ACTS
CHAPTER 2:14-41, “The Pentecostal Sermon”
by
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In the last two weeks we have looked at the inauguration of the church
on the day of Pentecost, 50 days after Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, and
we have observed many things:
1.1.1. The early church should be
the model that the church of all eras seeks to emulate
1.1.2. Before Jesus ascended to the
Father He gathered all of the disciples together and told them to go and stay
in
1.1.3. We saw that when the Baptism
of the Holy Spirit came upon the believers many phenomena occurred
1.1.3.1.Each one had cloven or split
tongues of fire over their heads
1.1.3.2.Each one spoke in unknown
tongues, that is, they spoke in worship and praise to God in ‘ecstatic speech’,
not knowing what they were saying
1.1.3.3.There was a mighty rushing
wind coming from heaven that sounded like a hurricane, and it was this noise
that brought all of the thousands of people to them
1.1.4. The baptism of the Holy
Spirit produced a very powerful effect upon all of the believers there, and now
that he had been infused with the anointing power of God upon his life, Peter
was a new man and so he boldly stood up and fulfilling the calling that God had
given to him, he began to preach the gospel to the crowd gathered there
1.2.
The book of Acts is a book of ‘first things’, and the baptism of the
Holy Spirit which occurred inaugurating the church came on a day of ‘first
things’, and now today we shall observe that the sermon that Peter preached on
the day of Pentecost was another ‘first thing’, the first sermon preached by
the church
1.3.
I have titled this message, “The Pentecostal Message”, because it was
the sermon preached on this first day of the new church, the day of Pentecost
1.4.
This sermon was the dawning of a new era in human history which God
ushered in, the era of ‘the Church Age’
1.4.1. The Church Age is still in effect
today, and it will remain in effect until the rapture of the church (true
believers) that will occur just before the 7 year tribulation of the book of
Revelation
1.4.1.1.The new Church Age era also
brought in the new economy of grace through Jesus Christ, which replaced the
economy of the Law of Moses
1.4.1.1.1.The economy of grace brought
in preaching of a gospel of salvation not through external observances, but
through Jesus Christ and His finished work upon the cross
1.4.1.1.2.The new preaching style was
not like the Jewish teachers of the past, for they sat down to teach, but here
Peter stands up to preach acting as a herald of God’s message of redemption
1.4.1.1.3.Peter’s message was simple
and straight forward, it was not flowery and full of big concepts or words, for
as the saying goes, ‘it is the plain stuff in scripture that is the main stuff’
1.4.1.1.3.1.People need to hear the
simple and straight-forward stuff from God’s Word, for the simple truth is what
impacts lives for eternity
1.4.1.1.4.Peter’s message demanded a
response, in other words, he was not just speaking of high-minded concepts that
would tickle the ears of those present, rather it was a ‘life and death’
serious message that was designed to elicit a specific response on the part of
the listener
1.5.
The Five Points of Peter’s Message
1.5.1. Peter tells the crowd that
the disciples are not drunk, but rather what they are seeing and hearing is the
fulfillment of what was prophesied by the prophet Joel
1.5.1.1.The phenomena that the
people saw and heard had occurred because of God’s foreordained plans in
pouring out His Spirit upon mankind in the last days (as prophesied by the
prophet Joel)
1.5.2. Jesus was a perfect man as
attested to by God Himself
1.5.3. Jesus was delivered up to
the cross according to God’s foreknowledge and predetermined plan
1.5.4. God hath raised this Jesus
up from the dead
1.5.5. Jesus has been exalted to
the right hand of God and made both Lord and Christ
2.
VS 2:14 - “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” - Peter boldly stands up to
address the crowd and to use the opportunity afforded by the miraculous
outpouring of the Holy Spirit to preach the gospel to the gathered crowd
2.1.
We can only imagine the thoughts that must have been racing through
Peter’s mind up to this point.
2.1.1. He is possibly remembering
his poor conduct in many prior incidents, such as his denial of the Lord 3
times just 50 days prior, or the many times that he stuck his foot in his mouth
when he spoke too soon or out of turn, and he is possibly as a result wondering
if due to his track record and unworthiness it wouldn’t just be better if he
didn’t get involved here.
2.1.2. Perhaps he is having fearful
imaginations about the crowd crucifying him just as they had crucified Jesus,
for after all Jesus hinted strongly to them that they too would be persecuted
just as He was.
2.1.3. I am sure that he is praying
at this moment harder than he has ever prayed in his whole life, and that he is
claiming the promises about not having to worry about what to say in these
moments for the Holy Spirit would give him the words
2.2.
