Proclamation

Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a great privilege to share the Word of God with saints of Durbin Memorial Baptist Church.

Two weeks ago I was speaking at the funeral service for one of the dear saints of this church that has gone on to glory. In the message, I used a section of Scripture that I don’t hear too often during a memorial service.

1 Peter 3:15 ESV

but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,

If you have heard this verse before, you have probably heard it in the context of apologetics. That is defending a position through systematic reasoning. When it comes to Christian apologetics there are a variety of different fields and angles in which people craft strong arguments in defense of the faith. There are historical, legal, philosophical , teleological, moral, and scientific arguments made amidst many other proofs. If all of that sounds like a lot to keep track of of, you’re not alone! When I was in Seminary I originally thought I was going to be apologetics major, but I found myself lost in the mountains of data and ended up switching majors. It’s not that I saw apologetics as unnecessary, they certainly are, but I was un able to keep up, it wasn’t my gifting. Our own Brother Roger is in Seminary right now and has an interest in Apologetics potentially as a major so y’all pray for him!

But when I was speaking at the funeral a couple of weeks ago, I wasn’t bringing up this verse from 1 Peter to heap loads of information and mountains of data on to a grieving family. I brought it up because of the simple yet profound phrase in the middle “make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the HOPE that is IN YOU.”

In a time of loss I wanted to present to the family the only reason there is hope within me and share with them how they can either receive that same hope or embrace the hope they already have.

I told those in attendance: There is hope founded upon the unwavering, un-shakable Jesus Christ. Nothing but Jesus Christ will do. A hope built on any other foundation is built on shifting sand and will not stand the test of time or trial in either this life or the next. Only Jesus Christ will do. Anything else is a false hope propped up by self-delusions. Anything else will wither and be swept away by either the disappointments of this life or the judgment of the next. Only Jesus Christ will do.

We are assured of hope not because of anything we can do, but because of what Christ has done. Following this verse in 1 Peter, the Apostle then describes how Christ suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous in order to bring us sinners saved by grace to God! Christ suffered and died on the cross, all in accordance with the will of God to accomplish the plan of redemption. Then Christ would rise from the tomb, he would be resurrected and ascend into heaven. Where He sits at the right hand of the Father, with all things, angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to Him.

To put it concisely, this is Peter’s message in this portion of his first epistle: The reason for the hope that is with in you is the gospel of Jesus Christ! The reason for the hope that is in within me is the gospel of Jesus Christ! The reason for the hope that is within this church is the gospel of Jesus Christ!

That is a message that needs to be shared at a funeral service because in the face of death there is weeping and grieving. Which are in and of themselves appropriate, even Jesus Christ wept when confronted with death, the result of sin in a fallen world. But for those who know the Lord they need to be reminded of the hope that they continue to have in the face of grief. And for those who do not yet have that hope it is a pointer to where they can find it. In Christ alone.

With this in mind, would you turn with me, if you have not already, to Acts 2. In just a moment, we are going to pick up in verse 14. To catch everyone back up to where we are at, we have read the historical narrative of Jesus’ ascension in chapter one. The same Ascension that Peter referred to as evidence for his hope in 1 Peter 3, we read through the eyewitness account in Acts 1. Then we saw the Apostles commissioning Matthias to replace Judas the betrayer as an apostle. Then last week we began exploring the glorious events at Pentecost. The disciples are gathered together in the upper room. The presence of God and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit manifests in a sound like a mighty rushing wind filling the house, divided tongues as of fire appear to rest on each of them, and all began speaking in foreign languages, the languages of all the people who gathered in Jerusalem that year to celebrate the feast of Pentecost. All of this caused quite a commotion. People were gathering around, taking in all of this site. Some were impressed, some were confused, others were taking offense to the commotion and accused the disciples of being drunk. That is where we are picking up this morning. Begin with me in verse 14

Acts 2:14–15 ESV

But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.

What we are looking at here is the beginning of Peter’s greatest sermon.

