Acts 2 - The Proclamation of Pentecost - 1/22/17 PM
We looked today in Acts 2, and saw the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. Tonight we want to look some more at the message Peter delivers to the crowd. Remember there are Jews present from all these nations scattered throughout the middle east. They hear the sound of wind, it gets their attention. They see the tongues of fire, and know God is at work. They hear in their own languages the disciples proclaiming the wonders of God. And then Peter stands up and delivers his message. And that is were we are going to pick up tonight. Read Acts 2:14-41 - Pray
What are you normally doing at 9 AM? Some people have been up for hours - some are still in bed! But remember this is before the day of electric lights - so they went to bed a lot earlier, and probably woke up before sunrise. So this all takes place at 9 in the morning (vs 15).
Look at what Peter does in verse 14 - Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: How is Peter able to address all these different nationalities at once? Peter didn’t preach in tongues; he probably addressed his audience in the everyday Aramaic that they understood. They are all Jews, and they all probably spoke the common Jewish language Aramaic. The message was given by a Jew, to Jews, on a Jewish holiday, about the resurrection of the Jewish Messiah. The Gentiles who were there were proselytes, converted to following Judaism. So where do the Gentiles come in? We’ll get to them in Acts 10 when Peter opens the door of faith to the Gentiles when he visited Cornelius.
The second option - if he didn’t address them in the common tongue of the Jews - is that he could have addressed them in Greek. The koine dialect of Greek was the common trade language that was spoken all throughout the Roman empire. Everyone would have spoken it. That’s why the gospel could be sent out so quickly: the Roman roads and the Greek language.
So what is Peter’s message?
“Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. So first Peter gives an EXPLANATION. He explains:
• What has happened? The Holy Spirit has come! Peter points to the prophecy of Joel 2. He says that what they are experiencing here on Pentecost is what Joel talked about. The Holy Spirit has come to them. It is not a complete fulfillment of that prophecy, because the signs and wonders predicted had not occurred. There is no mention here of blood, fire, or smoke. When you read Joel’s prophecy in context, you see that it deals with the nation of Israel in the end times, in connection with “the Day of the Lord.” And there is a complete fulfillment of that prophecy coming for us one day.
A similar example of this is when Jesus is in the temple and takes the scrolls from Isaiah 61: He reads the prophecy and says, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus stopped short in reciting Isaiah’s prophecy and didn’t read the phrase and the day of vengeance of our God. That day is still future.
So here we see Peter was led by the Spirit to see in the prophecy an application to the church. He said, “This is that same Holy Spirit that Joel wrote about. He is here!” Such an announcement would seem incredible to the Jews, because they thought God’s Spirit was given only to a few select people (Num. 11:28–29). But here were 120 of their fellow Jews, men and women, enjoying the blessing of the same Holy Spirit that had empowered Moses, David, and the prophets. It was indeed the dawning of a new age, the “last days” in which God would bring to completion His plan of salvation for mankind.
So the whole prophecy of Joel has not been fulfilled. What has been fulfilled is that the Spirit has come, and salvation has been brought to those who call on God.
Peter explains WHAT has happened. Then he explains HOW it happened. The reason Peter gives for this occurrence is that Jesus Christ has risen from the dead! Peter gave them four proofs of the resurrection of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, and then he called on them to believe on Christ and be saved.
His first proof was the person of Jesus Christ (vv. 22–24). Peter’s audience knew that Jesus was a real Person from the town of Nazareth and that He had performed many signs and miracles. The people recognized Him as one who had the power of God upon Him. And Peter points out that the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection was all part of the plan of God. Because Jesus was fulfilling the Father’s will, there was no way that death could keep a hold on Him.
Peter’s second proof was the prophecy of David (vv. 25–31). Peter quoted Psalm 16:8–11, verses that obviously could not apply to David who was already dead and buried. Peter points out that David is saying these verses in reference to Jesus. Being a prophet of God, David wrote about the Messiah, that His soul would not remain in the hell/hades (the realm of the dead) or His body in the grave where it would decay. So the Spirit has come because Jesus has risen - Jesus had God’s hand upon Him; David predicted the resurrection
The third proof was the witness of the believers (v. 32 - God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.) After His resurrection, Jesus did not appear to the world at large, but to His own followers whom He had commissioned to give witness to others that He was alive. But were these people dependable witnesses? Can we trust them? We certainly can! Prior to Christ’s resurrection, the disciples did not even believe that He would be raised from the dead; and they themselves had to be convinced (Mark 16:13; Acts 1:3). They had nothing to gain by preaching a lie, because their message aroused official opposition and even led to the imprisonment and death of the believers. A few fanatics might be willing to believe and promote a lie for a time, but when thousands believe a message, and when that message is backed up by miracles, you cannot easily dismiss it. These witnesses were trustworthy.
Peter’s fourth proof of the resurrection of Christ was the presence of the Holy Spirit (vv. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.) Follow Peter’s logic. If the Holy Spirit is in the world, then God must have sent Him. Joel promised that one day the Spirit would come, and Jesus Himself had promised to send the gift of the Holy Spirit to His people. But if Jesus is dead, He cannot send the Spirit; therefore, He must be alive. Furthermore, He could not send the Spirit unless He had returned to heaven to the Father (John 16:7 - But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.); so, Jesus has ascended to heaven!
