A GRAND INVITATION & A GLORIOUS PROMISE
(PART 1)
Acts 3:16-19
(Antioch Baptist Church: Wednesday, July 9th, 2025)
Audio - https://youtu.be/oLvzBVtZBUU?feature=shared
In recent years a common topic of conversation amongst pastors/preachers is whether or not what we refer to as “the invitation” is a biblical concept. It may surprise you to learn that providing an invitation (often referred to as an “altar call”) is a relatively recent development in Christian history. It is something that particularly gained prominence in the in the 1800s.
Personally, I think there is a great benefit in offering a time of response after a message from God’s Word. I am so thankful that there is great liberty in this church and people regularly come forward and utilize the opportunity to respond to whatever it may be that God is doing in their lives.
Whether or not we sing a hymn and offer a time of public response, I think that it is imperative for our sermons to contain an invitation. We should invite sinners to repent and turn to Jesus, and we should invite Christians to respond to the challenges that are given in whatever passage we are studying.
We have no greater example of the importance of calling people to respond than the preaching of our Lord. The opening words of Jesus’ ministry contained an invitation; He said, “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel.” (Mark 1:15). As a fellow preacher wisely put it, “when God speaks, people should respond.”
Throughout his ministry, the Apostle Paul often offered people an invitation to repent and believe the Gospel. The New Testament is saturated with calls for action after the proclamation of the Gospel.
One such example of the importance of providing an invitation to respond is recorded in our selected text. At the conclusion of Peter’s bold sermon at Solomon’s Portico, he cried out, “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” (v19). Almost two thousand years later, preachers all over the world are still extending that same invitation. Even greater is the reality that we are merely mouthpieces; it is Christ who offers men and women the opportunity to “repent and be converted”. It is Jesus who delivered the glorious promise that lost sinners can have their sins “blotted out”.
I would like to examine the invitation that is provided in this passage and consider, “A Grand Invitation & A Glorious Promise”. As we begin, I think it would be beneficial for us to look back and remember:
THE MESSAGE THAT PRECEDED THIS INVITATION
The catalyst that led to the mass conversion after Peter’s sermon was the miracle that Jesus performed in the life of the lame beggar who was laid daily at the Beautiful Gate. After this man began walking and leaping and praising God, a vast crowd came running to the Apostles “in the porch, which is called Solomon’s, greatly amazed.”
Peter seized this opportunity to preach a bold sermon; one where he indicted the Jews and declared that they “denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to (them)”. They did this even when Pilate was determined to “let Him go”. Though they “killed the prince of life”, God raised him from the dead.
Peter also made it clear to the crowd that was before him that it was not by the power of godliness of the Apostles that this man was made to walk, rather, it was through faith in Jesus’ name that “this man was made strong”. He went on to say, “yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.”
Notice that faith in Jesus was essential to this miracle; in the same way, faith in Jesus is essential to the miracle of salvation. In the next chapter, Peter declares that there is no salvation in “any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Those witnesses knew who this man was, they recognized him as the lame beggar who had sat for a long time at the entrance of the Temple begging for alms, now he is healed, his legs are strong, and he is able to walk, leap and praise God. God had “given him perfect soundness” in their presence.
Peter’s ultimate goal was not to attack the Jews for their rejection of Christ, his desire was for them to realize their error, repent of their sin and turn to Jesus. Though Peter’s boldness is on full display, so is his compassion. This compassion leads the Apostle to give an invitation for those in attendance to “repent and be converted” (v19).
Even after rejecting and killing the sinless Son of God, there was an opportunity for these people to receive salvation. What a wonderful display of the amazing grace of God! This prompts us to examine:
THE PEOPLE WHO RECEIVED THIS INVITATION
There is an important fact that you may overlook with a cursory reading of this passage. Look with me to verses 17; there Peter says, “Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers. Peter has boldly declared that his Jewish audience was responsible for the death of Christ but now there is a noticeable change in his approach, he refers to them as “brethren”. This crowd was comprised of his fellow Israelites. His compassion for their souls and his concern for their spiritual condition shines through as he explains to them that they are not without hope, salvation was available if they would repent and believe in Jesus.
This is similar to Paul’s compassion and concern for the Jewish people in Romans 9:1-5; there he says, “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.”
