The Sermon of Peter – part 3
Acts 2:14-42 (37-42)
March 11, 2012

When last we talked about this sermon that Peter preached in Jerusalem at Pentecost, Peter had successfully nailed the Jews to the wall.

• The Spirit of God had come grabbing the attention of everyone.
• Some were perplexed, while some mocked.
• Peter took his stand and gave a very concise answer to their curiosity.

#1 THE REALITY (14-21)
The Spirit of God is here.
This is what Joel said would happen

#2 THE REASON (22-35)
Why He has come now

1) Jesus was Crucified (22-23)
2) Jesus was Justified (24-32)
3) Jesus was Glorified (33-35)

Peter then stating (33) “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”

The reason the Spirit has come now is because Jesus sent Him.

#3 THE RESULT (36)
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ – this Jesus whom you crucified.”

And so at this point Peter has effectively condemned them.
So much for a gospel void of confrontation…
So much for a gospel void of conviction…
So much for leaving people’s sin alone…

Peter took the truth of their crime and exposed them before everyone.

He has taken the opportunity afforded by the Holy Spirit
To preach the truth to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And that is where we are thus far in the sermon.

The Reality is that God’s Spirit is here.
The Reason is that God’s Son has been Exalted and Poured Him out.
The Result is that you are guilty of killing God’s Son
#4 THE REQUIREMENT
Acts 2:37-40

I think verse 37 is an obvious response.
“Now when the people heard this they were pierced to the heart”

I’m sure you could add,
“sick to their stomach”
“weak in their knees”
“light headed”
“filled with terror”

They hadn’t realized it, but while they were putting Jesus on trial, God was putting them on trial, and when they found Jesus guilty,
They sealed their own fate as well.

They were condemned as the murderers of God’s Son.

“and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”

I think that is a fair question.
Is there anything we can do to change our fortune?
Is there anything we can do to satisfy God?

And incidentally as we have talked about preaching the gospel,
You must understand that this is why conviction and condemnation
Are necessary parts of the gospel.

These people had no reason whatsoever to change their lives…
These people had no reason whatsoever to believe in Jesus…
UNTIL PETER SHOWED THEM THE REASON

People today don’t naturally deny themselves and take up a cross and follow Jesus until they are overcome with the enormity of their guilt and the reality of their judgment.

This is why condemnation precedes mercy.

These people have been successfully condemned
And so they want to know what they can do.

And that opens the door for Peter to reveal the REQUIREMENT.
(38) “Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The simple answer?
“Repent”

It was the first thing John the Baptist preached…
It was the first thing Jesus preached…
(incidentally the Jews killed both of them for preaching it)

But regardless of how many messengers you kill,
The requirement of God has not changed.

Man is sinful…
Man is depraved…
Man is condemned…
The requirement of God on behalf of man is that they repent of their sin.

“repent” translates METANOEO
It means “to have a change of purpose”
It speaks of a turning from sin to God.

1 Thessalonians 1:9 “For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,”

• It is not just acknowledging their sin
• It is not just admitting their sin
• It is not just confessing their sin
Peter said they had to turn from it.

These people had chosen to walk in sin instead of submit to God.
They had chosen to maintain their own way of life instead of God’s way.
And Peter said the answer for these people is to “repent”.

And from there Peter continues.
“repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins;”

Here Peter reveals that it is not just repentance that is required,
But also baptism.

WHY BAPTISM?
BECAUSE BAPTISM WAS THE SIGN OF REPENTANCE.

That is why John the Baptist came baptizing.
It was an outward symbol of death to self
And determination to walk in new life.

Now you know and I know that this verse
Has had an entire theology built around it.

Some have used this one alone
To indicate that water baptism is necessary for salvation.

We really can’t spend a ton of time here, but it is worthwhile to explain it.

Peter calls for baptism because it is the public sign of repentance.
It verifies that their repentance is genuine.

Having said that, it is also important then to note that baptism is required.
• Baptism is clearly commanded in Scripture for all who believe.
• Peter commanded it for the Jews here.
• Peter commanded it for Cornelius.
• The Ethiopian Eunich did it.
• But even more than that, Jesus did it.

YOU MUST BE BAPTIZED
(Don’t let bad theology push you too far in the wrong direction)

Baptism is a command that must be obeyed, but understand this.
Baptism is an indicator of salvation, not a means of it.

The water does not wash away sin.
1 Peter 3:21-22 “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.”

It is not the water, it is the death to self and change of heart,
Made possible through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus.

Furthermore water baptism is not a prerequisite to salvation.
Acts 10:44-48 “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, “Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.”

Obviously Cornelius was saved before he was ever baptized.
The thief on the cross was saved without ever having been baptized at all.

To push baptism to a prerequisite for salvation
Is to do with it what the Jews had done with circumcision
By diminishing the work of Christ and promoting a work of the flesh.

Just as circumcision was a SIGN so is baptism.
Just as circumcision was a SEAL, so is baptism.
It is an outward picture of what has taken place in the heart,
It is a work of obedience indicating that the heart is in a proper state.

A person gets baptized not to be saved,
But as a testimony to their new life and as their first step of obedience
Thus proving their repentance and faith to be genuine.

Christ forgives sin…
Our garments are washed in His blood…
Water is external.

Peter told them to be baptized, not to earn their forgiveness,
But rather to indicate the genuineness of their repentance.

But make no mistake repentance was required.

And if they would repent…
• If they would quit forsaking Christ and start submitting to Him…
• If they would quit clinging to sin and start renouncing it…
• If they would quit playing religion and get obedient from the heart…

“you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

It is right back to what Joel had said.
Acts 2:21 “AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

• God wanted the broken and contrite heart…
• God wanted the genuine humility of repentance…
• God wanted hatred of sin…
• God wanted a hunger for righteousness…

And if Israel would give that,
God would forgive them and grant His Spirit to them as well.

(39) “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

What a statement of relief!

You killed God’s Son and you are guilty, but God is merciful!
If you will repent of your sin not only will He forgive you,
But He will also give you His Spirit.

WHY?
Because you are who His Spirit is for.
You are the reason God ever promised His Spirit.
You are the intended recipients.

Remember back in the book of Jeremiah?
Remember the New Covenant?
Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
This whole thing was for Israel.
They are the reason God intended to send His Spirit in the first place.

And Peter now says if you will only repent and submit to God’s will
Then God will give you the Holy Spirit too.

He is angry, but trust me He doesn’t want to kill you.
He doesn’t want to destroy you.

He wants to save you.
He wants to make you holy.

Ezekiel 33:11 “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’”

God wants you to repent and be saved.

And not just you, but God has others He will save as well.
“all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

It isn’t just Jews God has determined to save,
But He also has a flock of Gentiles that He plans to call as well.
We don’t know who they are, but God does and He wants them saved too.

It is not God’s desire to judge men, but that they repent and be saved.
(40) “And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Peter even went into begging mode.
He told them over and over this world is going down.
God’s judgment is coming.
The ways of this world are wrong.

By following this world you killed the Son of God.
Repent and “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Stop following world, turn around, go upstream. Be saved

NOW THAT IS THE GLORIOUS GOSPEL!
You are a sinner, you offended God, and judgment will come
But good news, God will save you if you will repent.

And by the way Peter never did change his message.
Acts 3:17-20 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. “But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,”
Even until the day of Peter’s impending death
And the writing of his second epistle.
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

Peter was passionate about
The importance of repentance and the salvation of God.

And it rings true through today.
• Man needs to repent.
• Man is sinful.
• Man has denied God.
• Man has chosen his own path.
• And man needs to turn and go the other direction.

• Man needs to trust God.
• Man needs to obey God.
• Man needs to humble himself before God.

This world is a sinking ship and man must be saved from it.
And the means is now and has always been repentance.

You can’t stay in your sin and be saved at the same time.
Talk about faith…
Talk about grace…
Talk about abundant life…
Talk about eternal life…
Talk about blessing…

But they are all null and void if you don’t first talk about repentance.
Man must leave his sin.

It was the message of John
It was the message of Jesus
It was the message of Peter
It is still the message today

So the Reality is God has poured out His Spirit
The Reason is because Christ has been exalted
The Result is that you have killed God’s Messiah
The Requirement is that you repent
#5 THE RESPONSE
Acts 2:41-42

We need to take a look at what happened.
And this is really beautiful.

“So then, those who had received his word were baptized;”

There were some who listened to Peter.
And they obviously repented from sin, proving their repentance
Through their submission to be baptized.

And the church was underway.
“and that day there were added about three thousand souls.”

So in one morning the church grew from 120 to over 3,000.
Jesus was building His church.

But let me show you something of vital importance.

The response is not the significant part,
The change is what is significant.

You will remember Jesus’ words to those who received His words:
John 8:31-32 “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

Jesus knew responses were important, but they were useless
If not accompanied by a genuine life change.

In short you can walk the aisle if you want, you can even get baptized,
But if it does not affect your life and change the way you life then it is all for not.

We are looking for people to make decisions,
We are looking for people to become genuine disciples.

And so while all the baptisms of verse 41 are great,
It is verse 42 that really causes us to rejoice.

(42) “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

THIS WAS CHURCH AS IT WAS MEANT TO BE.
Is it simple? Yes
But at the same time it is so powerful.

• They didn’t have any programs…
• They didn’t have any orchestras…
• They didn’t have screens or projectors…
• They didn’t have drama teams…
• They didn’t have cool slogans…
• They didn’t have T-shirts…
• They didn’t even have a building…

But they had church and it was effective.
In fact look down at the conclusion of this chapter
And see how effective.

Acts 2:43-47 “Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

They were awestruck, they were self-sacrificing,
They were genuine in their love for one another,
They were unified, they genuinely liked each other…

“And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

The point is that this church had no manual,
Had no church growth book, attended no seminar
And yet they did church in a mega-affective way!

They only possessed two things.
The Holy Spirit & The Gospel

And look at what their church was like.

If you want to know how to do church, all you have to do is read verse 42.

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Four things that constituted church.
1) DEVOTION TO THE TRUTH
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching”

These people could not get enough of the spoken word of God.

Certainly there is a slight difference between the apostles teaching
And the preaching today.

They did not have the New Testament yet,
So they were more dependent upon what the apostles said.

But the point is that these people had had such a change of heart
That now they could not get enough of the word of God.

How can a person claim to have been saved when they have no desire to either read God’s word or hear it preached?

The early church couldn’t get enough of it.
“continually devoting”
2) DESIRE FOR FELLOWSHIP

They were also continually devoting themselves “to fellowship”

All you have to do is read 1 John to understand the necessity of love.
These people had it.

• They loved to be around God’s people.
• They loved the unity of purpose.
• They loved the testimony of the Spirit.

They loved to spend time with one another.
Even to the point where later we find them selling property
To be able to keep people around.

3) DEVOTION TO COMMUNION
“to the breaking of bread”

This doesn’t mean pot-luck,
They were gathering around the table of the Lord.

It was the single most unifying factor.
They were a body because Jesus Christ had given His life for them.

Nothing unifies the body more than remembering
That the same price was paid for all of us.

Galatians 3:26-29 “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.”

They never left the cross very far behind.

4) DEVOTION TO PRAYER
“and to prayer”

Nothing indicates a dependence upon God more than prayer.
Nothing indicates self-sufficiency more than the lack of it.

This church was dependent upon God.
They met to pray and seek God’s guidance.
They met to pray and ask for God’s help.

And those are the four basics of the early church.
The word of God, Fellowship, Communion, and Prayer

Nothing fancy, yet God used that to shape the world.
Furthermore that was the proof that their repentance was not a sham.

Show me someone who claims to have repented, but who
• Doesn’t love God’s word
• Doesn’t desire to fellowship with God’s people
• Doesn’t desire to commune around the table of the Lord
• Doesn’t feel the need for prayer
AND WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

Their conversion was sincere and real and it was proven in their fruit.

But there you have Peter’s sermon.

• There were no clever illustrations
• There were no clever jokes
• I can’t even tell that Peter had points let alone started them with the same letter

• But Peter was filled with God’s Spirit
• And Peter confronted sinners with their sin
• And Peter offered forgiveness in Jesus name
AND 3,000 SOULS WERE ADDED

The point is that God is growing His church.

We have a man who 50 days earlier was flat out denying the Lord
And now, thanks to the Holy Spirit
Is boldly proclaiming Him to those who killed Him.
For us, we learn again the importance of being filled with the Spirit.
(We could not do what Peter did without Him)

We also learn the power of the gospel.
(These were saved at Peter’s preaching)

And we learn what the church really is.

It is not smoke and lights and hymnals
And screens and committees and budgets.

The church are redeemed people who love God’s word,
Love God’s people, love God’s sacrifice, and who love to pray.

Those are the characteristics of the true church,
And it is exploding onto the scene.

May we be encouraged to learn from what we have seen and heard.

Acts 2:42 “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

The Sermon of Peter – part 2
Acts 2:14-42 (24-36)
March 4, 2012

When last we met we began to study this great sermon of Peter
That he delivered on the day of Pentecost.