The intention of my sermon this morning is threefold. They will unfold simultaneously as we walk through the text. We will see the framework for a good sermon. We will witness a profound example of how to give a defense for the hope that is within us. And we will grow in our appreciation for God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Looks look at a couple of these facets now. First every good sermon needs a good introduction. Each week I seek to bring up a topic that will frame where we are going with the primary text and engage the hearers, not so that *i* have your attention, but so that the Word of God is elevated and captivating to those who hear the sermon. Peter here didn’t need to have much verbal hook to get his audience’s attention. God accomplished that through the evident and astounding empowerment of the Holy Spirit poured out on the disciples.

So without much need for an introduction, Peter uses the opening verses here to disarm the naysayers. As readers, we know that those who were claiming the group to be drunk were completely off base because we know that it is God who is performing the miraculous activity through the disciples. But there is also a physical/logical reasoning. Peter states the crowd, y’all, its 9 AM! We aren’t drunk! The feast that we gather for doesn’t start for another 2 hours! Apologetics often include both supernatural truths and physical realties to bolster a person’s argument. Peter’s introduction appeals to the cultural and physical sensibilities of his hearers.

Before we move on to the primary content of the message we should also make note the background of Peter’s life that are given to us as an example and model of giving a defense for the hope that is within us. If you were to rewind in time to just over 7 weeks before this event, Peter had publically denied any association with Jesus Christ. He was watching near by as the Man he followed was flogged, beaten, and strung up on a cross. Now, 50 days later, Peter is standing in front of the very people who orchestrated the murder of Christ, and he is going to address them with a message that they will go against their preconceived notions and beliefs. So it must be asked, what changed? How did Peter get here? Why would the denier now be the mouthpiece? The answer is he has witnessed the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. It has become clear to him that Christ is Lord of lords. He can stand boldly before the scoffers and make a defense because he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that his Lord is superior to the scoffers. He has also received the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to accomplish a task such as this. God had renewed, equipped, and empowered Peter for this very moment. Peter was fueled by the Holy Spirit and the hope of eternity with his Lord.

This week I attended a conference in which the speaker brought up the same verse from 1 Peter 3:15 that I was already planning to use in our introduction this morning and he highlighted something pertinent for our consideration this morning. Here at Pentecost, there is a big commotion which necessitates Peter stepping up to give a defense for what is happening. In 1 Peter 3:15, Christians are instructed to be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is within in. So in this line of thought, we have to ask, when is the last time that anyone actually asked us to give reason for the hope that is within us?! When is the last time our Christian disposition was so obvious, world-contrasting, and hope filled that other people looked at us and said, what’s goin on with y’all and where can I get?!

For Peter in our text this morning, the defense that he is about to make is necessitated from the mighty work of God through the tangible empowerment of the Holy Spirit. We discussed last week how that is a special occurence for a particular purpose. The rushing wind, the flaming tongues, the utterances, are not normative experiences of the Holy Spirit. When Peter writest o the church in the book of 1 Peter, he isn’t instructing them to be ready to make a defense only when these supernatural events take place around them. He isn’t talking about the special and particular work of the Holy Spirit, but the regular work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers which is just as miraculous, albeit more subtle on the surface. We talked last week about how being filled with the Spirit looks like speaking with one another in psalms and hymns, singing to God, giving thanks to God, and serving one another in the church. The work of the Holy Spirit also produces in us love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If we know Christ as Lord and thus received the Holy Spirit, our lives aren’t marked by rushing winds surrounding us, but they are to be marked by the fruits of the Holy Spirit. People around us should naturally notice such things which run counter to the ways of the World and we should be exuding hope in all that we do. This is a bit of a rabbit trail off of our primary topic this morning, but if you find that your life is not marked by such virtues, you need to this morning pray to God the Father and ask for Him to convict you and sanctify you in truth, knowing that when you pray in accordance with God’s will, He hears us and grants us our petitions. There are very few specific prayers that I can guarantee you are absolutely in line with God’s will, but growing in the fruit of His Spirit is absolutely one of them. Pray to God and put in the Holy Sweat, agonize to see such things in your life, and see the Holy Spirit work in your life so that you are living in such a way that others notice and you can make a defense for the hope that is within you.

