Peter's visit to Cornelius' house was a landmark in the history of the church (Acts 10:23-48). For the first time a group of Gentiles had heard and responded to the gospel message, and been filled with the Holy Spirit and were baptised in the Name of Jesus. You might have thought that all the apostles were thrilled and were praising the Lord. No. Instead they were horrified, and criticised Peter.

Peter had been called before the church council in Jerusalem. They were alarmed that the apostle had abandoned his traditional Jewish belief that God was offended if His people visited Gentiles in their homes (Acts 10:28).

As the church grew, the leaders in Jerusalem wanted to safeguard the gospel from corruption, and prevent the new congregations from falling into the hands of false teachers. At the same time, so many new and unexpected things were happening, the apostles needed to learn what God was doing. So when they heard about the rapid church growth in Antioch, they sent Barnabas to find out what was happening.

Much historical background is available on King Herod Agrippa 1, a corrupt ruler with an equally corrupt family history. Suffice it to say that he was neither respected in Rome nor Israel and he sought whatever opportunity he could to gain popularity and cultivate his ego. It was now acceptable to persecute the church and so Herod joined in, arresting some of the church leaders including the apostle James.