• The believers were gathered together in prayer
• The sound of a mighty rushing wind entered the room
• Tongues as of fire distributed themselves on all the believers
• They all began to speak in tongues

• All in Jerusalem gathered to see what this was
• They were amazed at these people speaking of the mighty deeds of God in their own native languages
• And yet some were skeptical accusing them of simply being drunk

And it was then that Peter took his stand.
The new Spirit-filled Peter did not shy away but rose to the occasion.

He stood to bear witness to the truth.

First was to give THE REALITY of the situation.
(1:16) “But this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:”

Joel revealed that God would “pour forth of My Spirit”
And Peter said that is what you are seeing here.

This is not the effect of someone who has had too much wine,
This is the effect of God’s Spirit having been poured out.
That is the reality.

But as we said then, all that really did
Is answer the question as to what this was.

There is more the people need to know than just that this is God’s Spirit.

And from there Peter began to preach the sermon.
The second thing he revealed was THE REASON for God’s Spirit having been poured out.

And this is what we started talking about last Sunday night.

It was not enough that the people know God’s Spirit was here,
Peter wanted them to know why He was here.

And for that Peter gives three reasons.

We saw the first last Sunday night and that was this:
JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED (22-23)

Many today think the most effective way to present the gospel
Is to do so in a non-confrontational, non-threatening way.
Apparently Peter didn’t get the memo, because he nailed them to the wall.

• He reminded them that Jesus was from Nazareth
• He reminded them that God had clearly endorsed Him with “miracles and wonders and signs”

And He reminded that in spite of such evidence they killed Him anyway.
“this Man…you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put him to death.”

Peter was direct in assigning blame for the death of Jesus
Squarely upon their heads.
They killed God’s Messiah.

This is important because this indicates a total and
Complete rejection of the truth of God on the part of Israel.

They weren’t just being stubborn…
They weren’t just slow to listen…

By putting Jesus to death
Israel put an exclamation mark upon their denial of God.

It was the most extreme form of denial, rejection, and defiance
That could have possibly been given.
Israel rejected God when they killed God’s Messiah.

And you will see in a minute that is significant to why the Spirit came
And especially to why they all spoke in tongues.

But the first reason leading up to Peter’s explanation of why the Spirit has come is that Jesus was crucified

2) JESUS WAS JUSTIFIED (24-32)

Here Peter reveals that not only was Jesus condemned by Israel,
But He was vindicated by God.

Israel may have found Him guilty, but God found Him innocent.

HOW DO WE KNOW?
God raised Him from the dead.

• It was the ultimate reversal of decision.
• It was the ultimate appeal.
• It is the high court overturning the ruling of Pilate’s court.

• Jesus had been wrongly convicted…
• Jesus had been wrongly punished…
• Jesus had been wrongly executed…

God proved that by reversing the decision.

And that is what Peter wants them to see.
(24) “But God raised Him up again”

You put Him to death, but God raised Him up.
You were wrong in your decision.

“putting an end to the agony of death”

In other words, God was not about to let Him suffer unjustly any longer.
Your verdict was wrong, He was innocent
And there was no reason why God should allow Him to continue suffering.

“since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.”
• He was innocent.
• There were no grounds to keep Him and no evidence to hold Him

Death could argue all day long,
But they had no leverage by which to keep Jesus dead.
They could kill Him…
They could bury Him…
They could seal the tomb…
They could post guards…

But they had no grounds by which to keep Him dead
So God raised Him up.

The point?
You killed Him, but you were wrong, so God raised Him up.

And this by the way was no surprise to God either.
(just as the crucifixion was according to the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, God knew this too.)

God knew you would kill Him,
So God had already planned to raise Him up.

And to prove that Peter now takes them to Psalms 16:8-11
(25-28) “For David says of Him, ‘I SAW THE LORD ALWAYS IN MY PRESENCE; FOR HE IS AT MY RIGHT HAND, SO THAT I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN. ‘THEREFORE MY HEART WAS GLAD AND MY TONGUE EXULTED; MOREOVER MY FLESH ALSO WILL LIVE IN HOPE; BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES, NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY. ‘YOU HAVE MADE KNOWN TO ME THE WAYS OF LIFE; YOU WILL MAKE ME FULL OF GLADNESS WITH YOUR PRESENCE.’”

So Peter reads that passage in order to indicate that
God had already purposed to raise His Messiah from the dead.

And then Peter explains the passage.
(29-32) “Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO HADES, NOR DID HIS flesh SUFFER DECAY. “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.”

And there is a tremendous argument from Peter.

We know David wrote that Psalm,
But Peter says we also know David wasn’t talking about himself.

HOW DO WE KNOW?
We still have David’s tomb, and we still have David’s bones.

We could go dig David up today and see that
He most certainly died and he most certainly decayed.

And the initial application is that either David was a liar and a false prophet, or David wasn’t talking about himself.

David was obviously talking about one of his descendants.

You see David knew that God had promised “to seat one of his descendants on his throne.”

So David wrote Psalms 16, not talking about himself,
But talking about his descendant.

Peter said, “he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ”

• That God would not leave the Christ dead.
• That God would not abandon the Christ to Hades.
• That God would not allow the body of the Christ to suffer decay.

And that has to be true, otherwise David would still be with us.

And then Peter makes the undeniable statement.
(32) “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.”

And so it is now getting pretty clear.
• God sent the Christ and testified that He was the Christ through many signs and wonders.

• But you didn’t like Him because He came from Nazareth and so you falsely accused Him, falsely convicted Him, and ultimately killed Him on a Roman cross.

• But you were wrong and God proved it by reversing your decision. You killed God’s man, and God proved it by raising Him from the dead.

• And we testify along with David that it is so.

So Peter is explaining the reason for the pouring out of the Spirit,
And he has given two key steps as to why it has happened.

Jesus was Crucified Jesus was Justified
3) JESUS WAS GLORIFIED (33-35)

Here is where it all comes together.
The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus were precursors to His glorification.

The Spirit couldn’t come until Jesus was glorified

John 7:39 “But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

But since Jesus was crucified and then resurrected
And ascended to heaven, now the Spirit could come.

(33-35)”Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”‘

Not only did God reverse your decision, and raise Jesus from the dead,
But God also glorified Jesus by bringing Him to His own right hand.

He was “exalted to the right hand of God”

God not only vindicated Him, God exalted Him.

And then God gave Him something.
“having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit”

Once God exalted Him God gave Him the Holy Spirit.

And here comes the explanation:
“He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”
• That which you heard (the loud noise)
• That which you see (all of us speaking in tongues)

That is the Holy Spirit.
He is what Joel spoke of and He has now come
Because the Jesus you killed has been raised glorified
And He is the One who poured Him out.

John the Baptist said:
Matthew 3:11 “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

It is Christ who would send the Spirit and that is what He did.

So if you want an explanation as to why the Spirit came now.
It is not because Messiah is coming, it is because He just left.

“He was here, you rejected Him,
And now having gone back to the Father
He has poured out His Spirit
And enabled us all to speak in tongues.”

Now, let’s get back to that tongues issue for a moment.

We read it a couple of weeks ago.
1 Corinthians 14:20-22 “Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature. In the Law it is written, “BY MEN OF STRANGE TONGUES AND BY THE LIPS OF STRANGERS I WILL SPEAK TO THIS PEOPLE, AND EVEN SO THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO ME,” says the Lord. So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophecy is for a sign, not to unbelievers but to those who believe.”

When Paul spoke to the Corinthians about the use & purpose of tongues
He appealed to their Scriptural origin to explain them.

• Tongues was not a means to a deeper prayer life…
• Tongues was not a means to differentiate the super spiritual…
• Tongues wasn’t even primarily an evangelistic tool…

Tongues was a surefire indication of God’s judgment.
And to prove that Paul quoted from Isaiah 28.

Let’s read it:
(The first 8 verses of this chapter are filled with Isaiah convicting Israel of sin. He calls them drunkards in the sense that their prophets words
Are like a drunk’s vomit)

Obviously they didn’t like the message so they mock Isaiah.
Isaiah 28:9-13 “To whom would He teach knowledge, And to whom would He interpret the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just taken from the breast? “For He says, ‘Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there.'” Indeed, He will speak to this people Through stammering lips and a foreign tongue, He who said to them, “Here is rest, give rest to the weary,” And, “Here is repose,” but they would not listen. So the word of the LORD to them will be, “Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there,” That they may go and stumble backward, be broken, snared and taken captive.”

There they mocked Isaiah’s preaching.
Isaiah said since you won’t listen to straightforward preaching from God,
God will speak to you in a language you cannot understand.

And He will do so that you may “be broken”

Now, come back to the day of Pentecost and it makes perfect sense
As to why when the Holy Spirit came they all spoke in tongues.

It was an indicator of exactly what Isaiah said.
• You rejected God by means of killing His Messiah.
• God raised and exalted the Messiah.
• The Messiah poured out the Holy Spirit
• The result was exactly what Isaiah said would happen.

God has pushed you into judgment.
You killed His man and you will pay for it.

Which is what Peter goes on to say in his sermon
(34) “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: “The Lord said to my Lord, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”

It is clear from the Old Testament that the Messiah would suffer,
Rise, be exalted to God’s right hand, and sit there
Until God puts all His enemies under His feet.

AND THIS IS WHY YOU SEE THE SPIRIT OF GOD POURED OUT.

So you see the first points to Peter’s sermon.

The Reality – This is the Spirit of God causing this
The Reason – God’s Messiah has been exalted and Has poured Him out
#3 THE RESULT
Acts 2:36

Here is what this means for you.

And this is one of the most convicting
And horrifying statements in Scripture.

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ – this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Talk about a bombshell.
• You killed God’s Christ.
• You killed God’s Chosen One.
• You rejected the Sent One of God.

You took God’s precious gift and
Wrongly accused Him, wrongly convicted Him and then
Subjected Him to the most horrific and torturous death
That has ever been conceived.

You handed Him over to godless men
To be stripped, flogged, mocked, and humiliated.

• You handed Him over to for them to drive nails into His hands and feet.
• You let them raise Him up on a cross.
• You watched as they gave Him vinegar to drink.
• You hurled insults to the suffering Messiah as He hanged upon the cross fighting for every last breath.

This man was precious in the sight of God the sent Savior for you
And you did the worst possible thing you could to Him.
Congratulations Israel you just denied God.

Can you imagine the weight of a statement like that?

At this point let me bring a little
Present day application to this scene.

Hebrews 6:4-8 “For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.”

The writer of Hebrews spoke of people who had seen the truth of God.

Just as Israel heard Jesus preach and witnessed His signs,
So people of all generations get similar proof from God.

• God allows them to understand the truth.
• He allows them to taste what salvation feels like.
• He allows them to temporarily partake of His Spirit.
• He allows them to taste the good word of God.
• He allows them to witness the power of a changed life.
If they then turn away from the truth and tell God they don’t want it.
“they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.”

People today say, “I didn’t crucify Jesus”

Well guess what the Jews could have said that too.
“We didn’t crucify Him, we didn’t drive the nails…”

No, not with your hands, but you did with your hearts.
You let godless men do it.

And people still do that today.
No, they don’t physically go back and drive a nail,
But by turning their back on the truth God has revealed
They crucify Him to themselves.

They relive the act over and over and over again.

And the result of that is that those people are like ground
Who won’t accept the rain and so they are
“worthless and close to being cursed and end up being burned.”

The point is that it is NOT driving the nails that makes a person guilty of crucifying Jesus, if that were the case guilt would fall to only one man.

It is denying the Lord His rightful place in your life
That makes you guilty of crucifying Him.

When you know the truth as Israel did and reject Him anyway
It is the equivalent of handing Him over to Pilate
To be done with whatever they want.

That is what Israel did.
They rejected God’s Son.

Let me give you another place this type of sentiment occurs.
1 Corinthians 11:26-28 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”

That is a blatant warning against hypocrisy.
For those Corinthians who partook of the table
Without adjusting their hearts Paul said they were guilty
Of the body and the blood and God was actually killing some of them.

You don’t come into God’s church and go through the motions
While denying God in your heart.
That made them guilty of the crucifixion
Even though they were not actually there to drive the nails.

You don’t want to set yourself up in disobedience to God,
And you certainly don’t want to be the cause of the crucifixion.

The writer of Hebrews comments on the severity of that decision
Again later in the sermon:
Hebrews 10:26-31 “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Can we agree?
You don’t want to be guilty of killing the Lord.

I mean, consider Judas who betrayed the Lord:
Matthew 26:24 “The Son of Man is to go, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

That’s pretty straightforward.
Point being you don’t want to be guilty of killing the Lord.

And Peter here has just placed the blame
Squarely upon the shoulders of Israel.

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ – this Jesus whom you crucified.”

He is God’s Son and you killed Him.
That is the result.

• The Reality is that God’s Spirit is Here.
• The Reason is God’s Son has been Exalted and Poured Him out.
• The Result is that you are guilty of killing God’s Son

SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU REFUSED TO SUBMIT TO HIM

And I hope at this point we are beginning to get a grasp
Of what it means to preach the gospel.