In our text this morning, Peter is giving a defense, an explanation for everything that is taking place through the Spirit on this day of Pentecost. He begins with a citation from the book of Joel:

Acts 2:16–21 ESV

But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, 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 male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

As we think about this text in the three fold intentions of the sermon this morning, we first see a hallmark of a good sermon. A good sermon is centered on God’s Word. In some ways, Peter had all the bells and whistles anyone could have asked for to get the attention of those around in Jerusalem. But the spectacle of the Holy Spirit’s power did not remove the necessity of God’s Word! Any and every sermon you hear, if it is to be worthy of your consideration and beneficial for your growth, absolutely must be centered upon God’s Word! “Christ’s scholars never learn above their Bible”! The Holy Spirit’s presences does not remove the necessity of the Scriptures, instead it enables us to understand, approve, and obey the Scriptures! Faith comes through hearing the Word of God. So proper preaching must accentuate the goodness of God’s Word.

The second intention of my sermon is to showcase an example of giving a defense for the hope that is within us. This goes hand in hand with what we just looked at, but the centrality of God’s Word is not limited to the act of preaching. Peter is giving this defense which if fueled by the Holy Spirit, but it is also clear that Peter is filled with a knowledge of God’s Word. I’m not the brightest cookie in the world. When I preach on Sunday mornings, I use notes. In this message that Peter is giving, there was no iPad, no projector, no notes. I presume that is possible the Holy Spirit gave him the ability to perfectly recite the book of Joel, without prior knowledge, but what is much more likely and congruent with the rest of the teaching of Scripture, is that Peter had studied this text extensively and committed it to memory! The Spirit then led him to preach what he already knew. I know how this goes myself. I am working diligently to memorize the book of Colossians. If you listen to my sermons carefully, or have a conversation with me in day to day life, there is a good chance that you will find direct quotations or at the least inferences to the book of Colossians. God has led me to commit that book to memory and the Spirit then uses that discipline to apply to everyday conversation and teaching moments. The point here is not that I should be commended for memorization, but that you should be encouraged to do the same! Memorize, dwell upon, meditate upon God’s Word and watch has the Spirit brings it out of you in everyday conversation and uses it to help you make a defense for the hope that is within you!

The third intention of the sermon this morning was to help us grow in our appreciation of God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. In this quotation from the book of Joel, Peter is declaring to his hearers of that day and us here today, that God, through Jesus Christ, is ushering in a new age of Spirit filled believers that will culminate in the judgment and the second coming of Jesus Christ. Peter is proclaiming that we are living in the “already and the not yet”. Verses 17 and 18 are the already: The people here are witnessing the pouring out of God’s Spirit on believers. Verses 19 and 20 describe the coming culmination point of final judgment. And the blessed message for all of us to appreciate God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ is proclaimed in verse 21: Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved!

Those hearing this message from Peter may been astounded to hear that now is the time for this prophecy from Joel to be initiated. Being that the folks gathered here were religious Jews coming to celebrate the feast of Pentecost in the Holy City, it is likely that they would’ve been familiar with this passage. They may even have been inclined to believe Peter because of all of the wondrous spectacles they had witnessed this day thus far, but still would’ve wondered, what changed? Why now? Joel wrote this prophecy some 400 years before this, why is now the time? Peter explains that in the next section:

Acts 2:22–24 ESV

“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

As we think about this in the context of a good sermon, we see that good sermons are to be Christ-centered. If all things are created through, by and for Christ, then show should be our sermons. If sermons are to be ordered around God’s Word and God’s Word is ordered around Christ, then our sermons are likewise ordered around Christ. Good preaching is Christ-centered preaching.

As we think about this in the context of making a defense for our hope, it has already been said today that the reason for the hope that is within me, the reason for the hope that is within us, the reason for the hope that is within this church, is Jesus Christ. If we are making a defense for the hope that is within us, it HAS to be drawn back to Jesus.

As we grow in our appreciation for God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ, here, Peter shows the hearers what has changed since Joel wrote the prophecy some 400 years before this. First we have the incarnation: He says in verse 22: Jesus of Nazareth, a man; we know from the whole testimony of Scripture and Jesus’ teaching in the gospels that He is the God man, God incarnate. Then in Verse 23 Peter shows the crucifixion: Jesus, delivered up according to the plan of God, crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. Then in verse 24: the Resurrection, God raised Him up, it says.

Peter is laying out that it was always God’s plan for God to step into human form, to live, to die, to rise again. We can see this plan working throughout the Old Testament, and Peter highlights it from Psalms 16 and 110.

