Sunday Morning Service

Acts 2:42-47 (Click title for audio access)

"The First Church"  •  5.22.11  •  Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro.

- Peter's first sermon was a good one, at least with reference to it's content and the response. First, Peter explained what had happened at Pentecost.

- This baptism of the Holy Spirit that the crowd had witnessed had been promised by the Father and had been predicted in scripture, specifcally Joel 2.

- Next, Peter exalted the risen Christ. His death had been planned by God and perpetrated by people, some of whom stood right there!

- His resurrection had been prophecied and His place at the right hand of God secure.

- Finally, Peter evangelized the lost. They were cut to the heart and asked what they could do, which brought this response: "Change your mind about Jesus and your own righteousness."

- Do not blaspheme God any longer with any thought that you carry any righteousness of your own before Him! Believe upon Christ, demonstrate by repenting, which you can show by baptism.

- Baptism would have been the spiritual equivalent of burning the final bridge back, causing these new converts to count the steep cost of their actions.

- Luke tells us that there were 3,000 that gladly believed and were boldly baptized!

- What happens next is a description of what took place next. The church was a new institution. What would they find valuable? How would they grow? What would mark their existence?

Text

•  Acts 2:42  :  "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers."  :  The first principle that sticks out to us is that these new converts continued steadfastly.

- They had gladly received the word. They had submitted to baptism. Now, they continued steadfastly. Other translations say that they "devoted themselves" or that they "persevered."

- The word in Greek means to "give constant attention to" or to give "unremitting care to." The word is written in the present active tense, meaning it was this way over and over again!

- What makes a new convert a true convert? Continuity! They continue to grow. They continue to move toward things of God. They continue to reject things of the flesh.

- There is movement. It may be slow. It may at times be agonizingly difficult to see, but it's there! It's there and they continue to be there where God is speaking!

- The continued steadfastly in each of these things, not just one. They earnestly gave attention to this. They earnestly gave attention to this.

- Each part that we are about to examine was of vital significance for the earliest church.

- Interestingly, in the years of counseling that I have experienced, a large percentage of the cases involved stemmed from people who confessed to negligence in one or more of these areas.

- These practices are more than what the church did. They are the keys to a life with God.

- What did they give attention to continuously? The Apostles' doctrine. Our word "doctrine" comes from the word for "teaching" or "instruction."

- What was the Apostles' doctrine? What did they teach from? What did they have for a Bible?

- They had the Old Testament. "The Law and The Prophets." We have been teaching through Exodus on Thursday nights, and I can attest to you that there is great food there for every believer.

- In many ways, the New Testament is the very first commentary on the Old Testament!

- Additionally, much of their work, their teaching, would eventually be preserved through their own epistles, though that was not the case in this early period of the church.

- The Apostles spent time teaching God's people. These 3,000 people had 12 teachers, perhaps 12 groups of 250 people!

- They opened up the Old Testament and demonstrated where Christ fulfilled the types and shadows that are prevalent in the first half of our book.

- This is what Jesus had revealed in the 40 days of His post resurrection appearing.

- Turn to Luke 24. There is a great story there of two men walking down the road to Emmaus on the day of Christ's resurrection.

- They are at the peak of their discouragement when Jesus appears to them.

- They don't recognize Him, and Jesus plays the part of an ignorant passerby. The two men tell Him what has happened. This is when Jesus responds to them.

•  Luke 24:25-27  :  "Then He said to them, 'O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?' And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself." : The Apostles simply followed the example that Jesus gave them!

- The first action represents the most important function of the church. These new converts assembled to be taught God's Word.

-  Being alive in Christ reveals itself in the hunger that His child displays.

- They wanted the word of God. They wanted more of what Peter had declared to them, especially now that they had Jesus, the picture on the box, making sense of the puzzle pieces!

- This really shouldn't surprise us, as any real revival in history is marked by a desire for real meat from the word of God.

- Why did they need someone to teach them? Unlike today, the people of that day had no personal Bible scrolls. They memorized portions of scripture, but depended on their synagogues.

- The question is begged, "Why do we need to gather to be instructed?" With out vast resources, personal bible collection and internet helps, why can't we just stay home?

- The answer is that we will only teach ourselves what we want to hear. We will avoid the painful, corrective passages and phrases and latch on to that which makes our soul feel good.