I hope we are being enlightened a bit as to what the apostles thought
It meant to call people to faith in Jesus.

Peter took the truth of God to sinners.
There was no way to dismiss the fact that these people
Were guilty of denying God and resisting His leadership in their lives.

• They chose their sin over God…
• They chose their religion over God…
• They chose their comfort over God…

And it was impossible to deliver the gospel to them
Without revealing just how they had wronged God.

So many of the gospel presentations today
Say nothing to the offense that sinful man has committed against God.
• God created man in His image. (Genesis 1:27)
• God created man to seek Him.

Acts 17:26-27 “and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;”

And man did exactly the opposite.
Romans 1 says man rebelled against Him.

Romans 1:21-23 “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”

Romans 3 says:
• They didn’t seek Him (11)
• They didn’t do good (12)
• They didn’t keep their promises to Him (13-17)
• They didn’t fear Him (18)

And the point is that man owes God an apology.
Man has offended Him.
Man has wronged Him.
And man must humble approach Him for forgiveness.

This is of course why Peter is about to tell them to “repent”.

But the point is that the gospel cannot be void of this fact.

If someone comes tonight, breaks into your home, steals what is valuable, trashes the rest and kills one of your children in the process…

And then a few days or years later comes up and says, “I was wondering if you might be willing to bless me”, but never mentions any of their previous sins against you, what would your attitude be?
And yet that is the gospel we often preach.

We take sinful men who have offended God to the uttermost
By rejecting His will,
By trashing His creation,
By killing His Son,
And we tell them that God has a wonderful plan for your life
If you will just accept it.

No, No, No, No

They must know that God is angry about what they have done.
They must know that God is offended.

Listen, I know God is love, but Scripture also says:
Psalms 7:11 “God is a righteous judge, And a God who has indignation every day.”

That means that man must realize what they have done to Him
And apologize with every fiber of their being.
They must repent.

The blessing is that God is ready to forgive,
Having made payment for their sin through the death of His Son.

But that doesn’t change the fact that repentance is required.

 

So let’s learn a little from Peter here
As to what it means to preach the gospel
And not fall prey to the sentimental gospel that is so prevalent today.

 

That’s as far as we’re going to go tonight,
We’ll catch back with the conclusion of this thing next week.

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

 

 

 

 

 
The Reality is that God’s Spirit is Here.
The Reason is that God’s Son has been Exalted and Poured Him out.
The Result is that you are guilty of killing God’s Son
#4 THE REQUIREMENT
Acts 2:37-40

I think verse 37 is an obvious response.

“Now when the people heard this they were pierced to the heart”

I’m sure you could add, “sick to their stomach”, “weak in their knees”, “light headed” and “filled with terror”

They hadn’t realized it, but while they were putting Jesus on trial, God was putting them on trial, and when they found Jesus guilty, they sealed their own fate as well.

They were condemned as the murderers of God’s Son.

“and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”

I think that is a fair question.
Is there anything we can do to change our fortune?
Is there anything we can do to satisfy God?

These are people who have realized their guilt, owned their condemnation, but want to know is there any option for mercy.

And that opens the door for Peter to reveal the requirement.

(38) “Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The simple answer?
“Repent”

It was the first thing John the Baptist preached…
It was the first thing Jesus preached…
(incidentally the Jews killed both of them for preaching it)

But regardless of how many messengers you kill, the requirement of God has not changed.

Man is sinful…
Man is depraved…
Man is condemned…

The requirement of God on behalf of man is that they repent of their sin.

“repent” translates METANOEO
It means “to have a change of purpose” it speaks of a turning from sin to God.

1 Thessalonians 1:9 “For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,”

It is not just acknowledging their sin
It is not just admitting their sin
It is not just confessing their sin
Peter said they had to turn from it.

These people had chosen to walk in sin instead of submit to God.
They had chosen to maintain their own way of life instead of God’s way.

And Peter said the answer for these people is to “repent”.

You didn’t listen to John
You didn’t listen to Jesus
But if you want to be forgiven you had better “repent.”

And from there Peter continues.
“repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins;”

Here Peter reveals that it is not just repentance that is required, but also baptism.

WHY BAPTISM?
Because baptism was the sign of repentance.

That is why John the Baptist came baptizing.
It was an outward symbol of death to self and determination to walk in new life.

Now you know and I know that this verse has had an entire theology built around it.

Some have used this one alone to indicate that water baptism is necessary for salvation.

We really can’t spend a ton of time here, but it is worthwhile to explain it.

Peter calls for baptism because it is the public sign of repentance.
It puts fruit to their claim and thus verifies that their repentance is genuine.

The water does not wash away sin.

1 Peter 3:21-22 “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.”

It is not the water, it is the death to self and change of heart.

Furthermore water baptism is not a prerequisite to salvation.
Acts 10:44-48 “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, “Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.”

Obviously Cornelius was saved before he was ever baptized.
The thief on the cross was saved without ever having been baptized at all.

To push baptism to a prerequisite for salvation is to do with it what the Jews had done with circumcision by diminishing the work of Christ and promoting a work of the flesh.

Just as circumcision was a sign so is baptism.
Just as circumcision was a seal, so is baptism.

It is an outward picture of what has taken place in the heart, it is a work of obedience indicating that the heart is in a proper state.

A person gets baptized not to be saved, but as a testimony to their new life and as their first step of obedience thus proving their repentance and faith to be genuine.

Christ forgives sin…
Our garments are washed in His blood…
Water is external.

Peter told them to be baptized, not to earn their forgiveness, but rather to indicate the genuineness of their repentance.

But make no mistake repentance was required.
And if they would repent…

If they would quit forsaking Christ and start submitting to Him…
If they would quit clinging to sin and start renouncing it…
If they would quit playing religion and get obedient from the heart…

“you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

It is right back to what Joel had said.
Acts 2:21 “AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

God wanted the broken and contrite heart…
God wanted the genuine humility of repentance…
God wanted hatred of sin…
God wanted a hunger for righteousness…

And if Israel would give that, God would forgive them and grant His Spirit to them as well.

And for proof that God would:
(39) “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

What a statement of relief!

You killed God’s Son and you are guilty, but God is merciful!
If you will repent of your sin not only will He forgive you, but He will also give you His Spirit.

WHY?
Because you are who His Spirit is for.

You are the reason God ever promised His Spirit.
You are the intended recipients.

Remember back in the book of Jeremiah?
Remember the New Covenant?

Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

This whole thing was for Israel.
They are the reason God intended to send His Spirit in the first place.

And Peter now says if you will only repent and accept God’s will for your life then God will give you the Holy Spirit too.

He is angry, but trust me He doesn’t want to kill you.
He doesn’t want to destroy you.

He wants to save you.
He wants to make you holy.

Ezekiel 33:11 “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’”

God wants you to repent and be saved.

And not just you, but God has others He will save as well.
“all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

It isn’t just Jews God has determined to save, but He also has a flock of Gentiles that He plans to call as well.

We don’t know who they are, but God does and He wants them saved too.

It is not God’s desire to judge men, but that they should repent and be saved.
(40) “And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Peter even went into begging mode.

He told them over and over this world is going down.
God’s judgment is coming.
The ways of this world are wrong.

By following this world you killed the Son of God.
Repent and “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Stop going in the flow of this world, turn around, go upstream.
Be saved.

And by the way Peter never did change his message.

Acts 3:17-20 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. “But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,”

Even until the day of Peter’s impending death and the writing of his second epistle.
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

Peter was passionate about the importance of repentance and the salvation of God.

And it rings true through today.

Man needs to repent.
Man is sinful.
Man has denied God.
Man has chosen his own path.
And man needs to turn and go the other direction.

Man needs to trust God.
Man needs to obey God.
Man needs to humble himself before God.

Man needs to quit following the pattern of this world and start following the directives of God.

This world is a sinking ship and man must be saved from it.

And the means is now and has always been repentance.

You can’t stay in your sin and be saved at the same time.

Talk about faith…
Talk about grace…
Talk about abundant life…
Talk about eternal life…
Talk about blessing…

But they are all null and void if you don’t first talk about repentance.
Man must leave his sin.

It was the message of John
It was the message of Jesus
It was the message of Peter
It is still the message today

So the Reality is God has poured out His Spirit
The Reason is because Christ has been exalted
The Result is that you have killed God’s Messiah
The Requirement is that you repent
#5 THE RESPONSE
Acts 2:41-42

We need to take a look at what happened.

And this is really beautiful.

“So then, those who had received his word were baptized;”

There were some who listened to Peter.
They did what he said.

And they obviously repented from sin, proving their repentance through their submission to be baptized.

And the church was underway.

“and that day there were added about three thousand souls.”

So in one morning the church grew from 120 to over 3,000.

Jesus was building His church.
He did so by pouring out the Holy Spirit and equipping Peter to preach the gospel with boldness.

But let me show you something of vital importance.

The response is not the significant part, the change is what is significant.

You will remember Jesus’ words to those who received His words:
John 8:31-32 “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

Jesus knew responses were important, but they were useless if not accompanied by a genuine life change.

In short you can walk the aisle if you want, you can even get baptized, but if it does not affect your life and change the way you life then it is all for not.

We are looking for people to make decisions, we are looking for people to become genuine disciples.

And so while all the baptisms of verse 41 are great, it is verse 42 that really causes us to rejoice.

(42) “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

That is beautiful!

And let me point out something else to you.
THIS WAS CHURCH AS IT WAS MEANT TO BE.

Is it simple? Yes
But at the same time it is so powerful.

They didn’t have any programs…
They didn’t have any orchestras…
They didn’t have screens or projectors…
They didn’t have drama teams…
They didn’t have cool slogans…
They didn’t have T-shirts…
They didn’t even have a building…

But they had church and it was effective.
In fact look down at the conclusion of this chapter and see how effective.

Acts 2:43-47 “Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

They were awestruck, they were self-sacrificing, they were genuine in their love for one another, they were unified, they genuinely like each other…

“And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

The point is that this church had no manual, had no church growth book, attended no seminar and yet they did church in a mega-affective way!

From that then we learn the basics of what church is supposed to be.
It is what these people did.

Not only was it genuine fruit of repentance, but it was also basic necessity for how to do church.

Can you believe that everything you need to know about how to do church is found in verse 42!

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Four things that constituted church.

1) DEVOTION TO THE TRUTH
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching”

These people could not get enough of the spoken word of God.

Certainly there is a slight difference between the apostles teaching and the preaching today.

The apostles’ teaching was all they had.
They did not have the New Testament yet, so they were more dependent upon what the apostles said.

But the point is that these people had had such a change of heart that now they could not get enough of the word of God.

How can a person claim to have been saved when they have no desire to either read God’s word or hear it preached?

The early church couldn’t get enough of it.
“continually devoting”

Those are strong words and it spoke of their desire to hear God.

They were devoted to truth.

2) DESIRE FOR FELLOWSHIP

They were also continually devoting themselves “to fellowship”

All you have to do is read 1 John to understand the necessity of brotherly love.
These people had it.

They loved to be around God’s people.
They loved the unity of purpose.
They loved the testimony of the Spirit.

They loved to spend time with one another.
Even to the point where later we find them selling property to be able to keep people around.

3) DEVOTION TO COMMUNION
“to the breaking of bread”

This doesn’t mean pot-luck, they were gathering around the table of the Lord.

It was the single most unifying factor.
They were a body because Jesus Christ had given His life for them.

Communion was a reminder to them of the sacrifice on their behalf and why they were now a church and they were devoted to it.

They never left the cross very far behind.

4) DEVOTION TO PRAYER
“and to prayer”

Nothing indicates a dependence upon God more than prayer.
Nothing indicates a self-sufficient mindset more than the lack of prayer.

This church was dependent upon God.
They met to pray and seek God’s guidance.
They met to pray and ask for God’s help.

And those are the four basics of the early church.
The word of God, Fellowship, Communion, and Prayer

Nothing fancy, yet God used that to shape the world.

Furthermore that was the proof that their repentance was not a sham.

Show me someone who claims to have repented, but who doesn’t love God’s word, doesn’t desire to fellowship with God’s people, doesn’t desire to commune around the table of the Lord, and doesn’t feel the need for prayer and we have a problem.

Their conversion was sincere and real and it was proven in their fruit.

But there you have Peter’s sermon.

Men were amazed at the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, some even thought they were drunk.

The Reality is that God had sent His Spirit.
The Reason is because Christ had been exalted and poured Him out.
The Result is that the Jews had killed God’s Messiah
The Requirement was that they repent and prove that repentance.
The Response was 3,000 souls whose lives changed radically.

The point is that God is growing His church.

We have a man who 50 days earlier was flat out denying the Lord and now, thanks to the Holy Spirit is boldly proclaiming Him to those who killed Him.

God’s Spirit is at work and God is growing His church.

For us, we learn again the importance of being filled with the Spirit.
(We could not do what Peter did without Him)

We also learn the power of the gospel.
(These were saved at Peter’s preaching)

And we learn what the church really is.

It is not smoke and lights and hymnals and screens and committees and budgets.

The church are redeemed people who love God’s word, love God’s people, love God’s sacrifice, and who love to pray.

