jews. Steve Hunegs, the executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas (JCRC) joins us in the studio. The JCRC is a great partner with the Minnesota Catholic Conference. Together the Catholic Conference and JCRC are part of the Joint Religious Legislative Coalition which also includes faith leaders from the Islamic Faith and Protestant Christian denominations. In our mailbag segment, we answer a question regarding the need for emergency shelter funding in Minnesota. In our bricklayer segment, we discuss an interfaith advocacy Day on The Hill. **Note that due to COVID-19 this event has been canceled.**

This is course four of Mission Muslim world univerity (mmwu.org). To video stream this course for free visit thewadi.org.

This is course four of Mission Muslim world univerity (mmwu.org). To video stream this course for free visit thewadi.org.

My latest guest is Amal Abou-Eid. Author of My Muslim Mate - a children’s book that helps kids see that through talking and learning about each other's cultures, friendships can flourish and lives can work together harmoniously.Amal is a community leader that decided to take her love for teaching and learning and step up to help Muslim kids feel safe, understood and celebrated. This is the first of what I can imagine will be many more resources that allow Muslim children to feel proud of their culture and see it represented in literature in a positive way.I chat with Amal about why she wanted to create this book and the response it’s received. We also talk about the main misconceptions about Islam and being Muslim. Amal shares some tips on how Melbourne families can have a positive conversation with your kids about the culture.Amal is on a mission to educate families about Islamic faith and to embrace and celebrate Muslim culture.If you’re listening to this episode, let us know by sharing it in your Insta stories. Tag @motherhoodmelbourne and @booksbyamal so we can re-share it.Let’s meet Amal!______________For more info about my guest, the podcast or my podcast partner, visit Motherhood Melbourne.

Barefoot in Catt's bedroom, Halima shares all -- from her early years living in a refugee camp in Kenya, to becoming a UNICEF ambassador. She discusses being the first woman to wear a hijab in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant, and how being discovered there launched her career as an international model. Since then, you may have spotted Halima walking the runway at fashion week, gracing the cover of magazines like Allure and British Vogue, and rocking an array of beautiful burkinis in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition.  Also in this episode, Catt talks about her own life-changing trip to Kenya that she embarked on with her mother's charity. If you want to support the show, and keep this conversation going outside of our weekly episodes, you can find us on Patreon. Head to patreon.com/nakedwithcattsadler and sign up to contribute any amount of money to the show — $1, $5, it’s your choice — to get instant access to all sorts of goodies, like ad-free episodes or behind-the-scenes looks at the show. You’ll also get to join this super cool, constantly growing community of women who are looking to connect in a very real way - just like you!

To mark the start of Ramadan 2019, a group of Muslim members of our staff discuss the fundamentals of Ramadan, how it fits with the wider pillars of the Islamic Faith and how non-Muslim staff can show their support to their colleagues during this special time for them.

Season 2 - Episode 14 - The Elements of Justice - In this episode of Re-Sight Islam, Qasim and Salaam take a closer look at one of the key fundementals of the Islamic Faith:  the fair and equitable treatment of all people - the upholding of justice. The narrative of Justice weaves a story that works it's way from quantum physics to meteors to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.  With an emphasis on understanding the importance of one's oath and the secular nature of just treatment, the team uses the Prophet's own experiences  and the example of the Midian people to bring the stories to life. What does the discovery of the "God Particle" have to do with Islam?  What are the best haggling tactics to get a fair price?  Why is Salaam worried about so many F's and Z's?  What does Wakanda have in common with the Kaaba?  How do you earn a woman's respect? .... Download and listen to find the answers! Please remember to subscribe, share and comment.  If you have any questions for Qasim or have suggestions for topics, you can always Tweet them to @MuslimIQ  or send an email to ReSightIslam@ReligionNewsFoundation.org. This has been a production of the Religion News Foundation  For more information on these, and other religion news stories from around the world, visit religionnews.com or subscribe to  “Religion News Headlines” on your Alexa Device.   The Religion News Foundation – Your source for professional journalism covering religion for over  80 years.   LOVE what you hear?  Show your support and help us keep Re-Sight Islam as the #1 Podcast on Islam in the US by becoming a PATRON - your generous donations will ensure that we are able to deliver a message of peace and reconcilliation for all to hear! WOW!  Over 32,000 downloads!  Thank you so much for all the support!

