Jesus Is... (Part 2) Series

JESUS IS…

(Part 2)

Acts 3:18-23

Our selected text covers a sermon that Peter preached at Solomon’s Colonnade in response to the astonishment of the crowd after the healing of the lame man. Peter addressed the people and made it clear that he did not heal this man by his own power. In verse 16 he declares that the man was healed by faith in Jesus Christ. In his sermon, Peter references the words that God has spoken through His prophets about His suffering servant. He also points to the fact that Jesus had been glorified and is currently in Heaven. He then declares that they possessed the opportunity to repent and be forgiven and accepted by God. However, if they continued to reject God’s Promised One, they would be “utterly destroyed”.

Peter covers many subjects in this sermon, but the central theme is the Lord Jesus Christ. Standing before this astonished crowd, Peter preached Jesus! I would like to continue examining Peter’s sermon and consider the thought “Jesus Is…”

- The last time that we gathered we covered the fact that Peter declared that:

JESUS IS THE PROMISED MESSIAH

The Old Testament records many prophecies concerning the Messiah. Those prophecies were fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. - v18 But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled.

Jesus fulfilled these prophecies, and He did so in the presence of the very people who were listening to Peter preach. However, in spite of all that they had seen and heard, the Jews rejected Jesus. One of the main prophecies concerning the Messiah was that He would be a suffering servant. Peter pointed out to this crowd that:

JESUS IS THE SUFFERING SERVANT

The prophets of God declared that the Messiah would be a suffering servant. Jesus is that suffering Savior; He suffered for the people at Solomon’s Colonnade, He suffered for the sins of the world, and He suffered for my sins and yours! Not only is Jesus The Promised Messiah and The Suffering Servant, Peter’s sermon declares that:

JESUS IS THE COMPASSIONATE SAVIOR

In their ignorance, the Jews expected a great ruler, not a suffering servant. The Promised One had come to them, but they rejected Him and ultimately saw to it that He was put to death. However, thanks to the mercy, grace and love of Jesus Christ, they were about to be confronted with the opportunity to receive forgiveness for their sins. Peter did not excuse the sin of the people; but he did make it clear that even though they had rejected, tortured and crucified Jesus, if they would repent and believe in Him they could be saved. Not only does he state that this is possible, he implores them to turn to the Savior.

v19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.

If the People of Israel would heed Peter’s invitation to “repent and be converted” then “their sins would be blotted out”. Furthermore, “the times of refreshing would come from the presence of the Lord”. If these people would repent; acknowledge their sin, turn away from it and turn to Christ they would be saved! Thankfully, the next chapter tells us that many of them responded accordingly, they repented, were converted and their sins were blotted out. This opportunity remains today; if you will repent and believe in Jesus Christ, forgiveness and salvation is available to you as well.

In the following verses Peter goes on to declare that Jesus is not only the Promised Messiah, the suffering Servant, and the compassionate Savior, He is also the sovereign Lord. Let’s take some time an consider the fact that:

JESUS IS THE SOVEREIGN LORD

In verse 19, Peter calls on his listeners to repent. Then he goes on to point out the glorious benefits of repentance. If they would repent they would be “converted”, their sins would be “blotted out” and “the times of refreshing would come from the presence of the Lord”. Furthermore, he said that God would “send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”

If Israel would repent, God would send the Messiah, (Jesus Christ). This is a reference to the eventual return of the Lord to set up His Kingdom. We know that many individual Jews did in fact repent and believe in Jesus. They were converted and their sins were blotted out. But the entire nation needed to know that before they could experience the national restoration that they desired, there must first be national repentance. Israel as a whole did not repent and Jesus has not yet returned (though we are assured that He will someday.)