- Isolation gives us the right to choose what we hear. Church does not afford us that same comfort. A Bible teaching church will give the full counsel of God, even that which is painful.

- They continued earnestly in the Apostle's doctrine and in fellowship.

- Fellowship is a very broad word, which does not mean coffee, donuts and a quick "Hey!"

- The word "fellowship" is a Greek catch-all that encompasses words like "sharing" and "partnership." Shared resources, interests and goals. They continued to share life together.

- God did not create the church so someone could give the Word alone. He created the church to foster interdependant relationships between the family of God.

- He created the church so that people could love one another and encourage each other in the things of God!

- When life hands you a blessing, the group shares in that blessing. When life bears a burden, the body shares that burden.

- Remember that a baptized Jew was turning his back on his family and religious community. There was no other place for them. That's what the church was about to become.

- They came for the Word. They came to hold each other up and support each other. They came to remember what the Lord had done for them.

- Communion. The breaking of bread is a euphemism that speaks of the Lord's table.

- When they came together, they obeyed what Jesus had spoken to them and the bread was broken to distribute. They took time to remember the work of the Cross, celebrating with communion.

- Finally, they came together for prayers. They came to agree with one another in prayer, seeking the face and action of God.

- Prayer is the last on the list, but not for the sake of it being least important. Prayer was the anchor, the glue to all of the other activities.

- Prayer was made for the effective working of the word in their midst. Prayer was made to solidify their relationships. Prayers were made to commit themselves to the ideal of communion.

- They learned of God's character through the Apostle's doctrine. They shared God's culture through their fellowship. The celebrated what God had done through the communion.

- But what could be more powerful than communing with God in prayer.

- These are the items that make for a church service.

- I would even go so far as to say that one cannot call themselves a church unless these are happening with some regularity!

•  Acts 2:43  :  "Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles."  :  When they came together, fear came upon those that were watching. This doesn't mean that the people who knew of these people were scared of them.

- The word here refers to a deep awe. God was in the midst of these Church goers and they knew that was the case.

- God's presence filled their meetings, which were accompanied by miracles and signs that the Apostles performed.

- From what we see in the rest of the book of Acts, there were phenomenol things taking place.

- Later in the book of Acts, we see healings take place. We see dead that are raised. Luke does not give us the details, but the Apostles had authority from the Lord and it was showing.

- God was authenticating their ministry with works of power in the same way that He did through Christ. There were people who needed convincing and the Apostles were!

•  Acts 2:44,45  :  "Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need."  :  Peter callied people to repent and be baptized. Many were pilgrims that would eventually leave. The baptized likely faced expulsion from their families and finances.

- Others might have left their vocation in order to remain at the Apostles' side.

- The church then was immediately faced with a difficulty: How do we deal with this sudden loss of family, ritual and community?

- Generally, when there were feast weeks, the crowds would find families to stay with. This was probably the case within the church.

- For those who stayed longer, or who were put out, the church acted to make sure that the people were covered.

- They did not just share their nice thoughts and prayers together. They shared practically.

- Land, possession and wealth was sold, distributing that to those within the body that had need. If a person needed transportation, this group sought to pay his way.

- Part of the power of the early church was this forced dynamic of real needful relationship.

- They banded together because it's very likely that they had nothing else to depend upon, at the very least temporarily.

- They looked out for one another, the love of Christ working practically in their hearts.

•  Acts 2:46  :  "So continuing daily with one accord in the temple,..." : The entire church took on the flavor of the Apostles. The Apostles had been in complete harmony.

- Luke uses the same word to describe the entire church body. All 3,000 people had the same goals and desires, even though they were individual voices.

- They continued this way in the temple. The temple was still open daily and became a place that took on new meaning.

- In the beginning of the church, there was still a close association with Judaism, in culture and in the use of the temple.

- It would be wrong to think of Christianity as an extension or strengthening of Judaism.

- In addition, the temple was the best place to continue to evangelize.

- The temple sacrifices and culture found it's fulfillment in Christ. They went there to remember and perform in faith, their prayers and offerings to Jesus.

- This was their Father's house and a place of prayer according to their Master Jesus!