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan address the basic rights and responsibilities of Muslims and Islam. He opens this episode by asking – what does a commitment to Islam mean? Is it simply making your prayers? Is it sticking to the dietary restrictions that are set forth in the Quran […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 16: The Basic Responsibilities of a Muslim appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he talks about what it means to be humble. In the world today, we have leaders that are not very humble, in fact some of our world leaders are prideful. It is for that reason that this lesson in being humble is not specifically […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 15: Learning to Be More Humble appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he addresses the punishments for disobeying the commands of God. As Imam Hassan opens this podcast he quotes the Quran from the book of An-Nisa (4:131) “And to Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And We have […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 14: Disobeying The Command of God appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he addresses helping those in need in Islam. The Imam opens the podcast by citing the 177th verse from Al Baqarah in the Quran, which says: “Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 10: Helping the Needy appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

Never miss another interview! Join Devin here: http://bit.ly/joindevin. Sheeza Shah has built a global crowdfunding platform called UpEffect just for social entrepreneurs. Sheeza says her Islamic faith teaches and inspires her to make the world a better place. Preliminary Interview with Sheeza Shah, the of UpEffect. The following is a brief pre-interview that provides context for the recorded interview you may watch or listen to at the top of this article. Website: https://www.theupeffect.com Check out my free webinar where I share the secrets of successful nonprofit crowdfunding at http://crowdfundingforsocialgood.org.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he addresses death and hell. It states in the Quran that “Indeed the hell fire is the dwelling place of them all. It has seven gates and within each gate there is an appropriate punishment for each inhabitant…” (Hijr: 44) The first gate – Jahannam – […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 9: Islam and The Hell Fire appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan, he addresses Islamic etiquette –as in how a Muslim should speak and interact with other people. Using the example of the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) the Imam explains that The Prophet didn’t use a lot of extra words, he didn’t talk just to hear his […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 8: Islamic Etiquette appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he talks about Islam and Charity, or sadaqah as Muslims call it. Sadaqah, or giving of alms, is one of the five pillars of Islam. But, there are different kind of charity in Islam. The hadith of the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) says that “Every […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 7: Islam and Charity appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this week’s Islamic Faith in Focus podcast with Imam Hassan he addresses being Muslim and being of good character. There is a large misconception that seems to surround Muslims and Islam. People have this idea that Muslims only want to do harm to others and to cause pain to those that don’t follow Islam. […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 6: Be of Good Character appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

Following last week’s episode where Imam Hassan explained how hatred and racism have no place in Islam, he addresses the issue of the treatment of women in the Islamic faith. Imam Hassan starts this episode off by reading Quran chapter 4 – The Women – verse 19, which says “O you who have believed, it […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 4: Treatment of Women in Islam appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

On this episode of Islamic Faith in Focus with Imam Hassan, following on last week’s episode, he addresses hate and racism from the Islamic perspective. Imam Hassan says that hate and racism has no place in Islam or in a Muslims heart. He emphasizes his point by quoting the Quran chapter 49, verse 13, that […] The post Islamic Faith in Focus 3: Hate and Racism in Islam appeared first on Welcome to the Venn Network.

Muhammad Abdelkarim joins me on the Blatantly Honest Podcast to discuss his experience as a Muslim, his Islamic faith, and his career and educational goals. The Origin of American Compulsory Schooling The Inherent Nature of Compulsory Schooling Essay The Open School website YouTubeTwitterMindsBitchute PodbeanInstagram Edgar Cards' music and works of art: Bandcamp Instagram Twitter

The Impact Radio Show w/Timothy Moore 4PM on KKPZ 1330 AM Guest host Roy Calkins talks with Professor Joseph Shelton about the Islamic Faith and helps us to understand it both from a secular and a Christian Perspective. (Part 2 of 3 parts) theimpactradioshow.com #theimpactradioshow

The Impact Radio Show w/Timothy Moore 4PM on KKPZ 1330 AM Roy Calkins talks with Professor Joseph Shelton about The Islamic Faith and helps us understand it better from both a secular and Christian Perspective (Part 3 of 3 parts) theimpactradioshow.com #theimpactradioshow

Guest Host Roy Calkins talks with Professor Joseph Shelton who helps us get a better understanding of the Islamic Faith from a Christian perspective. (This is Part 1 of 3 Parts)

Professor Joseph Shelton helps us understand the Islamic Faith in this week long series with host Roy Calkins (in for Timothy Moore)

(segment one from original broadcast is missing) Professor Joseph Shelton helps us understand the Islamic Faith in this week long series with host Roy Calkins (in for Timothy Moore)

Professor Joseph Shelton helps us understand the Islamic Faith in this week long series with host Roy Calkins (in for Timothy Moore)

Joseph Shelton Islamic Series (p2) Professor Joseph Shelton helps us understand the Islamic Faith in this week long series with host Roy Calkins (in for Timothy Moore)

Joseph Shelton Islamic Series (p1) Professor Joseph Shelton helps us understand the Islamic Faith in this week long series with host Roy Calkins (in for Timothy Moore)

There's plenty of talk on radio, but with 20twenty you'll find Life, Culture & Current events from a Biblical perspective. Interviews, stories and insight you definately won't hear in the mainstream media. This feed contains selected content from 20twenty, heard every weekday morning. See www.vision.org.au for more details Help Vision to keep 'Connecting Faith to Life': https://vision.org.au/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.