God Uses Others: Acts 10

So, I’ve been studying Acts 10 and 11. Part of the story is how God worked in the lives of people to lead them to other people. Cornelius was told to seek out Peter and Peter was told to go to Cornelius. Yes, there are the miraculous visions from God that each of those men had received. But the visions only contained part of the message from God that each man needed to carry out God’s will.

To complete God’s message to Peter about saving the Gentiles Peter needed to converse with and fellowship with Cornelius. To give Cornelius what he and his household needed to be saved, God used Peter. Without each other, God’s message would not have been clear to either man alone. God often completes His messages to us through our fellowship with other believers. We need each other to get the total message from God. God uses people to confirm what the Scriptures tell us to do. God uses other people to give us insight into the Scriptures. God uses other people to direct us to appropriate passages of Scripture. God uses other people to encourage us as we learn to fellowship with God in deeper ways.

Without other wise people in my life, I would take off in the wrong directions often. I need others to encourage me, support me, guide me, and instruct me with God’s Word. I also need people who may be thinking more clearly about my situations and feelings. I think of when I first got sober, back in college. God put people in my life to bring me His message of salvation and hope. Those people knew me and had seen my dysfunctional life in action. Those people taught me how to read God’s Word, pray, study (my college academics as well as the Scriptures), and relate to other people. They brought me the Truth just as Peter brought the truth to Cornelius.

When I needed help getting sober again (about 20 years later), He again put the right people in my life. These people hadn’t necessarily seen me drunk like the first group of people in college, but they were sent to give me a message. One woman, Cathy, was used by God to bring me a specific message: Go to Alcoholics Anonymous. And, I did , with her help in finding meetings. At those meetings, I met other people I believe God put in my path. They were able to say and do the right things to help get me sober, again. Basically, God uses people to speak to us, and we should listen carefully t what they have to say.