•  Acts 2:46,47  :  "...and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved."  :  The church moved from house to house, celebrating their relationship and contentedly walking with God. They had what they had and they were glad for that.

- The word "gladness" refers to the spiritual gift of joy that attended their hearts. Their meetings were gatherings of great joy.

- They ate with this annointing of joy and with simplicity of heart. The word refers to smoothness, literally "without rocks." In other words, their relationships were straight paths.

- There were no rocky points where one could get tripped up.

- They were joyous, content, peaceful and grateful. They praised God. They sung out His praises. They lifted their voice and raised their praise to God.

- This church was marked by these things within their meetings. Joy. Contentment. Peace. Thanksgiving. Luke adds that this also translated out to those outside of the church.

- They had favor, grace with all the people. People, non-believers, generally liked the people, Christians, from the church.

- When this is what you look like, when this is what marks your fellowship, how could one not like what they see?

- The real church, the real Christian is attractive, marked not by what he or she is against, but by what he or she is for! They are for fulness of life. They are for great experiences of joy in Christ.

- What comes of that from people on the outside? Mostly, you gain their goodwill and they generally like you. They will not like your views.

- They will disagree with you, but not for being disagreeable!

- What will the Lord do with a church like that? He'll add to her! Notice that it was the Lord who added to the church. That is His job! It is never our job. We can't do it!

- What we can do is let the Spirit of God work in our lives so that people are open to the salvation that we know comes only through Jesus Christ, the risen Lord.

Conclusion

- The key to the church's power was the mighty presence of the Holy Spirit. Their response was to continue what God had started, to act out of concern for the brethren.

- They lived it and God said, "My Spirit has free reign among these people. I will send more their way!"

Thursday Night Bible Study

Exodus 29 (Click title for audio access)

"Get Me Started"  •  5.19.11  •  Calvary Christian Fellowship, Thursday Night Bible Study

Intro.

- God had told Moses that He was to choose Aaron's family. In chapter 28, we read of their clothing. In chapter 29, we read of their consecration or ordination into ministry.

 Text

•  Exodus 29:1-4  :  "And this is what you shall do to them to hallow them for ministering to Me as priests: Take one young bull and two rams without blemish, and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil (you shall make them of wheat flour). You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams. And Aaron and his sons you shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall wash them with water."  : This chapter contains the ceremony for priest ordination. It will be performed in Leviticus, but it is given to Moses here. 

- The priests required sacrifice to minister, just as much as the people required sacrifice to worship. They needed to be "hallowed" or consecrated.

- An unblemished bull and two rams. This refers to whole, undefected animals. There could be no birth anomalys or injuries. These would be the most valuable, serviceable animals.

- God expects the best to be brought to Him. Frankly, what we bring to the Lord reveals the value that we place in Him. God sets the bar high immediately.

- Then, the priests were to come with unleavened wheat bread, cakes and wafers. Consecration requires blood and bread! The blood is for sacrifice and the bread is for fellowship.

- Ultimately, Jesus Christ died to remove sin from us but for the purpose of our fellowship with the Lord. He does not desire a relationship that ends with the cross. The cross is where it begins!

- We've discussed the signifcance of leaven and studied in past chapters.

- Leaven is an agent that works silently under the surface, permeating completely whatever it touches. 99% of the time, leaven is a type of evil or the flesh.

- In this case, one can see that the context demands that holiness is the key. Leaven here is anything from the flesh.

- His priests will come with a perfect sacrifice and a pledge to personal holiness.

- This was a one time initiatory bathing. Everytime after this, they would have to cleanse their hands and feet.

•  Exodus 29:5-9  :  "Then you shall take the garments, put the tunic on Aaron, and the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the intricately woven band of the ephod. You shall put the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban. And you shall take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint him. Then you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them. And you shall gird them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, and put the hats on them. The priesthood shall be theirs for a perpetual statute. So you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons."  :  After all was offered to the Lord, now Aaron would don the clothing.

- He would come with clothing that God designed to be prophetic in nature, speaking primarily of Christ, as well and His believers.

- Once it was upon him, the annointing oil would be poured on him. The oil, speaking of the Spirit, reminds us that the duty of the High Priest would not commence with out His presence.