This is the way all of us are, for when we begin to allow the Lord to use
our lives, we are hesitant to really step out in faith trusting in His power to
use us because we are so mindful of our own unworthiness before the Lord, as
well as our track record of previous failures in being used by God. So, Peter is an example for us to follow then
in getting over our hesitations, doubts, etc.
2.3.
Regardless of what was actually going through Peter’s mind, at this
moment Peter becomes the man that God called him to be, for through the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit in his life he has now truly taken on the role of
the leader, spokesman, and apostle that the Lord called him to be
2.4.
Peter spoke the words of this great sermon, the first sermon of the new
church, with great clarity, resolution, and passion, and as such this first
sermon of the church is now also a model of what preaching should be
2.5.
The Jewish teachers of Peter’s day all sat down to teach, however Peter
stands on this day for he is acting as a herald of God’s message of redemption
for mankind
3.
VS 2:15-21 - “15 “For these men are
not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; 16 but
this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: 17 ‘And it shall be in the last days,’ God
says, ‘That I will pour forth of My Spirit upon all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy, And your young men shall see visions, And your old men shall dream
dreams; 18 Even upon My bondslaves,
both men and women, I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit And they shall
prophesy. 19 ‘And I will grant wonders
in the sky above, And signs on the earth beneath, Blood, and fire, and vapor of
smoke. 20 ‘The sun shall be turned into
darkness, And the moon into blood, Before
the great and glorious day of the Lord shall come. 21 ‘And it shall be, that everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”” - POINT #1: Peter tells
the crowd that the disciples are not drunk, but rather what they are seeing and
hearing is the fulfillment of what was prophesied by the prophet Joel
3.1.
Through prophetic eyes Peter quotes these verses from Joel for he sees
that the world has now entered into a period that is characterized as being
‘the last days’, thus we see that the entry into the church age was an entry
into the last days
3.2.
Peter is clear with the people that the glow in the eyes of the
Christians there present was not the glow caused by drinking of alcohol, and
the ‘ecstatic speech’ of the disciples which they could not understand was not
that caused by inebriation, but rather it was a genuine movement of God upon
the hearts and lives of the people present
3.3.
The prophesy of Joel was actually a prophesy whose complete fulfillment
will not occur until the Millennial Reign of Christ, however Peter is telling
the people that what was occurring there in their midst was an initial
fulfillment of that prophesy, and that the prophesy itself was just going to
continue to enfold over time
3.4.
This prophesy of Joel went against everything in the Jewish religion and
culture of the day
3.4.1.
The Spirit of God will be poured out on ‘all mankind’, not just the Jews
but also the Gentiles
3.4.2.
In the Jewish religion the priests who served before the Lord were all
descended from the tribe of Levi, however Joel said that men and women of all
ages, Gentiles included, would be an instrument for the Holy Spirit to use, and
they would be endowed with Spiritual gifts and would prophesy
3.4.3.
‘Everyone’ (not just Jews) who called upon the Lord would ‘be saved’
3.5.
Many of the events of this prophesy of Joel remind me of Jesus’ Olivet
discourse when the disciples asked Jesus what would be the sign of His coming
and of the end of the age
3.5.1.
What I am referring to is found in Matt. 24:29-31, “29 “But
immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and
the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens
will be shaken, 30 and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky,
and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of
Man coming on the clouds of the sky with
power and great glory. 31 “And He will send forth His angels with a great
trumpet and they will gather together
His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other””
3.5.2.
This is a prophesy of the coming of the Messiah to the earth at the end
of the 7 year Tribulation, after which time Christ will establish His
Millennial Reign upon the earth
3.6.
The Church Age is described here as being a period of time where there is
prophesy, visions, and dreams by young and old alike, and all inspired by the
Lord
3.7.
Eventually, the Spirit of God will be poured out upon all mankind,
however on this day of Pentecost only a few thousand responded to the gospel
message and were saved
4.
VS 2:22 - “22 “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”” - POINT #2: Jesus was a perfect man as attested to by God
Himself
4.1.
The multitude assembled before Peter had heard all about Jesus, and it
was public knowledge that Jesus was a good man who went about doing good deeds,
and therefore we see that this multitude did not dispute Peter’s speaking of
Jesus as being a good man
4.2.
Peter points out to the multitude that the confirmation that Jesus was a
good man was attested to by God by the effecting of miracles, wonders, and
attesting signs through Him
4.2.1.
