“Then a voice told him, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’

“‘Surely not, Lord!’ Peter replied. ‘I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.’

“The voice spoke to him a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’” (Acts 10:13-15)

At the point when Peter had this rooftop vision, The Way – the name given to those who followed Christ, before they were called Christians – were still trying to find their footing after Jesus had ascended into heaven.  Jesus had taught the disciples much, but in their efforts to spread His teachings to others, they brought into the mix a lot of Jewish tradition that was familiar and comfortable.  Unfortunately, the result was that only the Jewish people were being reached.

God had a better plan.

He wanted to go beyond the Jewish nation and Peter was the person to begin that process… but first He had to make Peter understand – so He used a vision of “four-footed animals… reptiles… and birds” being lowered in a sheet to bring the point home.

Peter wasn’t ready.

God was asking Peter to do what he understood to be contrary to scripture.  After all, every good Jewish boy knew the rules for clean and unclean food found in the Torah and they knew these rules were to be strictly observed.  But God was telling Peter that everything He’d created was clean. The animals of the land and sea and air… and the people who were not of Jewish descent.  Peter didn’t understand this – he argued with God three times before God took the sheet away – and he wasn’t ready for a change that was so... uncomfortable.

And that’s how God works.

He asks us to move forward – even when we’re not ready. 

It’s called faith. 

Jesus cited faith more often than not as the reason He was able to perform miracles and it’s faith that resonated in the lives of all the great figures listed in Hebrews 11.

If we keep waiting until we’re ready, we’re going to miss out on all that God wants to offer us.  Instead, we need to step forward in faith that God has something great planned.  It may go against what our instincts or our minds tell us is right, but if we trust God we open ourselves to seeing things… understanding things… knowing God more intimately than we could have ever expected.

Peter learned this lesson.  No sooner had the vision disappeared from Peter’s sight then three men arrived to take Peter back to Cornelius the centurion… and gentile.  Peter understood the significance of the timing and invited them in before he went back with them the following morning.  When he arrived at the home of Cornelius he found all of Cornelius’ friends and relatives there.  Peter shared with them the gospel and an amazing thing happened:

“While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.  The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.”  (Acts 10:44-45)

Peter moved in faith when he wasn’t ready and God showed him a miracle.

Don’t wait until you’re ready.