- Do you see the pattern here? Here in the Old Testament, there is a pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon the High Priest, picturing the Lord's anointing with the Holy Spirit at His baptism.

- As we have been studying through Acts, that promise is now for us as well.

• Exodus 29:10,11  :  "You shall also have the bull brought before the tabernacle of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the bull. Then you shall kill the bull before the Lord, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting."  :  You will notice that an important part of the sacrifice was identification with the animal being sacrificed.

- Aaron and his sons had to put their hands upon the head of the bull. There had to be physical contact with the animal, illustrating a symbolic transfer of guilt.

- The priests needed to understand this: They were sinners ministering to sinners! Their sin, despite their high calling, was not erased by their vocation!

˚  "The Hebrew word means more than lightly placing the hand, it gives the idea of pressing hard upon the bullock's head. They came each one and leaned upon the victim, loading him with their burden, signifying their acceptance of its substitution, their joy that the Lord would accept that victim in their stead. When they put their hands on the bullock, they made a confession of sin."   Charles Spurgeon

- Once this took place, the bull was slaughtered in the Lord's presence.

- This was a standard operation in sacrifice. There had to be identification with what the animals represented. They touched the animals by faith, believing that their sins were transferred.

- They had to believe that the animal had taken their sins in the eyes of God. This is illustrative of what we do: We put our faith in a one time sacrifice, made by Jesus Christ, touching Him!

•  Exodus 29:12-14  :  "You shall take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour all the blood beside the base of the altar. And you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar. But the flesh of the bull, with its skin and its offal, you shall burn with fire outside the camp. It is a sin offering."  : The blood of the bull would meet and inagurate the altar and the ministry of the priests. All of the innards would be burnt on the altar.

- Each of these items were associated with fat. These fatty portions were to be consumed upon the altar.

- The outward flesh of the bull, the skin and the dung, would be burnt outside of the boundaries of the Israeli camp. This was a sin offering specifically for the priests.

- Later on, the sin offering would cover the sins that were committed in ignorance. Here, the priests had to be sacrificed for. Later, the sin offering would be fulfilled by Jesus.

- Jesus died outside the city walls of Jerusalem, fulfilling this picture, according to Hebrews 13.

- The bull took on their guilt and received the sentence of their guilt, while they lived to minister, God temporarily satisfied. What was to happen with the rams? God addresses this next.

•  Exodus 29:15-18  :  "You shall also take one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram; and you shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood and sprinkle it all around on the altar. Then you shall cut the ram in pieces, wash its entrails and its legs, and put them with its pieces and with its head. And you shall burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the Lord; it is a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord."  : Again, there is a transfer, as the priests touch the head of the ram. This time however, all of the blod was to be taken and sprinkle on the altar.

- In the case of the ram, each of the inner pieces were to be cleansed and all was to be burnt on the altar.

- It was to be whole and completely burned before the Lord, which produced a soothing or tranquilising odor before the Lord. It's as if the Lord received this odor and it brought Him pleasure.

- The burnt offering depicts total devotion to the Lord. It is saying, in essence, I am fully yours.

•  Exodus 29:19-21  :  "You shall also take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram. Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar. And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him."  : The second ram supplied blood that would be put on the bodies of the priests. Moses was to dip his finger in that blood and place some on the right ears, thumbs and toes.

- It was to be sprinkled upon their garments, mixed with annointing oil. I wonder what they thought at this moment? I wonder if they thought, "Is there a way that another family can do this!?"

- The right side of the body was considered the place of strength. The idea here is that the priest would hear, work and walk better when he was covered in the blood.

- I want what I hear to be considered through the blood of Christ. I want what I put my hands to, to be effective for His glory. I want where I walk to be pleasing paths to His name!

- There is very little that is more true than that! You can look to reform a man with behavioral principles or you can call upon him to receive the blood of Christ. The latter is much more affective!

- What happened to them in history provides us with an excellent picture of what our ministry is to be founded upon. It's to be founded on the blood of Jesus in our redemption.

- Only clean vessels can come before the Lord to minister to Him. We are born into the family by the blood of Jesus. His garments of righteousness are upon us.

- But now, we must also have His Spirit. We must be annointed with His Spirit to walk before Him and minister effectively.

