Page:An Exposition of the Old and New Testament (1828) vol 6.djvu/113

Rh all things which he did, both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: 40. Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; 41. Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. 42. And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. 43. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

We have here Peter's sermon preached to Cornelius and his friends: that is, an abstract or summary of it; for we have reason to think that he did with many other words testify and exhort to this purport. It is intimated, that he delivered himself with a great deal of solemnity and gravity, but with freedom and copiousness, in that phrase, that he opened his mouth and spake, v. 34. O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open to you, saith Paul, 2 Cor. 6. 11. "You shall find us communicative, if we but find you inquisitive." Hitherto the mouths of the apostles had been shut to the uncircumised Gentiles, they had nothing to say to them; but now God gave unto them, as he did to Ezekiel, the opening of the mouth.

This excellent sermon of Peter's is admirably suited to the circumstances of those to whom he preached it; for it was a new sermon.

I. Because they were Gentiles to whom he preached; he shews that, notwithstanding that, they were interested in the gospel of Christ, which he had to preach, and entitled to the benefit of it, upon an equal foot with the Jews. It was necessary that this should be cleared; or else with what comfort could either he preach or they hear? He therefore lays down this as an undoubted principle, that God is no respecter of persons; doth not know favour in judgment, as the Hebrew phrase is; which magistrates are forbidden to do, (Deut 1. 17.—16. 19. Prov. 24. 23.) and are blamed for doing, Ps. 82. 2. And it is often said of God, that he doth not respect persons, Deut. 10. 17. 2 Chron. 19. 7. Job 34. 19. Rom. 2. 11. Col. 3. 25. 1 Pet. 1. 17. He doth not give judgment in favour of a man, for the sake of any external advantage foreign to the merits of the cause. God never perverts judgment upon personal regards and considerations, nor countenances a wicked man in a wicked thing, for the sake of his beauty, or stature, his country, parentage, relations, wealth or honour in the world. God, as a Benefactor, gives favours arbitrarily and by sovereignty, (Deut. 7. 7, 8.—9. 5, 6. Matt 20. 10.) but he does not, as a Judge, so give sentence; but in every nation, and under every denomination, he that fears God, and works righteousness is accepted of him, v. 35.

The case is plainly thus:

1. God never did, nor ever will, justify and save a wicked Jew that lived and died impenitent, though he was of the seed of Abraham, and a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and had all the honour and advantages that attended circumcision. He does and will render indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil; and of the Jew first; whose privileges and professions, instead of screening him from the judgment of God, will but aggravate his guilt and condemnation. See Rom. 2. 3, 8, 9, 17. Though God has favoured the Jews, above other nations, with the dignities of visible church-membership, yet he will not therefore accept of any particular persons of that dignity, if they allow themselves in immoralities contradictory to their profession; and particularly in persecution, which was now, more than any other, the national sin of the Jews.

2. He never did, nor ever will, reject or refuse an honest Gentile, who, though he has not the privileges and advantages that the Jews have, yet, like Cornelius, fears God, and worships him, and works righteousness, is just and charitable towards all men, who lives up to the light he has, both in a sincere devotion, and in a regular conversation, whatever nation he is of, though ever so far remote from kindred to the seed of Abraham; though ever so despicable, nay though in ever so ill a name, that shall be no prejudice to him. God judges of men by their hearts, not by their country or parentage; and wherever he finds an upright man, he will be found an upright God, Ps. 18. 25. Observe, Fearing God, and working righteousness, must go together; for as righteousness toward men is a branch of true religion, so religion toward God is a branch of universal righteousness. Godliness and honesty must go together, and neither will excuse for the want of the other. But where these are predominant, no doubt is to be made of acceptance with God. Not that any man, since the fall, can obtain the favour of God, otherwise than through the mediation of Jesus Christ, and by the grace of God in him; but those that have not the knowledge of him, and therefore cannot have an explicit regard to him, may yet receive grace from God for his sake, to fear God, and to work righteousness; and wherever God gives grace to do so, as he did to Cornelius, he will, through Christ accept the work of his own hands.

Now, (1.) This was always a truth, before Peter perceived it, that God respecteth no man's person; it was the fixed rule of judgment from the beginning; ''If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if not well, sin, and the punishment of it, lies at the door'', Gen. 4. 7. God will not ask in the great day what country men were of, but what they were, what they did, and how they stood affected toward him and toward their neighbours; and if men's personal characters received neither advantage nor disadvantage from the great difference that was between Jews and Gentiles, much less from any lesser difference of sentiments and practices that may happen to be among Christians themselves, as those about meats and days, Rom. 14. It is certain, the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost; and he that in these things serveth Christ, is accepted of God, and ought to be approved of men; for dare we reject those whom God doth not?

(2.) Yet now it was made more clear than it had been; this great truth had been darkened by the covenant of peculiarity made with Israel, and the badges of distinction put upon them; the ceremonial law was a wall of partition between them and other nations; in it, it was true that God favoured that nation, (Rom. 3. 1, 2.—9. 4.) and from thence particular persons among them were ready to infer, that they were sure of God's acceptance, though they lived as they listed; and that no Gentile could possibly be accepted of God. God had said a great deal by the prophets to prevent and rectify this mistake, but now at length he doth it effectually, by abolishing the covenant of peculiarity, and repealing the ceremonial law, and so setting the matter at large, and both Jew and Gentile upon the same level before God; and Peter is here made to perceive it, by comparing the vision which he had with that which Cornelius had. Now in Christ Jesus, it is plain, neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, Gal. 5. 6. Col. 3. 11.