Culver Community Church

Pastor Chris Sweeney

Sermon Notes

July 07, 2019

Acts 2 – A Whole New World!

{vs. 1-4} I love the language – it really describes how incomprehensible this event was – ‘a sound like’ and ‘what seemed to be’!  Nothing like this had ever happened before – in Jewish history or with any other people.  In the past, God has come and visited His people and select prophets but never has anyone ever conceived of God living within, filling humans!  In every culture, the gods were far away; in most they were petty and mean only blessing when just the right prayers, services and offerings were made.  However, here we see Jesus’ promise fulfilled – “surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  It is this Holy Spirit indwelling (and Christ’s sacrifice) that allows us to live a new kind of life – justified (declared righteous) and being sanctified (ongoingly being practically made righteous) before God and by God!

If you recall God set up this timetable in their calendar – Passover (Jesus’ sacrifice); First Fruits (His resurrection, symbolic of the full harvest yet to come); and the Pentecost (also called the Feast of Harvest – celebrating the wheat harvest and spiritually, the birth of the church).  While the other feasts use unleavened bread, Pentecost uses leavened bread!  Why?  Because God is bringing in His harvest, the church (He still is today) and this harvest has the sin symbolized by leaven (but of course He is working that out of us!)  All of this is laid out in Leviticus 23 if you want to go back and see the prophetic types established by God.

Now, the sound and image was to get attention (it worked!) – obviously God’s Holy Spirit could come without noticeable signs but God was collecting a crowd – just as He always draws people to Himself, to His grace and the truth of the gospel.  All over the world, people give their lives to Christ and the Holy Spirit duplicates this miracle - - - without the sound and light show, but this occasion was special!  God here reminds us that He is the Master of language(s) – just as He did at the Tower of Babel!

{vs. 5-13} Every good God-fearing Jewish man was gathered for the festival from every corner of the known world – this of course is God’s advanced planning, He could have had them celebrate wherever they lived or happened to be but this has been handed down since the Exodus, found in the book of Leviticus.  In order to really get their attention, God uses these Galileans (known for their simple, uneducated ways and thick accent!) to speak in every man’s own dialect!  These faithful were brought together to hear the gospel, to get a crash course in ‘new covenant living’ and then spread back out across the globe!  Now, no matter what God does, there will always be those who are solidly in Satan’s grasp - - - those who will find a way to explain away the truth and any uncomfortable evidence that would rock their world view.  Just see the untenable theory of evolution for example – it cannot explain the origins of the universe because at the beginning of it all there must be an uncaused cause (we call Him the Creator!)  These naysayers and doubters come up with the idea that the men are drunk and babbling out of their minds.  This is where the Holy Spirit uses Peter to give a defense of the gospel (the very first!)  We have a summary recorded here in Acts 2.

{vs. 14-21} This is day one of the church, there was no gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John, no epistles or letters, no New Testament – only the eyewitness accounts of these men and what everyone knew about these current events.  So Peter goes to scripture (Old Testament) scripture to prove what we now know – that this was God’s plan from the start.  He quotes from the prophet Joel and King David (below) to show that this may be new, but it is not different and should not have been unexpected!  God had foretold the events of Jesus’, the Messiah’s life – they only lacked the context to understand and the devotion to seek the answers.

In this quote, the prophet is speaking of the last days – the time before Messiah comes in terrible judgement and wrath.  These days are what begin at the new covenant – scripture tells us that the last days began here with the birth of the church, the new covenant that Jesus ushered in with His sacrifice!  Those days have been going on since Pentecost and will come to a close at Christ’s return!  One of the signs given by God, through the prophet Joel was the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, which will enable visions, dreams and prophesy!

{vs. 22-24} The life, ministry and events of Jesus were common knowledge – “as you yourselves know”!  The hopes that He might be the long-awaited Messiah were spread from Galilee and Jerusalem to all the Jewish communities where these men came from.  They also know how He died, handed over by the religious leaders to Pilate and the Romans, and then betrayed by these very same men gathered here – who at the prompting of the leaders (and the Devil) cried out for His crucifixion!  They even said “His blood is on us and on our children!” (Matthew 27:25 NIV)  Put yourself into the mindset of this crowd – Peter has just declared that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, proven by miracles and you (you all), you personally participated in putting Him to death (an agonizing death) but God brought Him back!  Like the Roman guards at the cross, this would be a fearful thought – is He coming to get even (that’s the normal, human response)?  No!  Somehow, this is God’s plan!! – Peter goes on to explain.

{vs. 25-33} David was most revered as King but also as prophet – writing most of the Psalms and often prophesying of Messiah.  He received one of God’s greatest promises that Messiah would come from his line and sit upon his throne - - - knowing this God prophesied through him about Jesus (things even he did not fully understand!)  From these words, we see the hope of the gospel, that hope that no matter what comes, even in death – we can remain unshaken.  God will not allow us to remain in death – we can rest assured that He will bring us out.  This will be accomplished by God’s Holy One (Messiah) who will not see decay (remember they believed decay began at the fourth day – Jesus rose on the third!)  David was not the ‘Holy One’ because he did see decay – Peter probably pointed to the tomb, we know where his body lay!  Messiah (Jesus) will show the paths of life bringing us into Your [God’s] presence!

{vs. 34-36} This second quote again emphasizes that it is not David who sits at God’s right hand – Jesus predicted during His Jewish trials He would go to the right hand of God and in Matthew 22, He used this quote about Messiah to silence the questioning Pharisees.  Jesus shows through His question that they knew this was a Messianic quote – “"What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is He?" "The Son of David, [a Messianic title!]" they replied.” (Matthew 22:42)

{vs. 37} This is the proper response to the gospel.  There are always those who refuse to believe, and those who mock the message/messengers.  But, there are also those who believe in faith that the message is true and from a God who loves them. Peter’s sermon has hit the mark so well that they didn’t even wait for Him to finish – they made the altar call!  (Not waiting for the preacher to stop talking!)

{vs. 38-39} This is for you, your children and all who are far off (that’s us here today!)

Ø Repent (change your mind – turn 180˚) – by faith accept the message (they got that part even without being told!) and accept Jesus as Lord.  If you are going your own way (astray) turn and face God.  Jesus taught this truth from the beginning, even before He called The Twelve - "The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15 b)

Ø Be baptized (the symbol of conversion) – Don’t just make a little decision that can be doubted and gone back on – Make formal, visible commitment (baptism took them out of their religion, culture, and family). “I’m leaving it all behind for Jesus!”

Ø Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit The only seal (guarantee) of salvation is the gift of the Holy Spirit. It’s not in baptism, an ID card you carry or church/denominational membership.  God has always made it simple – you believe, you repent (show it by baptism) and then God gives the Holy Spirit to everyone who believes.

{vs. 40-42} These three thousand (3,000!) stayed for a time in Jerusalem, devoted to the apostles’ teaching (Jesus) – remaining in fellowship (as one) until they began to be dispersed back to their homes.  As they went, they formed new fellowships not synagogues but churches.  Next time we will go to one of the epistles written to those new churches far from Jerusalem – come back to see which one!