•  Exodus 29:22-25  :  "Also you shall take the fat of the ram, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and the fat on them, the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration), one loaf of bread, one cake made with oil, and one wafer from the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the Lord; and you shall put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and you shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. You shall receive them back from their hands and burn them on the altar as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma before the Lord. It is an offering made by fire to the Lord."  : This final rams innards were put into the basket with the unleavened bread. This was an act of presentation to the Lord speaking toward the concept of offering all to the Lord.

- These were waved before the Lord and then burnt, bringing up a sweet or tranquilising aroma to the Lord. He was satisfied.

•  Exodus 29:26-28  :  "Then you shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration and wave it as a wave offering before the Lord; and it shall be your portion. And from the ram of the consecration you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering which is waved, and the thigh of the heave offering which is raised, of that which is for Aaron and of that which is for his sons. It shall be from the children of Israel for Aaron and his sons by a statute forever. For it is a heave offering; it shall be a heave offering from the children of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, that is, their heave offering to the Lord."  : What was brought into the tabernacle and later, the temple, was apportioned to Aaron and his sons.

- They were supported by the offerings that came into the place of worship. God made this so by statute forever. They were not given land or other opportunity to work. This was their work.

- As a result, here and elsewhere, God says that He is their portion. God would care for them through the offerings.

•  Exodus 29:29-34  :  "And the holy garments of Aaron shall be his sons’ after him, to be anointed in them and to be consecrated in them. That son who becomes priest in his place shall put them on for seven days, when he enters the tabernacle of meeting to minister in the holy place. And you shall take the ram of the consecration and boil its flesh in the holy place. Then Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. They shall eat those things with which the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them; but an outsider shall not eat them, because they are holy. And if any of the flesh of the consecration offerings, or of the bread, remains until the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire. It shall not be eaten, because it is holy."  :  Aaron's garments would be the garments. There would not be any new garments made in the case of succession.

- God includes the food that would be given to the priests as their portion. They would eat of those things which the atonement was made of.

- This is the first time that we see this word, but it's a vital concept. The word "kophar" literally means to cover. The blood of bulls, goats and lambs would cover over the sin that was present.

- But this was done daily. Over and over again. There was not a day that went by that a priest did not kill something because of the sin offering.

- This is why Jesus had to come. His sacrifice was once for all time and all who would believe upon Him.

•  Exodus 29:35-37  :  "Thus you shall do to Aaron and his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Seven days you shall consecrate them. And you shall offer a bull every day as a sin offering for atonement. You shall cleanse the altar when you make atonement for it, and you shall anoint it to sanctify it. Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it. And the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar must be holy."  :  This ordination ceremony was to last for a week, with the initial sacrifice that we have covered, as well as a daily bull sacrifice.

- The altar itself needed a sacrifice to make it a holy piece.

•  Exodus 29:38-42  :  "Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs of the first year, day by day continually. One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord. This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you."  :  These are the basis for what is called the "daily sacrifice." God ordered that the priest offer a sacrifice in the morning and one at the end of the day.

- One would be given with a drink offering, the other with a burnt offering.

- This was to be done forever as a condition of meeting with God. He wants to speak to His people. That has always been the case. Before Jesus came, this was what was needed.

- This is the demand made by God's holiness. It required sacrifice after sacrifice.

- Thank God that He sent Jesus to fulfill this all!

•  Exodus 29:43-46  :  "And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and his sons to minister to Me as priests. I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God." : There, once these sacrifices are in place and a part of the culture, God will meet with His people.

- Everything about the tabernacle will be considered holy by the Lord, including it's ministers.

- God brought them out to dwell with them and this how it will take place.

Conclusion

- As we come to the end of this chapter, feel the distance. Understand the endless lines of people that needed an animal to kill.

- Understand that this is what had to take place for the people of God to have intimacy with God, and at that, only those that were born into the priestly family.

- Thank God for Jesus, who calls you by His Word to be washed. He calls you by His blood to enter into His Family. He calls you by His Spirit to live intimately before Him in relationship.

- Thank Him that Jesus makes this possible!

Sunday Morning Service

Acts 2:14-41 (Click title for audio access)

"The Words We All Understand"  •  5.15.11  •  Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro.

- It has been 50 days since the resurrection of Christ. For 40 of those days, Jesus appeared to His disciples, speaking to them about things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.