Miracles and signs in themselves do not attest that someone is approved by
the Lord, for those things can be worked by demons according to the scriptures
(The magicians of Egypt copied many of the miracles of Moses, the anti-Christ
of Revelation is able to command fire to come down from heaven, etc.; see Deut. 13), however the very nature of the
miracles that Jesus did attest to the fact that God’s approval was upon Him
4.2.2.
The miracles that Jesus performed were different than miracles ever
performed by anyone throughout history
4.2.2.1.Jesus didn’t pray to the Father to do His miracles, He
spoke or willed them into being
4.2.2.2.All of Jesus’ miracles were complete miracles where
someone who has some sickness or infirmity is made immediately to be completely
well without a natural period of recovery first occurring
4.2.2.3.Everyone was healed whom Jesus attempted to heal, He
had a success rate of 100%
4.2.2.4.Jesus even healed people who had congenitive illnesses
and infirmities that had been present from birth
4.2.2.5.Jesus was even able to bring people back from the
dead, even (in the case of Lazarus) after they had been dead for days
4.3.
The question that skeptics have to answer then is, “If you are honest
enough to look at the historical record of Jesus, how do you explain the things
that He said and did?”
4.3.1.
I remember as a freshman in college when I first began reading the New
Testament that as I read the four gospel accounts of the life and works of
Jesus, I could not come up with any kind of rational explanation for the things
that Jesus did apart from the fact that He must be God and must have performed
the miracles that are recorded
4.3.1.1.In other words, I realized
that no one could have made up the stories
4.3.2.
The gospel accounts could not have been made up, for if they had been
manufactured then they would never have stood up to the scrutiny that they have
come under these past 2,000 years, a scrutiny greater than the combined
scrutiny exercised over all other historical accounts throughout recorded
history
4.4.
Where Peter
is going with his argument here is that the fact that Jesus was a perfect man,
that is, a man who had never committed sins (thus having the favor of God
continually in His life), and this fact carried with it many implications
4.4.1.
This is the
reason that Jesus had to be raised up from the dead, for it would not be just
for Jesus to not be raised from the dead, for death comes about as the wages of
sin (Rom. 6:23)
4.4.2.
Jesus had to
be the Messiah, the One prophesied to come in the Jewish scriptures
4.4.3.
Jesus had to be exalted to the throne of God as Lord and Christ
5.
VS 2:23 - “23 this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan
and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and
put Him to death” - POINT #3: Jesus was
delivered up to the cross according to God’s foreknowledge and predetermined
plan
5.1.
When Jesus was crucified on the cross, it wasn’t because men overcame Him
and were able to do with Him whatever they wanted, no the only way Jesus could
have been crucified was the way in which He was crucified, He willingly laid
down His life for us. There are many
instances in the New Testament accounts which support this
5.1.1.
The multitude stirred up by the Jews on a few occasions wanted to kill
Jesus but it says that they were unable to do so because it was not His time
5.1.1.1.On one instance they sought
to kill Him but He just walked right through their midst and they were
powerless to touch Him
5.1.2.
When the men came to get Jesus and take Him to be crucified, they asked
Him if He were Jesus, and He said, ‘I am He’, and when He said that a whole
battalion of Roman soldiers all fell over backwards because of His words
5.1.3.
At that same moment when they came to take Him to be crucified, Peter cut
off the ear of a slave with his sword, and Jesus reached down, grabbed the
man’s ear, and then healed it (Luke 22:50; John 18:10-11; Matt. 26:53) and told
Peter, “The cup that the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?” Then, he told Peter, “Don’t you think that I
cannot command down 12 legions of angels if I desired”
5.2.
You see the eternal Son of God, the third person of the Trinity, chose to
come to earth when the godhead discussed this creation, for He came because of
their foreknowledge and predetermination
5.3.
There is a paradox here: It was by
God’s foreknowledge and predetermined plan that Jesus Christ came and died upon
a cross, yet His crucifixion was carried out through the hands of ‘godless men’
5.3.1.
God is sovereign and is fulfilling His plans upon the earth
5.3.2.
Men who were in total rebellion against Him and seeking to thwart His
will end up accomplishing His plans
5.3.3.
You see, it is really God’s will that is being carried out upon the
earth, even though there are wicked people who are doing whatever it is that
they want to do, having no regard for God and His will and plans for them
5.3.3.1.Yet at the same time this
fact does not excuse your or me from doing what the Lord wants us to do in our
lives, for in not doing His will we alone can be blamed, and those who don’t
know the Lord will on the day of judgment of non-believers be justly punished
for the wrongs which they have done upon the earth
5.4.
