Learning New Stuff

When a messenger from Yahweh spoke to Cornelius (Acts 10:1-8), there is no indication that he had experienced anything like it previously. Still, he received and obeyed the instructions he was given by the angel, sending to Joppa for Peter to come to his home.

As part of the same event being set up, Peter saw a vision of a sheet being lowered from heaven, filled with every kind of animal and bird. He resisted the instruction he was offered three times. Then Holy Spirit told him that men were approaching the home where he was staying, and that he should go with them. When he was approached by the men Cornelius had sent, he was finally convinced that the instruction about the animals was from the Spirit, and it was about the mission of going with them.

When he was finally in the home of Cornelius, Peter offered the interpretation of the vision of the sheet: “In truth, I understand that God doesn’t show favoritism, but in every nation the person who fears Him and does righteousness is acceptable to Him.”

Even though Peter resisted this truth, and he resisted the word that came to correct his resistance of the truth, when there was a great debate among the leaders in Acts 15 about what should be imposed on gentile believers from the law of Moses, he defended this truth and supported the argument presented by Paul and Barnabas that Yahweh was receiving gentiles apart from keeping any of the law given to the Jews through Moses.

The sort of revelation that Peter and Paul and Barnabas received and delivered to the rest of the leaders was profound and difficult to accept. I don’t expect you to receive news from heaven that is that drastically different from what any have heard before. I do expect you to have the Spirit reveal things to you that are just as profound and new to you, though. Some things are hidden in the Book and in the Spirit that we have not yet been able to receive, and when we are ready, we will be shaken to our foundations by them as He shows them to us and makes us able to receive and walk in them.

Be ready on any day to throw away all that has been valuable when He shows you something that can take you into a new level of life and power and manifestation of His presence. Don’t resist Him. Ask Him for more. You can’t have seen everything there is to see yet. A spring is not a fake fountain like a town square fountain. It is coming from somewhere, not just recycling from the pool. There is water in the fountain we have not seen or tasted yet.

Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again. But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again—ever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.”
(John 4:13-14 HCSB ©®)

You haven’t seen it all yet. Stay awake. Look for more.