Those are the characteristics of the true church, and it is exploding onto the scene.

May we be encouraged to learn from what we see.

Acts 2:42 “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

The Sermon of Peter – part 1
Acts 2:14-42 (14-23)
February 26, 2012

Thus far in our study of the book of Acts
We have seen Luke be very specific in the events he has shown us.

Chapter 1 told us two very important things.
1) The Church’s Power
2) The Church’s Guide

Now it is time to see the means through which the Spirit of God works.

We know that the church is a unique mystery.
• It is us at work.
• It is God at work.
And yet somehow both are true.

This balance is seen a couple of places in Scripture.
1 Corinthians 15:10 “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.”

Philippians 2:12-13 “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

And so it is clear that you cannot separate
That God is responsible for church work and so are we.

Tonight we begin to see the means through which God works in us.

And that answer is rather clear.
God has always had a preferred means
Through which He uses us to grow His church.

And that means is preaching.
Romans 10:14 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?”

Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

And this is not a new concept.
• When John the Baptist came on the scene he was a preacher or repentance.
• When Jesus began His ministry He preached to the masses.
• Paul was certainly a preacher.

Colossians 1:28 “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.”
And even when Paul wrote to other men he told them to do the same.
2 Timothy 4:2 “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

It is clear in Scripture that the means by which God
Would confront sinful humanity with the truth
Is through the preaching of the gospel.

Certainly sermons are a part of that,
But ultimately it is the simple proclamation of the gospel.

God intended for His truth to spoken to the lost in the world.
• We can write books…
• We can devise dramas…
• We can sing songs…
• We can do random acts of kindness…

And no one is denying the usefulness of such endeavors,
But it does not change the fact that when God orchestrated the means
By which the lost would be ushered into His church
It was through preaching the gospel message.

Romans 1:14-16 “I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

Preaching is the means.
And so it is by no surprise that a sermon
Is the first recorded act that any of the apostles does.

1 Peter 3:15 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

And that is precisely what Peter is doing here.

And of course you remember the setting of the event.
• It was Pentecost
• Jerusalem was packed
• 120 were in the upper room

And in a moment of power the Holy Spirit arrived,
He distributed Himself and filled every believer in the room
And they all began to speak with other tongues.

The noise of the wind was so loud that all of Jerusalem showed up
And they were all amazed to hear this gathering
Speaking of the mighty deeds of God in their own native languages.
Some were immediately interested wanting to know what this all means.
Others were expectantly skeptical accusing the 120 of just being drunk.

Either way it is time for a witness.
It is time for someone to stand and deliver.

The work of the Church is officially under way!

Tonight I want us to begin to look at Peter’s sermon at Pentecost.
There are 5 things that we see, although I doubt we will get all the way through.

#1 THE REALITY
Acts 2:14-21

It is certainly important that we don’t rush so quickly into the sermon
That we fail to see the miracle of verse 14.

(14) “But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: “Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words.”

I know that may not at first appear very miraculous, but think about it.

We are talking about Peter here aren’t we?
Mr. “I don’t know the man”?

• Peter didn’t stand correctly in the garden…
• Peter didn’t stand faithfully at the trial…
• Peter didn’t even attempt to stand at the crucifixion…

Peter has been one blown opportunity after another.
But not this time.

“But Peter, taking his stand…”
This was Peter’s time.
This was Peter’s moment.

The difference?
Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

This new found gumption, this courage, this conviction,
Wasn’t Peter, it was the Holy Spirit of God.

Peter himself was not a faithful witness,
But the Holy Spirit using Peter’s life was.

It is yet another indication of why it is necessary
That you and I be filled with the Spirit.
On our own we are weak and frail and cowardly and fickle.
But when we allow the Spirit of God to have control of our lives
We are bold and courageous and powerful and convicting.

The New Creation Peter…
The Spirit filled Peter…
Has stepped up to the plate.

And he made no bones about it.
“Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words.”

He certainly wasn’t rude, but he wasn’t timid either.
Peter stood with boldness and confidence and conviction of truth.

2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”

That is obvious here in Peter.

(15) “For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day;”

And so the first order of business from Peter
Was to address the mocking of the masses.

It is not that Peter minded being made fun of,
But he was not going to stand aside and allow the Holy Spirit
Be dismissed as strong drink.

Someone had to stand and give testimony to who He was
And that is precisely what Peter did here.

“these men are not drunk”

Of course not “it is only the third hour of the day” (9am)

No one is drunk by this time, especially on such a high day as Pentecost.
Their notion of being drunk was far-fetched.

It is obvious that even the crowd knew this to be a ridiculous explanation
And so Peter didn’t have to spend much time refuting it.

And then comes the reality of the situation.
(16) “but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:”

So you aren’t witnessing drunks here
You are witnessing the fulfillment of prophecy.

This is not a shameful event, this is a glorious one.
And here it is.
Peter quotes from Joel 2:28-32

(17-21) “’AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ GOD SAYS, ‘THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS; EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN, I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT and they shall prophesy. ‘AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE. ‘THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD, BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME. ‘AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’”

Now let me help you understand Peter’s point here.

If you take this passage and assume that Peter is saying
That this entire passage was fulfilled on this day
Then you are going to very quickly run in to some problems.

1) There were no wonders in the sky
2) There were no signs on the earth
3) There was no blood or fire or smoke
4) The sun was not turned to darkness
5) The moon was not turned to blood
6) Everyone didn’t prophesy, they all spoke in tongues (different)

And so obviously Peter was not indicating
A perfect fulfillment of all that Joel prophesied.

You may remember that when we deal with Old Testament prophets
That they routinely saw all that God was doing,
But that they also had difficulty seeing a separation in it.

For example:
We are familiar with Isaiah’s prophecy of the Christ.
Isaiah 9:2-7 “The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them. You shall multiply the nation, You shall increase their gladness; They will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For You shall break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian. For every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult, And cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire. For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.”

Now we read that passage at Christmas because there are statements
That certainly speak of the initial coming of Christ.

• The people walking in darkness seeing a light – Matthew 4
• A child being born to us – Matthew 1

But most of that passage looks not to the first advent, but the second.
• Burning of all war items
• No end to peace
• Jesus sitting on the throne of David

Isaiah saw both the first and second coming,
But had difficulty distinguishing the two.

Now was that prophecy fulfilled at Jesus coming? – yes.
Matthew said it was.

But obviously there is more yet to fulfill.

It is the same here with Joel.
Joel saw the “last days”

Now, we are in the “last days” right now.
1 John 2:18 “Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.”

1 Peter 1:20 “For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you.”

The last days began with the crucifixion of the Christ.
But obviously it has now lasted nearly 2,000 years.

The point is that some of what Joel saw was fulfilled immediately,
Some is yet to be fulfilled.
• The global pouring of God’s Spirit on all mankind…
• The prophesying of all people…
• The great wonders…

Those things accompany the return of Christ and the millennial kingdom.
(We actually see many of those signs in the book of the Revelation)

So don’t get disturbed
Simply because everything Peter mentioned isn’t occurring.

Rather Peter is making this point.
God has promised to pour out His Spirit
And you are witnessing the initial fulfillment of that prophesy.

What you have witnessed is not the work of drunks…
What you are seeing is not some coincidence…
What you are seeing is the first fruits
Of the fulfillment of God’s promise to pour out His Spirit.

At Pentecost God DID pour out His Spirit.
On all mankind? – No, only on believers.
Did they all prophesy? – No, only Peter the others spoke in tongues
And certainly the signs and wonders did not occur.

Pentecost was a first fruit of what God will do
Through the return of Christ and His millennial reign.

But it doesn’t change the explanation.
The events that were witnessed by those in Jerusalem
Were the reality of God’s Spirit being poured out.

And that is Peter’s point.
This is not the result of wine, this is the result of God’s Spirit.

And Peter indicates the opportunity that is now available.
(21) “AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

Not only is God’s Spirit now here with us,
But the opportunity for salvation has also come.

The Spirit of God is here to convict men to salvation.
And that is the reality.

You are not witnessing a strange event,
You are witnessing an event promised by God years ago through Joel
That God would pour out His Spirit and men could be saved
Simply by calling on the Lord.

So first, The Reality
#2 THE REASON
Acts 2:22-35

After answering their question as to “What is this?”
Now Peter moves into the part of the sermon they need to hear.

And that is “Why is this?”
Why is God’s Spirit now being poured out?

Does it mean the kingdom is here?
For if you read what Joel said it sounds as though God’s Spirit
Will be poured out immediately PRECEDING the coming of the Messiah.

(20) “THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD, BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME.”
If Peter said God is now pouring out His Spirit
Then the logical reasoning of the Jews is that Christ was about to appear.
And Peter is ready for that misconception.

So now Peter sets them straight.
In short, the Spirit is not being poured out
Because the Messiah is about to REIGN.
The Spirit is being poured out
Because the Messiah has just been REJECTED.

So Peter is giving the reason for this pouring out of God’s Spirit.

And Peter actually breaks this reason up into three points.
There are three reasons that explain why the Spirit is now being poured out.

1) JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED (22-23)
(22-23) “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know — this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”

You know that the people had to love the fact
That Peter is brining Jesus back up.

Certainly the religious elite were glad to finally get rid of Him,
And now on this day Jesus is once again thrust back into the limelight.

And Peter is very specific as to who He was.
“Jesus the Nazarene”

As we talked about back in the 2nd chapter of Matthew’s gospel,
The term “Nazarene” was not a glorious title.

It was a term of derision.
• Nathanael wanted to know “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
• It was the Pharisees who told Nicodemus in John 7, “Search, and see that
no prophet arises out of Galilee.”

Certainly that was the sentiment of the day.
That was a worthless area with worthless people.
This was part of the reason for Jesus’ rejection.

But His humble beginnings should have been quickly forgotten
For God bore witness of Jesus.

“a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know”
And so it is clear that Peter is not letting them off the hook.
He reminds them of the Jesus that they cannot deny.

He may have been from Nazareth,
But it is undeniable that God was at work through Him.

No one could deny His ability to heal,
They could only condemn Him for doing it on the Sabbath.

No one could deny His power over spirits,
They could only accuse Him of getting His power from Satan.

No one could deny His good works,
They could only raise up false witnesses to attack Him.

At this point Peter puts Jesus back on trial before the people
And puts forth evidence to again prove that Jesus was in fact from God.
No one could deny that.

But there is something else they couldn’t deny,
And that is that despite the fact that He was clearly from God,
They killed Him anyway.

(23) “this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”

Now that is a great statement from Peter that deserves a little closer look.
Do you remember when Jesus was being tempted by the devil?

Satan would put thoughts into His head and tempt Him to act on them.

One of those thoughts was this:
Matthew 4:5-6 “Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, ‘HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU’; and ‘ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'”

It was believed that whenever the Messiah came
That no one would be able to kill Him.

He was seen as untouchable.
God wouldn’t even allow a stone to stump His toe.

And if you will remember this was also one of the
Main points of stumbling for the Jews in regard to Jesus.

How can He be the Messiah when He suffers so much?
According to Isaiah 53 this event caused no one to believe His report.
And even here in Peter’s sermon he realizes that
By talking about the death of Jesus
He has already brought up the chief argument of the Jews against Him.

“If Jesus really was God’s Messiah,
Then God would not have allowed Him to die.”

That is why Peter begins by saying, “this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God”

• The cross of Jesus did not ruin God’s plan it fulfilled it.
• The death of the Messiah was not contrary to God’s plan it was part of it.
• The suffering of the Savior was not a surprise, God knew it all along.

And this is important to understand.

Peter is about to reveal that these men killed God’s Messiah.
But he is careful to make sure that somehow their theology
Doesn’t get shifted into thinking that somehow they thwarted God’s plan.

They did not.
What they did was wrong, but it wasn’t a surprise.

But even though it was part of God’s plan,
That does not excuse their wicked action.

You took God’s man and “you nailed [Him] to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”

No, you didn’t actually drive the nails,
But don’t try to absolve yourself from guilt, it was still you who killed Him.

Do we all forget?
Matthew 27:24-26 “When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.”

It was a Roman who drove the nails,
But it was Israel who pushed them to do it.
And Peter is not about to let them escape that fact.

Don’t assume that you are innocent in the matter.
You killed the Man God had undeniably revealed to you.

Yes God knew it would happen, but that doesn’t make what you did ok.

And so Peter points out that the first reason for the Spirit coming
Is that God’s Messiah had been killed by the Jews.
Now we have a lot more of this sermon to cover, and we’ll continue on next time, but let’s stop here and bring some important application.

Peter is here performing God’s desired means
For bringing about salvation to the lost.
He is preaching the gospel.

And I want you to see, even from this limited portion
We have covered how Peter has gone about doing that.

1) He has taken advantage of how God has gotten their attention.
God’s Spirit came with a loud noise
And began to speak through this group about the mighty deeds of God.

In short, God had set Peter up with the platform of a lifetime.
The people were curious.

We are dependant upon opportunities provided to us by God as well.
Now obviously they don’t always come as big as a mighty rushing wind
AnD instant speaking of foreign languages,
But God grants opportunities none the less.