Don’t miss here that Peter is honest and direct with this group of Jews
gathered together in Jerusalem, for tells them that it was ‘they’ who had
murdered Jesus, the perfect man who always did God’s will and good works for
men
5.4.1.
Jesus was actually nailed to the cross by Roman soldiers, so Peter says
that it was ‘by the hands of godless men’ that the Jews had Jesus crucified
5.4.2.
In this sermon, Peter is actually addressing all those who called
themselves Jews, or the entire Jewish nation, as he makes indictments to them
for killing their Messiah sent to them from the Father
6.
VS 2:24-32 - “24 “And God raised Him up again, putting an end
to the agony of death, since it was
impossible for Him to be held in its power. 25 “For David says of Him, ‘I was
always beholding the Lord in my presence;
For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. 26 ‘Therefore my heart was glad and my
tongue exulted; Moreover my flesh also
will abide in hope; 27 Because Thou
wilt not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor allow Thy Holy One to undergo
decay. 28 ‘Thou hast made known to me
the ways of life; Thou wilt make me full
of gladness with Thy presence.’ 29
“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. 30 “And so,
because he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to
seat one of his descendants upon his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of
the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor
did His flesh suffer decay. 32 “This
Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses”” - POINT #4: God hath raised this Jesus up from the dead
6.1.
Peter says that it was impossible for Jesus to be held in the power of
death, for though He bore the sins of the world upon the cross and died there
at Calvary, He was holy and had never sinned Himself, and thus He could not
suffer for eternity the penalty of sin but rather must be raised from the dead
6.2.
Peter then quotes David in Messianic Psalm 16 speaking with reference to
the ‘Holy One’, or the Messiah, whom David writes that He will never ‘undergo
decay’
6.2.1.
David knew that because the Messiah would never undergo decay after
death, that God would also not abandon his own soul to Hades, for the One who
would not and could not undergo decay would therefore live for eternity, and in
living would make sure that David’s soul would not end up staying in Hades
after he passed from this life
6.2.2.
Peter makes the point that this One who is called by David the Holy One,
the Messiah, whom other scripture indicates would be a direct descendant of
David’s, He was exalted by God and thus would never undergo decay though He
should die momentarily in the flesh
6.2.2.1.In other words, David was
referring to a descendant of his, yet One who was unlike all men who had come
before, one who was totally holy and righteous (being God the Son, the perfect
blend of God and man, very God and very man)
6.2.2.1.1.Thus says Peter, David must
have been writing prophetically about Jesus Christ in this Psalm
6.2.2.1.2.David’s grave was among
them, however this descendant of David’s would never die or suffer decay for He
was totally holy and righteous
6.2.2.1.3.This descendant of David’s
must have been more than a mere man, for being David’s descendant he could only
have superiority and lordship over David if He be One who is totally God and
totally man, as was the case with the Lord Jesus Christ
7.
VS 2:34-36 - “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. 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, 35 Until I make Thine enemies a
footstool for Thy feet.” ’ 36 “Therefore let all the house of
7.1.
Being truly a good man, one who had never sinned, one who always had
God’s favor, He must then be God the Son from all eternity, and thus be equal
with God, and He must also rule with God
7.2.
Being ‘exalted to the right hand of God’ means
7.2.1.
To rule with Him, to sit upon His throne
7.2.2.
It is a position of utmost honor
7.3.
Peter quotes from Psalm 110:1 when he writes of the Messiah to come
calling Him Lord, “1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand, Until
I make Thine enemies a footstool for Thy feet””
7.3.1.
The argument for the divinity of Christ is made in the New Testament
based upon this verse (see Acts 2:34 for example), for the logic is that
David’s descendant would never be called, ‘Lord’, by Him if He were not totally
God and totally man
7.4.
Being raised up to the throne of God, Peter says that Christ has now
received, ‘the promise’, of the baptism of the Spirit which was poured out on
them on this very first day of the church, the day of Pentecost
7.5.
We see here that Peter’s sermon is really to the whole nation of Israel,
though only a small group is gathered here, for he says, ‘Let all the house of
Israel know…’
7.5.1.
What a sobering thought it must have been to this group of assembled Jews
to realize that God had answered all of their prayers through the centuries for
the Messiah, and yet instead of embracing Him and listening to what He had to
say, they had killed Him
8.
VS 2:37-41 - “37 Now when they heard this, they were pierced
to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what
shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent, and let each of you be
baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you
shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 “For the promise is for you and
your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall
call to Himself. 40 And with many other
words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from
this perverse generation!” 41 So then, those who had received his word were
baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls”” - The Pentecostal
Response: 3,000 souls are added to the
church when they respond to Peter’s gospel message
8.1.