Peter declares that the rebellious acts of his Jewish brethren were done in ignorance. This is not to excuse their actions but to open their minds to the reality of their situation.
The Jews had long expected the arrival of God’s Messiah; however they had many preconceived notions as to what the Messiah would do when He did arrive. They were looking for a mighty conqueror that would deliver them from Roman oppression and restore the kingdom of Israel. They were looking for a military commander not a humble carpenter; they were expecting someone mighty and imposing, not someone who was meek and lowly.
Jesus was the complete opposite of what they were expecting and they refused to believe that He was the Promised One. Even their rejection of Jesus as Messiah was a fulfillment of prophecy. Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 He grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of dry ground. He didn’t have an impressive form or majesty that we should look at him, no appearance that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like someone people turned away from; he was despised, and we didn’t value him. 4 Yet he himself bore our sicknesses, and he carried our pains; but we in turn regarded him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.
Peter urged his audience to “repent and be converted”. The Jewish people would not believe that Jesus was the Son of God; furthermore they likely thought that they were honoring God by killing what they perceived to be as an impostor.
Jesus addressed the ignorance of the Jews as He was hanging on the cross dying for their sins. In Luke 23:34 He prayed to God on their behalf and said “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing”. Paul also mentioned the ignorance of the Jews in 1 Corinthians 2:8 where he declared that (had the rulers of this age known) “they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” Their ignorance was no excuse for their sin, but even though they had crucified the Son of God, they still had the opportunity to receive grace, forgiveness and salvation from God.
The world is filled with people who are just like the people of Israel; in ignorance and unbelief they reject Christ, if they continue, they will die in their sins and they will be held accountable for their rejection of Jesus. All who die in their sins will face eternal condemnation; ultimately they will be cast into the Lake of Fire. When this happens, it will not be because God sent them there; they will receive the due penalty of their sins because they rejected the mercy, grace, love and salvation that God has provided through His Son.
God has taken great measures to ensure that the people of this world have the opportunity to be redeemed; a very high price was paid for our redemption. There is nothing that we can do to deserve the marvelous grace of God; it is a gift from Him to us. The Apostle Paul said, “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23).
It is fascinating to know that the very people who were responsible for the death of Jesus had the opportunity to receive the grace of God and find salvation in the very Christ that they had rejected. This is one of the greatest pieces of evidence that no one is too lost to be saved. No matter where you have been or what you have done, you are not beyond the grace of God. Like the people at Solomon’s Portico, you have the opportunity to “repent and be converted”
Peter went on to say in verse 18 that, “those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled.” God’s prophets had declared that the Messiah would be a suffering servant. There are many scriptures that speak to this fact:
Psalm 22:6 But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. 7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 "He trusted in the LORD, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!"
Psalm 22:13 They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; 17 I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. 18 They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.
Isaiah 50:6 6 I gave My back to those who struck Me, And My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.
The suffering of God’s Servant was part of the plan of redemption from the very beginning. Immediately following the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, God declared that the Promised One would suffer; speaking to Satan “the Lord said to the serpent: "Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." (Genesis 3:14-15)
In their ignorance, the Jews expected a great ruler, not a suffering servant. Early on, multitudes of them followed Jesus; they even worshipped Him as He made His entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. However, when it became apparent that Jesus was not going to do what they wanted Him to do when they wanted Him to do it, they turned away from Him and many turned against Him.
Do not be mistaken, 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.
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”. In these verses there is an invitation that comes with great promises. We will examine the glorious promises for those who accept this grand invitation in part two of this sermon. It is important for us to understand that the only ones who can claim these promises are those who are willing to repent.
“Repentance” is a change of mind that brings about a change in actions. Repentance was the subject of John the Baptist’s preaching; it was the subject of Jesus’ preaching, and now Peter continues to proclaim the necessity of repentance. The people must repent; they must acknowledge their sin, turn away from it, and turn to Christ.
Repentance was the proper response for those who were gathered at Solomon’s Colonnade; furthermore, it is the necessary response for us as well. When we hear the Gospel message and when we experience Holy Spirit conviction, the proper response is to repent of our sins and surrender to Jesus Christ. The truths recorded in Acts chapter three show us that when we accept Jesus’ grand invitation, the glorious promises are innumerable! We will look at those glorious promises next time.
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