Pentecost: Peter’s Sermon – Part 3a
Peter’s Call To Repentance & Invitation To Salvation
Acts 2:37-40
We are currently examining the first and perhaps greatest Christian sermon ever preached. On the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit descended and the followers of Christ, they began to “speak in other tongues” praising the Lord for His greatness. Upon hearing the sounds of a “mighty rushing wind” a multitude of Jews came running to see what was happening. They were astonished when they arrived and heard these Galileans speaking in their own native languages. Many of those Jews came to the conclusion that the Believers were drunk. In response, Peter stood up and addressed this multitude and refuted the idea that the followers of Christ had been drinking. He explained to them that what they were experiencing was the pouring out of God’s Spirit that Joel had written about many years earlier.
- As we have examined this sermon we have seen:
i. Peter’s Reference Concerning Joel’s Prophecy
ii. Peter’s Reference Concerning David’s Psalms
iii. Peter’s Declaration That Jesus Christ Is The Messiah
Now we come to the conclusion of this great sermon and in the following verses we will hear Peter’s call to repentance and invitation to salvation. Every good sermon must have a conclusion and it is important to point people to the reality that salvation is available through Jesus Christ. We preachers often refer to the conclusion of a sermon as “landing the plane”. In verses 37-40, Peter “lands the plane” and calls on those in attendance to "Be saved from this perverse generation." I would like nothing more than to see someone respond this way today!
- Let’s look to our selected text and consider “Peter’s Call To Repentance And Invitation To Salvation”
After quoting Joel’s Prophecy and referencing David’s Psalms, Peter boldly declared that Jesus Christ, the One whom the Jews had crucified was “both Lord and Christ”. Notice:
v36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
Often we preachers will spend 30 minutes expounding a passage and then at the very end summarize the entire message in a short simple statement. I am not sure how long Peter’s sermon lasted on the day of Pentecost, but that is essentially what he did. In verse 36 he drives the main point of his sermon home by declaring that David’s prophetic words in Psalm 16 & 110 pointed to the life, death, resurrection and exaltation of Jesus Christ. The One they had crucified was “both Lord & Christ”.
It is also important for us to notice that verses 33-35 clearly indicate that there would be a certain span of time between the ascension and glorification of Christ and His Second Coming and the establishment of His Kingdom. King David said 'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." Jesus is currently seated at the right hand of the Father. One day He will return, judge the world, punish His enemies, establish His Kingdom and rule and reign over all the earth.
The Jews needed to know this truth and the people in the world today need to hear it as well. Peter’s sermon was certainly a powerful one and it had its desired effect. Every minister of God has an intense desire to see people respond to the Gospel message. Every time that I enter a pulpit and preach the Word of God it is my desire to see: lost people saved, backslidden people restored and faithful Christians grow stronger in their relationship with the Lord. There have been certain occasions where I have been amazed at the number of people who responded to the message from God’s Word and the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I am sure that Peter was elated by what happened at the conclusion of this sermon.
v37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?"
Without a doubt there were far more than 3,000 people in attendance on the day of Pentecost. I am certain that there were some who heard this message and scoffed at it. Some of those Jews were cynical when they arrived and even more so when they left. Some came running to see what was happening and they assumed the Disciples were drunk, when they departed they still believed this to be the case.
There were other Jews who came there that day who were confused by the sights and the sounds, but after hearing the message from the Apostle Peter and experiencing true Holy Spirit conviction they were convinced that what he was saying was true. They believed the message and accepted the testimony of the Apostles that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, He had risen from the dead and He was responsible for the amazing things that had taken place earlier in the day. In response they humbly asked Peter “what shall we do?” They asked this because “they were cut to the heart”.
When reading this passage we immediately rejoice in the conversion of a multitude of people, but we often overlook how devastating this news must have been for those in attendance. Think about it for a moment: these men of Israel had read the scriptures, they believed the prophets; they knew what David had said in the Psalms that Peter quoted. Many of these Jews had been anxiously anticipating the arrival of God’s promised Messiah their entire lives. Now they are confronted with the reality that they had been instrumental in killing the Son of God and the Savior of the World. Furthermore, upon realizing their guilt and acknowledging the fact that Jesus was alive, they must have been fearful that they would be judged for their part in His death. This was a logical assumption because if they had continued to reject Him then that is exactly what would have happened, and it is what happened to those who refused to heed Peter’s call to “repent and be baptized”.
Moreover, this will be the case for all who refuse to repent and believe in Jesus Christ. Like these Jews, lost people today should be “cut to the heart” when they hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They should be overwhelmed with guilt because they are living in rebellion against a Holy God who loved them enough to send His Son to deliver them from their sins. They should also be fearful of the consequences that come as a result of rejecting the sinless Son of God. If this describes you, I have good news; the Bible makes it clear that you can be forgiven of your sins, granted eternal life and a home in Heaven and you can have a personal relationship with the very God that you have rebelled against your entire life.
Many lost people think that there is no hope of them ever being saved. They feel that they have gone too far or done too much for God to forgive them. I can think of no greater rebuttal to that argument than the very passage that we are studying today. Peter has just boldly indicted these Jews for the murder of Jesus Christ; he declared that they were responsible for His death! In spite of this, God extended mercy and grace to them and gave them the opportunity to be forgiven and redeemed. This same mercy and grace is available to you today.
It is imperative that you realize your lost, sinful condition and then humble yourself to the point that you cry out “what shall I do?” The answer for you is the same answer that Peter gave to the people assembled before him on the day of Pentecost; "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins”. If you will do this, then you can claim the promise that “you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
v38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
In response to the question “what shall we do?” Peter instructs the people to “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins”.
Repentance speaks of a change of mind that results in one turning from sin to God. When describing the repentance of the Thessalonians, Paul said that they had “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God”. Those believers in Thessalonica had turned away from their manmade idols and turned to the living God. The Jews who were gathered on the day of Pentecost turned away from their skepticism, cynicism, their unbelief, the traditions & legalism that they had received from the elders and they also turned from their sins and they turned to God. They repented and trusted in Christ for salvation and following their repentance they were baptized. As a result they were “filled with the Holy Spirit.”
True repentance requires one to forsake their sin and embrace the finished work of Jesus Christ. This involves denying one’s self and surrendering to Christ as Lord. If these people had refused to repent they would not have been converted, they would not have received the Holy Spirit and they would have died in their sins and been condemned eternally.
The same is true for those who are confronted with the Gospel today. If you will surrender to Holy Spirit conviction, acknowledge and turn from your sins, and trust in Christ as Lord & Savior you will be saved. Again, the scripture says in numerous places “whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved”. On the other hand, if you refuse to repent, you will die in your sins and face eternal consequences as a result of your rejection of Jesus Christ. I pray that you heed the call to repentance and accept the invitation to salvation through Jesus Christ.
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