- After Christ's ascension, the disciples waited for 10 days for the Promise of the Father, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, which has now come and which we studied last week.

- This event was far from a private event, as a loud noise as from a tornado accompanied it, as well as the supernatural ability given to the disciples to speak in known dialects of their time.

- This brought a crowd together and prompted some of them to ask, "What is going on here?," anticipating that God had worked something in their midst.  

- There question is what Peter endeavors to answer now. Peter's address in this section falls nicely into three parts. He will

I. Explain The Meaning Of Pentecost (v.14-21)

II. Exalt The Risen Christ (v.22-36)

III. Evangelize The Lost (v.37-41)

Text

I. Explain The Meaning Of Pentecost (v.14-21)

•  Acts 2:14,15  :  "But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, 'Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day." :  What a difference the Holy Spirit makes! Peter and the other 11 had been privately waiting for the promise of the Father.

- Before that they were hiding out or running away! Now they stand in the face of mockery and answer the charge like only Spirit filled men can do. Peter addresses residents and visitors.

- Peter notes the time of day. It was 9 in the morning, an hour before the common time for eating the first meal of the day.

- Drinking might be done with the first meal, but certainly not before then and definitely not during a sacred feast, which the feast of weeks was.

- I might mention here something that I feel is often overlooked. There are some in the body of Christ who would have people believe that the Holy Spirit makes one lose all control.

- Peter's rational and reasoned response show us quite other wise! If anything, the word that really describes Peter is authoritative and present.

- He speaks for the Apostles, with a clear resounding voice.

•  Acts 2:16-21  :  "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:  ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’"  :  This event that was happening before their eyes had been part of a prophecy from Joel 2:28 and following. The context of Joel 2 is a prophecy of warning regarding the day of the Lord.

- Two things stick out. First, the experience that they were having at that very moment was predicted in scripture and within scriptural boundaries.

- Second, notice that Peter associates what was happening as emblematic of the commencement of the last days.

- The first part of the prophecy was being fulfiled. God had poured out His Spirit and all flesh would be the recipients, not just specific Jewish people.

- Men and women will prophecy in the book of Acts. There will be visions and dreams that are recorded for us. Lowly servants in low places will be given the privilege of having His Spirit.

- Such things continue today, as the Lord continues to baptize with His Spirit and fill believers.

- And they will prophecy! The word "prophecy" does not refer primarily to telling the future. It speaks of carrying forth the word of God, the message of Christ!

- That will be a major part of the Christian experience from the book of Acts until this very day!

- The characteristic of the Holy Spirit's presence will not be the gift of tongues. That will not be in the forefront. The priority gift will be on prophesying!

- Then, at the other end of this prophecy, is the season that we looked at in Matthew 24. The wonders that we looked at there were exactly what we see Peter proclaiming here.

- As horrifying as that day will be, all the days prior to it will present the opportunity for salvation. Whoever calls. Whoever cries out for the name of the Lord will be saved.

- Joel's prophecy and Peter's proclamation bring the same warning: Christ is coming to vanquish His enemies, but there is a hope of salvation! It's in the name of the Lord!

- Today, that has not changed! While it is day. While there is opportunity, will you call upon Him? If you have, will you point people to Him, so that they might do as you have done!

II. Exalt The Risen Christ (v.22-36)

•  Acts 2:22-24  :  "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it."  :  The audience is letting the words of Joel sink in. The day of the Lord. Call on the Lord. Be saved!

- They might have surmised that they knew God. They were called by His name! As they were thinking Peter used the occasion to call them to His intention.

- Hear these words. Think about this. Consider Jesus of Nazareth. I want to talk about Jesus!

- He is the centerpiece, the cornerstone, the difference maker, the game changer!

- Evangelism without Jesus is simply motivational speaking! Jesus makes it the gospel!

- God put Jesus on display before them. He was an exhibit that they had clearly seen. Miracles, wonders and sign were all done through Him and they could not deny it.

- They saw His power, but they denied it's true source and rejected Jesus.

- Peter sees this for exactly what it is. Before the Holy Spirit had come upon him, he did not understand. Here he clearly understands what has taken place theologically.

- Jesus had been delivered up, rejected, but that was a something that God had worked out.

