Acts 2:14-21, “14Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17" ’In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’[1]
Peter stepping forward shows he has gained the respect of his peers. Often times we all make mistakes even mistakes that cause a lot of people pain, but the decision has to be made. Peter stepping forward indicates his position has been given back to him. Peter is quoting Joel 2:28-32 here to demonstrate to the believer that Jesus the One who was crucified on the Cross was the Spirit of prophecy. Jesus was the essence of the Old Testament not some hogwash play doll, but the essence of what the Old Testament Jesus filled in dying on the Cross for our sins. This would have been understood by the people gathering out immediately since most of the one hundred and twenty people in 1:15 but more than likely was a number much larger than that due to the fact that it was Pentecost and all the names of the countries listed in vs.7-11 of this same chapter.
Scripture always builds upon Scripture. It is the truth that one truth will irrevocable refute or deny another truth. If you took a top flight military tank from the United States army and went around city to city destroying buildings such an instance would be considered extremely illegal and we all know this to be the case but the point is that if someone did do this we will know exactly what they would have in for them. The same is true with Jesus. He shed His blood as the Spirit of prophecy the essence of the Old Testament, so that His character within us would be known as an outward expression of who we are as believers. This is evident in Peter’s going forward. Peter understands now what his mission was to preach the Gospel. Do you understand your life’s mission?
In tension here though is the fact that the early Christians held in tension the reality of Jesus anytime coming for them. Perhaps as the church we have lost sight of that, that the mission of the church is to prepare souls towards that very day of judgment, that this Christian life means more than we are letting onto or even experiencing, for it means that we must enter into the story in turn letting the webs that have been cast around us, be spun around God’s story. If our story isn’t intermingled with the story of Christ which is the story of the Cross and the resurrection, then what story are we living in? Jesus was the essence of all that what we cherish as believers. Our faith is built not upon the New Testament, although it is important, but upon the Old Testament, as Apostle Peter points out here by using his own understanding of Scripture to point to the error of the ways of the Jews.
God has not given up on the Jewish people, most Christians have given up on the Jews. Romans 11 makes it clear that God never gave up on the Jews that His plan all along is for the Jew to be saved first and then the Gentile. God does not see a cast based system, He only sees men’s hearts and lives, the things that bog them down and weigh them down as well. The Jews in a sense are God’s priority number one as they are His nation, His Chosen. Jesus was a Jew and sadly many Christians have discounted our Jewish brethren and our Jewish heritage in hopes of a different faith than what God intended us to have. God intends for us to have our faith grounded in an understanding of Jewish concepts, since the very New Testament itself is written almost solely by Jews, it is Jews we should honor and esteem. The heritage of the Jews is the heritage of the Christians, so we should love the Jews and embrace them and learn from them so that we can fully embrace our faith roots. Jesus is the focal point of all prophecy, may we remember that, and hold in tension as we will see today that the early Christians lived in the reality of the coming of the return of the Lord that it was this that motivated them and sparked the fires of the faith towards holy living.
Acts 2:22-36, “22"Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men,[2] put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25David said about him:
" ’I saw the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will live in hope,
27because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
28You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.’[3]
29"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,[4] that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33Exalted 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. 34For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
" ’The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
35until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet." ’[5]
36"Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."”
After Peter has gotten the crowds attention, he further wanted to state the case of Christ. King David was a man long dead, but long remembered in biblical history. His exploits are the stuff of what movies should be made of. The words here from Psalm 16:8-11 are meant to show that it was not David who had risen from the dead but Christ who has risen. The tomb is empty He has risen indeed. We can live the victorious life not afraid or full of tears because He has risen. We can sing a song of celebration to the Savior as a result of this and live the victorious Christian life! Glory to God in the highest.
Further Peter is explaining what we were touching on earlier. Jesus not only came to fulfill prophecy but to demonstrate to us a life that can and should please Jesus. We cannot be perfect ourselves for the perfection Jesus was talking about in Matthew 5:48 was the standard He set for us it is not the realistic truth that we shall achieve it in this life but in the life to come when we are purified completely by Him! To doubt that Jesus was or is the fulfillment of prophecy is to question the whole entirety of Scripture and to say that the New Testament is the only part worth reading without the Old Testament is ludicrous. Both parts together, the Old is meant to show the New and the New to demonstrate the Old. Both parts demonstrate and give conclusive evidence not only for God’s existence in our world, but most importantly that we must believe in Jesus as the Lord and Messiah who shed His blood for us on the Cross. This was the point Peter was making. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; turn away from your sins and accept Him into your life and as a result of this you will be born again. There is only one Spirit of prophecy and that is Jesus Christ!
Acts 2:37-40, “Peter’s words convicted them deeply, and they said to him and to other apostles, “Brothers what should we do?” Peter replied, “Each of you must turn from your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. And then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you and to your children, and even to the Gentiles-all who have been called by the Lord our God. Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners to, “Save yourselves from this generation that has gone astray.”
As will all true preaching of God’s Word, it will convict people of there sinful lifestyle and cause them to turn away and accept Christ. Our memory banks are full of our memories and experiences. Each of these experiences shape us and make us into who we are as people. When we accept Christ the sins that we have committed are cleansed by His blood. Baptism is only an expression of our faith; a sign that you are indeed a member of the Body of Christ. Peter is talking here about receiving the Holy Spirit as a result of accepting Christ as can be seen by “What must we now do” it is important to understand the context here. Peter is talking about one must do to make a public demonstration of our faith in Christ.
The purpose of baptism is to celebrate your new life in Christ as a believer. It is not as many have made it a requirement for admission into the Body of Christ nor is it anything else other than an expression of our faith. It is however necessary because it marks you among the community of faith. I urge any and all of you who have not been baptized to do so to mark yourselves out for the whole world to know that you are a born again child of God!
The receiving of the Holy Spirit’s purpose is to preach the Gospel. When you receive Christ you receive gifts from the Spirit as a result of accepting Him. Some of these are your natural God given talents and others are given by the Spirit. Such things include the offices of the church, the gifts to operate within the offices as well as other gifts for all members of the Body of Christ. God will always equip whom He has called to serve Him in any function and capacity. Be involved in what He is doing. He is the Spirit of prophecy stand at the door and see what His Spirit is doing in these the last days as we rejoice in what the Savior is doing as a people of faith here online and all around the world.
Rejoice in the Lord sing songs and make a melody in your heart. He has risen indeed this we can bank our money on and place our faith in. If you haven’t made a decision to receive Christ all you must do is turn away from your sin which is repentance, accept Him on His merits and be born again as a result of decision. If you made that decision today for the first time or recommitted yourself to living for the Lord, please email me at david@servantsofgrace.net I would love to hear of your decision and help you along in your new found faith in Christ.
Servants of Grace Ministries © David Jenkins 2004 All rights reserved. All sermons and contents on this site may not be redistributed without permission of david@servantsofgrace.net
