Peter’s Ministry

Title Ideas:Peter obeys [serves] Jesus.Peter leads others to Jesus.Protection in Persecution.God accepts all people who believe in Jesus.

In a town called Joppa, when Peter prayed for a dead woman, God brought her back to life. Peter stayed at Joppa for many days, at the house of a man who tanned hides [skins]. Peter and that household were Jews.

At a city called Caesarea [Sesaria], there was an army officer named Cornelius, He and his household were not Jews [they were Gentiles], but they worshiped the God that Jews worship.

One day, an angel appeared [in a vision] to Cornelius [and said], “God has heard your prayers. Send some men to Joppa to see Peter. Peter is staying in the hide tanner’s house.” So Cornelius did so.

Next day, while waiting for the mid-day meal, Peter went up onto the house’s flat roof. There he had [saw] a vision, in which he saw a big sheet [tarp] come down from the sky [Heaven / God]. On [In] the sheet were many kinds of animals that Jews do not eat.

Then a voice said to Peter, “Stand up! Kill these animals and eat them.” But Peter replied, “Lord, I do not eat animals that your law says are forbidden [taboo / unclean (religiously)]!”

The Voice said, “Do not call things forbidden [impure / taboo / unclean] that which God has made [to be] permissible [acceptable / clean / pure].” Peter saw this vision three times, [so Peter was sure that it was from God].

Then the sheet went back up in the sky [Heaven / God]. At that moment, the men from Cornelius arrived, and God said to Peter, “You must go with those men, for it is I who sent them.”

Next day, Peter left with those men. They traveled to Caesarea, and came to Cornelius’ house. Cornelius’ relatives and friends were there, waiting for Peter.

Peter spoke to them, saying, “You know that the Jewish law does not allow [forbids] us Jews to enter into a non-Jew’s [Gentile’s] house. But God has shown [told] me that I must not consider other people to be impure or unacceptable to God. [OR God has shown me that I must accept all people / everyone as invited to follow Jesus.]

“God does not treat some people better [differently] than he treats others. Rather [but] God accepts [approves / welcomes] people from every nation [tribe] who worship God and do what is right [what God has commanded].

“You have heard about Jesus who showed the power of God. Evil men killed Jesus, but God brought him back to life! Now, God will forgive the sins for all those who put their trust [faith] in Jesus!”

While Peter was speaking, God’s Holy Spirit came to everyone who was listening to Peter’s words. They all began praising God in different languages.

The Jewish Christians who had come with Peter were amazed. They said, “God has given to these non-Jews [Gentiles] the same Holy Spirit that he gave to us Jews!”

Then Peter instructed [ordered] the Jewish Christians to baptize those new Gentile Jesus-followers. Peter stayed with those new Christians for a few days.

When Peter came back to Jerusalem, some other Christian Jews scolded him, because he had gone into the house of a Gentile. So, Peter told them everything that happened. He said to them:

[Peter said,] “I obeyed what God had told me to do. Then God gave to those Gentiles the same Holy Spirit that he gave to us when we put our trust in Jesus.” When they [the critical Jewish Christians] heard this, they praised God, saying, “So then, God also gives [everlasting] life to Gentiles!”

In Jerusalem, there was a king named Herod. Herod put some Christians in jail. He also ordered some soldiers, “Go kill the apostle called James.”[The soldiers killed James.]

Herod saw that killing Christians pleased some Jewish leaders. So he ordered soldiers, “Go arrest Peter and put him in jail. I will condemn Peter in a public place, and then kill him, after the annual Passover annual feast.”

While Peter was in jail, surrounded by guards, the Christians met in somebody’s house, and were praying earnestly to God to help Peter.

While they prayed, Peter [in the jail / prison] was asleep, bound with a chain, between two soldiers [who were guarding him].

Suddenly, an angel came into the jail [cell]. It woke Peter, saying, “Hurry! Put on your shoes and coat, and follow me!”

Peter thought he was having a dream. He followed the angel anyway. They walked by the jail guards to [as far as] the iron gate. The gate opened up with no one touching it.

As they walked in a street, the angel suddenly left Peter. Then Peter said to himself, “Now, I know that the Lord has really rescued me from jail, from Herod and from the angry Jewish leaders.”

Peter went to the house where the Christians were gathered, praying for him. When Peter knocked [shouted / called] at the outside gate [door], a servant girl came and asked, “Who is there?”

Peter replied, “It is I, Peter!” The girl was so excited, that she forgot to open the gate. She ran into the house shouting, “Peter is [standing] outside at the gate!”

The people inside replied, “Are you crazy?” The girl insisted, saying, “It is true!” Someone else said, “Perhaps it is a messenger whom Peter has sent.”

Peter kept on knocking [shouting / calling] outside the gate, till someone came and opened the gate.

When the Christians saw Peter, they were amazed. Peter waved his hand [to ask for silence], saying, “Let me tell you how God sent an angel who led me out of jail.” Lastly [Then], Peter said, “I shall now [secretly] go stay in another town.”

Next morning the guards awoke and saw that Peter was gone [escaped]. King Herod ordered some soldiers, “Go find Peter!” and other soldiers, “Go kill all of the jail guards!”

Later, Herod made a speech to people from other cities who wanted the King to help their cities. The people said loudly, “Herod sounds like a god [not a man] speaking!” At that moment, because Herod accepted praise belonging only to God, God caused worms to grow inside [his intestines and to eat] Herod, and he died some weeks later.