Acts 2:25–28 ESV

For David says concerning him, “ ‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

This is from Psalm 16, written by the greatest earthly king of Israel, David. The one from whom would come the Promised Messiah, the ultimate King. The hearers would once again be familiar with this passage. A good sermon relates to the hearers in terms they identify with and can understand. As does making a defense for the hope we have. We should relate to people in categories they understand and identify with and show them that Christ is the one we have all been looking for.

So Peter highlights the Old Testament hero David, but then shows that the Psalms David wrote, weren’t completely talking about himself, they were pointing to Jesus:

Acts 2:29–35 ESV

“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’

Peter is explaining that God was working through David to point us to what would be ultimately accomplished in Christ. The explanation given to us in verses 29-35 walks side by said with the psalm quoted just prior.

David wrote “you will not abandon my soul to Hades” Peter says “Christ was not abandoned to Hades. David wrote “you won’t let you Holy One see corruption.” Peter showed in verse 31 “Christ’s flesh did not see corruption.” David wrote, “You have made known to me the paths of life.” Peter showed in verse 32, “This Jesus God raised up.” Davide wrote, “full of gladness with your presence.” Peter showed in verse 33. “Jesus is exalted at the right hand of God.”

Peter is showing his audience of that day and us this morning, that what is being witnessed at Pentecost, is the result of the enthronement of King Jesus, an enthronement that was made possible through Christ’s victory over death.

As the Victor over death, Jesus has the authority to send the Holy Spirit to dwell in believers!

You see in verses 34 and 35 that the victory that Christ has accomplished is stamped and proclaimed by the glorious ascension witness by Christ’s disciples just a few days before this Pentecost.

Then Peter ends his sermon, his defense, with this poignant statement:

Acts 2:36 ESV

Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

A good sermon has a point. It’s not rambling for the sake of rambling. It is teaching something. Here Peter shows that the point of his sermon is twofold. First he is proclaiming that Jesus Christ, is Lord and Christ. Jesus is the Lord, that is the Supreme, the Authority, the One in charge, the word used in Greek is the same word for Jehovah in the Old Testament. It was clear to Peter’s hearers that this Peter is highlighting the Divinity of Jesus. Jesus is also the Christ, the Messiah, the anointed one, THE prophet, priest, king. The one all the others in the Old Testament were Just a shadow of. It all culminates in Christ. So Peter’s point to highlight the worthiness and value of Jesus as Lord and Christ.

And his second point is to convict Israel of their sin and need of salvation. Twice in this sermon, here and in verse 23, Peter points out that it was Israel who killed Jesus. They had Him crucified on the cross. Though it happened in accordance with God’s plan for redemption, as stated in verse 23, they are nonetheless guilty for their sin. We’re once again seein the divine convergence of God’s sovereign mastery over creation and the responsibility of man for their sin. The wages of sin is death and as enemies of God it is the rightful result to the actions

As we come to a close for this morning, it can be easy to look down on those who directly voted for and spurred on the crucifixion of Christ. They certainly aren’t presented as heroes nor are should we ever think that they were righteous in their afflictions of Christ. But what we need to realize, why we should grow in our appreciation for God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ, is this, we may not have been there in the mocking crowd, but as it is put in the hymn “How Deep the Father’s Love For Us,” it was our sin that held Him there.

When we think about the guilt of the jews, we shouldn’t think ourselves to be higher! We too are sinners! We too are deserving of death! We too are guilty! As Jonathan Edwards writes in Sinners in the Hands of an ANgry God, “O sinner! consider the fearful danger you are in! It is a great furnace of wrath, a wide and bottomless pit, full of the fire of wrath that you are held over in the hand of that God whose wrath is provoked and incensed as much against you as against many of the damned in hell.”

In our sin and guilt, we are damned,

But praise be to God it has come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

In the recognition of our guilt we see our need of a Savior. In seeing our need of a Savior we see the sufficiency of Christ. In seeing the sufficiency of Christ we call on the only name that can save, we call on the anchor of our hope, we call on the name of Lord Jesus Christ.

That is the reason for the hope that is within me. Do you have the same hope? Are you living with that hope? Have you called on the name of the Lord? If you have already sometime in the past, start living like it! If you have never called on the name of the Lord, do so today.

Let’s Pray.