"What Meaneth This” To Them And To Me Series

“What meaneth this” to THEM and to ME

Acts 2:1-36

There are roughly three main events in the history of Christianity: Bethlehem, Calvary, and Pentecost. Bethlehem is “God with us.” Calvary is “God for us.” Pentecost is “God in us.”

We understand what Bethlehem means. We understand what Calvary means.

“What meaneth this” in Acts 2. What meaneth this coming of the Holy Sprit to the early church, and what does it mean to the church today.

I. It meant there was a Presence that was Supernatural God’s calendar has in it 2 unforgettable days: the day

when the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world laid down His life as the world’s Savior; and, the day when the ascended Lord bestowed upon the church the gift of the Holy Spirit.

I said a moment ago that Pentecost is "God in us."

Pentecost presents the indwelling of God in the believer by way of the Holy Spirit. God gives the believer an enabling presence. A presence that brings POWER.

The first believers were indwelt with the Spirit at Pentecost. Today believers are indwelt with the Spirit at the moment of conversion.

I love the way Jesus describes this in John 14:16-17 where He says, "I will pray the Father and he shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, nether knoweth him: but ye know him: for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."

Bethlehem was "God with us." Calvary was "God for us." Pentecost was "God in us."

Today, God is in me, dwelling within me, empowering me with His awesome presence. That’s the real truth Acts 2: the supernatural presence of God in the believer.

A. A presence that comforts.

Who can Cheer the heart like Jesus,

By his presence all divine.

B. A presence that confounds (6, 7, 12)

Astonishment filled the air. What has happened to these people.

C. A presence that convicts (37)

The Holy Spirit works through you. He will work

through you as you yield to Him, allowing Him to fill you and control your life. If you want to be an effective Christian, begin where the Bible says to begin: be continually filled with the Spirit. This power is already in you; it just needs to be turned on by yielding to it. Then you’ll see God work through your life in a way that prepares others to receive God.

Without the preparation by the Spirit--without the evidence of God in your life--you won’t earn from others the right to speak about Him. If Peter had spoken without the miracles that preceded his sermon, he would have probably been stoned on the spot.

Let the Spirit control your life so that you live in a way that makes others willing to hear you.

II. It meant there was Preaching that was Scriptural These disciples preached the Bible under the power of

the Holy Spirit to the people who were gathered.

I heard about a preacher the other day that had just finished one of his normal long-winded, dry sermons. He announced that after the service there would be a meeting of the Board.

Following the service, a first-time visitor was the first to meet the pastor. The pastor said, "Sir, you must have misunderstood the announcement. I announced a meeting of the Board."

The visitor replied, "No, I totally understood that this is a meeting of the Board; and, if there is anyone here more BORED than I am, I’d love to meet them."

When the Holy Spirit comes to church it certainly will not be a meeting of the bored. He will take that which is dead and dry and make it divine and dynamic.

A. Here was preaching that pointed to the Scriptures

“This is what which was spoken by the prophet

Joel” (2:16). He quoted from Psalms

Two hundred of the five hundred words that are recorded in Peter’s sermons are words quoted from the Old Testament. This is a convincing method of preaching.

B. Here was preaching that pointed to the Saviour

1. He preached His incarnation.

We get this in verse 22 in the words "Jesus of Nazareth, a man . . ." He was the God-man, for He was the man Who was "approved of God," a phrase which indicates

His deity.

2. He preached His crucifixion.

We get this in verse 23, which declares divine sovereignty and human responsibility, and which tells us that our Lord was born to die, and that His death was

purposeful.

3. He preached His resurrection.

We get this in verses 24 and 32. Peter showed that this was predicted in the Old Testament scriptures, verses 25-28, and this was always the great emphasis of early church’s teaching and preaching.