Cornelius

AI summary: Cornelius matters because the cross references present his conversion as a watershed in the church's understanding of the gospel's reach. His prayers and almsgiving are noticed by God, Peter is prepared through vision to receive him, and the Holy Spirit falls on his household before any Jewish boundary markers can be imposed. This forces the church to reckon with Gentile inclusion as God's own action. Taken together, the material presents Cornelius as a pivotal figure in Acts through whom the universality of the gospel becomes unmistakably clear.¹

A centurion whose history is narrated in Acts 10. He was a “devout man,” and like the centurion of Capernaum, believed in the God of Israel. His residence at Caesrea probably brought him into contact with Jews who communicated to him their expectations regarding the Messiah; and thus he was prepared to welcome the message Peter brought him. He became the first fruit of the Gentile world to Christ. He and his family were baptized and admitted into the Christian church (Acts 10:1, 44-48). (See CENTURION.) ³