And Peter seized his by explaining the truth of God
In regard to the situation.

BUT – and this is very important – PETER DIDN’T STOP THERE

2) He then applied the situation and used it to confront the people’s sin and rejection of Christ.

We live in a day where this is becoming
Increasingly absent from the gospel message.
The concept of confrontation of sin is seen as unloving and outdated.

We are told you can’t go around telling people they are sinners.
You can’t throw their failures up in their face.

Peter did.
He took the biggest blunder ever committed
And through it right back in their face.

“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know — this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”
It doesn’t get any more confrontational than that.

• It’s like Jesus telling the woman at the well to go call her husband…
• Or Paul confronting the Athenias for their many altars…

YOU CANNOT LEAVE THEIR SIN ALONE
And the reason is because in order to be saved
These people were going to have to repent of that sin.

They needed to know not just that they had offended God,
But how they had offended God.

It did them no good to talk about sin in generalities.
They had specific sin and they needed specific repentance.
Peter confronted them specifically.
At this point people say, “Hold on, I can’t do that.”

Let me reiterated one more time why you need the filling of the Holy Spirit.
Such boldness and power only comes from Him.

We can preach all day long, but until we are filled with God’s Spirit
We will never preach with power.
Peter did and thanks to the Spirit of God,
Peter literally has these people on the ropes.

Next time we meet we’ll continue this great sermon.

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is important because this indicates a total and complete rejection of the truth of God on the part of Israel.

They weren’t just being stubborn…
They weren’t just slow to listen…

By putting Jesus to death Israel put an exclamation mark upon their denial of God.

It was the most extreme form of denial, rejection, and defiance that could have possibly been given.

Israel rejected God when they killed God’s Messiah.

And you will see in a minute that is significant to why the Spirit came and especially to why they all spoke in tongues.

But the first reason leading up to Peter’s explanation is that Jesus was crucified

2) JESUS WAS JUSTIFIED (24-32)

Here Peter reveals that not only was Jesus condemned by Israel, but He was vindicated by God.

Israel may have found Him guilty, but God found Him innocent.

HOW DO WE KNOW?
God raised Him from the dead.

It was the ultimate reversal of decision.
It was the ultimate appeal.
It is the high court overturning the ruling of Pilate’s court.

Jesus had been wrongly convicted…
Jesus had been wrongly punished…
Jesus had been wrongly executed…

God proved that by reversing the decision.

And that is what Peter wants them to see.

(24) “But God raised Him up again”

You put Him to death, but God raised Him up.
You were wrong in your decision.

“putting an end to the agony of death”

In other words, God was not about to let Him suffer unjustly any longer.
Your verdict was wrong, He was innocent and there was no reason why God should allow Him to continue suffering.

“since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.”

He was innocent.
There were no grounds to keep Him.
There was no evidence to hold Him.

Death could argue all day long, but they had no leverage by which to keep Jesus dead.

They could kill Him…
They could bury Him…
They could seal the tomb…
They could post guards…

But they had no grounds by which to keep Him dead and so God raised Him up.

The point?
You killed Him, but you were wrong.
So God raised Him up.

And this by the way was no surprise to God either.

God knew you would kill Him, and so God had already planned to raise Him up.

And to prove that Peter now takes them to Psalms 16:8-11

(25-28) “For David says of Him, ‘I SAW THE LORD ALWAYS IN MY PRESENCE; FOR HE IS AT MY RIGHT HAND, SO THAT I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN. ‘THEREFORE MY HEART WAS GLAD AND MY TONGUE EXULTED; MOREOVER MY FLESH ALSO WILL LIVE IN HOPE; BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES, NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY. ‘YOU HAVE MADE KNOWN TO ME THE WAYS OF LIFE; YOU WILL MAKE ME FULL OF GLADNESS WITH YOUR PRESENCE.’”

So Peter reads that passage in order to indicate that God had already purposed to raise His Messiah from the dead.

And then Peter explains the passage.

(29-32) “Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO HADES, NOR DID HIS flesh SUFFER DECAY. “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.”

And there is a tremendous argument from Peter.

We know David wrote that Psalm, but Peter says we also know David wasn’t talking about himself.

HOW DO WE KNOW?
We still have David’s tomb, and we still have David’s bones.

We could go dig David up today and see that he most certainly died and he most certainly decayed.

David could not have been talking about himself.

David was obviously talking about one of his descendants.

You see David knew that God had promised “to seat one of his descendants on his throne.”

David knew that he was not the last king, but one of his descendants would be.
And so David wrote Psalms 16, not talking about himself, but talking about his descendant.

Peter said, “he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ”

That God would not leave the Christ dead.
That God would not abandon the Christ to Hades.
That God would not allow the body of the Christ to suffer decay.

And that has to be true, otherwise David would still be with us.

And then Peter makes the undeniable statement.
(32) “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.”

And so it is now getting pretty clear.

God sent the Christ and testified that He was the Christ through many signs and wonders.

But you didn’t like Him because He came from Nazareth and so you falsely accused Him, falsely convicted Him, and ultimately killed Him on a Roman cross.

But you were wrong and God proved it by reversing your decision.
You killed God’s man, and God proved it by raising Him from the dead.

And we testify along with David that it is so.

So Peter is explaining the reason for the pouring out of the Spirit, and he has given two key steps as to why it has happened.

Jesus was Crucified
Jesus was Justified
3) JESUS WAS GLORIFIED (33-35)

The Spirit couldn’t come until Jesus was glorified (John 7:39)
(33-35)”Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”‘

Not only did God reverse your wrong decision, and raise Jesus from the dead, but God also glorified Jesus by bringing Him to His own right hand.

He was “exalted to the right hand of God”

God not only vindicated Him, God exalted Him.

And then God gave Him something.
“having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit”

Once God exalted Him God gave Him the Holy Spirit.

And here comes the explanation.
“He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”

Here is the explanation.

That which you heard (the loud noise)
That which you see (all of us speaking in tongues)

That is the Holy Spirit.
It is what Joel promised and it has now come because the Jesus you killed has been raised and exalted to God’s right hand and He is the One who poured Him out.

John the Baptist said:
Matthew 3:11 “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

It is Christ who would send the Spirit and that is what He did.

And so if you want an explanation as to why the Spirit came now.
It is not because Messiah is on His way, it is because Messiah has just left.

He was here, you rejected Him, and now having gone back to the Father He has poured out His Spirit and enabled us all to speak in tongues.

Now, let’s get back to that tongues issue for a moment.

We read it last week.
1 Corinthians 14:20-22 “Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature. In the Law it is written, “BY MEN OF STRANGE TONGUES AND BY THE LIPS OF STRANGERS I WILL SPEAK TO THIS PEOPLE, AND EVEN SO THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO ME,” says the Lord. So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophecy is for a sign, not to unbelievers but to those who believe.”

When Paul was talking to the Corinthians about the use and purpose of tongues Paul appealed to their Scriptural origin to explain them.

Tongues was not a means to a deeper prayer life…
Tongues was not a means to differentiate the super spiritual…
Tongues wasn’t even primarily an evangelistic tool…

Tongues was a surefire indication of God’s judgment.

And to prove that Paul quoted from Isaiah 28.

Let’s read it:
(You must know that the first 8 verses of this chapter are filled with Isaiah convicting Israel of sin. He calls them drunkards in the sense that their prophets words are like a drunk’s vomit)

Obviously they didn’t like the message so they mock Isaiah.
Isaiah 28:9-13 “To whom would He teach knowledge, And to whom would He interpret the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just taken from the breast? “For He says, ‘Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there.'” Indeed, He will speak to this people Through stammering lips and a foreign tongue, He who said to them, “Here is rest, give rest to the weary,” And, “Here is repose,” but they would not listen. So the word of the LORD to them will be, “Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there,” That they may go and stumble backward, be broken, snared and taken captive.”

There they mocked Isaiah’s preaching.
And Isaiah said since you won’t listen to straightforward preaching from God, God will speak to you in a language you cannot understand.

And He will do so that you may “be broken”

Now, come back to the day of Pentecost and it makes perfect sense as to why when the Holy Spirit came they all spoke in tongues.

It was an indicator of exactly what Isaiah said.
You rejected God by means of killing His Messiah.
God raised and exalted the Messiah.
The Messiah poured out the Holy Spirit and the result was exactly what Isaiah said would happen.

God has pushed you into judgment.

You killed His man and you will pay for it.

Which is what Peter goes on to say in his sermon

(34) “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: “The Lord said to my Lord, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”

It is clear from the Old Testament that the Messiah would suffer, would rise, would be exalted God’s right hand and He would sit there until God puts all His enemies under His feet.

And this is why you see the Spirit of God poured out.

So you see the first points to Peter’s sermon.

The Reality – This is the Spirit of God causing this
The Reason – God’s Messiah has been exalted and Has poured Him out
#3 THE RESULT
Acts 2:36

Here is what this means for you.

And this is one of the most convicting and horrifying statements in Scripture.

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ – this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Talk about a bombshell.

You killed God’s Christ.
You killed God’s Chosen One.
You rejected the Sent One of God.

You took God’s precious gift and wrong accused Him, wrongly convicted Him and then subjected Him to the most horrific and torturous death that has ever been conceived.

You handed Him over to godless men to be stripped, flogged, mocked, and humiliated.

You handed Him over to allow them to drive nails into His hands and feet.
You let them raise Him up on a cross.
You watched as they gave Him vinegar to drink.
You hurled insults to the suffering Messiah as He hanged upon the cross fighting for every last breath.

This man was precious in the sight of God the sent Savior for you and you did the worst possible thing you could to Him.

Congratulations Israel you just denied God.

Can you imagine the weight of a statement like that?

But friends at this point let me bring a little present day application to this scene.

Hebrews 6:4-8 “For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.”

The writer of Hebrews spoke of people who had also seen the truth of God.

Just as Israel heard Jesus preach and witnessed His signs, so people of all generations get similar proof from God.

God allows them to understand the truth.
He allows them to taste what salvation feels like.
He allows them to temporarily partake of His Spirit.
He allows them to taste the good word of God.
He allows them to witness the power of a changed life.

If they then turn away from the truth and tell God they don’t want it.
“they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.”

People today say, “I didn’t crucify Jesus”
Well guess what the Jews could have said that too.

“We didn’t crucify Him, we didn’t drive the nails…”

No, not with your hands, but you did with your hearts.
You let godless men do it.

And people still do that today.
No, they don’t physically go back and drive a nail, but by turning their back on the truth God has revealed they crucify Him to themselves.

They relive the act over and over and over again.

And the result of that is that those people are like ground who won’t accept the rain and so they are worthless and close to being cursed and end up being burned.

The point is that it is not driving the nails that makes a person guilty of crucifying Jesus, if that were the case guilt would fall to only one man.

It is denying the Lord His rightful place in your life that makes you guilty of crucifying Him.

When you know the truth as Israel did and reject Him anyway it is the equivalent of handing Him over to Pilate to be done with whatever they want.

That is what Israel did.
They rejected God’s Son.

Let me give you another place this type of sentiment occurs.
1 Corinthians 11:26-28 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”

That is a blatant warning against hypocrisy.
For those Corinthians who partook of the table without adjusting their hearts Paul said they were guilty of the body and the blood and God was actually killing some of them.

You don’t come into God’s church and go through the motions while denying God in your heart.

That made them guilty of the crucifixion even though they were not actually there to drive the nails.

You don’t want to set yourself up in disobedience to God, and you certainly don’t want to be the cause of the crucifixion.

The writer of Hebrews comments on the severity of that decision again later in the sermon:
Hebrews 10:26-31 “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Can we agree?
You don’t want to be guilty of killing the Lord.

I mean, consider Judas who betrayed the Lord:
Matthew 26:24 “The Son of Man is to go, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

That’s pretty straightforward.

Point being you don’t want to be guilty of killing the Lord.

And Peter here has just placed the blame squarely upon the shoulders of Israel.

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ – this Jesus whom you crucified.”

He is God’s Son and you killed Him.

That is the result.

The Reality is that God’s Spirit is Here.
The Reason is that God’s Son has been Exalted and Poured Him out.
The Result is that you are guilty of killing God’s Son
#4 THE REQUIREMENT
Acts 2:37-40

I think verse 37 is an obvious response.

“Now when the people heard this they were pierced to the heart”

I’m sure you could add, “sick to their stomach”, “weak in their knees”, “light headed” and “filled with terror”

They hadn’t realized it, but while they were putting Jesus on trial, God was putting them on trial, and when they found Jesus guilty, they sealed their own fate as well.

They were condemned as the murderers of God’s Son.

“and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”

I think that is a fair question.
Is there anything we can do to change our fortune?
Is there anything we can do to satisfy God?

These are people who have realized their guilt, owned their condemnation, but want to know is there any option for mercy.

And that opens the door for Peter to reveal the requirement.

(38) “Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The simple answer?
“Repent”

It was the first thing John the Baptist preached…
It was the first thing Jesus preached…
(incidentally the Jews killed both of them for preaching it)

But regardless of how many messengers you kill, the requirement of God has not changed.