In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul points out all the things that would be true if there was no resurrection. Here Peter points out another of those - if Jesus hadn’t risen, He couldn’t have sent the Spirit.
To back up this statement, Peter quoted Psalm 110:1 - For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’, a verse that certainly could not be applied to David. Jesus refers to this verse in Matt. 22:42 - “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied. He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ If then David calls him ‘Lord’, how can he be his son?”
Peter cites Ps 110:1 as evidence that David predicted not only Jesus’ resurrection (vv. 25–31) but also his exaltation (vv. 33–36). David himself did not ascend to heaven but spoke of God (“the Lord”) exalting the Messiah (“my Lord”) to sit at his right hand (see note on vv. 19–21). The NT cites and alludes to Ps 110 more than any other OT passage since the early church recognized that it predicts the Messiah’s vindication. Jesus cites Ps 110:1 in Luke 20:42–43 to show that the Messiah is more than simply the Son of David. Jesus also alludes to this passage at his trial before the Sanhedrin to affirm that after suffering he will be exalted to God’s right hand (Luke 22:69).
Peter first gives an explanation:
He explains WHAT has happened - the Holy Spirit has come.
Then he explains HOW it happened - Jesus Christ has risen from the dead!
Secondly, Peter gives a DECLARATION - that Jesus IS the CHRIST, the promised Messiah, the Son of the Living God. In verse 36, after recounting what the scriptures say about Jesus, Peter declares, Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
This past Friday was Inauguration Day - when President Trump assumed power as the 45th President of the United States. Peter here gives reference to the Inauguration Day when Jesus is exalted and takes His place at the right hand of the Father.
Jesus is Lord - He is master, the boss, the one to be followed
Jesus is Christ - the Messiah, the promised one who would rule and reign
God exalted Him - but the PEOPLE had crucified Him! Peter’s conclusion was both a declaration and an accusation: Jesus is your Messiah, but you crucified Him! Peter did not present the cross as the place where the Sinless Substitute died for the world, but where Israel killed her own Messiah!
** It is sort of like Nathan - telling David story of Ewe lamb - David says that man will die - and Nathan points his finger and say “YOU are the man!”
Those who are following along with Peter’s line of thought see instantly that they are guilty. That’s why it says in 37 - When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
So Peter gives explanation - he gives declaration - and then he gives the APPLICATION - he gives the call to action - he tells them what they need to do - verse 38 - “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We discussed repentance this morning. It is to change the way you think. It is a deliberate change. It is going down a road one way, stopping, turning around, and going back the other way. When we repent, we change the way we think, which in turn changes the way we live.
Peter calls the people to be baptized as well. Throughout the NT we see this as well. Does baptism save? No. But it is commanded of every believer. If we want to obey God, we will be baptized. It is a step of obedience. It is an outward sign of an inward change.
When we say we are baptized “in the name of Jesus” - we are saying we are baptized “based upon what Jesus has done for us.” Think about the expression “stop in the name of the law.” Because of what Jesus has done, we receive forgiveness of sins when we repent and place our faith in Him. The Greek word eis (which is translated “for” in the phrase “for the remission of sins”) can mean “on account of” or “on the basis of.” In Matthew 3:11 John the Baptist baptized on the basis that people had repented. If baptism is essential for salvation, it seems strange that Peter said nothing about baptism in his other sermons (Acts 3:12–26; 5:29–32; 10:34–43). In fact, the people in the home of Cornelius received the Holy Spirit before they were baptized! (Acts 10:44–48) Since believers are commanded to be baptized, it is important that we have a clean conscience by obeying (1 Peter 3:21), but we must not think that baptism is a part of salvation.
The result of that forgiveness is salvation - being saved from the penalty of our sins - and ever since the day of Pentecost, when followers believe, they receive the Spirit. We mentioned Romans 8:9 this morning - if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. So we receive the Spirit at the moment of salvation. It is not a “second blessing” or “second work of grace” - but we get all of Christ at the moment of salvation.
Notice 39 - while salvation comes through faith in what Jesus has done for us, salvation also comes as God calls us. Salvation is not something WE decide we will do - but the response to God’s call upon us.
With many other words. Peter’s sermon was much longer than Luke reproduces. Actually this is only a brief summary. Remember when Paul preaches in Acts, it gets so long people were falling asleep. He preaches all night long! Acts 20 - Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third storey and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left.
Those who believe are baptized - they didn’t go home to get a change of clothes - they followed instantly. And 3,000 are saved that day. Why so many? Because remember these are Jews - they were looking for a Messiah - they simply needed to understand that Jesus is the one they had been looking for.
Think about what it would look like to suddenly have 3,000 new church members. You would have a hard time controlling them. But then we don’t need to control others. That is God’s role. Far too often we try to control and manage what God is busy doing. Rather, let’s celebrate with others what God is doing.