- The word for "determined purpose" comes from the word "horizo." It was determined like the horizon is set. Or, it came from the place of eternity in the mind of God, who knew.

- While it was God's plan, they had the responsibility of illegally, unrighteously putting Jesus to death! It may be that many in that crowd had been there when Christ was sentenced to death.

- It may have been their voices that cried out for His crucifixion. But even though that was the case, God raised Jesus up, because death could not hold Him down.

- God loosed the pains of death. The word "pains" denotes labor pains. The grave was treated more like a womb that brought forth a life that had been hidden within it!

- He tasted death for us, but permanent death is for sinners. Jesus was not a sinner!

•  Acts 2:25-28  :  "For David says concerning Him: ‘I foresaw the Lord always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope. For You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of joy in Your presence.'"  :  Peter is quoting from Psalm 16:8-11. David wrote about the resurrection and the defeat of the grave.

- Many of the Jewish people before that day would have attempted to understand these verses in a mystical way. Now, they are hearing of how these scriptures were fulfilled in the life of Jesus.

•  Acts 2:29-32  :  "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses."  :  I love Peter's candor here. "Guys, let's face it: David is dead as dead can be!"

- At the least, David's tomb and body had been right there for centuries! He could not have been talking about Himself. David was talking about Jesus!

- God spoke through David and had promised Him that he would have a descendant upon His throne, which everyone knew was the annointed One, the Messiah that they had waited for!

- David says that Jesus was not left in Hades, abandoned as one in a permanent condition.

- When Jesus was in the grave, dead, His body did not decompose in any way. Those things happen to us because of our sin nature and our sin, neither of which Jesus possessed personally.

- Peter says this publically: This Jesus God raised up! It's one thing for us to say this, but here is Peter among many who might have called for Christ's death, as well as Romans who executed it!

- Peter is saying what we can say today: "Jesus is alive and I am a witness!"

•  Acts 2:33-36  :  "Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.' Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."  :  Having studied the depths of Christ's humiliation, it's wonderful to speak of His exaltation.

- When Peter saw Jesus lift off into heaven, he knew where He was going. He was going to be exalted, raised to be raised to the Highest place of greatest favor and privilege.

- He went to the right hand of God. Scripturally speaking, this speaks of the place of His strength, rule and honor. In the original language, the phrase "right hand" receives the emphasis!

- When God delivered Israel from the Egyptians, it was His right hand that was credited.

- When He sustains an army, a believer or any life, that entity is held by His right hand!

- Now, because of where Jesus is, He has the power to make good on His promise! His ascension made way for His believers to received the Holy Spirit.

- He poured out His Spirit upon them. The word is descriptive of a wineskin that burst open, letting loose all of it's contents.

- He didn't just leak the Holy Spirit out or let Him out in a measured way. He turned the vessel over and held it upside down to make sure that the Spirit was given in full!

- This was what they were witnessing. Peter says, "This is what you are seeing! You are witnesses to the truth of what has happened with Jesus by witnessing what is happening with us!"

- A proof that Jesus has ascended to the right hand of the Father, is seen in the fact that the disciples have received the Holy Spirit. That is the practical proof. Peter furnishes the theological.

- Peter brings their minds back to what their King had said in Psalm 110:1. It was not David who ascended to the right hand of God. He had ascended to an earthly throne.

- He had achieved dominance over the His enemies, but this was not done on the scale that Jesus had accomplished. Jesus had ascended to the very throne of God!

- As a result let everyone in the house of Israel who had hoped in their Messiah know that God has taken Jesus and made Him both Lord and Christ.

- What is phenomenol about this is the very clear word that Peter proclaims. In the septuagint, the word "Lord" is synonymous with the word "God."

- God called Jesus God! If anyone else needs any proof of Christ's deity, I can furnish nothing better than this! He is both God and the Messiah!

III. Evangelize The Lost (v.37-41)

•  Acts 2:37-39  :  "Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?' Then Peter said to them, 'Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.'"  :  The people who were listening were radically affected by Peter's proclamation. They were cut to the heart. It's akin to an abrupt stab.

- It was breathtaking. It painfully and suddenly came upon them.

- Literally, the conscience that had built itself up was pricked and the wound was open and agitated. Their hearts screamed at them that this was the truth.