Man is sinful…
Man is depraved…
Man is condemned…

The requirement of God on behalf of man is that they repent of their sin.

“repent” translates METANOEO
It means “to have a change of purpose” it speaks of a turning from sin to God.

1 Thessalonians 1:9 “For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,”

It is not just acknowledging their sin
It is not just admitting their sin
It is not just confessing their sin
Peter said they had to turn from it.

These people had chosen to walk in sin instead of submit to God.
They had chosen to maintain their own way of life instead of God’s way.

And Peter said the answer for these people is to “repent”.

You didn’t listen to John
You didn’t listen to Jesus
But if you want to be forgiven you had better “repent.”

And from there Peter continues.
“repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins;”

Here Peter reveals that it is not just repentance that is required, but also baptism.

WHY BAPTISM?
Because baptism was the sign of repentance.

That is why John the Baptist came baptizing.
It was an outward symbol of death to self and determination to walk in new life.

Now you know and I know that this verse has had an entire theology built around it.

Some have used this one alone to indicate that water baptism is necessary for salvation.

We really can’t spend a ton of time here, but it is worthwhile to explain it.

Peter calls for baptism because it is the public sign of repentance.
It puts fruit to their claim and thus verifies that their repentance is genuine.

The water does not wash away sin.

1 Peter 3:21-22 “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.”

It is not the water, it is the death to self and change of heart.

Furthermore water baptism is not a prerequisite to salvation.
Acts 10:44-48 “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, “Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.”

Obviously Cornelius was saved before he was ever baptized.
The thief on the cross was saved without ever having been baptized at all.

To push baptism to a prerequisite for salvation is to do with it what the Jews had done with circumcision by diminishing the work of Christ and promoting a work of the flesh.

Just as circumcision was a sign so is baptism.
Just as circumcision was a seal, so is baptism.

It is an outward picture of what has taken place in the heart, it is a work of obedience indicating that the heart is in a proper state.

A person gets baptized not to be saved, but as a testimony to their new life and as their first step of obedience thus proving their repentance and faith to be genuine.

Christ forgives sin…
Our garments are washed in His blood…
Water is external.

Peter told them to be baptized, not to earn their forgiveness, but rather to indicate the genuineness of their repentance.

But make no mistake repentance was required.
And if they would repent…

If they would quit forsaking Christ and start submitting to Him…
If they would quit clinging to sin and start renouncing it…
If they would quit playing religion and get obedient from the heart…

“you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

It is right back to what Joel had said.
Acts 2:21 “AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

God wanted the broken and contrite heart…
God wanted the genuine humility of repentance…
God wanted hatred of sin…
God wanted a hunger for righteousness…

And if Israel would give that, God would forgive them and grant His Spirit to them as well.

And for proof that God would:
(39) “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

What a statement of relief!

You killed God’s Son and you are guilty, but God is merciful!
If you will repent of your sin not only will He forgive you, but He will also give you His Spirit.

WHY?
Because you are who His Spirit is for.

You are the reason God ever promised His Spirit.
You are the intended recipients.

Remember back in the book of Jeremiah?
Remember the New Covenant?

Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

This whole thing was for Israel.
They are the reason God intended to send His Spirit in the first place.

And Peter now says if you will only repent and accept God’s will for your life then God will give you the Holy Spirit too.

He is angry, but trust me He doesn’t want to kill you.
He doesn’t want to destroy you.

He wants to save you.
He wants to make you holy.

Ezekiel 33:11 “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’”

God wants you to repent and be saved.

And not just you, but God has others He will save as well.
“all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

It isn’t just Jews God has determined to save, but He also has a flock of Gentiles that He plans to call as well.

We don’t know who they are, but God does and He wants them saved too.

It is not God’s desire to judge men, but that they should repent and be saved.
(40) “And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Peter even went into begging mode.

He told them over and over this world is going down.
God’s judgment is coming.
The ways of this world are wrong.

By following this world you killed the Son of God.
Repent and “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

Stop going in the flow of this world, turn around, go upstream.
Be saved.

And by the way Peter never did change his message.

Acts 3:17-20 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. “But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,”

Even until the day of Peter’s impending death and the writing of his second epistle.
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

Peter was passionate about the importance of repentance and the salvation of God.

And it rings true through today.

Man needs to repent.
Man is sinful.
Man has denied God.
Man has chosen his own path.
And man needs to turn and go the other direction.

Man needs to trust God.
Man needs to obey God.
Man needs to humble himself before God.

Man needs to quit following the pattern of this world and start following the directives of God.

This world is a sinking ship and man must be saved from it.

And the means is now and has always been repentance.

You can’t stay in your sin and be saved at the same time.

Talk about faith…
Talk about grace…
Talk about abundant life…
Talk about eternal life…
Talk about blessing…

But they are all null and void if you don’t first talk about repentance.
Man must leave his sin.

It was the message of John
It was the message of Jesus
It was the message of Peter
It is still the message today

So the Reality is God has poured out His Spirit
The Reason is because Christ has been exalted
The Result is that you have killed God’s Messiah
The Requirement is that you repent
#5 THE RESPONSE
Acts 2:41-42

We need to take a look at what happened.

And this is really beautiful.

“So then, those who had received his word were baptized;”

There were some who listened to Peter.
They did what he said.

And they obviously repented from sin, proving their repentance through their submission to be baptized.

And the church was underway.

“and that day there were added about three thousand souls.”

So in one morning the church grew from 120 to over 3,000.

Jesus was building His church.
He did so by pouring out the Holy Spirit and equipping Peter to preach the gospel with boldness.

But let me show you something of vital importance.

The response is not the significant part, the change is what is significant.

You will remember Jesus’ words to those who received His words:
John 8:31-32 “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

Jesus knew responses were important, but they were useless if not accompanied by a genuine life change.

In short you can walk the aisle if you want, you can even get baptized, but if it does not affect your life and change the way you life then it is all for not.

We are looking for people to make decisions, we are looking for people to become genuine disciples.

And so while all the baptisms of verse 41 are great, it is verse 42 that really causes us to rejoice.

(42) “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

That is beautiful!

And let me point out something else to you.
THIS WAS CHURCH AS IT WAS MEANT TO BE.

Is it simple? Yes
But at the same time it is so powerful.

They didn’t have any programs…
They didn’t have any orchestras…
They didn’t have screens or projectors…
They didn’t have drama teams…
They didn’t have cool slogans…
They didn’t have T-shirts…
They didn’t even have a building…

But they had church and it was effective.
In fact look down at the conclusion of this chapter and see how effective.

Acts 2:43-47 “Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

They were awestruck, they were self-sacrificing, they were genuine in their love for one another, they were unified, they genuinely like each other…

“And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

The point is that this church had no manual, had no church growth book, attended no seminar and yet they did church in a mega-affective way!

From that then we learn the basics of what church is supposed to be.
It is what these people did.

Not only was it genuine fruit of repentance, but it was also basic necessity for how to do church.

Can you believe that everything you need to know about how to do church is found in verse 42!

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Four things that constituted church.

1) DEVOTION TO THE TRUTH
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching”

These people could not get enough of the spoken word of God.

Certainly there is a slight difference between the apostles teaching and the preaching today.

The apostles’ teaching was all they had.
They did not have the New Testament yet, so they were more dependent upon what the apostles said.

But the point is that these people had had such a change of heart that now they could not get enough of the word of God.

How can a person claim to have been saved when they have no desire to either read God’s word or hear it preached?

The early church couldn’t get enough of it.
“continually devoting”

Those are strong words and it spoke of their desire to hear God.

They were devoted to truth.

2) DESIRE FOR FELLOWSHIP

They were also continually devoting themselves “to fellowship”

All you have to do is read 1 John to understand the necessity of brotherly love.
These people had it.

They loved to be around God’s people.
They loved the unity of purpose.
They loved the testimony of the Spirit.

They loved to spend time with one another.
Even to the point where later we find them selling property to be able to keep people around.

3) DEVOTION TO COMMUNION
“to the breaking of bread”

This doesn’t mean pot-luck, they were gathering around the table of the Lord.

It was the single most unifying factor.
They were a body because Jesus Christ had given His life for them.

Communion was a reminder to them of the sacrifice on their behalf and why they were now a church and they were devoted to it.

They never left the cross very far behind.

4) DEVOTION TO PRAYER
“and to prayer”

Nothing indicates a dependence upon God more than prayer.
Nothing indicates a self-sufficient mindset more than the lack of prayer.

This church was dependent upon God.
They met to pray and seek God’s guidance.
They met to pray and ask for God’s help.

And those are the four basics of the early church.
The word of God, Fellowship, Communion, and Prayer

Nothing fancy, yet God used that to shape the world.

Furthermore that was the proof that their repentance was not a sham.

Show me someone who claims to have repented, but who doesn’t love God’s word, doesn’t desire to fellowship with God’s people, doesn’t desire to commune around the table of the Lord, and doesn’t feel the need for prayer and we have a problem.

Their conversion was sincere and real and it was proven in their fruit.

But there you have Peter’s sermon.

Men were amazed at the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, some even thought they were drunk.

The Reality is that God had sent His Spirit.
The Reason is because Christ had been exalted and poured Him out.
The Result is that the Jews had killed God’s Messiah
The Requirement was that they repent and prove that repentance.
The Response was 3,000 souls whose lives changed radically.

The point is that God is growing His church.

We have a man who 50 days earlier was flat out denying the Lord and now, thanks to the Holy Spirit is boldly proclaiming Him to those who killed Him.

God’s Spirit is at work and God is growing His church.

For us, we learn again the importance of being filled with the Spirit.
(We could not do what Peter did without Him)

We also learn the power of the gospel.
(These were saved at Peter’s preaching)

And we learn what the church really is.

It is not smoke and lights and hymnals and screens and committees and budgets.

The church are redeemed people who love God’s word, love God’s people, love God’s sacrifice, and who love to pray.

Those are the characteristics of the true church, and it is exploding onto the scene.

May we be encouraged to learn from what we see.

Acts 2:42 “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

The Arrival of the Holy Spirit
Acts 2:1-13
February 19, 2012

Tonight we have the luxury of witnessing through the pages of Scripture
One of the most important and impactful moments of all of history.

For here in Acts 2 the Holy Spirit of God arrives on the scene
And the Church of Christ is born.

Now to sort of build the anticipation just a bit,
Let me remind you of the promises that were given of this day.

I suppose you could say that the promises regarding the Holy Spirit
Began all the way back in the Old Testament.

Zechariah 4:6 “Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts.”

But really and truly the coming and indwelling of the Holy Spirit
Was never really understood in the Old Testament.
In fact, it was a mystery.

Colossians 1:25-27 “Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

The presence of the Spirit was understood in the Old Testament,
But the indwelling of the Spirit was not.

This was a promise that began to be revealed in the New Testament.

John the Baptist was the first to reveal it.
Matthew 3:11 “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

And from there Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit often.
John 7:37-39 “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”

To those who would believe Jesus promised God’s Spirit WITHIN them,
Not just UPON them. This was life and power from the inside out.

Which is what Jesus reiterated again in the Upper Room
The night before He died.
John 14:16-17 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”

And so the Spirit of God was coming to dwell in men.
And the benefits of this are numerous.

John 14:26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

This fact single handedly allowed the apostles
To write not only the gospels but also all of the New Testament.

For believers of all ages He also serves in this capacity
As He opens our eyes to understand the Scriptures.

Paul said:
1 Corinthians 2:9-13 “but just as it is written, “THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.” For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”

He is definitely the teacher that Jesus promised would come.

But far more than just a teacher, He is also a witness.
See He doesn’t just come to help us, He comes to use us.

John 15:26-27 “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”

And that is why His coming is most definitely to our advantage.
John 16:5-15 “But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ “But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. “He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. “All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.”

Obviously God’s Spirit is necessary for things like salvation, and ministry.
And that is why even when Jesus rose from the dead
He pointed them to the Spirit of God.

John 20:22-23 “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

That speaks of the authority granted to them through God’s Spirit.
He is imperative to ministry.

Luke 24:49 “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

So for the last 3 years more or less,
God has been promising the special arrival of the Holy Spirit.

Not just a Spirit to oversee the workings of the church,
But a Spirit to indwell every member of the church
And empower them to do the work God has in store.

He is the newly anticipated member of the Trinity.

This whole thing started with God’s glory dwelling behind the veil.
That was “God To Us”

Then we saw God’s Son clothed in human flesh.
That was “God With Us”

Now they anticipated God’s Spirit coming to live within them.
That is “God In Us”

This is what the early church anticipated.

The Holy Spirit was to come Providing power,
Teaching truth, and Granting authority.

He would bring Conviction to sinners,
Guidance to saints, and Glory to Jesus.

He is the Helper, the Comforter, the Advocate,
The Witness, the Teacher, and the Guide.

He is the single most important figure
In explaining how the church accomplished anything!