Peter’s message did not end with a challenge to respond to the message,
for he did not address them and ask them to respond, rather the Holy Spirit had
so used these words of Peter’s to convict the crowd that when he quits speaking
they ask the question, “What shall we do?”
8.1.1.
We must realize that when the people here asked this question they were
speaking as Jews and in a sense speaking for the whole nation, for at this
moment they realized that as a people they had greatly errored by murdering the
One sent to them as their Messiah, and now they didn’t know what their options
might be
8.1.1.1.Would Jesus return to them
and give their nation another chance?
8.1.1.2.Were they forever out of
God’s plans for them being now castaways?
8.2.
Peter tells the people what their response to God should now be
8.2.1.
They need to ‘repent’
8.2.1.1.They need to have a change
of heart and mind toward God and turn from their life of self and self-will to
do God’s will in their lives
8.2.2.
They need to be baptized
8.2.2.1.Baptism was not meant to
save them, for repentence toward God and faith in Christ had already
accomplished that, rather baptism was to symbolize what had already happened in
their lives at this point, for it symbolizes the end of one life and the
beginning of another, one to be lived now in the will of God
8.2.2.2.Some Christian groups have
gotten hung up here because Peter says that they are to be ‘baptized in the
Name of Jesus Christ’, and these groups say that the scripture is clear that
each person has to be baptized specifically, ‘in the Name of Jesus Christ’
8.2.2.2.1.However, in Matt. 28:19, the
Great Commission, Jesus told His disciples that as they went out making
disciples of all nations that they were to baptize them, ‘in the Name of the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit’, so why does Peter now say that the
people are to be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ?
8.2.2.2.1.1.First of all, to be baptized
in the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit means to be baptized by God as
He is revealed to us in the scriptures, the ‘Trinity’
8.2.2.2.1.1.1.There is no salvation apart
from a proper understanding of the Trinitarian nature of God, for to believe in
Christ for salvation one must believe that it was God the Son (the One who is
equal to God and thus holy and righteous and able to save to the uttermost) who
was sent here by the Father, and through whom the Holy Spirit worked and
revealed Himself
8.2.2.2.1.2.Secondly, to be ‘baptized in
the Name of Jesus’ means to be baptized in the way in which He taught they were
to baptize (as given in Matt. 28:19)
8.3.
Notice here the doctrine of the election of God is taught, for it was
only the ones whom the Lord ‘called to Himself’ who will accept this gospel
message and believe in Christ
8.3.1.
The invitation to believe in Christ is extended to everyone gathered here
on this day, so people must choose Christ in order to be saved from their sins,
thus people do have the freedom of choice
8.3.2.
Yet, at the same time, the ones who end up choosing salvation are the
same ones whom the Lord has called to salvation
8.4.
It is a tremendous ingathering that is accomplished through the Lord
using Peter to preach this message, for 3,000 people in this huge crowd
gathered together in the temple, after rushing to where the mighty rushing wind
was coming from, receive Christ as their Lord and Savior
8.4.1.
As we will see next week, the people continued on in their faith after
making this initial commitment to the Lord, and the church just continues to
grow from this point on
8.4.2.
To summarize, when you think about Peter’s points in this message, the
only response that would be appropriate would be to do what he tells the crowd
to do here, to repent and turn your life over to the Lord and let Him lead and
guide you in all that you do
8.4.2.1.Peter telling the crowd that
the disciples are not drunk, but rather what they are seeing and hearing is the
fulfillment of what was prophesied by the prophet Joel
8.4.2.1.1.The phenomena that the
people saw and heard had occurred because of God’s foreordained plans in
pouring out His Spirit upon mankind in the last days (as prophesied by the
prophet Joel)
8.4.2.2.Jesus was a perfect man as
attested to by God Himself
8.4.2.3.Jesus was delivered up to
the cross according to God’s foreknowledge and predetermined plan
8.4.2.4.God hath raised this Jesus
up from the dead
8.4.2.5.Jesus has been exalted to
the right hand of God and made both Lord and Christ
8.5.
I have to ask you the question then, ‘Have you repented of going your own
way and of sinning against God’s holy laws (found in the 10 commandments), and
have you turned your life over to Jesus to do His will now?’ The scripture says that, ‘today is the day of
salvation’, and you don’t know if you shall have tomorrow to seek the Lord for
you could die or Christ could return and you’d be left behind. If you haven’t made that commitment, I
encourage you to not sleep until you have turned your life over to the risen
and exalted Christ and trusted in His death upon the cross as the full payment
for all of your sins.