- This is truly an amazing verse when you consider the hardness of hearts that men live under. These verses and words opened up their hearts and made them receptive.

- Why would they feel this way? Peter has just told them that the person that they personally had a hand in crucifying was their long awaited Messiah. Bad enough.

- But to listen to the logic of scripture, where the Father declared Jesus to be God and Messiah meant that He was the one who would be doling out punishment!

- "Sit here at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool." LIterally, sit here until I bring you your enemies and you stand on their neck! I'd be pained as well!

- They went from feeling this to immediately asking what should be done about it! Frankly, many never get there. Many are affected by the truth.

- They know that they are lost without Christ. They know that He is the Messiah and that He has a claim on their life. But few move to ask what can be done about it!

- It is never enough to emotionally assent to a position in life. You can believe and not want to be something, but until you get up and take action, you will never be something else!

- What is the appropriate response to this information? Peter tells them "repent." Change your thinking about Jesus. Change your mind about yourself. Change your mind about your direction!

- In the mind, it is resolve to walk away from anything that hinders a relationship with Christ. In the heart, it is pain of thought and remorse. In the actions, it is a direct progression toward a change!

- Jesus tells them specifically that they were to be baptized. Why? Baptism was and is, an outward act that illustrats an inward change. For the Jews, there was added significance.

- Because baptism was public, and baptism was into Jesus Christ, the Jewish person was facing a very stark dilema. Their community has just executed Jesus for being a blasphemer.

- If one was to submit to baptism, they would be choosing to leave the comforts of their community, Judaism with it's rituals and face certain ostracisism from their family, permanently.

- Welcome to the family of God because it may very well be your only family!

- Peter tells them this for the same reason that Jesus tells the Rich Young Ruler to give away His riches.

- That was His first love and for these Jews, assembled on a feast day, their heritage was their greatest love and their religion, their greatest possession.

- One must understand an incredible principle here about evangelism: Making it easy for someone to come to Christ does not make for enduring disciples!

- Often, that just makes for shallow imitators enculturated, but not truly converted. On the other hand, when someone is truly born again, there is no stopping them!

- There is no barrier they won't smash their way through, if Jesus is on the other side!

- For those who believed in Christ enough to repent and follow through with a public display, Peter promised forgiveness from the Lord and the same Holy Spirit that they saw in them.

- He tells them that this is a promise for them, their children and then those who are afar off as many as the Lord would call. Who would that be?

- That's determined every time the gospel is presented! The call is an invitation to act.

•  Acts 2:40,41  :  "And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, 'Be saved from this perverse generation.' Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."  : Most of what we have read thus far is a synopsis provided by Luke of the highlights of Peter's message. He let's it suffice that there was a lot more that was said.

- He testified and exhorted them over and over again. Another translation has it that he "warned and pleaded with them." One other, that he "strongly urged them."

- Let there be no doubt: For one who has experienced Christ and has called another to Him, this is the common experience.

- It feels as if we are almost begging them to take the greatest gift ever! That is a common experience and a common cry regarding culture.

- "Be saved from this perverse generation!" Wow! If that is true of the first century, how much more true is it today! The word "perverse" means twisted, the mind being tangled in knots.

- It is baffling to watch our society crumble under the weight of perversity. One would not even know where to begin. This is why God commands that we come out of it!

- We cannot leave the world, but we can determine to no longer be of the world!

- On that day, there were those who bowed to these terms. They gladly received His word. There was an enthusiasm, perhaps even a tinge of relief!

- They walked over the divide and were baptized into Jesus Christ. Three thousand souls were added to them. Make no mistake: This was a miraculous movement.

- For just one person to respond would have been amazing, but 3,000!?

- That being said, it was a small percentage of the people that likely listened. I don't throw that on as a wet blanket. I simply mention it to say that the work is greater than any realize!

- Evangelism is a God sized opportunity! Woe to anyone who would attempt it without His Spirit empowering them!

Conclusion

- Peter was faithful to proclaim God's Word: Repent! He did it God's Way: Be Baptized, leave anything that keeps you from Him.

- He received God's response: Men who had been dead in trespasses and sins, doomed for destruction, gladly received and were baptized, transferred eternally from death to life! Who's next!?