Obviously, as Jesus said, He is to our advantage.
The church could not start until the Holy Spirit arrived.
That is what we see here.
3 things I want you to see.
#1 HE CAME IN POWER
Acts 2:1-4

The first thing we notice is the obvious timing of this event.
“When the day of Pentecost had come”

Pentecost meant “fiftieth”

It was an event that occurred 50 days after the Passover.
When you read the Old Testament,
You are familiar with this event as “The Feast of Weeks”

Leviticus 23:15-21 “You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths. ‘You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the LORD. ‘You shall bring in from your dwelling places two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with leaven as first fruits to the LORD. ‘Along with the bread you shall present seven one year old male lambs without defect, and a bull of the herd and two rams; they are to be a burnt offering to the LORD, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the LORD. ‘You shall also offer one male goat for a sin offering and two male lambs one year old for a sacrifice of peace offerings. ‘The priest shall then wave them with the bread of the first fruits for a wave offering with two lambs before the LORD; they are to be holy to the LORD for the priest. ‘On this same day you shall make a proclamation as well; you are to have a holy convocation. You shall do no laborious work. It is to be a perpetual statute in all your dwelling places throughout your generations.”

This was one of the feasts that every Jewish male was required to attend.
It was the feast of the “first fruits”

After your crops had been planted and the very first fruits came out of the field,
You were to offer them to the Lord as a sign of the harvest to come.

After the harvest was complete the Jews returned in the seventh month to celebrate the feast of trumpets, the day of atonement, and the feast of booths, which signified the fullness of the harvest having come in.

And so the fact that God sent His Spirit during Pentecost or
“The Feast of Weeks” was significant
As here we see the first fruits of the church.

What occurred here was just a taste of what was coming.

And again we recognize that “they were all together in one place.”

And this is not surprising.
As we said last Sunday night at this point in history,
The glory of God was no longer behind the veil,
The Son of God was no longer on earth, and the Spirit of God had not yet come.
They were together fully devoting themselves to prayer.
And at a time when God’s presence was not on earth, this is obvious.

(2) “And suddenly”

Luke uses this term to reveal to you
That to a degree this was totally unexpected.

They knew the Spirit was coming but they didn’t know when.
(Very similar to how Christ will return one day)

“And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.”

And notice the verse.
Wind didn’t come, a noise came a wind came.

It sounded like a hurricane landed in that room!
All of a sudden – BOOM!

The point to that being that the Spirit of God came with power.

If you will remember this was sort of what Elijah wanted
Back at the mountain of the LORD.

But on that day God was not in the fire, nor the earthquake, nor the violent wind, God was in the gentle blowing signifying that the way God was working then was slow and steady and sure.

Elijah could not expect a fire-fall or an earth shattering event.
What God had planned for Israel in his day would take decades and would continue on through many different men. It was a slow gentle blowing.

Even to a degree when Jesus came He slipped in the back door.
He was announced by a star and worshiped by shepherds
In a lowly manger behind a hotel.

But not here.
• Here God is the violent wind!
• Here God is urgent.
• Here God is powerful.
• Here God explodes on the scene.

• No one could miss Him.
• No one could ignore Him.
• He was about to radically shape this world.
• And He announces His presence.

• He came to change things and change them drastically.
• He came to rock the world.

(3) “And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.”

Many have tried to link this back to John the Baptist
Saying that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.

That is not what we’re talking about here.
Clearly John was talking about the fire of judgment to burn away the chaff.

These were “tongues as of fire”
Luke is simply describing something truly indescribable
In the only way he knows how.

He was loud like wind and He looked like fire.
(Very similar to John trying to describe the Revelation)

The significant thing is that the Holy Spirit came
And “rested on each one of them.”

Not just the 12 apostles, but all 120 that had gathered in that room.
This was not about appointing a new leader
This was about equipping all believers in a powerful way!

(4) “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.”

OK, let’s do a little Bible work here.
(I don’t want to deviate too much from the point, but there is enough confusion surrounding this we have to clarify it a little)

I know there is a movement today that promotes what is commonly called
“The Baptism of the Holy Spirit”
Which is supposedly accompanied by speaking in tongues.

This experience is often promoted as occurring after a believer, in the presence of others who have had the experience, prays to receive this baptism, and then God’s Spirit enables him or her to speak with an ecstatic utterance.

Commonly an “unknown language”

Please read your Bible carefully and see this is not what happened here.

1) They were praying to receive anything, they were surprised.
(The Holy Spirit was coming whether they asked or not)

2) They were not baptized in the Spirit here, they were “filled with the Holy Spirit”

Being filled with the Spirit is different than being baptized by the Spirit.

The baptism of the Spirit occurs at salvation,
It is a spiritual reality, not an experiential event.

The filling of the Spirit is something that we are commanded to have.
Ephesians 5:18-21 “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.”

The companion verse to that is this:
Colossians 3:16-17 “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.”

Being filled with the Spirit comes when we let Him have full control of us.
When we repent of sin and fill our minds and hearts with His Word.

That is what happened to these people here.
They were made useable by God.

3) They did not speak in ecstatic, unknown tongues, they spoke with “other tongues”.

The Greek word being GLOSSA which is a term for actual known languages, which the rest of the text will reveal.

4) Furthermore this was not something they asked for, practiced, or developed, it was something the Holy Spirit was doing in them completely void of their ability or even desire.

This was the Holy Spirit arriving to do
Exactly what Jesus said He would do, He came to witness.

This is not them speaking, this is Him speaking.
They are not witnessing here by His power,
He is witnessing with their mouth.

In this room, the Holy Spirit has seized the entire situation
And is using these people for His own purposes.

The point is that the Spirit of God came in power.

#2 HE CAME WITH PROCLAMATION
Acts 2:5-11

Jesus said He would come to witness and that is exactly what He is doing.

“Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven.”

In other words men had traveled from all over to be in Jerusalem
For the “Feast of Weeks” as they were commanded in the Law to do.

There were here because they were devout Jews
And they were staying here until the feast was over.

(6) “And when this sound occurred, (the noise like a violent rushing wind) the crowd came together…”

So the Spirit of God by way of a loud noise has gathered a crowd.
But the crowd was in no way ready for what they were about to see and hear.

“and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. They were amazed and astonished, saying, “Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born?”

The people were shocked!
Not that these men were speaking jibberish,
That would really have made them sound drunk.

They were shocked because these men
Were speaking actual, current, known languages.

(And please note the people who understood did not have the Spirit of God
As a supernatural means to interpret.)

The Holy Spirit was using the 120 to supernaturally
Speak the truth in each man’s native language.

And this was especially surprising since they were “Galileans”,
Those noted as not the sharpest knives in the drawer.

And then the actual languages are listed.
(9-11) “Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs — we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.”

Now understand how miraculous this was.
In our day thanks to media and the ease of air travel,
It is not uncommon to recognize a language even if you don’t speak it.

We can recognize French, or German, or Spanish
Simply because the global media has introduced them to us.
But in this day, when travel was limited this was phenomenal.
There is no way the 120 could have known those languages
Apart from the Holy Spirit speaking them to them.

And we even know what they were saying, “we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.”

The Holy Spirit had come to proclaim truth and bear witness
Just as Jesus said and He wasted no time doing just that.

It is clear then that the tongues here
Was not some personal devotion
Meant to deepen the prayer life of the 120.

Tongues here was an undeniable sign that God’s Spirit had come.
(just as it is the other 2 times it is mentioned in Acts)

Scripturally tongues is a sign for unbelievers.
1 Corinthians 14:20-22 “Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature. In the Law it is written, “BY MEN OF STRANGE TONGUES AND BY THE LIPS OF STRANGERS I WILL SPEAK TO THIS PEOPLE, AND EVEN SO THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO ME,” says the Lord. So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophecy is for a sign, not to unbelievers but to those who believe.”

It was actually a form of judgment indicating
That since people had rejected the truth in their own language,
God would now speak it in a language they could not understand.

Obviously here it also served an evangelistic purpose.

But the point is that the Holy Spirit was not some sort of benefit.
• He was not some sort of added bonus to the spiritually elite.
• This was not an added blessing on a few super-faithful.
• He did not come in response to their prayer…
• He did not enable in response to their request…

He came on His own timing to do His own thing.
He used God’s people to speak His message
The way He wanted to say to a lost and unbelieving world.

He is the Leader here, not the Servant.

Too much of people’s theology tries to relegate the Holy Spirit
To some sort of added power that we can summon.

You know we want to accomplish something beyond us,
So we just tell the Holy Spirit to come work His magic
And He just jumps right up to our request.
NOT SO!
• We submit to Him, not Him to us.
• We let Him fill us to accomplish His work.
• He doesn’t fill us to accomplish ours.

He came in power and He made proclamation.
#3 HE CAME IN PECULIARITY
Acts 2:12-13

Now the amazement part is obvious here.
“And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

That is not surprising.

Earlier Jesus told the disciples:
John 14:16-17 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”

Jesus told us that the world would not be able to recognize Him.

That does not mean that the world can’t see the effects of Him,
It simply means that the world won’t recognize those effects
As being the result of the Holy Spirit.

Remember when Jesus spoke to Nicodemus?
John 3:8-10 “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?”

And that is the same thing you see here.
The world doesn’t understand the Holy Spirit.

But even in that you can break the world into two categories.

None understand Him, but some are CURIOUS and others are SKEPTICS.
One is AMAZED and the other is MOCKING.

Those amazed asked, “What does this mean?”

In other words, what should we do?
They are open to the message of God’s Spirit.

Those who mocked said, “They are full of sweet wine.”
In other words, we want nothing to do with that.

The point is that the Holy Spirit is a polarizing figure.
He is every bit as polarizing as Jesus.
When you allow your life to be filled by Him and He uses you,
It will not make everyone cheer.

Some will be amazed and want to know more,
Others will instantly be your enemy.

And that is seen throughout the book of Acts.

But in studying His arrival we see that He is in fact
The One who makes the difference for the church.
He comes in Power.
He comes with Proclamation.
He comes in Peculiarity.

And without a doubt church we need Him!

We talked about it Wednesday night as Paul asked the Galatians:
Galatians 3:3 “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”

You can’t accomplish spiritual things with physical effort.
If it is spiritual work, then only the Spirit of God can accomplish it.

We can always maintain a shell and mirage of a church image.
• We can always go through the motions.
• We can always sing songs and have a sermon.
• We can follow the outline of the bulletin.
• We can maintain all our rituals.

But in order to make a difference for the kingdom of God
We must allow the Spirit of God to fill us and use us.

The early church could not fulfill their mission
Without the Spirit of God and neither can we.

You see that is the difference between chapter 1 and chapter 2 of Acts.
In chapter 1 the disciples were held back, in chapter 2 they are sent out.

The difference is the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Let me encourage you church
• To seek Him.
• Be filled by Him.
• Follow His leading.
• Let Him accomplish His work through you.

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

The Church’s Guide
Acts 1:12-26
February 12, 2012

As you know, last Sunday night we began our study of the book of Acts.

According to the intro in his gospel, Luke has written to Theophilus
“to compile an account of the things accomplished among us.”

The gospel of Luke was his first volume, Acts is Luke’s second volume.
He is continuing to explain how such an insignificant group of people
Could so quickly multiply and affect the world.

And we have begun to study this introductory chapter.

One could probably say that the book of Acts doesn’t really begin until chapter 2, for that is when the Holy Spirit arrives and when things really begin to accelerate.

But for Luke’s purpose of explanation chapter 1 is actually very important.

For in this chapter Luke answers two very important questions.
1) Where did these people get such power?
2) Where did these people get such wisdom?

To the outsider looking in at the church it is of the utmost curiosity to wonder, where did men like Peter, James, and John get such abilities?
• How do they heal the sick?
• How do they raise the dead?
• How do they preach with such boldness?

And that is what Luke revealed in the first 11 verses.
Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Luke revealed to us the source of the Church’s power.
Those who believe in Christ
Have been filled with the power of God’s own Holy Spirit.

And if we wanted to develop the thought a little deeper
We could even go into the realization of spiritual gifts.

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”

What he first calls “gifts” he later calls “the manifestation of the Spirit”

In other words, spiritual gifts are the unique way in which
The Spirit of God chooses to manifest Himself in the life of a believer.

No one has them all, but we each manifest Him in a special way.
And corporately that makes us the body.

And so when Luke’s investigators want to know
Where did the people in the church get such power?
He answers that in chapter 1 by revealing that their power comes from
The presence of God in their lives, namely the Holy Spirit.

But that is only one of the questions Luke answers in chapter 1.

The other is “Where did these people get such wisdom?”

It is easy to focus on the miraculous powers the apostles possessed,
But really just is amazing is the great wisdom which they also had.

We see their wisdom in their preaching:
Acts 4:13 “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.”

Acts 6:9-10 “But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen. But they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.”

We see their wisdom in problem solving:
Acts 6:1 “Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.”

And remember that the disciples had the idea to appoint deacons
To take care of the distribution of food.
This allowed the apostles to focus on the ministry of the word
But also provided for the needs of the widows.

Acts 6:7 “The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.”

We see their wisdom in threat recognition:
Acts 5:1-5 “But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife’s full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? “While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came over all who heard of it.”

These people really were wise.

And yet we know that in and of themselves they were not wise men.

Matthew had some experience counting money,
But beyond that, these weren’t business men, or scholars, or marketing experts, or even talented salesmen.

These people were the meek of the earth.
1 Corinthians 1:26 “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;”

And so it is peculiar to wonder where such people got such wisdom to create such a powerful organization as the church.

That is what Luke reveals here.
He shows where the church got its direction.

Now the specifics of the story are the church’s decision
To replace a traitor among the 12 apostles.

Judas was gone and they sat out to replace him.
And that is not insignificant information.

What is interesting however is that the man they end up selecting
Is never mentioned again in Scripture.

So obviously this story is not about this newly appointed apostle.
We don’t know why God wanted there to be 12.
We don’t know why God selected Matthias.
We don’t know where Matthias came from.
We don’t know what Matthias ever did for the Lord.

So it is obvious with such information omitted from Luke’s narrative
That Luke was NOT writing about this new apostle.

Luke was writing to reveal how the church handled difficult situations.
Luke is revealing where the church went for guidance.
Luke is revealing where the church got her wisdom.

So this first chapter is to show
“The Church’s Power” & “The Church’s Guide”

Tonight let’s look through our text and see why
This group of insignificant men was in fact so wise.

3 things
#1 THEY SOUGHT GOD
Acts 1:12-14

(12) “They the returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.”

A “Sabbath day’s journey” was traditionally 2,000 cubits (between ½ & ¾ mile)

Not scriptural, but tradition taught that in the wilderness, the farthest tents of Israel were 2,000 cubits from the tabernacle and since God forbade work on the Sabbath, God must allow someone to walk 2,000 cubits.

Thus, (Jewish legalism being what it is)
A “Sabbath day’s journey” was the standard.

This was just far enough for the disciples to travel
From the Mount of Olives back to the upper room in Jerusalem.

And Luke reveals that at this point all 11 disciples were back together.
They had scattered during the arrest of Christ,
But Jesus had gathered His scattered flock back together.

He had commissioned them as witnesses…
He had proven His resurrection…
He had promised them the Holy Spirit…

So they were together waiting.
And the Scripture is very clear as to what they were doing.

(14) “These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.”

And there is nothing mystical or truly shocking to us about that.
These people were praying continually.

Some things we notice:
THEIR PRAYER WAS UNIFIED
“These all with one mind”

I could really get on a soap box here about unity again, but it would probably help if you just picked up a copy of the sermon from the foyer from the Community Bible Revival.

But what was going on here was NOT just a group of people
Agreeing to set aside doctrine and tolerate each other for a few hours.

These people weren’t just deciding to love each other
In spite of their differences.

These people were of “one mind”

They wanted the same things…
They believed the same things…
They asked for the same things…

Their unity was not an agreement to get along,
Their unity was the result of them all being settled
In regard to the truth and praying in agreement with it.

And this was characteristic of the early church.
Acts 2:46 “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart,”

When issues arose, they searched the Scriptures to determine the truth
And they became of “one mind” in regard to that.

Remember when Paul went on his first missionary journey?
He started seeing Gentiles saved and immediately
Some of the Jews demanded that they be circumcised.

Acts 15:4-5 “When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them. But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses.”

• Peter shared testimony,
• Paul and Barnabas shared testimony,
• And then James read Scripture.

Acts 15:15-19 “With this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written, ‘AFTER THESE THINGS I will return, AND I WILL REBUILD THE TABERNACLE OF DAVID WHICH HAS FALLEN, AND I WILL REBUILD ITS RUINS, AND I WILL RESTORE IT, SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK THE LORD, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME,’ SAYS THE LORD, WHO MAKES THESE THINGS KNOWN FROM LONG AGO. “Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,”

And the result?
Acts 15:22 “Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas — Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren,”

And in the letter sent to the Gentiles they wrote:
Acts 15:25 “it seemed good to us, having become of one mind, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,”

The point is that their unity was not superficial,
And it was far more than just “getting along”.

Their unity was the result of diligent study and seeking God.
And when the truth was found, they all laid aside their own beliefs
And aligned under it.

This is unity.
And it is seen clearly here in the upper room as well.
This gathering was in total doctrinal agreement.

THEIR PRAYER WAS INTENSIFIED
“were continually devoting themselves to prayer”

They couldn’t quit praying.
They wouldn’t quit praying.

You may remember a conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees
In our study of Matthew.
Matthew 9:14-15 “Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”

Granted the book of Acts says nothing about fasting here, but obviously they are seeking heavily in prayer because Jesus is not sitting beside them.

Jesus had already said:
John 14:13-14 “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”

It is obvious that the group is exercising that privilege here.

Now we don’t know what they are praying for.
But the point is not what they prayed for,
But that they prayed and they did so continually.

THEIR PRAYER WAS DIVERSIFIED
“along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers”

It is a glorious fact that Luke reveals to us here that in the church
Women are not second class or second rate,
But that they can also be of one mind with the apostles
And seek God in prayer side by side with them.

Whereas Judaism had put restrictions upon women being able to learn,
The church opened the door for women to seek God on their own.
It seems like an obvious thing to us, but it was huge in Luke’s day.

Luke even reveals a startling truth to some today.
“Mary the mother of Jesus” was there.

So Mary met and prayed to Jesus?
(There is a fact that would startle many Catholics)

Furthermore “His brothers” were there.

Just a few months ago (John 8) His brothers were skeptics who did not believe, but obviously they do now.
But the beauty is the church was unified and yet diversified.

Their unity wasn’t based upon the fact that they were all men,
Or even based upon similar experiences.

Their unity was based upon a belief in the truth,
In every other way, they were diverse.

THEIR PRAYER WAS JUSTIFIED

This isn’t stated specifically in the text, but I think it was obvious.

The disciples had been left alone in the world.
• The glory of the Father was no longer behind the veil,
• The Incarnate Word of Jesus had ascended back to heaven,
• The Holy Spirit had not yet come.

I think the justification for prayer was obvious.
They needed to seek God.

Beyond that this reveals part of the answer
As to where the church got her wisdom.

They sought God through prayer.
• Decisions were not based upon popular opinion…
• Decisions were not based upon human ability…
• Decisions were not based upon professional experience…

Decisions were made based upon seeking God through prayer.

So the first piece of insight to the early church’s wisdom was THEY SOUGHT GOD.
#2 THEY SHARED SCRIPTURE
Acts 1:15-22

I went back in forth with that point,
I couldn’t decide whether to call it “They Shared Scripture”
Or “They Searched Scripture” when the reality is they did both.

They searched the Scriptures and they shared what they learned.

It is the first “post Jesus” sermon of the early church.
(15) “At this time Peter stood up in the midst of the brethren (a gathering of about one hundred and twenty persons was there together), and said,”

So there once again we have Peter revealing himself to be the leader.
We also learn the humble beginnings of the early church.

And then Peter preaches.

Now when you read verses 16-22 it is obvious that
Peter has spent time in the word of God.

Not only has he been praying, but he has been studying.
He has been searching the Scripture.

And the passages he has been reading are also revealed.
He has been reading Psalms 69 and Psalms 109

The interesting thing is that each of these Psalms
Speak of the suffering of Jesus by way of His crucifixion.

Psalms 69:1-4 “Save me, O God, For the waters have threatened my life. I have sunk in deep mire, and there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and a flood overflows me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched; My eyes fail while I wait for my God. Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; Those who would destroy me are powerful, being wrongfully my enemies; What I did not steal, I then have to restore.”

Beyond that opening, Psalms 69 also holds some of
Those famous verses we often quote.

Psalms 69:9 “For zeal for Your house has consumed me, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.”

Psalms 69:21 “They also gave me gall for my food And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.”

And so as Jesus has gone,
But has already opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,
Peter is soaking up what the O.T. has to say about Jesus.

The other passage he has been reading is Psalms 109
Psalms 109:1-5 “O God of my praise, Do not be silent! For they have opened the wicked and deceitful mouth against me; They have spoken against me with a lying tongue. They have also surrounded me with words of hatred, And fought against me without cause. In return for my love they act as my accusers; But I am in prayer. Thus they have repaid me evil for good And hatred for my love.”

And so it is clear that Peter is praying and studying the Scriptures
To learn about Jesus.

And as he studied those Psalms,
God spoke to him through His word.

Psalms 69:25 “May their camp be desolate; May none dwell in their tents.”

Psalms 109:8 “Let his days be few; Let another take his office.”

Those are the verses Peter quoted in verse 20.
And Peter understood God to be speaking about Judas the traitor.
And so from studying the Scripture God told Peter
That Judas was cursed and that he must be replaced.

This was the directive of God through Scripture
In answer to Peter’s continual prayer.

And it is based upon the answer he received from God
That Peter now stands to share what God has shown him.

He begins his sermon by explaining the tragedy of Judas:
(16-17) “Brethren, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. “For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry.”

No doubt there were some who were confused about Judas.
They wondered why he did it, and they wondered why he died.

In fact Luke goes ahead and gives us information that was obviously public information in Peter’s day, but he realizes we may not have known.

(18-19) “(Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out. And it became known to all who were living in Jerusalem; so that in their own language that field was called Hakeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)”

Obviously Judas’ life was a tragedy.
And he had even died a gruesome suicidal death after betraying the Lord.

Luke says that was “the price of his wickedness”

The chief priests took the returned money from Judas and bought the field of his defiling death, and that field came to bear a curse.

No doubt this event had caused some confusion to the early church
And so God directed Peter to answer the confusion.

“the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas”

The Holy Spirit said it, but He used David’s mouth.
But either way it had “to be fulfilled”

What Scripture? (Psalms 41:9)
John 13:18 “I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.’”
Peter said Judas betrayed because Scripture said he would.

He was one who “eats My bread”
“For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry”
And yet he “has lifted up his heel against Me.”

So Peter explains why Judas did it, and why he was cursed.
(20) “For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his homestead be made desolate, and let no one dwell in it’:”

But then Peter revealed another issue,
That they may or may not have been considering.

“and, ‘Let another man take his office.’”

So after seeking God in prayer and studying the Scripture
Peter receives answer as to why Judas betrayed the Lord,
Why he bore a curse, and if he should be replaced.

The church did not know that, but God revealed it through prayer and the Scripture and so Peter stood to share it.

And then (as any good preacher) Peter applied what he learned.
(21-22) “Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us — beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us — one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”

Since God had clearly spoken as to what to do,
It was time for the church to respond.

Peter revealed what needed to be done.
They needed a new witness to stand in for Judas.

It had to be a man who had “accompanied [them] all the time”
From the day John baptized Jesus until the ascension.

And since God had spoken, Judas must be replaced.

And so you are seeing now where the early church got her guidance.
She didn’t know what to do in and of herself,
But through prayer and the study of the Scriptures
God has made His will known.

So They Sought God. They Shared the Scripture
#3 THEY SUBMITTED TO THE TRUTH
Acts 1:23-26
Don’t you just love what that says?
In verse 22 Peter said what they “must” do.
And in verse 23 they did it.

“So they put forward two men, Joseph called Barsabbas (who was also called Justus), and Matthias.”

They needed a replacement who fit the earthly criteria
Of having been with Jesus from beginning to end.
These two men fit the mold.

But, we don’t choose who serves the Lord, the Lord does.
John 15:16 “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.”

(24-25) “And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

And there again is a wonderful truth.
The early church simply sought God.

We are doing what You asked, but we don’t know who You want.
“show which one of these two You have chosen”

(26) “And they drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.”

Now some get all weirded out about the whole “lot” thing.
Casting lots was a often used Old Testament practice.
They discerned God’s will often with this tool.

BUT, remember that the Holy Spirit had not yet come
And so the church is very much in transition.

After the Holy Spirit comes in chapter 2, casting lots is never used again.

You could even look at it a little different if you want.
“added” is a really long Greek word that literally means “to vote one a place among”

And so you could read this passage that these men all prayed,
Listened to God’s leadership and cast a vote for one or the other.

Either way the point is clearly made.
When the early church needed direction, God gave it.
When the early church had confusion, God answered it.
When the early church needed truth, they sought God for it.
As I said earlier, this passage really isn’t about Matthias.
We don’t know where he was from or what he ever did.
We don’t really even know why a twelfth man had to be added.

Except God said so and the church obeyed.

This story establishes a pattern for the early church.
This is how they always answered the problems.

It didn’t matter if it was doctrinal like the circumcision issue,
Or trying to see who should be sent out on mission.
The church sought God, He answered, and the church obeyed.

And that is the sole explanation
For how the church displayed such wisdom.

The wisdom of God’s people has never been an innate wisdom
Where they were just smart people knowing what to do.

The wisdom of the church has always been the wisdom of submission.
It was the wisdom to do what God said even without full understanding.

And it is because they did this, that the church grew and glorified God.

The application to us is obvious.
If you need power, trust God’s Spirit who equips us to bear witness.
If you need wisdom, seek God who gives the answer through His word.

 
This is the foundational secret
To how the church accomplished all that she accomplished.

Acts 1:14 “These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.”